Mumpreneur Story: Apples & Pips

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

My name is Hannah, I’m married to Phil and we have two children. Toby is 2 and was born in July 2014, then our daughter Martha joined us 6 months ago in May 2016.

What’s your business called?

It’s an online shop called Apples & Pips

Can you describe it in one sentence?

Hand picking the best products for parents, babies and toddlers

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

I’ve been self employed since February 2015 when my maternity leave ended and I handed my notice in at work. I was working as a freelance blogger, copywriter and social media manager but the niggle to own my own business grew and grew. After Martha’s birth I decided to go for it and with my husband’s full support (and several months of building it!) Apples & Pips launched in October.

How did you fund your start up?

Because of how I’m working I’ve actually not had to put too much money in up front. My husband is a graphic designer and web designer so I told him what was in my head and he made it into reality. The main up front costs have been a template for the website, business cards and leaflets and money for store vouchers as giveaways during my launch party and that money just came from our household finances.

How do you manage working around your children?

Badly! Toby goes to nursery twice a week and stays overnight at my mum and dad’s once a week too so I have about 3 1/2 days a week where it’s just Martha and I. It was pretty easy when she was a newborn but at 6 months old she obviously needs more play time and stimulation now and I am struggling to juggle her needs, work and household chores.

My plan is to create a daily schedule and literally divide each day into time slots for everything from working to eating, chores and socialising. I’ll let you know how I get on!

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

As I’ve mentioned, this has become harder for me to balance lately, but a ‘normal’ work day goes a bit like this:
9am: I drop Toby at nursery. Martha sleeps on the way home so I sit in the car on the driveway and catch up on emails and social media.
10-12: I’ll generally alternate between precariously balancing my laptop on my lap or the arm of the sofa whilst I’m feeding Martha, working whilst she plays in her various chairs/bouncers/play mats and playing with her.

12-1: When Martha has her second nap I try to grab some lunch and do a bit of housework.

1-3:30: Much the same as the morning, processing orders that have come through, scheduling social media updates, blogging and looking after Martha before we head out at half 3 to pick Toby up.

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

Time is my biggest challenge because I know that a business doesn’t grow on its own and customers don’t just appear out of thin air.

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

As challenging as it can be, I love that I work around the kids, that there’s no pressure to stop breastfeeding Martha so that she can go to nursery, I can drop off and pick up Toby and I will get out what I put in.

What are your plans for the future?

10% of my profits are donated to MAMA Academy, a charity which works tirelessly to reduce the UK’s stillbirth rate and help more babies to be born safely. The rest is staying in my business account and my plan for the near future is to start buying stock in of the most popular products (I currently sell on a drop ship basis). Long term I’d love to produce a few products of my own such as candles, stationery and maybe even baby clothes designed by Phil.

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

Expect a hell out a lot of work for very little return at first. Running your own business is not a quick way to earn money and not is it easy, but if you prepare to put the work in and be strict with your time and your money then it’s amazing to see the fruits of your labour start to flourish.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?

Only that I adore my shop, that I’ve had amazing feedback and it’s my third baby so if anyone wants to look for gorgeous products and gifts for a parent, baby or toddler then go and check it out.

www.applesandpips.co.uk
www.facebook.com/applesandpips
www.twitter.com/applesandpips
www.instagram.com/applesandpips

Running a Business around Children with Additional Needs - running online business

A Mum writers story: Your Teething Baby, from one Parent to Another

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

My name is Emma Reed and I currently live in Basingstoke with my husband, Rob who I have been with for ten years, and my son, Jake who is almost three. We bought our house in 2011 and the following year we were married on a beach on the Greek island of Rhodes. I then went on to have Jake on Christmas day 2013 via emergency c-section. We managed to pack quite a bit into those few years!

What’s your book called?

‘Your Teething Baby, from one parent to another’

Can you describe it in one sentence?

It is your essential guide to answering all your teething questions and provides tips, advice and support through, what can be, a very painful development.

When did you decide to write it and what inspired you?

