Toronto Star
Life, Saturday, August 14, 2004, p. L01

Here's a concept: Nurture parents
Jennifer Wells

Amy Halpenny is sleek as a willow, dressed all in black save for her cool caramel pointy-toed shoes. Her wavy strawberry hair is tied straight back, with a highlight here and there, and if she applied makeup this morning, there's little evidence of it now.

There is something of Nicole Kidman about her, this 29-year-old entrepreneur, as she guides a tour of her first-ever enterprise, in a one-time printing factory in Leaside. A printing factory that has been transformed into a bright, airy space with blond floors, turquoise and lime appointments, pop-art flower designs and flaxen window panels printed with dragonflies.

This space is a soothing delight, a deliberately designed oasis for moms-to-be, dads-to-be, and moms-who-are and dads-who-are. Halpenny has named it the Ella Centre for Pregnancy and Parenting, but there's no name up to the task of capturing the sweep of her concept. Which is going to take some explaining.

Here we are in the foyer of Ella. Couches for coffee and chatter, a reception desk ingeniously designed with a toddler-height mirrored panel, so as moms check in for a yoga class, little ones can busy themselves by scrutinizing their reflections. Soon, an abacus will be attached.

Here we have an array of charming items for sale. Halpenny plucks a Petunia Pickle Bottom diaper bag from the shelf. It happens to be the Petunia Pickle Bottom Sunset Dragon Roll, a flaming Asian red satin brocade bag with a black and gold motif, featuring bottle pockets and a change pad. The same California chic diaper bag favoured by actress Julianne Moore, whose stylish approach to motherhood has, along with the likes of Uma Thurman and Reese Witherspoon, been much discussed in the entertainment media.

Halpenny makes this point: Parenting is deemed to be "in" and "in" parents particularly desire the "it" diaper bag.

She sounds slightly sheepish when she says this. Ella is not a frivolous enterprise. And Halpenny, who once worked for the research firm Catalyst and later studied international relations at the Fletcher School in Boston, is dead serious about making it a success. So let's let her define it.

"Ella is about what it means to be a parent," she says. "It's a 360-degree approach to parenting." Selling such irresistible fare as Kashwere baby blankets, the nuzzling of which would cause anyone to wish for nap time, merely complements what Halpenny sees as Ella's "circle of service."

Let's back up. Consider a mother-to-be zooming toward the birth of her first child. Not atypically, she has more questions than answers. She's finding the meetings with her OBGYN fleeting, and by the time she gets in to the obstetrician's office, she's lost track of what information she's seeking. "You can have someone who's a vice-president of banking who understands all the intricacies of corporate lending," says Halpenny, "but she doesn't understand the first thing about pregnancy."

Halpenny knows something about this particular professional category. While at Catalyst, an American-based research and advisory group that works to advance women in business, she spent a year on a project that studied women in investment banking. "What we continually came back to was the issue of women and work and life balance, trying to be a parent and trying to hold on to one's individuality." At Ella, the mom can take parenting classes and prenatal courses, learn about prenatal nutrition and listen to a speaker demystify the tests and procedures that sometimes seem to overtake the hospital experience.

Vaccinations? Breastfeeding? The Ella concept, says Halpenny, is not meant to replace a parent's first line of information - the physician, the midwife - but to complement the information both parents receive. "We don't advocate for a particular philosophy," she says. "I don't ever want a parent walking out of here thinking, 'I've made a bad choice.'"

Bellies are beautiful and there's life beyond baby. Often, that latter message gets lost in the lives of frazzled parents. Ella offers wellness services, personal trainers, yoga classes, fees for which are in line with similar, though baby-free, services around town. Ella charges $170 for 10 yoga classes; child care is $10 for two hours. A playroom, with the tiniest toilet you've ever seen, frees mom up for time for herself, extending to a massage or a pedicure, if that's her inclination. And Halpenny has placed a firm focus on a chemical-free, baby-friendly environment.

Under the rubric Finding Balance, Ella will feature guest speakers or, as Halpenny phrases it, "current affairs for mush brains." The opportunities would appear to be limitless. "We were going to have a class called Guilt and not describe it, just to see how many people showed up."

It is a great and challenging task to take an idea such as this from concept to fruition. While studying at the Fletcher School, Halpenny found an entrepreneurial environment that was enormously supportive. "Maybe I haven't looked in the right places," she says of her experience here. "Canada is lonely for young entrepreneurs."

She hasn't found the same resources, the same mentoring networks that were plentiful in Boston. She declines to offer details on her financial backers, except to say that "angel investors" provided the seed capital.

Halpenny has the undaunted manner that sees only opportunity. On Tuesday, the Ella centre will celebrate its formal launch with the Ultimate Baby Shower. For Halpenny, who has no children of her own, this will be her opportunity to show off her first born. The Ella Centre for Pregnancy and Parenting is at 105 Vanderhoof Ave., Suite 2, Toronto. Call 416-425-6500.