It all started with the name.
Owner Krystal Vaudreuil explains her new Parksville baby attire storefront and spa came about by way of a great name suggestion from none other than her own mother.
“I said to my husband, ‘we should open a baby store’ and that night I talked to my mom and she said, ‘you could call it Rock-a-Bear Baby,’” Vaudreuil told The NEWS. “I thought to myself, now I have to do it — that name is too perfect.”
And just like that Rock-a-Bear Baby Swag and Spa was born.
The cozy 800 square feet spa is nestled along Morison Avenue in Parksville with a little wooden sign out front saying: “positive vibes only.”
It’s relaxed, smells delightful and the shop is bursting with adorable bamboo onesies, fox-print sleepers and incredibly soft swaddles.
Basically, it’s parental paradise.
Vaudreuil calls it “a mom-friendly spa” noting new mothers are welcome to bring their babies in with them during a treatment. As Vaudreuil’s first-born is just six months old, she’s more than understanding about motherhood.
The shop carries mostly made-in Canada products like Salt Spring Soap Works Body Gelato, Vancouver’s Emerson Apparel line and Cowichan Valley Rocks and Roots shoes.
Vaudreuil said before she opened the shop, she found it difficult to find locally-made baby attire in Parksville and she often found herself shopping online to buy products made in B.C.
Recognizing a need in the community, Vaudreuil paired her skills as an esthetician with her background in business and opened a store to serve a wide range of women. Rock-a-Bear Baby spa treatments include: manicures, pedicures, leg and foot massages, threading, waxing, tinting and YonKa specialized facials. The team includes Vaudreuil, Lindsay Miller and Mahriya Auchoin.
Unlike most new mothers who take maternity leave after having a baby, Vaudreuil launched into entrepreneurship. But she said isn’t overwhelmed. In fact, she seems more relaxed than most people without a newborn or new business.
“This was all meant to be,” she said, holding her now six-month-old baby boy. “I knew this was a good idea from the beginning. I just had a feeling.”
Vaudreuil is originally from Saskatchewan but was drawn to the West Coast two years ago. “I was coming out here way too much,” she said. “I just wanted to be here for the lifestyle, the beauty, the air, the environment.”
Rock-a-Bear Baby Swag and Spa is located at 147 Morison Avenue in Parksville. The shop is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday and Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. For more information, or to book an appointment, stop by or call 250-586-2772 or e-mail rockabearbaby@gmail.com.