I decided to write it after a friend joked that I knew so much about teething I could write a book on it! I laughed it off at the time but the idea just seemed to stick. My son started teething from 6 weeks old and I found very little help or advice. I had to learn everything myself, spending a lot of time asking others questions and using the internet to find answers. I knew that if I was doing this, other parents must be doing it too. So, last August I sat and began to write. Once the writing was looking like it was going somewhere I revealed my new venture to family members who were all very supportive.
I felt that a book about teething was missing from the baby market which seemed crazy as it is a development which can start from birth (or even in the womb) and end by the age of three. We have a huge choice of books on pregnancy, newborns, weaning, toddlers and child psychology but this development seems to have been missed. I hope that my book will help many more parents and prevent babies from being in discomfort for quite so long.

How do you manage working around your children?

When I was writing the book my son was still napping in the day. I would take every opportunity I could to add to it and found that hour in the day valuable. Now that he is older the nap has gone so it isn’t quite as easy to find time to market myself and the book plus write blogs. I find myself making notes of ideas when they come to me and plan topics which may help people. I write mostly in the evening or when he is engrossed in a film or the TV in the day.

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

I am a full-time Mum so I have all the usual, lovely household chores to do on top of looking after a very active toddler. We don’t tend to have a ‘typical’ day because I like to mix things up a bit. We like to get out and about during our week and Jake really enjoys seeing friends and family. I tend to see my sister a lot as she is a Nanny and the children can play together. We also have a dog and love going on long walks with her out in the countryside. We both like to be busy and juggling Mum life with writing life keeps me from becoming bored.

What challenges have you faced in with your book and how have you overcome them?

The main challenge has been the fact I have self-published my book on Amazon. It gives you the freedom to have complete control of your book but it also means that you are solely responsible for advertising, marketing and self-promoting. This is where a lot of my time and effort goes.

What’s the best thing about being a writer?

I love being able to reach out to others. My blog consists of a variety of topics which I think is important in helping others realise that they are not going through something alone. I like to write from a personal point of view and from my own experiences. This has also turned out to be a type of therapy for myself too. I also enjoy writing some fun posts and trying to engage the reader. The great thing about writing is that you can use your mood that day to draw inspiration from.

What are your plans for the future?

I am currently working on some children’s books which I am hoping to approach publishers with. I think children’s books would sell much better from a shop and I would love to see my work sitting on a shelf in a store such as Waterstones.

What advice would you give for someone who wants to write a book?

If you have the passion and drive to write a book I would say go for it. It is so satisfying to hold the finished product in your hand and so rewarding when you receive a positive review.Your teething baby

 

https://emmareed.net/
https://www.facebook.com/emmareed.net/
https://www.twitter.com/emreed01
Amazon

Launching a Food Based Business – Bake with LiLi and Dex

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

My name is Sarah and I am a mum to Eliza (4) and Dexter (2).
We lI ve a busy life in Essex juggling work school and nursery runs. My parents are a massive influence in my kids lives and my mum is also my business partner and my total rock but sadly they live over 200 miles from me hence why we sell our products in two different locations in the South of England 🙂

What’s your business called?

Bake with LiLI and Dex after the two inspirations in my life!!

Can you describe it in one sentence?

Baking boxes for kids full of ready weighed out ingredients and instructions to allow your children to be creative in the kitchen with minimal fuss stress and weighing out!

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

I’ve been a teacher for 13 years now and bake a lot with the children. Eliza loves those boxes youimg_4190 can buy in the supermarket but they taste rubbish and I wanted her to learn about baking using a range of ingredients but couldn’t be doing with the stress of weighing and measuring.
The kids inspired me to start the business in the summer and after going through a divorce I wanted to prove to myself I could turn my hand to something new and exciting and to make the kids proud of me when they are older and know you have to work hard in life to get what you want.

How did you fund your start up?

My parents and my uncle paid for my website. We have had another investor come forward as well. It’s lovely that people close to me really believes in the success of the business and we’re willing to part with their hard earned cash!!

How do you manage working around your children?

I have an amazing Mum! I work late into the evenings but see this as fun a project to stretch and challenge me. Teaching is my bread and butter. This is all about my creativity and I absolutely love it and love seeing happy kids and products they’ve made as a result of our boxes.

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

lol I don’t manage my time as well as I should anyone close to me will tell you that. Routine for the kids has to come first. I take Eliza to childminders at 7 and Dexter at 7.15 to nursery 2 days a week and my mum takes them the other two days. Luckily I don’t work Mondays so this is my fun day with my boy whilst his sister is at school.
I usually mark, plan lessons and Normal stuff once they have gone to bed then speak to mum discussing the business, checking emails and orders, loading with our website and graphic designer and now am in the process of sourcing a photographer and someone to film me baking with the kids for YouTube videos.

