Take a trip back in time to revisit Beco babywearing history!  From conception to today, every change in Beco’s versions have been welcomed by thousands of excited babywearing moms! Beco Baby Carrier was started by Gabby Caperon in 2005. Her company began as ecobabies, located at www.ecobabies.com. Originally Gabby made cloth diapers and a host of baby carriers, including ring slings, Mei Tais and Onbuhimos.

Beco 4th Generation Aimee Buttler Lacework

November 2005 - The first buckle carrier brought  to us by Beco, called the bECOpack. This could be referred to as the first generation, or 1G Beco, although the ‘generation’ names did not come into strong use until the 3rd and 4th generations were released. The first generation bECOpack was designed as a Mei Tai with buckles. The waist was padded to help transfer the child’s weight to the wearer’s hips. The shoulder straps were adjustable but did not buckle. They attached to the bottom waist strap which is a design component that was soon to change.

March 2006 - Custom bECOpacks were being produced in full-force. OOAK (one of a kind) carriers abounded as customers could send in their own fabric and also request changes to the bECOpack’s height, width, waist belt and shoulder straps. The standard bECOpack had evolved into the second generation. Included in this version was a hood that could be attached to the top of the carrier with velcro. Two standard strap colors were offered: black and natural. Accesory pouches were introduced and carriers came with matching bags. The more standard shoulder strap attachment, with the end of the strap coming to meet the carrier body instead of the carrier waist belt, is introduced.

April 2006 - The 3rd Generation Beco, or Beco 3G, was an evolution in comfort for both the baby and the wearer. Big changes included darts in the seat, making it easier to get the baby seated low and comfortably in the carrier. The shoulder straps of the carrier were also adjusted to have a dual buckle system. This buckle did two things. First, it allowed the wearer to adjust the strap length in both directions, making it easy to give the straps a tug if the carrier was on your front or back. The clips also made it possible to wear the carrier in a hip position. The third generation is also the last carrier to be sewn by Gabby herself.

June 1, 2006 - The Beco 4th Generation is introduced, and thus ushers in the Beco era. Features of the Beco 4th include a removeable shaped hood, a small pocket in the body of the carrier, light padding on the edges of the carrier to protect the baby’s legs, and a strap that allowed the carrier to be rolled into itself and fastened in place for easy securing when the carrier wasn’t in use. Some enterprising babywearers found this to be an easy and functional hip seat, with the carrier rolled and fastened and the waist strap fastened on the wearer, the child could sit on the ’shelf’ the carrier made. The wearer still needed to hold the child on the seat, but it helped remove strain from the wearer’s back and transfer weight to their hips. 4th Generation Beco carriers were sewn in the United States by a small facory in California. No customs dimensions were available with this carrier.

2007 -Beco enjoyed immense growth in 2007. Throughout this year minor changes were made to the Beco 4th Generation, but the basic design remained the same. During this period of growth Beco continued to innovate and brought two short-lived carriers to the market, the Beco XO and the Beco BWD (BabyWearing Delight).

September 2007 - Beco debuts two new carriers. The first is the beco Obi, a simple sash-style carrier that creates an X in front and back of the wearer and allows the baby to be carried in the front X. This is a front carrier only and can be used with infants forward facing and facing in. The Obi was short-lived and was removed from the market in early 2008. The second carrier that Beco was working on is the carrier that was soon to become the Butterfly.

January 1, 2008 - Outside influences require the Beco 4th Generation to be discontinued, but in its place Beco releases to the public the Beco Butterfly. An entirely new style of buckle carrier, the Butterfly introduces some great new features, such as an integrated seat which makes back carries easy, even for beginners, an an integrated infant insert allowing you to start wearing the Butterfly as it is, as soon as your little one is born.

April 2008 - The babywearing world is shocked as the Beco Butterfly is recalled due to buckles that allowed the webbing to slip through easily if the carrier was handled in a certain way. Beco handled the recall with grace, and carriers currently in use were updated with new buckles. All carriers going forward had these new, non-slip buckles standard.

September 1, 2008 - Beco introduces the Beco Butterfly II. With three major improvements, the Butterfly II becomes an even better carrier. First, the infant insert is now removable and adjustable. This makes it easier to use the Butterfly with newborns, and once your child outgrows this stage the insert is easily removed. The Butterfly II has a few extra inches of padding in the shoulder straps, and the hood now attaches to the carrier with a set of snaps. The hood is also curved and uses elastic to adjust the strap length instead of a threading system like the Original Butterfly. This change was necessary to allow the Beco Butterfly II to conform to European safety standards.

Also introduced with the Butterfly II are limited edition custom carriers. Retailers are now able to select their own fabric for the Butterfly panel and create an exclusive carrier.

January 1, 2009 - The Butterfly II continues to gain popularity, and Beco introduces a few new colorways, called the Duo Collection. Butterfly II Duos are solid organic color carriers, three of which have two tones and an owl screen printing on the panel.

February 1, 2009 - Beco adds a third snap to the Butterfly II hood, eliminating the gap that could happen in the middle of the hood with the old two-snap attachment.

And coming next?? - We don’t know yet what the future holds for Beco, but you can be sure that we will report it as we see it, here on myBecoBaby.com!