Tell us your name and a bit about your family? When did you become a Mum and to whom?
Im Michelle Aston, i live in Witney in Oxfordshire and i am married with 2 children. My daughter Belle is 4 and about to start school and my son Alexander is 2, we also have a dog called Jasmine.
What’s your business called?
I co-own SupermumUK Ltd
Can you describe it in one sentence?
Mums supporting mums in business
When did you become a Mumpreneur and what inspired you?
Whilst i was on maternity leave with my second child. I enjoyed my job and i really wanted to progress but there were no part-time positions and i craved the flexibility of working around my children
How did you fund your start up?
From savings
How do you manage working around your children?
It is a constant juggling act, especially difficult during the holidays but my family comes first. I always have a to do list and prioritise what needs to be done on the day and what can wait. Im a social media addict though and find myself constantly trawling through Facebook and Twitter looking for opportunities to promote our brand and our members. I try snd set aside time each day so that i can keep up to speed with my news feed!
Can you describe a typical day, what tasks do you have to get done, how do you manage your time?
My job is a constant balancing act of dealing with enquiries, promoting our members, writing useful content for our members and scheduling posts/content. It is flexible though if i need a few hours or a day off, i just need to be organised by scheduling and responding to members and enquiries. I don’t have childcare everyday so when i do have i make the most of it and find myself glued yo my laptop. The benefit of my business is that i can work anywhere as long as i have WIFI and i am amazed at the amount of work i can do whilst im out walking the dog! I love the art of multi-tasking!
What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?
Balancing family/work life is a constant challenge so i have to really prioritise. Another constant challenge is deciding how to grow the business and continually promote our brand and our members locally and nationally. We have just run a successful campaign in-conjunction with Digital Mums. We had a trainee working with us for 5 months. It enabled us to further grow our social media channels and consider how to take the business forward. It is really beneficial to have a fresh pair of eyes to help you decide what you want to achieve.
What’s the best thing about being Mumpreneur?
The flexibility and being able to work from home so i don’t have the daily commute, just the 10 min walk to my daughters nursery.
What are your plans for the future?
We want to continue to grow our membership and look at adding more benefits for our members, for example we are looking at offering business coaching.
What advice would you give for someone just starting out in business?
Research, establish your USP and target your marketing appropriately by researching who your customers are.
Oxfordshire.supermum.org
www.facebook.com/supermumoxfordshire
Supermum.org