Meet Caitlyn Vanderhaeghe, President, CEO, and co-founder of KidStar Nutrients

Caitlyn Vanderhaeghe is President, CEO, and co-founder of KidStar Nutrients, a Canadian natural health company. A health advocate and licensed teacher, as well as a published children’s author and popular mommy blogger, her passion for all things natural health has driven her to develop nutritional supplements that are clean and pure, providing only the ingredients needed for optimal health and nothing more. When she’s not working to educate families about the importance of good nutrition and health, she can most often be found sharing her Frozen and Peppa Pig expertise or wrangling her three daughters, husband, and family dog on a local beach or neighbourhood park.

My first job ever was… My first “job” was selling flowers to our neighbours. I was about 9 years old, and I would go to my mom’s beautiful garden, make bouquets of her flowers, then go door-to-door selling the bouquets I made so that I could have some spending money at the corner store. When I was a bit older, I worked for my mom helping to pack orders and file the endless paperwork of an entrepreneur. After that, I always had something on the go.

I decided to be an entrepreneur because… After searching for an effective supplement for my own family, I came up empty-handed. I knew that other parents were in the same situation as me, looking for a great quality product that kids would want to take. I have really high standards for my family’s health, so I started my own company to formulate clean supplements.

My proudest accomplishment is… As an entrepreneur my proudest accomplishment to date is seeing my products on the shelf next to all the big brands. 

My boldest move to date was… Starting my own company! 

I knew it was time to launch my business when… I couldn’t find an iron supplement that wasn’t filled with sugar, fillers, and harmful ingredients, to treat my daughter’s iron deficiency. I saw there really was a need for clean, healthy, sugar-free supplements.

My best advice for aspiring entrepreneurs is… Just take that step. And keeping moving forward! Nothing good comes from going backwards or standing still.

My best advice from a mentor was… When you need help, ask for it! 

When the going gets tough, I tell myself… No matter what happens, the success of my company is not a reflection of my self-worth.

I stay inspired by… My three daughters. They are my biggest fans and everywhere we go, they tell other kids and people all about KidStar and how one day they are going to run a company, too! 

The future excites me because… I am already seeing companies following suit with cleaner supplements for kids and even more companies are focusing on preventing nutrient deficiencies. 

My next step is… Increasing education so we can spread the word on why we need clean supplements to prevent nutrient deficiencies.