Interview: Little Hero Capes

One of the things I love most about my business is the wonderful people I meet along the way and the way our businesses grow together. Hands down one of my favourite suppliers is Allison Faunce from Little Hero Capes. Allison started out her business at a similar time to Monkeytail and Wellington and we've been learning from each other every step of the way.

We share a similar passion for nurturing the pure imagination of children and Allison was one of the first people I approached when sourcing products for Monkeytail and Wellington. I was so excited when Allison was willing to try her hand at a few of my suggestions for cape designs and masks, and even more excited when they proved to be a success with other retailers also taking them on board.

I have little echats with Allison all the time, and every email makes me smile, so I thought you might like a little smile in your day by getting to know a little more about the creative Mum behind Little Hero Capes.

Who is Allison Faunce?
Allison Faunce is a Mom, Wife, Artist, Entrepreneur, Red-Head, and someone who likes to find ways to juggle all these labels at once! The Red-Head part comes easy.

How did Little Hero Capes start?
Little Hero Capes was a product which soared out of the imagination of my own son. He needed a cool cape for his daring adventures and I needed my dishtowel back.


You support the Discovery Arts Program for kids undergoing hospital treatment for serious illness. Can you tell us more about the programme and your involvement?
The Discovery Arts Program is a super non-profit that brings Art, Music, and Dance Programs to children being hospitalized with Cancer and other serious blood disorders. They are based in California and have branched into 6 Hospitals currently serve over 3500 children and their families each year. As soon as I heard about their program my heart melted. Graduating with degree in Art Education, I naturally gravitate towards the sponsorship of the Arts. It didn't take a second glance to realize this program is doing so much more than bringing the Arts to children. They are giving these amazing kids moments to be children again if even for an afternoon.

The program relies completely on the donations and therefore I knew I wanted to help support their mission through my own business. 10% of all sales of the Little Hero Capes are donated directly to the Discovery Arts Program. Furthermore, I knew the Little Hero Capes have an amazing power to summon courage from children. It was this notion that led me to create "Courage Capes" for the children of the Discovery Arts Program. This allows a person to become real-world hero through donating a Courage Cape to one of the children undergoing treatment in the hospital.

As a mum of a busy 5 yr old, what is on your style radar at the moment
Hmmm, style radar. Well I must say I have an obsession for anything hand-made and with that quite an addiction to Etsy. I also have a strong love of the color green - every shade of it! Green makes everything look great especially for Red-Heads. The color green usually lures me into trying out something that normally wouldn't end up on my fashion radar. It is also my son Finnegan's favorite color. However, no matter how green his zucchini is, he still won't try it.

In your plans for world domination, what does the future hold for Little Hero Capes?
Whether it means harnessing real super powers and world domination, I know one thing is for certain, my ideas for Little Hero Cape never stop whirling around. It is my hope to keep building on the idea of "Soaring Ahead and Giving Back". As the business grows, and more Little Hero Capes are sent out into the world, it is my true hope that more real world heroes will also emerge. I want Little Hero Capes to not only expand the imaginations of our little ones, but also be a tool to teach them the importance of becoming a real hero to the world, the environment, their community, their neighbors, their family, and themselves. Everyday is an adventure and Little Hero Capes' future is not completely carved out but the central idea of "soaring ahead to give back" is certainly the springboard for all the missions that lay ahead.


If you have the afternoon to spend with just Finn and you, what's your favourite thing to do together?
Finn's and my favorite thing to do is to go for nice long walks. It gives us a both a chance to wonder aimlessly and just enjoy the simple journey of being in each other's presence. We go for a walk everyday. Some days the walks are quiet, other times they are full of silly laughter, some days he just wants me to hold his hand while he balances on the curbside, other times the air is full of incessant questions about the world around us. No matter the tempo of our conversation, or the temperature outside, the one commonality is that it is always him and I walking with each other. This is our tradition and I hope we hold onto it for many years to come.

You can check out Allison's website Little Hero Capes here and her blog is a "Super" fun read too!

Monkeytail and Wellington are launching Side Kick Sock Monkeys this week. Allison has cleverly created some extra-Little Hero Capes and Power Cuffs that are a perfect fit for our Sock Monkeys. I am currently negotiating with a children's charity to donate all profits from the sale of our Side Kick Sock Monkeys to continue the charitable endeavours of Little Hero Capes on this side of the world and hopefully give some needy Little Hero's a Side Kick to get them through the tough times.

Find Little Hero Capes and Side Kick Sock Monkeys at Monkeytail & Wellington here :o)