Small Business
Jen Aprea with Spray Pal
in Huntington Beach, CA
With Spray Pal, Jen and Dave, Mr. and Mrs. Spray Pal, are changing the world one cloth diaper at a time. While cloth diapering their daughter, Danielle, Spray Pal was invented; a quality, high pressure sprayer that sprays cloth diapers clean, making cloth diapering easier! No more mess. Their website promises, “Spray Pal® is more than just a cloth diapering accessory, it’s a community.” They have built a strong community that promotes modern cloth diapering that is easy and fun to follow with the #makeclothmainstream™. The #makeclothmainstream™ community is a very special part of the Aprea family. When their youngest kid, Ryan, now 3-years-old, was born premature at 25 weeks and later would need cochlear implants in both ears, the #makeclothmainstream™ community shared their outpour of support and words of encouragement. I Admire U Jen for thinking outside of the box with Spray Pal, which is currently sold in over 150 retailers around the world, and for daring to leave your teaching career of 11 years to become a cloth diaper advocate.
Referred by: Brooke Henze
Referred by: Brooke Henze
Jennifer in her own words...
1. Brooke Henze, Founder of Swell Forever, nominated Spray Pal for a Small Business Making a Difference. In what ways do you believe Spray Pal makes a difference?
I think Spray Pal makes a difference by helping people realize they can do cloth diapers at home, so in turn, they are keeping their babies healthier. They are keeping trash out of the landfills and just making better choices for the environment, and they’re saving lots of money!
2. Spray Pal is sold in over 150 retailers nationwide. How did the idea of Spray Pal come about? When did you realize your product was going to be a hit?
Well, Spray Pal was invented when we were using cloth diapers on my daughter, and she started eating solids and we needed something to do with the solid waste. My husband is very MacGyver and he decided to come up with a shield, because we purchased a diaper sprayer, but it was super high pressure, splatter got everywhere, and we couldn’t figure out how to use it right. So, he invented the shield and we added a clip to hold the diaper in, and then I added the part about squeezing out the water to make it easier to store, because you can store it flat.
I think we realized the product was going to be a hit once we started getting it out there and the reviews were coming back and they were overwhelming positive. People were emailing us saying, “I was going to give up on cloth diapers when my baby started eating solid food, but thanks to Spray Pal, I can keep going with it, it’s so much easier.” We get a lot of people saying we should go on Shark Tank, they really like the simplicity of the idea, and how easy it makes using cloth diapers.
I think Spray Pal makes a difference by helping people realize they can do cloth diapers at home, so in turn, they are keeping their babies healthier. They are keeping trash out of the landfills and just making better choices for the environment, and they’re saving lots of money!
2. Spray Pal is sold in over 150 retailers nationwide. How did the idea of Spray Pal come about? When did you realize your product was going to be a hit?
Well, Spray Pal was invented when we were using cloth diapers on my daughter, and she started eating solids and we needed something to do with the solid waste. My husband is very MacGyver and he decided to come up with a shield, because we purchased a diaper sprayer, but it was super high pressure, splatter got everywhere, and we couldn’t figure out how to use it right. So, he invented the shield and we added a clip to hold the diaper in, and then I added the part about squeezing out the water to make it easier to store, because you can store it flat.
I think we realized the product was going to be a hit once we started getting it out there and the reviews were coming back and they were overwhelming positive. People were emailing us saying, “I was going to give up on cloth diapers when my baby started eating solid food, but thanks to Spray Pal, I can keep going with it, it’s so much easier.” We get a lot of people saying we should go on Shark Tank, they really like the simplicity of the idea, and how easy it makes using cloth diapers.
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3. Dave, your husband and business partner in crime, put his handy skills to work, and created the first prototype. He created a product that is lightweight, easy to clean, and easy to store. What types of materials do you use? Where is your product made?
