Building a Brand Without Losing What Made It Matter: Hope & Plum on Community, Growth and Staying the Course

What does it take to grow a company from a basement operation into an eight-figure brandm without sacrificing the values that inspired it?

On this episode of Like.Love.Share., BabbleBoxx founder Sherri Langburt sits down with Hope & Plum co-founders and best friends Skye Amundsen and Mallory Muscolino to talk about building a community-led business, navigating rapid growth and staying committed to ethical manufacturing in an increasingly competitive industry.

Their story is an honest look at what entrepreneurship really requires: shared values, difficult conversations, resilient partnerships and the willingness to keep moving forward, even when the next step is uncertain.

A Brand Built From Community

Hope & Plum began eight years ago in Mallory’s basement, but the foundation for the brand was formed even earlier.

Skye and Mallory first met online while trying to conceive their first children. Their conversations eventually moved into a Facebook group where hundreds of mothers openly shared their experiences with fertility, pregnancy and parenting.

When the two friends decided to launch a baby carrier company, they invited that community into the process.

The group weighed in on product ideas, branding decisions and the early direction of the company. Instead of building behind closed doors and revealing a finished product, Skye and Mallory allowed their earliest supporters to help shape the brand alongside them.

That transparency gave people a reason to feel invested in Hope & Plum before it had reached a larger audience.

The lesson for emerging brands is simple but powerful: community is not something that can be added at the end of a marketing plan. The strongest communities are built when people are invited into the journey early, listened to consistently and shown that their feedback can make a real difference.

Solving a Problem the Founders Understood Personally

From the beginning, Hope & Plum set out to make the baby carrier industry more inclusive.

As a plus-size mother, Mallory saw an opportunity to create carriers that could comfortably support a wider range of bodies. Both founders were also experienced baby wearers, giving them firsthand knowledge of what parents needed from the product.

That personal connection shaped everything from fit and function to fabric and design.

Hope & Plum’s carriers are also intentionally colorful. Skye and Mallory recognized that while a baby carrier serves a practical purpose, it is worn by the parent. It can, and should, feel like an accessory they are excited to use.

Through collaborations with women and nonbinary artists, the brand has introduced expressive prints and designs that stand apart from the traditionally utilitarian look of the category.

This is what meaningful product differentiation looks like. Hope & Plum did not simply enter an existing market with a different color palette. The founders identified who was being overlooked, understood what those consumers wanted and designed the entire experience around them.

Growing a Business With Your Best Friend

Friendship may have brought Skye and Mallory together, but intention is what has allowed their business partnership to succeed.

They describe working together as being similar to a marriage: the stakes are high, the decisions are personal and open communication is essential.

Their differences allow them to contribute complementary strengths, while their shared values provide a foundation for making difficult decisions. They also understand that the company now carries responsibilities far beyond the two of them. With approximately 30 direct employees, and many more people connected to its manufacturing, Hope & Plum supports dozens of families.

That responsibility makes communication even more important.

For other co-founders, their experience is a reminder that a strong relationship is not enough on its own. Successful partnerships require clearly defined strengths, shared priorities and the ability to have honest conversations before problems grow.

Ethical Manufacturing Is a Relationship, Not a Talking Point

Hope & Plum’s commitment to quality extends throughout its supply chain.

The company began by working with local sewists before partnering with a women-owned and women-led manufacturer in the Twin Cities. Its supplier relationships have also been built through research, personal connections and a shared commitment to quality and sustainability.

One of the brand’s most important fabric partnerships began unexpectedly when Skye discovered a hemp clothing store while attending a bachelorette party in Canada. She asked the owner where the fabric came from, explained her vision for Hope & Plum and was connected directly to the manufacturer.

Today, those relationships go far beyond transactions.

Skye and Mallory know the people producing their materials and products. They can speak openly with them when challenges arise, work through problems collaboratively and trust that everyone involved cares about the outcome.

For brands, the takeaway is significant: the right supplier should not simply be able to fulfill an order. They should understand the product, respect the mission and be willing to grow alongside the company.

Taking Growth One Day at a Time

Hope & Plum’s success did not happen in a straight line.

During the pandemic, supply timelines grew longer while consumers pulled back on spending. Skye and Mallory faced difficult conversations about whether the business could continue. At times, they contributed their own money to keep it moving forward.

Rather than forcing themselves to make a sweeping decision about the company’s future, they focused on the next manageable milestone.

Could they keep going until tomorrow? What about next week? What would the following month look like?

That perspective helped turn an overwhelming challenge into a series of smaller decisions.

Entrepreneurs are often encouraged to think years ahead, but there are moments when resilience means narrowing the timeframe. You may not know whether the business can survive another year, but you can determine the smartest next move today.

Passion mattered, but as the founders acknowledge, so did stubbornness, tenacity and the ability to recover from rejection.

The Complicated Reality of Scaling

Hope & Plum grew from the lower six figures to eight figures in approximately four years, an extraordinary milestone that also introduced a new set of pressures.

As the company expanded, Skye and Mallory found themselves outgrowing many of the founder communities they had once relied upon. Very few people could fully understand the responsibility of rapid growth while maintaining domestic production, high-quality materials, inclusive design and a close relationship with customers.

The conversation also touches on the role of private equity in the baby-products industry. As more founder-led companies are acquired, brands can face pressure to prioritize efficiency and profit over the qualities that once made them distinctive.

Skye, who previously worked as a corporate attorney, understands why founders choose to sell. Building a business at this level is demanding, and stepping away can require just as much courage as continuing.

But Hope & Plum remains committed to maintaining its independence and protecting the values at the center of the company.

Growth, after all, is not only about becoming bigger. It is about deciding what must remain intact as the business evolves.

The Real Advantage of a Founder-Led Brand

Hope & Plum’s journey demonstrates that values do not need to be separated from business strategy.

Its community helped inform the products. Its commitment to inclusivity created market differentiation. Its supplier relationships supported quality. Its transparency strengthened customer loyalty. Even the company’s name, drawn from the middle names of Skye’s and Mallory’s eldest children, keeps the founders connected to why they began.

These choices may make growth more complex, but they also make the brand more difficult to replicate.

Products can be copied. A deeply rooted community, trusted partnerships and eight years of shared history cannot.

Listen to the full episode of Like.Love.Share. to hear more from Hope & Plum co-founders Skye Amundsen and Mallory Muscolino about friendship, entrepreneurship, ethical manufacturing and what it takes to build a company that grows without losing its purpose.