Babylist: Natalie Gordon. How a new mom used nap time to build a $500M business. - How I Built This with Guy Raz Recap

Podcast: How I Built This with Guy Raz

Published: 2025-11-03

Duration: 1 hr 8 min

Summary

Natalie Gordon turned her frustrating experience as a new mom in a big box baby store into an innovative solution by creating Babylist, a versatile baby registry platform. By coding during her baby's nap times, she built a $500 million business that addresses the needs of parents looking for convenience and flexibility in gifting.

What Happened

In this episode, Guy Raz interviews Natalie Gordon, the founder of Babylist, who shares her journey from being a software engineer to a successful entrepreneur. The idea for Babylist came to her while she was pregnant and overwhelmed by the traditional baby store experience. She recognized that existing baby registries restricted new parents to specific retailers, leaving them with no option to mix and match products from various brands. Motivated by her own needs as a mother, Natalie decided to quit her job and create a solution that would allow parents to curate a registry that included everything from traditional gifts to practical services.

Natalie’s entrepreneurial journey was uniquely tied to her experience of motherhood. She coded Babylist during her baby's nap times, which allowed her to solve problems not only for herself but also for countless other parents. Since its launch, Babylist has evolved into one of the most popular baby registries in the U.S., facilitating nearly 100 million gifts. With a focus on user experience, it has expanded to include retail shops, product reviews, and educational content, making it a comprehensive resource for new parents.

Key Insights

Key Questions Answered

What inspired Natalie Gordon to create Babylist?

Natalie Gordon was inspired to create Babylist after a frustrating experience in a big box baby store while she was pregnant. She found traditional baby registries restrictive, as they only allowed parents to select products from specific retailers. This lack of flexibility prompted her to design a registry that would enable parents to mix and match products from various sources, catering to their unique needs.

How did Natalie manage to build Babylist while being a new mom?

Natalie managed to build Babylist by utilizing her baby's nap times to write code and develop the platform. This approach allowed her to balance her responsibilities as a new mother while simultaneously addressing the challenges she faced in preparing for her baby's arrival. Her firsthand experience as a parent provided invaluable insights into the needs of other new moms and dads.

What key features differentiate Babylist from traditional registries?

Babylist differentiates itself from traditional registries by allowing parents to curate a personalized registry that includes gifts from any retailer, as well as practical services like diaper delivery or pet walking assistance. This flexibility, combined with a focus on user experience, has made Babylist one of the most popular baby registries in the country and a go-to resource for modern parents.

What was Natalie's background before starting Babylist?

Before starting Babylist, Natalie had a background in software engineering, having worked at Amazon during a pivotal time for the company. Her experience there equipped her with valuable skills in problem-solving and coding, which she later applied to building her own platform. This technical expertise, combined with her personal journey into motherhood, drove her to create a solution that resonated with her and many others.

What challenges did Natalie face when launching Babylist?

One of the challenges Natalie faced while launching Babylist was the logistical side of e-commerce, which included managing sales tax for different states, handling returns, and dealing with discontinued products. Initially naive about these complexities, she learned on the job as she built the platform, demonstrating the need for entrepreneurs to be adaptable and resourceful in overcoming obstacles.