Meet the Mumpreneurs!
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Behind every great baby idea there's a mum who's been there,
done that, and had baby posset on her T-shirt. Babyworld takes a look
at 'mumpreneurs' who have used their experience of parenthood to forge
a new career…
When Jenny Davis became pregnant she knew that she didn't want to return
to her high-flying career in marketing but wasn't sure what she could
do instead. Little did she know that her experiences in motherhood would
provide the perfect answer!
I knew it was time to change
When I returned from living and working overseas I briefly contemplated
going back into marketing, my career for the last 15 years. It involved
long hours, hard work and equally hard play. I wasn't looking forward
to it and I knew it would be difficult to combine having a family and
a stressful job. Luckily, timing was such that I fell pregnant with my
daughter and that helped make my mind up that things had to change. I
didn't know how to change them but decided instead to spend the last few
months of my pregnancy thinking about how I would bond with my baby and
what activities we could do together.
When Aimee was about three months old, we took her to a local baby music
class. She loved it! She quickly grasped the musical instruments and started
kicking her legs, reacting to the other babies and the stimulating environment.
It was one of the week's highlights for Aimee and still is. From music
we moved on to baby sign language classes, swimming and other activities.
I wanted to share the information I'd found
However, when I looked for information about activities, I realised that
while there are so many great things for mums and babies to do, finding
information on them can be hard. I really wanted to use and share the
information I'd found and that led me to develop Baby Experiences. The
website gives visitors information on all the activities in their local
area in one place. Our personal booking service for activities and experiences
also saves busy new mums time and hassle.
You can overcome every obstacle
If anyone had told me how much hard work I would need to put into setting
up a business, I have to say it wouldn't have changed my desire to do
it. When you have an idea and really want to make it happen, you'll overcome
every obstacle, including making mistakes along the way and learning lots
of new skills. Luckily, all my family and friends were very supportive
and Aimee just seemed to sense that Mummy was busy at times and played
happily whilst I worked. I was extremely fortunate that Aimee was late
to crawl and, in fact, left it until a week after Baby Experiences was
launched in November 2004!
Today, Aimee goes to nursery part time whilst I work on the business
from home. The time we spend apart lets Aimee develop and explore and
the hours we spend together are packed full of lots of activities and
fun.
As Baby Experiences grows, I hope that we can build a team of parents
who want to work from home with the flexibility to work around their babies'
schedules.
To find out about activities for mums and babies in your area, visit
www.babyexperiences.co.uk
Mum and mumpreneur Justina Perry put her advertising and marketing experience
to good use in creating and promoting her own company dedicated to the
wellbeing of mothers,babies and mothers-to-be: MamaBabyBliss.
Why I did it
Nothing changed my life as much as motherhood did. Becoming a mother
brought with it laughter, tears and, to an extent, shock, as I tried to
adjust to my new role, first as mother to two stepchildren and then to
my own children. I have never forgotten those early days. I felt there
was - and still is - a need to support and nurture mothers during this
early time. MamaBabyBliss was born out of this realisation after I had
Alana, my youngest daughter, although I would say my inspiration came
after I had my first, Natasha (12).
How I started
I started off by doing some research (asking all my friends who were
mums!) and wrote a scant business plan. Essentially, MamaBabyBliss is
dedicated to the wellbeing of mothers, babies and mothers-to-be. We nurture
them all through baby massage and baby yoga classes, as well as providing
a range of beautiful holistic prenatal and postnatal treatments for mums
and mums-to-be. We also run prenatal and postnatal yoga courses. To be
qualified to work in this area, I trained in baby massage, baby yoga and
holistic therapy. I loved working with babies and mums: it feels like
this is my true vocation. I was also very lucky to have met my wonderful
business partner Helena Bingham (a mum from my classes). She is a nutritionist
and yoga teacher and runs the yoga classes.
The challenges
I don't think anyone realises how time-consuming creating a business
and turning it into a reality is. You need passion, drive and a vision
that you absolutely believe in because this is what keeps you going through
the moments of doubt or the inevitable setbacks. You also need to be willing
to work 24/7 when required but also to be careful to set your own boundaries
between work and family.
My work/life balance
My husband and our parents have been amazingly supportive. All my children
are brilliant too; they know how important MamaBabyBliss is to me and
they have been very involved in the development of the company. I run
ideas by them, take them to exhibitions, etc. I have learnt, though, that
when you are working from home, you need to be very disciplined with your
time and create a physical boundary between work and family, even if that
is as simple as closing the door to the home office and making sure the
computer is OFF! Our ritual is also that we try to have a sit-down family
dinner every day, where everyone shares their day.
Justina's tips for success
- Find your idea and believe in it 200%. It's your vision and belief
that is going to keep you going.
- Talk to people but be careful of business 'experts' who might cause
you to doubt your own instincts. I have met people who tried to make
me compromise on the products and production because of the bottom line.
I refused because money isn't everything to me, but quality and ethics
is (all my manufacturing and goods are sourced in the UK and I like
to support small businesses who aren't always the cheapest!).
- Don't equate everything in terms of money. Doing something you love
is worth millions!
- Trust your instincts and initiative!
www.mamababybliss.co.uk
Nadine felt disillusioned with her job following the birth of her daughter.
She wanted to have more freedom in her working life and hit upon the perfect
solution after reading a magazine article.
Why I did it
I started my business, The
Dream PA 18 months ago. I’d always worked in PR and although I enjoyed
it, my priorities shifted when my daughter Isabella came along. Like most
new mums, I found returning to work when she was 4 months old very difficult.
I became disillusioned with having to be in an office until 5.30pm – I
wanted more freedom. I read a magazine article about a PA who became a
VA (virtual assistant) and decided that this was the role for me.
My business
Virtual Assistance is a simple idea – a virtual assistant works from
home supporting a number of clients with their admin and stays in contact
via email or telephone.
I assist mainly Sole Traders, including many mums who are running businesses
around family life. Whilst working with these clients I spotted an opportunity
for a more formal business model where I could provide a higher level
of support to clients, by helping them to run their businesses through
a telephone answering solution. I answer calls for my clients in their
business name during office hours, which gives them the freedom to do
the school run or make family friendly arrangements whilst knowing that
their business calls are being professionally answered. It’s a perfect
solution to business mums who want to present a professional image without
being tied to their phone!
My business has gone from strength to strength and my office is now a
converted barn at home. In addition to the two part-time staff members
I have, I am backed by a team of around 20 professional receptionists
who fulfil my call answering service.
My work/life balance
Ironically I’m working more hours in total since becoming my own boss.
It’s not always easy to switch off - my mind is always whirring, but my
time is my own and I don’t waste it easily. I have a good amount of family
time balanced with a healthy amount at work. I’m just pleased that I’ve
found a solution that allows me to have the best of both worlds.
Page 4 of 5 Read about
the mum who turned down investment from the Dragon's Den investors >>
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MamaBabyBliss