We make the Spray Pal from really high quality polyethylene which is composed of 50% post-consumer recycled plastic. It is BPA, PVC, and phthalate-free. It is really high quality and it’s made to last and we made sure to test tons of clips before using one that we knew wouldn’t rust and wouldn’t break. It’s strong enough that you can bend the Spray Pal to squeeze out the water, and it should last you for as many kids you want to put in cloth diapers. Our product is made locally. We live in Orange County and it is produced in a factory down in Los Angeles. The guy has been in business for years and he is a wonderful man. It’s a great place, we really like working locally.
4. Your website, www.spray-pal.com, states, “Spray Pal® is more than just a cloth diapering accessory, it’s a community.” How does Spray Pal pay it forward?
Spray Pal tries to give back in a variety of ways. Here at Spray Pal we continue to support non-profit organizations like Giving Diapers, Giving Hope. We regularly attend events like the Great Cloth Diaper Change, and we visit our retailers around the US for Small Biz, Big Love, which we started with Sloomb and Lillebaby, some other brands in the baby industry. We also collaborated with a cloth diaper company named GroVia to create a cloth diaper in honor of my son to raise money for the March of Dimes. My son was born prematurely, so it is an organization that is near and dear to our hearts.
"All of a sudden people are excited to have poopy diapers to change, which we’re glad, because it does make things easier. It actually makes it fun."
5. In 2013, you started the #makeclothmainstream™ to promote cloth diapering to the masses. What do you think has made your hashtag so successful? What will someone find if they click on your hashtag?
I think the #makeclothmainstream™ is successful because it makes sense. People like it, it’s quick and easy, and it really promotes something good. We are trying to get the message out there, “Look how cute my baby is in this cute cloth diaper and it is really easier than you think.” We decided we should really make this mainstream. We started it because we wanted to get cloth diapers into the mainstream eye and social media was the great way to do that, so the hashtag has taken off from there since 2013.
If someone clicks on the hashtag they are going to find pictures of cute babies using cloth diapers and they might find some pictures of Spray Pal. It is fun to look through and see cloth diapering in action, and I really like following the hashtag on Instagram.
6. What nugget of wisdom would you share with a parent who considers cloth diapering too much of a daily challenge?
I would say that it’s totally normal to start out thinking that way. A lot of people still think it’s still safety pins and rubber covers that go over that square type of diaper, which is called a prefold, but times have changed and modern cloth diapers are really easy to use. They are daddy and grandparent and daycare friendly. They are easy to do at home, especially if you have a diaper sprayer and a Spray Pal. It is all very, very manageable. It really just comes down to extra loads of laundry a week, honestly, there’s no extra steps putting on the diaper then there would be for a disposable. There’s no extra steps in taking it off, instead of throwing it in the trash, you throw it into a wet bag or a pail liner and save it until laundry day.
"It’s great because they love on social media when I share pictures of him or tell little stories of him, because it is just so amazing to see how far he’s come. And the same goes for our Spray Pal business, it’s amazing how in such a short time we’ve come such a far distance."
7. Spray Pal helps make the entire process of cloth diapering less stressful. What is one of your favorite customer testimonies?
I think my favorite testimony is when people first order a Spray Pal after not using one for a while and they say things like, “Why did I wait so long?” or “I just got my Spray Pal in the mail and is it weird that I’m kinda excited for my kid to poop.” All of a sudden people are excited to have poopy diapers to change, which we’re glad, because it does make things easier. It actually makes it fun. It is a good testimonial.
8. Along with being an entrepreneur, you are the mother of two beautiful children. Your youngest son was born premature, had a seven month NICU journey, and has cochlear implants in both ears. In what ways has Ryan’s journey impacted your Spray Pal journey?
That is an interesting question actually. Ryan’s journey and the Spray Pal journey almost coincide with one another, because we came up with the idea when my daughter was six-months-old. We applied for our patent, we started looking into production, and all of that. It came out when she was just about one-year-old which is right around the time we found out I was pregnant with my son and the Spray Pal came to market. Then six months later, more like five-and-half-months later, I had Ryan prematurely, and this was right around the same time Spray Pal was actually starting to take off. So, they have grown together, they are both like our little babies.
