Minnesota's Small Business Person of the Year scores big with Walmart contract extension

Southeast Minnesota startup Busy Baby got some great news a few weeks ago.

Walmart extended and expanded its contract for the company's baby mats through 2026.

The contract means fast growth for the Oronoco company, whose founder last week was named Minnesota's Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Busy Baby's design of it silicon baby mats, which suction onto tables and come with tethering straps for items such as rattles and spoons, are patented and were finding their audience online.

Last fall, though, the company received orders for trial runs at both Walmart and Target. With that, though, came the big-box world: The orders catapult, but they are not paid for up front.

That meant founder Beth Fynbo Benike and her brother and business partner, Eric Fynbo, had to hire five more workers and special order and import many more baby mats and accessories. Then in a fury, they raced to separate the orders, sort them into boxes and send them to distribution centers across the country.

"We are actually in a very tight cash flow situation right now because we have invested in all that inventory and packaging and the logistics to support these retailers," Fynbo Benike said.

Big-box payments have a lag time of 45 to 90 days, so the first of the Walmart payments should come soon. But Target just launched the line in March, so those payments are still a bit far out.

In the meantime, the company had to take on some contract work and new clients, plus offer some new services, to bring in extra cash.

As of last year, Busy Baby had $15 million in sales, mostly through online orders and 400 small retail stores, such as Little Roos in Chaska and My Happy Place in Zumbrota, Minn.

Fynbo Benike, a veteran, received SBA loan guarantees on several loans from Foresight Bank in Plainview. The loans were key in Busy Baby's ability to cover startup costs and buy inventory and purchase land worth $2.5 million that came with three warehouses in Oronoco, 18 miles north of Rochester.

"I don't know how she does it. But awards like this [SBA Person of the Year] are for people like her. It's well-deserved," said Matt Brouillard, Foresight's commercial loan officer. "Just like any small business they have had a lot of challenges. They've grown very quickly, which can be pretty stressful. But with them, it's been nothing but 'We got this!' It's positivity. There's no such thing as quit."

Brian McDonald, SBA's Minnesota district director, said Fynbo Benike also has participated in the agency's emerging leaders and coaching programs and mentors other women-owned startups.

She is "a great example of Minnesota's strong entrepreneurial ecosystem," he said, in recognizing her SBA award.

The SBA honors come at an awkward time. On March 21, the agency announced it will cut 2,700 positions, or 43% of its staff, and close several regional offices as part of President Donald Trump's efforts to downsize the federal workforce.

Fynbo Benike expects the SBA will adjust and adhere to its mission of helping entrepreneurs. And while there are other resources in Minnesota, she said it would be would be "a huge bummer for [any SBA funding and services] to go away."

She will compete next month against SBA winners in the other 49 states for the agency's national business of the year honors.

"It's a huge honor to be recognized and to, like, look back and see the critical value SBA has provided to my business and my growth and my journey," Fynbo Benike said.