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

There is not enough time in the day!! We have had some label issues and personalising them away from the graphic designer so mum and I have become very quickly accomplished at photoshop and other graphics programmes to get products to clients in time.

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

It’s about and for my kids. They are my motivation to make this business a success.

What are your plans for the future?

To sell through a big well known website… they have said they love my products but we need to develop the package if to look more premium. That will be our next steps in the new year and also to sell at as many craft Fayre and events as we can to get our brand out there.

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

Persevere and use people around you. it’s definitely a challenge but helps to have a dad as a bank manager, a friend as a website designer one as a tax advisor and lots of great friends willing to support share my page and trial my products giving lovely reviews to share on sites like Facebook, Instagram And twitter

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?

Our products are great alternative to party bags and this is our biggest success feedback from parents not wanting to waste money on the toys and sweets you usually buy to fill them up. Take a look… 🙂

Www.bakewithlilianddex.co.ukimg_4193

https://m.facebook.com/bakewithlilianddex/

Working mum

Running an Online Magazine – MMB Magazine

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

Abbie Coleman I have a family of 5 which consists of my husband James a
chartered surveyor, my little boy who is 3 next month Kimi (Yes we have an
F1 fan in the family!) and two jack Russel’s called lily and Keith.

What’s your business called?

MMB Magazine

Can you describe it in one sentence?

The modern working mothers website

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

I think the day I had my son as I had been a entreprenuer so once he was
born my business thinking had to fit around him.

How did you fund your start up?

Self-funded through my other business a recruitment company that I started 6
years ago.

How do you manage working around your children?

At first I didn’t, I love being at work and felt comfortable being there as
I know my little boy goes to the most fantastic nursery and enjoys his time
there. I also ran my own business so was back in the office after an
emergency C section within 8 weeks so had to adapt quickly. But I didn’t
find my groove for 15 months, as like most find childcare is expensive and
we didn’t have family close by. My issue was that I didn’t separate my time
effectively trying to do everything all the time and work started to
override my time with my son.

When he was a baby it was great he could come to meetings and to be fair
slept through them, or slept in my office while I worked but try taking a 2
year old to a meeting or in an office…………. I finally just broke
down. I had been all geared up to take Kimi out to a special play date and
a work call came in so all plans cancelled. I felt so torn between work, and
not giving or having time with Kimi and god forbid any time just for me. It
was then I took a step back and separated my time, I now work Monday to
Thursday and Fridays are me and Kimi days and I haven’t lost a single client
from saying sorry I don’t work Fridays. But I have gained peace of mind and
quality time with my son.

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do
you manage your time?

I am up and out by 7am to the office and my husband drops my son off at
nursery. Yesterday I caught up with Gail Emms the Olympian who had just
talked at our senior MMB forum event in Leeds and posted her interview with
us, handled our social media and mmb card request from our readers. Then I
attended the Women In Sports conference at Leeds First Direct and met Sean
Jarvis Director of Huddersfield football club, Rebecca Gallantree, GB diver
back from Rio, Kadeena Cox World record holder and Paralympic champion. And
got involved in the debate about women in sport and championed our bloggers
who were on the panel discussion. I then rushed over the other side of Leeds
for a meeting about a senior peer to peer group we are setting up with MMB
and spoke with two amazing business people in their field on how we make
this happen. Back at the office I took two jobs for my recruitment business
and placed two fabulous candidates. Filmed spraying spray nail varnish for
our article on working mum beauty hacks by Harvey Nichols, the office is now
a sort of gold shimmer and so is Liz my colleague……….don’t ask!.
Emailed to check all our attendees had details for our Space NK MMB night
this Friday. Went in to meet a fabulous international law firm about coming
on board with MMB magazine for career part time roles. Got some dates set
for a business in the North part time conference we are running in 2017.
Grabbed the bus home played dinosaurs danced to octanaughts, tucked my
little boy up then started writing my speech for an event on working mothers
rights in the work place and career progression and on an article for a fab
new child safety product we have just found out about and love!!

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome
them?

Starting an online magazine was brand new to me with a lot of learning
curves. I guess for me keeping my eye on the goal and not getting distracted
from our end goal, I did this by having a fabulous network of strong working
women by my side who may challenge me but never doubt my ability to do
something. I would also advocate having a fabulous mentor in business and in
your personal life.

