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Babble Soft Looking For A New Home
Jun 22 2009

This is a hard post for me to write, but there are times in life when the best way to handle hard things is to just deal with it head on.  I had some time and space to reflect during my recent beach vacation.

Babble Soft, an idea that I started tinkering around with after my first baby was born in 2003 (our first beta web app release was in 2007 and iPhone app in 2009), has reached a point where my partner, Nicole Johnson, and I can’t do it justice and build it to the company it could be.  We just don’t have the monetary and time resources that a consumer web and mobile (iPhone) based product Baby Insights and Baby Say Cheese require to become a household name.  I’ve been working on Babble Soft part time while balancing kids, the house, etc. for most of the company’s life.  I spent a few months full time on it just before I took a day job about a year ago and now the time has come to find a new home for it.  Nicole has been working on this part time, after hours, as well.

We are both discovering that Building A Web Business After Hours is hard to do with two small kids around.  And doubly hard when two ventures are trying to get off the ground in one household: my husband is starting the pre-K to 2nd grade Magellan School that’s scheduled to open this Fall and our resources are also being tied up with that and our kids will be attending the school.

Nicole and I both believe in web applications to help make parents of newborn’s lives easier, and we want to find a good home for Babble Soft with someone who can take our vision to the next level.  We will continue to support our existing customers and any future customers so please don’t worry about that.  We have a high bar set for customer service!  We just can’t take it to the level (with all the exciting new applications we have planned) where we know it could be right now in our lives, but we know there is someone or some company who can.

If you know of someone who might be interested, please email me at blogger(at) babblesoft(dot)com to discuss further.  Please pass a link to this post to everyone you know!

Motherhood is not always peaches & cream and being a mom entrepreneur adds a little extra challenge to the process so sometimes it’s the hard calls that can make the difference in a company’s and person’s success.

Thanks to all of you readers for your continued support and sticking with me through my unusual parenting and entrepreneurial journeys!

Aruni Gunasegaram
President/Founder
(512) 961-6002

Nicole Johnson
VP Product Development
(512) 961-6002

Author: | Filed under: babble soft, entrepreneurship | Tags: , , | 27 Comments »

27 Comments on “Babble Soft Looking For A New Home”

  1. 1 Isaac said at 7:44 AM on June 23rd, 2009:

    You built something that clearly has made a difference to a lot of people. It’s wise of you to realize that it’s time to transition it to somebody with deeper pockets of time and money. But it must have been a really tough decision.

    –Isaac

  2. 2 Dewey Gaedcke said at 11:57 AM on June 23rd, 2009:

    Aruni,
    Your focus and vision are phenomenal and I’ve seen some outstanding examples of the value you’ve created in this company. I know that some acquirer will be very lucky to hit the ground running with what you’ve started here. Congrats to you for making the tough choices to build a life that you love.
    Dewey Gaedcke
    CEO
    Minggl

  3. 3 Jessica said at 3:10 PM on June 23rd, 2009:

    I know this must have been an impossible decision to make, but knowing you, Aruni, you put a LOT of thought and intelligence into the decision. Good luck and I can’t wait to see what you do next,

    Jessica

    PS Thanks for the shell!

  4. 4 Easton Ellsworth said at 4:08 PM on June 23rd, 2009:

    I support you Aruni!

    You’ve done a brave thing. It’s not easy, and I know I can’t truly understand the depth of it, but I know you’ll find in time that it was the right path to take.

    May the future shine brightly upon you and yours, and may Babble Soft remain in good hands!

  5. 5 Eric Doggett said at 7:12 PM on June 23rd, 2009:

    Wow – sorry that you’ve had to go through this process, but I salute you for coming to a decision and going forward with it. I can’t wait to see what life has in store for you!

  6. 6 Aruni said at 7:22 PM on June 23rd, 2009:

    @Isaac – thanks for your acknowledgement and support. I appreciate it.

    @Dewey – coming from a fellow entrepreneur, that means a whole lot!

    @Jessica – thanks. Make sure to put that shell to your ear often.

    @Easton – Time heals all wounds they say. Thanks for your well wishes.

    @Eric – This is the challenging side of entrepreneurship but hopefully Babble Soft will live on. 🙂

  7. 7 Jay said at 8:32 AM on June 24th, 2009:

    Keep rockin. Being a parent and full time worker is a lot already. Long live the spirit of Babblesoft!!!

  8. 8 Nicole said at 12:41 PM on June 24th, 2009:

    Just writing to say how much I still believe in this company and product and I hope we can find a new home! I just tweeted, so hopefully we can find someone out there with the resources (time and otherwise) that we just don’t have right now. Building 2 businesses at once, working FT and being a mom is just too much. Who knows? Maybe one day we can become partners again when the kids are in college and don’t need us as much and we can work on a new venture! 😀
    .-= Nicole´s last blog ..Recognized as an AllTop site! =-.

  9. 9 Tishia Lee said at 10:24 AM on June 25th, 2009:

    Wow what a tough decision to have to make. I can’t imagine what it must be like to have to let something go that you’ve been working on for so long, your ‘baby’ so to say.

  10. 10 The Impact of Michael Jackson | entrepreMusings said at 9:41 PM on June 25th, 2009:

    […] Profiles « Babble Soft Looking For A New Home […]

  11. 11 Patty said at 11:46 PM on June 25th, 2009:

    Hi Aruni,

    I was surprised to see that you are having to give up Babblesoft…it sounds like you grew a great idea into a great product. I’m sorry you have to leave your ‘baby’ to move on to other things…as a mom with two young sons I know what you are going through…my online ‘business’ is more a hobby for me,but I have not developed a product like you..what a great accomplishment!

