Cribs, cots, mobiles, diapers - for the unaccustomed eye, the world of baby products can be overwhelming. This year, the third annual Baby Fair in Cairo may help to ease new and expecting parents into this unchartered territory. The baby fair, taking place at the Intercontinental CityStars, also has a visitor from across the Mediterranean who knows a thing or two about the world of baby products: Greek interior decorator Aggeliki Kokkonis, who specializes in decorating rooms for children and newborns. Kokkonis comes from a family dedicated to the baby product business. Since a young age, she has been working with her mother for the Greek family-owned company HPA, which specializes in baby room furniture and amenities. About four years ago, after studying in economics and business administration in Greece and fashion management in Milan, she made children-oriented interior designing her career. Her visit to Cairo is part of the opening of an HPA (IRA) franchise in Cairo, marking a new partnership between IRA and Pampers. HPA has franchises in Russia, Cyprus, Serbia, and Cameroon, under the brand name IRA. And now, Egypt has joined. The plans for bringing HPA (IRA) to Egypt were set in motion about a year ago when three sisters living in Egypt, Georgina, Marianna, and Irena Guirguis, along with relative Dina Aziz, approached the company about opening a store in Egypt. The "girls, as Kokkonis refers to them, now partners in IRA, were frequent customers of the Greek store and eventually decided it was time to try and make the products more accessible to the Egyptian market. Although the venture was a challenge, Kokkonis said she was happy to start the new project, though she wanted to come to Egypt and "see the situation and the Egyptian market before the setting the partnership in motion. This little family expanded with a partnership with Pampers a month ago, when the diapers company approached Georgina, Marianna, Irena and Dina. "They are the best partner we could have, they love our products, said Kokkonis in reference to Pampers. To get things started, Pampers sponsored a contest during the fair. The winner will get their baby room furnished by IRA for free. The winner of the contest, which will be announced at the fair, will be selected from a pool of mothers who have submitted their three top tips for getting a baby to sleep. For Kokkonis, the decoration of a baby's room is not just about the esthetic quality but about security and comfort. During a seminar that will take place at the baby fair, Kokkonis will focus on how to provide the best setting for babies to have sound sleep, which she says depends on several factors such as, the quality of the bed, the mattress, and the cleaning of the mattress. "It's very interesting to be involved with future mothers. It's a tender time of life; this is really interesting and hard. It's a sensitive period, it's very challenging, says Kokkonis, who helped the Greek First Lady select IRA products for her twins' room. However, Kokkonis notes that decorating a baby's room is a process that's not just limited to an expecting mother, but to the entire family. There are many people to convince, she continues, from the expecting father to the expecting grandmother. Kokkonis, who saw the pyramids and visited the National Museum on Wednesday, is leaving in a week, but is already planning her next trip to Cairo for vacation. Aggeliki Kokkonis will be giving a seminar at 6:30 pm at the Mother & Baby Fair at the InterContinental Hotel on Saturday.