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

Independence as a woman

What are your plans for the future?

To keep growing our brand, we want to get more and more MMB card
subscribers and readers so we can ultimately change the landscape of part
time jobs into part time careers and get more businesses on board with us
and talking to make this happen. I would love to be a part of changing the
term working mother after all how often do you hear the term working father?

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

Do your math, know what you have to bring in to survive and cover your costs
then physically write down how you bring that in and what it takes. Saying
you need 5k a month or you want your business to do 200k in its first year
is great but good business is knowing how you physically achieve that and
where it will come from. By doing this it sometimes opens up new revenue
ideas or stops you making a very expensive mistake.

www.mmbmagazine.co.uk

@leedsworkingmum
Facebook MMB – The Modern Working Mothers Magazine

 

become a Mumpreneur with a direct sales business

Mumpreneur Story: CG Safety

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

Caroline Graham
I am married and have two children, a boy aged six and a girl aged 13.

What’s your business called?

CG Safety

Can you describe it in one sentence?

I help small and medium sized businesses achieve legal compliance with their safety requirements and I also provide support to businesses looking to increase employee engagement by building a health and wellbeing plan.

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

I started my business earlier this year. A few years ago I was made redundant after working in the corporate world for about 15 years. I initially took some time out to care for my son who was only two at the time. I decided to pursue my own consultancy (now my son has settled into school) to enable me to work on my terms, have the flexibility I need and a work/life balance.

How did you fund your start up?

Personal finance. I try and keep my expenditure to a minimum. To begin with I did have to pay for professional indemnity insurance, register with the Occupational Safety & Health Consultants register. My initial other outgoings were business cards and building a website. More recently I have spent some more money using a Coach to help develop me and my business.

How do you manage working around your children?

Sometimes a challenge when holidays and sickness occur. Majority of the time I work during school hours but also fit in the odd hour/half hour when I can : evenings, weekends and during the holidays. I have sometimes got up extra early to complete some work.

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

In terms of building my business…
Check emails, quick look at social media posts on Linked In and Facebook
Draft blog posts for either my own website or guest blogs
Look at connecting with others on Linked In
Following up Linked In connections a couple of weeks after they accept invitation
Adhoc tasks such as sharing posts on social media, checking website to ensure up to date, preparing draft legal documents for clients
Following up any client enquiries

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

Marketing my business – so much to learn and very overwhelming – initially joined closed Facebook groups and connected with some really helpful contacts who are specialists in others areas of business which helped enormously. More recently needed one to one support and engaged with a business coach.

People’s perception of what I do – I can be perceived as an enforcer which is not what I do. I am there to help, advise, guide and support businesses achieve legal compliance and create a safe and healthy working environment for their employees.

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

Having the flexibility to juggle work and home life

What are your plans for the future?

To keep building my consultancy and making it a success

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

Do some ground work when it comes to understanding how to market your business. There are some key elements which pop up regularly by experts and once you know them it will help you get the ball rolling to making your business visible and start attracting clients.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?

Based on my networking experience a lot of businesses have a lack of understanding when health and safety needs to be considered. As part of telling my story with you, I am happy to offer readers a free 20 minute call to explain when they would need to start putting safety measures into place to meet legal compliance.

email : caroline@cgsafety.netimg_4159
website : cgsafety.net
Linked In : https://uk.linkedin.com/in/caroline-graham-cmiosh-2a039117

 

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CGSafetyConsultancy/

Running a Business around Children with Additional Needs - running online business

Mum’s Business Story: GD Accountancy

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

I am Gemma and I am Mum to two boys aged 7 and 4. I unexpectedly became a Mum at 20 but was incredibly excited nonetheless and felt secure in my job having qualified AAT (NVQ Level 4 in Accounting). Me and my husband are childhood sweethearts and we’ve been married for 6 years.

What’s your business called?

GD Accountancy

Can you describe it in one sentence?

Providing a friendly and dedicated accountancy solution to individuals and businesses at competitive rates.

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

I opened my practice in April of this year. I have been inspired by many, but mostly my Dad who started his own small business some 10 years ago and I have watched his quality of life and happiness grow.

How did you fund your start up?

