About Us
Our Story
When Carole had her first child in the Fiji islands, she realised choices for great tasting, highly nutritious food for babies were extremely limited. Taking the initiative to prepare her own, Carole would go to the local market and source the best ingredients. In her kitchen, Carole steamed and blended fruits and vegetables, then stocked the fridge with her healthy creations for her daughter’s meal time.
More than thirty years later, Carole and her daughter, Taleï, realised the demand for fresh, high-quality, and nutritious solids for infants are still not met. With a desire for weaning babies to have the best start in life, this mother-daughter team based in Singapore, created Taleii – meaning ‘precious one’ in Fijian. After all, your baby is a precious one!
One-year-old Taleï in Fiji. |
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Meet The Team
Carole, Co-Founder
As a young mother in Fiji, Carole drew upon her multi-cultural background to create baby food blends based on a canopy of fresh and organic produce she found in local markets. Her experience doing so was formed by her childhood in Lebanon and her early adult years in Brazil and the USA, each giving her rich culinary exposure. This continued across nine countries on different continents, where new blends were concocted in every city Carole lived in. These blends reflect Carole’s twist on cuisines from many parts of the world, be they Asian, French, Middle Eastern, or Latin American. She holds a Bachelor's degree in economics from the Universidade Nacional de Brasilia and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management; and has worked as an art dealer, journalist, and strategic advisor in high-end fashion.
Taleï, Co-Founder
French Lebanese-born Taleï has had the unique blessing of exposure to food throughout Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America, having lived in all these regions. Her natural love for cooking came at an early age, first expressed through her mother’s fresh, homemade baby food blends, and then later as an adult experimenting with various flavors in her kitchen. Her formal education and career are grounded in creativity, having completed her undergraduate at Parsons School of Design in New York City and then her master’s degree at Central Saint Martins - University of the Arts London. Taleï's profound love for the kitchen eventually brought her to Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, one of the most prestigious culinary schools in the world where she received her diploma. Taleï synergises her love for food, her formal training in the culinary arts, and her life-long orientation to all things creative to bring families baby food blends worthy of the best palates.
Alicia, Illustrator
While Alicia’s master’s degree in surface and textile design at the Royal College of Arts-London, exposed her to the creative world, her years in the interiors industry refined her skills in architectural techniques and developed her proficiency in various software. Her career in event production between Paris and London helped her deepen her competence in graphics and creative concept design. Born in Beirut, Alicia’s international upbringing eased her volunteering experience at an NGO following the recent Beirut Blast. She used her creativity and know-how to find solutions to aid the most vulnerable. Alicia’s unique experience helped her construct our Brand’s narrative and ‘cook up’ Taleii’s visual storytelling and identity.
Our Advisors
Dr. Natalie, Paediatrician
Natalie got her medical degree at the University of Birmingham, the UK in 1999, and her postgraduate Paediatric training in Birmingham Children’s Hospital, the UK, and KK Women and Children Hospital, Singapore obtaining membership at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (London) in 2004. Natalie then continued her advanced specialist training in both Paediatrics and Neonatology, becoming one of the first doctors in Singapore to receive advanced accreditation in both specialties.
Nathalie spent 10 years at KK Hospital and 5 years at the International Paediatric Clinic. She is now practicing with Singapore Baby and Child Clinic (SBCC) concentrating on neonatal medicine, including neonatal intensive care, early childhood development, and nutrition. A mother of three, and a passionate breastfeeding advocate. She served as a Clinical Lecturer at both the National University of Singapore (NUS) Yong Loo Lin undergraduate medical school and the Duke-NUS postgraduate medical school for several years, as well as personally mentoring many junior doctors. Her research has won awards at several regional conferences. She is a regular contributor and member of the editorial advisory board for Young Parents magazine. More on Natalie at www.doctor-natalie.com/
Vanessa, Clinical Dietitian
Our amazing advisor Vanessa has 21 years of experience working as a clinical dietitian in Australia, the UK, India, and now Singapore with both children and adults. She has a special interest in helping families achieve a healthy lifestyle without sacrificing their enjoyment of food. Having her children has helped Vanessa understand there are many challenges associated with nourishing children, and she believes in nurturing a positive relationship with food and teaching children the value of nutritious, tasty food from a young age is paramount in developing happy, confident eaters. More on Vanessa at thetravellingdietitian.com
Dr. Jason, Nutrition and Naturopathic Specialist
Jason completed a fellowship in Metabolic and Nutrition Medicine in 2015, received certification from the American Board of Anti-Aging Health Practitioners (ABAAHP), and was board-certified as a Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS) from the American Nutrition Association.
Currently, Jason is the Director of Research and Development for a pioneering wellness destination in Thailand and played a central role in developing one of the first family-based wellness destinations in the Middle East, organizing programs rooted in optimizing nutrition and lifestyle factors that promote the health of children and adults. He believes diet and nutrition are essential to lifelong well-being for all ages and that it’s never too early in life to start investing in your health. More on Jason at https://www.jason-culp.com
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thinkBIG Communications at info @ thinkbig.com.sg