As a marketing and sales leader, Carolyn Hentschell began her career in the agency business. In the late 1990s, Hand-Craft Co. hired Hentschell’s agency to help launch a patented, vented baby bottle that provided a myriad of health benefits for the baby. The experience led Hentschell to join the company as the vice president of sales which quickly led to promotions to COO and ultimately, president.
Handi-Craft Co. develops safe and effective, high-quality products to assist in the health and well-being of mothers and babies. The firm’s flagship is patented, Dr. Brown’s vented baby bottles and the company has been recognized as a thought leader in the healthcare industry with its attention to feeding infants successfully, including highly compromised infants in NICUs across the world.
The company sells numerous iterations of the bottle as well as bottle accessories, pacifiers, training cups, toddler feeding, electronics such as bottle warmers and sterilizers, teething accessories, health-related wipes, infant and toddler dental care, breast feeding products and maternal health care products.
In her positions at the company, Hentschell led the development of a worldwide, trusted brand with both parents and health care providers. Under her direction, the company went on to develop new best of class products, securing multiple patents and expanded into a Class 3 medical device with the development of the company’s first breast pump. This involved securing the company’s first 510(k) and developing an FDA regulated quality control system.
“Personal longevity in the baby industry has helped make Carolyn an expert in the marketplace,” said her staff. “She is often contacted by research analysts, private equity firms and many others making a play for CPG, and particularly, the infant/toddler space.”
Hentschell knows the players and the many challenges they face while understanding the niche that Dr. Brown’s fills, said her staff. “At the core of it is understanding the economy and how world events can affect the birth rate and people’s willingness to have children,” they said. “Carolyn works with major retailers to help them understand how to positively impact their sales in the infant and toddler space.”
Her success in the industry has led to Hentschell being named one of St. Louis’ 25 Most Influential Women in Business by the St. Louis Business Journal. Her vision is what she credits for the success. “I know the desired outcome and am able to backtrack from there to determine the best path forward to achieve our objective,” she said. “I am often able to map out the details necessary to head down an often-complex path forward.”
Her accomplishments and influence in the industry has led Hentschell to being named a Titan 100.