Luckily my business required very little more than a laptop to get started! I started work at home but it quickly became clear that I am more efficient working away from home so after gaining my first few clients (and fee income) I visited a recycling charity who cleared offices, canteens and schools etc. and was able to find all of the office equipment I needed to open a small office, at a fraction of the price of buying new. Having a presence on the highstreet attracted more clients and I have been able to fund software upgrades etc. from internally generated fee income.

How do you manage working around your children?

I have always been the breadwinner and have always worked full time. I still work full-time, but I was able to take my youngest in to the office with me on days that he wasn’t at pre-school meaning I was spending more time with him than I ever had before.

He has since started school and I have educated my clients to call ahead to make sure I am in the office before visiting which gives me the flexibility of doing the school run if I want to, even if it means bringing the kids back to the office for an hour or so to meet a deadline! I use a VOIP telephone number so when anyone phones the office it also dials my mobile, my laptop at home and my husbands mobile!

I have set up a remote desktop system so that I can access my data from anywhere as long as I have WIFI so that I can lock-up and go home after school pick up if I want to! Then if a client calls with anything urgent I can quickly remote-in from home and deal with it.

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

The beauty of my work is that I am dealing with a variety of people and businesses who all have different requirements so no two days are ever the same. In a typical day I normally have ‘work’ to do which may involve preparing a set of accounts and tax return, a payroll and a VAT return all in the same day! And as I am still growing my practice I try to do some social-media networking every day and I have meetings with prospective clients most days.

I use Microsoft Outlook to schedule appointments and set reminders but I still keep a diary in my handbag as well! I also use a simple workflow spreadsheet which I designed myself so I can check it every day and quickly see which stage each job is at and address any delays.

Since starting my business I have come to the conclusion that ‘you can only do as much as you can do’ and I no longer work myself to the point of being stressed when I feel I don’t have time to complete something. It’s not fair on my family, and it’s not fair on me. So now, if something can and will wait until tomorrow, it waits until tomorrow!

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

My biggest challenge has been gaining new clients. This is very much a word-of-mouth industry so I only needed to gain a few initial clients before word would spread. After my initial low-cost advertising campaign I began networking with social media and demonstrated how I embrace technology and could highlight key issues (such as the recent HMRC Making Tax Digital consultation) to my audience in real-time.

I am pleased to say that this has been successful and to date most of my clients have come through facebook, but now I am seeing more clients who have heard about me from someone else which is extremely motivating.

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

Definitely the flexibility it gives me to spend more time with my children. And not having to ask anybody for permission to go to sports day or parents evening! But I also enjoy being able to give my clients the service they deserve without being constrained by time/recovery targets and budgets.

What are your plans for the future?

I would like to offer employment opportunities within the local community so I would like to continue to grow my client-base so that I can achieve this. I also have plans for my children to join the business, but I think they have other plans!

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

Speak to as many people/businesses as you can, you would be surprised at how many will offer you support in one way or another. Reach out to people on social media – the worst that can happen is they will ignore your message or say no! This goes for real-life too, just ask yourself ‘what’s the worst that could happen?’

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?

Only that I wish I had taken this step years ago!

www.facebook.com/gdaccounts
www.gdaccounts.co.uk

img_4158

Running a Business when your Child isn’t Well.

It’s always really tough when our children are ill and we’re trying to run a business. Most of us are self employed because it allows us to be there for our children, but when they’re ill it can impact on our ability to earn money.

Last month I took my 3 year old to the farm while my 6 year old was at school. She’d complained that her tummy hurt before breakfast but I just thought she was hungry. While we were at the farm, she was clearly unhappy and her tummy ache was getting worse so we decided to go home. In the car she began to cry with the pain, I had no idea what was wrong and because I was driving I couldn’t even comfort her. It was a scary drive but once we made it home and I was able to give her a hug she calmed down. I made an appointment to see the doctor and she diagnosed inflamed stomach glands as the result of a virus, apparently quite common in small children.

img_4167It took two weeks for my poor little girl to recover, the pain wasn’t constant after the first few days but carried on occurring regularly and she was exhausted because it kept her (and me) awake at night. Like most children when they are unwell, she wanted me near all the time. Even though all she could manage was laying on the sofa watching TV, she wanted me to be next to her and that meant my business had to take a back seat for a little while. Thank goodness, after two weeks she was back to her usual self, creating chaos and tormenting her big brother. I know that if she had a more serious condition my priority would be to be there for her just like I was for those two weeks and that would mean I was no longer generating income from my business.

