In 2018 Brett Guterman, a senior at Bullis School in Potomac, was part of a team of six that faced a challenge in the school’s Entrepreneurship Signature Program. The group needed to create an original design as their class project. Some of the students were babysitters and together they came up with the idea of designing a diaper bag to include a feature that would allow parents to change a baby’s diapers in any environment. Their prototype won the school’s annual Shark Tank competition with its $10,000 award, which they used as seed money to launch their design.
They came up with the “Go Bag,” a changing pad in a diaper bag backpack that can hold everything necessary for easy and sanitary diaper changing. What really makes the Go Bag unique is its patented design that allows the backpack to fully unzip to reveal a 36” changing pad to fit babies from newborns to toddlers. The unique design is the result of Brett interviewing hundreds of customers who described what they look for when purchasing a diaper bag. Their concerns included finding a clean place to change their baby’s diapers. They mentioned the desire to avoid public restrooms, especially today with the coronavirus adding to their concerns. This impacted the design of the bag’s pad to make it easy to clean. It is wipeable and water-repellant so, in Brett’s words, “You’re not taking germs back home with you.”
The backpack, which weighs less than two pounds, contains seven storage compartments which can hold diapers (in the top flap) and a baby pocket with four internal compartments for additional diapers, wipes, bottles, snacks and more. Also included is an insulated compartment that can hold up to two bottles. Another pocket is available for storing keys, hand sanitizers, cell phones and other items an adult would want. A large back pocket will fit a laptop, blanket and other items. Nothing is forgotten. In addition to adjustable padded backpack straps, a four-inch handle drop, a magnetic clasp to hold the top pocket down and straps to connect the bag to a stroller, are all part of the design.
According to Brett, the bag gives parents the confidence to know that when leaving home they don’t have to be anxious about planning ahead to find a suitable location to change diapers, even if it’s outdoors. The design of the bag also included spending a lot of time on market research to help select the vegan leather in gender neutral colors-denim blue, blue gray and military green-remember that, men!
Brett, who is 21 and now a junior at the George Washington University, decided to buy out his teammates in early 2020. He was awarded a utility patent and launched a successful Kickstarter campaign in September 2020, which was fully funded in one week. Right beside Brett is his mother Barbara, a successful entrepreneur in her own right. Barbara is the company’s president and COO and they work together in building their business. According to her, “I am always learning from Brett and vice versa.”
In school Brett is studying finance as well as running his company. He and his mother look at designing and marketing OTGbaby diaper changing backpacks as, “A great learning experience of taking an idea and turning it into a reality.” And even though the company is just getting started, OTGbaby, Inc. is already thinking about giving back to the community. One of their goals is to donate diapers and accessories to families and babies in need throughout the country.