I think Ryan’s journey has impacted our journey with the business, because as we were sharing things on social media and then having him, we were mostly sharing about the business, but then once he was born, of course people were wondering. We had to make an announcement because we weren’t going to be able to ship orders for some time. Things were going to be paused with Spray Pal, but the community on our Facebook page, even though we were really small at that time, were so incredibly supportive and we were still able to bring things back to where they were after a couple weeks of him being in the NICU. We got into a little groove again with working the business and still having him and my daughter. They’ve really grown and blossomed together and the community that was there from the beginning with Spray Pal, has truly watched him grow from birth until now. It’s great because they love on social media when I share pictures of him or tell little stories of him, because it is just so amazing to see how far he’s come. And the same goes for our Spray Pal business, it’s amazing how in such a short time we’ve come such a far distance. We’re really excited to see how they continue to grow together.
I think my favorite testimony is when people first order a Spray Pal after not using one for a while and they say things like, “Why did I wait so long?” or “I just got my Spray Pal in the mail and is it weird that I’m kinda excited for my kid to poop.” All of a sudden people are excited to have poopy diapers to change, which we’re glad, because it does make things easier. It actually makes it fun. It is a good testimonial.
8. Along with being an entrepreneur, you are the mother of two beautiful children. Your youngest son was born premature, had a seven month NICU journey, and has cochlear implants in both ears. In what ways has Ryan’s journey impacted your Spray Pal journey?
That is an interesting question actually. Ryan’s journey and the Spray Pal journey almost coincide with one another, because we came up with the idea when my daughter was six-months-old. We applied for our patent, we started looking into production, and all of that. It came out when she was just about one-year-old which is right around the time we found out I was pregnant with my son and the Spray Pal came to market. Then six months later, more like five-and-half-months later, I had Ryan prematurely, and this was right around the same time Spray Pal was actually starting to take off. So, they have grown together, they are both like our little babies.
I think Ryan’s journey has impacted our journey with the business, because as we were sharing things on social media and then having him, we were mostly sharing about the business, but then once he was born, of course people were wondering. We had to make an announcement because we weren’t going to be able to ship orders for some time. Things were going to be paused with Spray Pal, but the community on our Facebook page, even though we were really small at that time, were so incredibly supportive and we were still able to bring things back to where they were after a couple weeks of him being in the NICU. We got into a little groove again with working the business and still having him and my daughter. They’ve really grown and blossomed together and the community that was there from the beginning with Spray Pal, has truly watched him grow from birth until now. It’s great because they love on social media when I share pictures of him or tell little stories of him, because it is just so amazing to see how far he’s come. And the same goes for our Spray Pal business, it’s amazing how in such a short time we’ve come such a far distance. We’re really excited to see how they continue to grow together.
9. I’m curious, what’s next for Spray Pal?
That’s a good question, we have a lot of things in the works. It’s going to be interesting to watch and see them come to fruition. We have a lot of collaborations coming up, things that we think will impact the cloth diapering community, and hopefully make cloth more accessible to people who are curious and don’t know about it. We want to bring some cloth education out there and just continue to promote the whole idea of making cloth diapering mainstream with the #makeclothmainstream™. It’s going to be fun to watch! The next big thing is going to be ABC Kids Expo which is coming up in Las Vegas. It is our biggest event of the year, that’s what we’re preparing for right now.
10. I Admire U, who do you admire?
I would say I admire Monica Leonard, she is the Owner and Founder of Molly’s Suds, which is a line of laundry detergents and other things for the laundry, and cleaning supplies. I just love their brand, we use it to wash our cloth diapers and she’s just a great mom, a great entrepreneur, and a great person. Her story is so touching and their business story is so touching. We’ll actually be sharing a booth with them at ABC Kids this year, because I’ve just grown to love them so much, so I admire Monica.
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