I first became aware of Insure with Max at the Mum and Working Awards where they were sponsoring the franchisor of the year category (won by the fantastic Baby Sensory). They are the creators of ChildMax, an insurance policy that pays your take-home salary for a year if you need to take unpaid leave to care for your child in the event of serious accident or illness. It covers a range of different conditions including blindness or deafness, paralysis, bacterial meningitis and cancer. While these aren’t things that any of us like to think about and aren’t, thank goodness, common, they do sometimes happen, and being self employed can make them even more challenging.

Two things really surprised me about the ChildMax insurance. The first is the cost, while individual quotes depend on what your take-home salary is and how many children you have the minimum premium is just £49.50 a year and for a parent with two young children earning £1800 a month the premium would be around £106.48. The biggest surprise though was that it’s available for self-employed parents, unlike so many insurance policies. Being self-employed means there are no company benefits to help you out so insurance like this can give you security in the event of the worst happening.

img_4164I have to say that until I’d heard of this product I hadn’t really thought about what would happen to my business if I was unable to work. As well as this blog, I run baby and children’s nearly new sales and they certainly wouldn’t bring in any money without me working on them daily. I know from the experience of friends that when one of your children is unwell it’s all consuming and I know I wouldn’t be able to run my business while being there for my child. This is particularly the case for me because I have two children and even if one was unwell life would have to carry on for the other, so school runs and making dinner would have to fit in around hospital visits, leaving no time for work.

The flexibility ChildMax is ideal for someone self employed, you can insure your salary between £1000 and £5000 a month and the payment is tax free. You can even go back to work on a part-time or flexible basis and ChildMax will pay the top up to your full take-home pay. For a blogger like me this would mean I could keep my blog ticking over until I was able to get back to work full time. For my nearly new sales the insurance payments would mean I could pay someone to run my sales on a freelance basis until I was able to run them again myself. For me that would be the difference between having a business to come back to and having to start again from scratch.

Have any of you used insurance like this? I’d love to hear your experiences.

This is a collaborative post with Insure with Max but all views are my own

Mumpreneur business: COOL Leggings

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

My name is Sandra. I am a Latvian girl, married and currently living in Italy, sunny Sardinia island. I’m a young mommy (34) of two boys. Damien just turned two and has started to go to kindergarten. Alexander is just three months old and is 24/7 with his mommy 🙂

What’s your business called?

My business is called COOL Leggings.

Can you describe it in one sentence?

I always say it’s Fit.Fashion.Fun- handmade and hand painted leggings, yoga pants and beanies.

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

I started out my company couple of years before I became a mom. When I moved to Sardinia, I found it hard to buy cool leggings- something different, something original and fun. That is why I started to make them myself. My friends saw them, they liked them and they started ordering from me. That is when I understood, that this can actually work and I opened my Etsy shop.

How did you fund your start up?

I started with very little. I borrowed a sewing machine from my mother in law and made only couple of designs. When I started selling, I bought my own, much better overlock sewing machine, that is still with me. At that time I was teaching English in several schools, so I had money to invest in some fabric, fabric ink and brushes.

How do you manage working around your children?

My friend asked me the same question the other day. I just do it. Now, when Damien goes to kindergarten, it is easier. But before I just went to my working room with both kids, gave Damien spools to make castles (or to make general mess), Alex in the buggy, and that’s how I am working more or less. It takes some nerves at times, cause they constantly distract you, but hey- you get used to everything. 🙂

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

Usually we wake up around half 7. I get Damien ready for kindergarten and my husband brings him there. Then I do what I need to do around the house- cleaning, ironing, shopping etc. Once that is done, I get to work and have couple of hours for my business. Then it’s lunchtime and I need to prepare lunch. After lunch Damien comes back home and goes to sleep. Afternoon is, when I dedicate myself to Etsy and social media (if I don’t have any orders to work on). When Damien’s up, I still try to work, if he’s calm. Otherwise we just stay together, play or watch cartoons etc. Then it’s dinner time, baby bathing and sleep. That’s a very typical day lately.

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

I like to challenge myself. I am always thinking of new and better designs, improving my skills etc.

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

I always say- the more you do, the more you can do. I love being a mommy and I love doing what I love. It’s amazing that it is actually possible to join both of these things. Since I have my boys, I have also come up with mommy and me matching leggings, which have great success.

