08/27/2026
I want to clear something up because I think there's been some confusion about how Moonchild works.
**Moonchild Maternity & Baby is not a nonprofit.**
We have a separate nonprofit organization that isn't currently active due to a lack of board members, and it has nothing to do with the day-to-day operation of the store.
Moonchild itself is a business. But probably not in the way people normally think about a retail business.
**I don't buy the secondhand inventory in my store.**
People bring me maternity, baby, and children's items they no longer need. Some people exchange eligible items for store credit, and a whole lot of people simply give me things because they want them to go somewhere they'll be used.
And then I take what I get and do the same thing. The other secondhand stores in the community send items to other cities, and it disposes of items it can't sell like carseats, cribs, strollers, and other needed baby items.
I follow all regulations so that these items can be reused by families in need and so that they don't go to waste like the other secondhand stores do.
** Also, I give away more than I sell.**
I give away clothing. Diapers. Wipes. Formula. Baby food. Bottles. Pumps. Postpartum supplies. Period products. And whatever else comes through the door that someone needs. If you need something, and I have it, lets work it out.
I need to sell enough of what comes in to try to pay the bills that keep the store open.
That's really it.
I'm not simply buying donated inventory and marking it up. There's not some huge profit being made from the things people bring me. The money that does come in goes toward rent, utilities, insurance, fees, supplies, and everything else it costs to have a physical place where people can bring things and other families can get them.
And we're not even consistently at the point where the store completely pays for itself yet. I'm still covering expenses myself when Moonchild can't.
I don't need a nonprofit to give something away. I don't need a nonprofit to give back to the community. And I don't need a nonprofit to take in donations.
If someone gives me 100 baby outfits and I can sell 20 of them to pay the electric bill and give the other 80 to families who need them, **that's exactly what I want Moonchild to do.**
And someday, if the store is bringing in enough to pay all of its own bills and there's actually money left over?
I want to hire parents part-time and let them bring their babies and young children to work with them. I want parents to have access to income without needing daycare.
That's my idea of Moonchild being profitable.
**Pay the bills. Keep the doors open. Give away more than we sell. And, eventually, use whatever is left to create jobs for moms.**
No nonprofit required.
