Having a baby can mean facing more decisions about purchasing products than one knew was possible: bassinet, cradle, or co-sleeper? Cloth or disposable diapers? With so many decisions to make, one of the last things the overwhelmed parent of an infant wants to decide is what kind of bottle to use. But the bottle decision is not incidental or easy: as babies grow, parents use, clean, and live with their bottle choice every day. And after an especially long day, a busy mom or dad has little interest in standing in front of a sink and jamming their hands into a baby bottle to clean out the milky sludge-filled bottom. Ann Arbor area brothers Jeff and Chris Plott recognized this problem and designed a simple, safe, and easy-to-use bottle that solves the problem– the Flipsi Baby Bottle.
The birth of an idea
The Flipsi is made of soft, food-grade silicone that flips inside out for easy cleaning of the bottom corners and crevices of the bottle. Every parent who has sloshed a soapy bottle brush in and out of bottles can appreciate this design feature is.
The soft silicone nipple is another attractive feature of the Flipsi Bottle. “We’ve got a lot of positive feedback from mothers switching from breastfeeding to bottle feeding. They’ve really liked our bottle because of the natural nipple shape and the ability to push out air before the feeding even starts,” said Jeff Plott. In addition to squeezing out excess air, the soft silicone sides also collapse as the baby sucks on the bottle, so air bubbles don’t become a problem.
Growing a baby business
in Ann Arbor
The Plott brothers are Michigan natives and University of Michigan graduates. Jeff Plott is currently working on his PhD at the University of Michigan in silicone 3-D printing, and the support their business gets in Ann Arbor is priceless for their company. “Being in Ann Arbor has helped us because there are so many opportunities. The community of startups and entrepreneurs within Ann Arbor and the university is incredible. Because Jeff was in school, we were able to tap into both sources. It was really invaluable in getting our company off the ground,” said Chris Plott.
The brothers are looking at future expansions for the Flipsi Baby bottle as they continue to grow their product line and production facilities. “For our next product we plan to expand our line of baby bottles to also include sippy cups. You will even be able to re-use components from the baby bottle with the sippy cup,” said Jeff. Additionally, the company has a short-term goal of bringing assembly to Michigan, and in the long-term they would like their products to be made in Michigan, too.
Where to find a Flipsi
Eight-ounce bottles are available for sale, and nipple sizes for ages 0-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months, and 9+ months are available so the durable bottle can accommodate your growing baby. Both can be purchased at flipsibottle.com and on Amazon.