What are your plans for the future?

I have never ending plans for the future. First is to keep improving my Etsy shop and making it to perfection, in order to increase the sales. I would love to take fashion designer course, specific sewing classes, take part in local markets, offer my products to local boutiques etc.

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

The success doesn’t come in a day. You need to believe it and keep on going also, if the sales are slow at times. Retail is a tricky business with its ups and downs, seasonal things etc. It is important to move ahead, never stop- every little step counts.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us?

I just wanted to say that I love your blog and I follow it.

Etsy shop: www.etsy.com/shop/coolleggings
My blog: coolleggings.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/coolleggings

Mums Business Inspiration: Mum publishing a magazine

Mums Business Story: Ivy Rose Interiors

Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?

My name is Alanna Dickerson. I am married to my best friend luke Dickerson and together we have 3 children, kane 5 axle 3 and ivy rose 1. Luke works on the railway as a track inspector which takes him away from home frequently, leaving me with the 3 kids.

What’s your business called?

Ivy Rose Interiors

Can you describe it in one sentence?

Handmade homeware and candles, premium products at affordable prices

When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?

After our 3rd baby, a beautiful daughter named Ivy Rose, I began to use the vinyl cutter my husband had previously purchased and become aware that I was only limited by my imagination!

How did you fund your start up?

My husband had purchased the vinyl cutter as an interest he had, and taught me how to use it. As the business grew we began to purchase different tools and machinery that we now operate with on a larger scale

How do you manage working around your children?

It is a juggling act!! Ive found the easiest way is by working at night when they are asleep or juggling their activities to coincide with my own. Each day is different with unique challenges, like any household with small children

Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?

My children are early risers so my day generally starts quite early, around 6am. We have breakfasts, getting ready for school, packing lunches, house duties, after school activities, animals to care, and any orders or new products I have to launch.

What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

I feel that my biggest challenge has definitely been time management. I rarely feel that there is enough time in the day to accomplish what id like to get done, but having goals and a great support system helps quite a lot!

What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?

The satisfaction I feel for creating something unique and marketable. I feel very humbled that my products have been so successful. Creating a small business where I can be with my children is a wonderful blessing that I feel very grateful for.

What are your plans for the future?

We have new products to launch and more lovely customers to meet and share our gorgeous items with!

What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?

To not give in when it seems too hard. To endure the hard days as they make the better days feel even more fabulous!! And to have faith in yourself and what you are doing!

https://www.facebook.com/IvyRoseInteriors/

The mum and Working Academy and Awards.

Yesterday I spent the day at the Mum and Working Academy and Awards. Mumpreneur Inspiration was nominated in the working parent blogger of the year category,  we didn’t win but still had a great day.

There were excellent speakers at the Mum and Working Academy on topics like social media, Finance and funding, search engine optimisation,  team-building PR, legal advice and vlogging.

NatWest were the event sponsors and their regional enterprise manager gave a great session on funding and finance. As well as talking about bank finance he told us about the many great resources that can be found in the city business library. He also discussed alternative funding routes, for example grants, sweat equity, crowdfunding, government start up loans, peer-to-peer lending, pitching competitions and crowdfunding.

Natwest small business funding presentation

Natwest small business funding presentation

There was an excellent session called 42 great SEO tips for small businesses, they focused on how good the search engine optimisation was really about helping users find what they want rather than tricking Google. My key takeaway from this was to think about what people might be googling and use those phrases to make my posts easier to find.

Sarah Cressall

Sarah Cressall

Claire Jones-Hughes from Claritaco Media led the session on social media she talked about limiting the number of platforms that you use, many people agreed that four was overwhelming so she suggested starting with one of them and when you feel confident with it add another. She talked about the importance of making a commitment to your social media and linking in your social media goals with your business goals.

I particularly enjoyed Sarah Cressall’s closing remarks, her enthusiasm is really contagious and she left me feeling inspired.

 

The awards part of the day began with a keynote address from Caroline Dinenage MP who talked about the importance of women in the economy. The working parent blogger of the year category was quite early in the program. Tired daddy received a highly commended award and the winner was honeymumster, the blog of Sarah-Jane Honeywell, who also spoke later at the awards. These are both fantastic bloggers and deserving winners as were  the many other amazing award winners.

All of the finalists received a framed certificate and everyone got a fantastic goody bag. If you’re considering attending next years event I highly recommend it.