    Nice hearing from you via twitter…hope to hear from you again and wish you success in your endeavors. The school sounds great for your kids and other familiies.

    Take care!

  12. 12 Jenny said at 11:55 PM on June 25th, 2009:

    sounds like a nifty thing. good luck with getting it a new home 🙂

  13. 13 Aruni said at 8:34 PM on June 26th, 2009:

    @Jay – old man. I will definitely keep on rocking!

    @Nicole – I think no matter what happens we will stay in touch. Sometimes we just have to prioritize.

    @Tishia – It is hard to let go, but I think in the end it will be for the best.

    @Patty – Thanks so much! I am proud of creating a product that has helped many families. It’s time for the baby to hopefully grow up and find a better home.

    @Jenny – Thanks for the well wishes!

  14. 14 Katja of Skimbaco said at 9:00 PM on June 28th, 2009:

    I think I understand exactly how you feel and what kind of decision this was to you. I closed down my store in December..
    .-= Katja of Skimbaco´s last blog ..Giveaway! Road Trip Travel Kit from Disney Family.com =-.

  15. 15 Immomsdaughter said at 10:01 PM on June 28th, 2009:

    I’m sorry to hear that BabbleSoft has to find a new home but I’m sure that’s the best decision for you. Knowing you, you’ve probably tried all your best but it’s not easy balancing work and family while trying to build a business ~ I can relate!

    Wishing you all the best and I hope BabbleSoft finds a great new home.
    .-= Immomsdaughter´s last blog ..He Still Holds My Hand =-.

  16. 16 Twitted by servantofchaos said at 7:49 PM on June 29th, 2009:

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  17. 17 Lucretia said at 10:44 PM on June 29th, 2009:

    Oh hon… yeah I know how hard this has to be for you! Wishing you a great team to carry it on.
    Sometimes, life is what happens while you’re coding something else!

    ((hug))
    .-= Lucretia´s last blog ..My New Gig =-.

  18. 18 Aruni said at 9:22 PM on June 30th, 2009:

    @Katja – It’s always tough to move on, but sometimes you have to in order to make room for bigger and better things!

    @Immomsdaughter – Thanks for the well wishes. I appreciate your support in the past!

    @Lucretia – Nice saying ‘life is what happens when you coding something else’ 🙂 Hadn’t heard it put quite like that before!

  19. 19 Kristin Gorski said at 8:35 AM on July 1st, 2009:

    I know this must have been a really tough decision, but it sounds like the right one at the moment. Letting it go takes courage, and hopefully, Babble Soft will land at the right place. (It is a GREAT product!!!)

    Now, onto your exciting school endeavor: best of luck with that, and congratulations on providing a unique, needed, innovative option to the Austin education scene.

  20. 20 Liz Strauss said at 7:02 PM on July 1st, 2009:

    Aruni!
    I remember when you started. You had more energy and determination for your company than most folks put into their lives. You have every reason to be so damn proud.

    I wish you a great future and Babble Soft a wonderful home.
    .-= Liz Strauss´s last blog ..Hearing the Conversation =-.

  21. 21 Amanda said at 7:26 PM on July 1st, 2009:

    I’ll be hoping for a happy ending. I find that things have an interesting way of working themselves out if given the chance. Good luck!
    .-= Amanda´s last blog ..You Meaning =-.

  22. 22 C. Enrique Ortiz said at 11:41 PM on July 2nd, 2009:

    Aruni –

    I wish you and your business partner good luck! Hard decision it is; but you know what is best for your company. Whatever happens, you should try to remain involved in some form…

    ceo
    .-= C. Enrique Ortiz´s last blog ..Carnival of the Mobilists #180 =-.

  23. 23 Deborah Smith said at 3:03 PM on July 3rd, 2009:

    Sorry it took me so long to find this. I know how you are feeling. Many of us, including myself, are in transition right now. Very hard to make those decisions. I give you a lot of credit for having the backbone to do it. Keep those creative juices flowing. The kids will get older and things will get easier and then you’ll be ready for the next big idea.
    .-= Deborah Smith´s last blog ..Win it Friday? =-.

  24. 24 Aruni said at 12:28 PM on July 4th, 2009:

    @Kristen Gorski – Thanks for the well wishes.

    @Liz Strauss – you have always been an inspiration!

    @Amanda – I’m hoping for a happy ending too!

    @Enrique – Thanks for sending more luck our way. 🙂

    @Deborah – It’s nice to know there are others out there who can relate. So glad I met you on this journey.

  25. 25 Gretchen Heber said at 6:56 AM on July 6th, 2009:

    What a tough call, Aruni, but I know you did what’s best for you and your family. Good luck going forward!

  26. 26 A $50 Target Gift Card is Waiting for You | Baby Sleep Help | Toddler Sleep Help | Custom Sleep Help - Pick Nick's Brain said at 5:59 AM on July 9th, 2009:

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  27. 27 Summer Pricing and a New Home | Babble Soft Blog said at 7:06 AM on July 17th, 2009:

    […] started to look for a new home for Babble Soft.  Aruni did a post on her blog called Babble Soft Looking For A New Home that has been re-tweeted on Twitter a ton of times to help get the word out.   The […]