Why the feeding hours matter: where Formi began

Feeding a baby is supposed to feel natural. Mostly, it feels like a full-time job nobody prepares you for.

It's long. It's repetitive. It's strangely athletic. And nobody warns you that your body is about to have some very strong opinions.

When I became a parent, I expected late nights, cluster feeds and a few tears (mostly mine). I didn't expect the discomfort. The positions that made no sense. The "this feels wrong" moments, a hundred times a day.

One thing was consistent: I couldn't find the products I needed. Not in the Google searches. Not on Instagram. Not in the baby classes. Not even in the pamphlets they hand you on the way out of hospital with a "good luck."

It felt like everyone had advice except the people designing the products. So I improvised, endlessly, with pillows, towels and boxes. None of it worked well, or for long.

After nearly 20 years working in and around the best-designed workplaces in the world, I kept asking the same question: why aren't we applying this thinking to the most demanding hours of early parenthood?

So we did.

How the Formi footstool started

Feeding takes around 1,800 hours in the first year, the same as a full-time job. But unlike your full-time job, there's no equipment, no onboarding, no setup.

So in those quiet, exhausted, determined early months, I started sketching the thing I wished existed. Something small and considered that actually worked. Something that felt at home in my home.

If feeding a baby is a full-time job, consider Formi your essential workplace tool.

Designed in Australia with leading industrial designers and parents who were just as frustrated with their feeding setup as I was, our first product became the Formi Footstool.

What it actually does

Your feeding setup matters more than most of us realise.

Formi lifts your feet so your knees sit a little higher and your hips settle into a more comfortable position, so you can sit back instead of hunching forward through the long feeds.

Designed for your home, not just your nursery

Formi works with most chairs: your sofa, your glider, your favourite armchair.

Made from soft, durable foam. Wipe-clean and water-resistant. Neutral enough to live in your living room without announcing itself.

A gently curved base allows natural rocking during long feeds. And because good design should outlast a season of sleepless nights, it earns its place at your desk, your reading chair and beyond, long after the feeding hours are done.

What parents tell us

The parents who use Formi come back with the same things: feeds feel easier to get through, they find a position that works and stick with it, and everyone settles in more easily.

As one put it: "I felt much more supported, locked into a comfortable position with my back resting properly. It encouraged great posture instead of slumping over." Laura W.

Small shift. Big difference.

What's next for Formi

This footstool is just the beginning.

We've spent years obsessing over comfort, function and real-life design, quietly building what we wished existed when we were new parents.

Soon we'll be sharing more: insights from our design studio, advice from ergonomic and women's health specialists, stories from parents, and new products made for you, your home and your version of the feeding hours.

Thank you for being here at the start of our story.

Lana x