Generation NeXt Parenting

Hi, Meet my friend Jeff.

He runs a web site called My Tween Central. I'll let him tell you a little about who he is and what he does at his website.

Tell me about you and your family:

I met my wife at Milligan College in Johnson City, TN, and we have been married for 8 years. We have a beautiful 16 month old little girl named Savannah. Together my girls are the highlight of my life. We like to go play at the park in the warm evenings or drive over to Sonic, lay a blanket down in the back of the truck and eat ice cream. We have seen the faithfulness of God in our lives more than ever during this past year. Starting your own business is a very difficult task, one that requires sacrifice, patience, hard work, and trust in the Lord.

How did you get the idea for MyTweenCentral?

I had some experience in online retail which had allowed me to work on promotions for several Disney artists. However, as I did some research, I didn’t find very many websites outside of Disney that were appealing to tweens that also had a retail element for parents. The sites I saw that were geared towards tweens often featured content that was not age-appropriate. A friend of mine, who is now a business partner, had asked if it would be possible to start our own company. As I became more familiar with the tween demographic, it just made sense to move in a direction towards kid-safe entertainment. I have been blessed to have some ‘mom’ experts like Stacey Kannenberg from CedarValleyPublishing.com ( http://www.cedarvalleypublishing.com/blog) who have provided advice, suggestions, and a perspective that has helped us build and shape MyTweenCentral.com.

What benefits do you hope to provide for families?

The main thing that sets us apart from almost every other online retailer that sells music, movies, and books is that we have limited our selection of titles to only carry those products which would be considered ‘mom-approved’ and safe for kids. Parents can have the peace of mind knowing that their kids are safe on MyTweenCentral.com to view CD covers, read product overviews and track listings, and check out any of the featured content we may have from time to time. So much of what is marketed today as ‘kid-friendly’ is really not, so we are making a concentrated effort to be a trusted website for tween-safe entertainment. As we grow, we will have even more features for kids that are safe and age appropriate.

What exciting opportunities do you have coming up for MyTweenCentral?

The biggest for MyTweenCentral.com right now is our partnership with Hollywood Records for the official online pre-sale of the Cheetah Girl’s new album. We are really excited because hopefully it will generate a lot of awareness to parents about MyTweenCentral.com.

We are also looking at ways to add more content, games, and interactive elements for kids. Something we have in mind is a spotlight section that highlights the creative talents and abilities of every day tweens.

Every person that comes across MyTweenCentral.com is extremely excited to have found us. This includes other websites and companies that share a similar vision. I am very geared towards partnerships and doing things that are mutually beneficial to each party involved. I really believe that more can be accomplished by working together with others than trying to do it all by yourself. Plus, at the end of the day, it feels a lot better to know that you may have played a small role in helping someone else’s company grow. All that to say we are looking at several opportunities with other websites that should continue to help get the word out about MyTweenCentral.com.

What bonus do you have for my readers today?

Thank you so much for sharing our website with your readers.