The
superheroes have cornered the market on multi-tasking. A newspaper
photographer by day becomes a flying strongman by night. A millionaire
playboy moonlights as a crime-fighting rodent. And they still find time
to squabble with each other.
Multitasking gets a bad rap these days, as the kryptonite to mindfulness, but for working moms it’s their lifeblood.
Batman v SuperMom? Place your bets,
folks. My money’s on the real heroes. I have watched my best friend make
Pad Thai one-handed, the other occupied with a squirming baby, while
remaining fully immersed in our conversation. She’s a stay home mom, a
student, an artist, a maker, and an entrepreneur.
I try to imagine my own capacity for
motherhood: how could I possibly add another thing to my already-hectic
life? I don’t have time to shower most days, and the
home-cooked-to-takeout ratio leans heavily on the latter.
But moms everywhere are making it happen, simultaneously nurturing small businesses and small humans – both 24/7 jobs. And they’re killing it. (There’s hope for me still.)
Since I can’t speak from experience, I enlisted the help of Jill Salzman – serial entrepreneur, speaker, podcast host, community rouser, and mom. She’s the brains behind Founding Moms
(her third business venture), a collective of online resources and
offline meet-ups that help mom-slash-entrepreneurs connect to build
better businesses together.
“I
started it because I was running unrelated businesses and merely wanted
to find other women building businesses and raising babies at the same
time — because how were they doing it? Apparently I’m not the only one
wondering these things.”
Jill Salzman
So how are they doing it? Easy: moms are made to be entrepreneurs – the skillsets required for each are remarkably similar. Business owners often have to “make it up”,
Jill says, employing cunning and resourcefulness to get things done,
and learning along the way. The same is true for parenthood.
“Ask
business owners and they’ll likely tell you that, at any one time, they
had no idea what they were doing. Many never feel like they do.
Similarly, when parents raise a child, they also have no idea what’s
coming—minute-to-minute."
A Founding Moms meet-up
My own mother (Hi, Mom!) was, for the majority of my childhood, of
the stay-at-home variety. Though she didn’t “work” for many years, she
was still a working mom – her business was us. She raised three kids,
volunteered for a women’s shelter, led our Brownie troop, organized our
bowling league, chaperoned our school trips, sewed costumes for school
plays, and still had time to make milk-carton boats and butter tarts and
crocheted Christmas ornaments from scratch.
I'm cute, yes?
We were incredibly lucky to have had our mom there all the time. If
she had owned her own business, maybe we’d have missed out. Or maybe
we’d have just traded crafting sessions for entrepreneurship lessons.
Our experiences may be different, but the children of mom entrepreneurs
can have upbringings just a rich as my own.
Forget about mom-guilt, Jill says:
“I
was plagued all day long while working by the thought that I was a
terrible mom for sending my firstborn to childcare too soon. One
Saturday during a playdate, I overheard my daughter talking to her
friend, suggesting that they try playing a new game. She asked, “Do you
wanna play ‘Let’s Go To The UPS Store?” and then waved her friend over
to get into her imaginary car. It was my working mom moment of
revelation: my daughter was not only unaffected by my being a working
woman, but she was encouraging her friends to join her on her own
imaginary work day. Guilt? Gone.”
9 Successful Businesses Run by Moms
This Mother’s Day, we’re honoring the countless mothers who run
successful stores on Shopify. I chatted with some of these badass,
multitasking super-moms.
Here are their stories:
Pretty Presets is an online shop selling pre-made alterations for Lightroom that save her customers tons of photo-editing time. It’s a business that Laura started on a $100 initial investment:
“My encouragement would be to not throw yourself and family
into a financial bind, but to be thoughtful and deliberate about every
purchase.” Laura’s story:
“Seven years ago, after a few failed businesses, I was feeling
stretched, tired and wishing for more time with my family. I was at the
end of my rope and had nothing to lose. I started my current business on
a generic blogger website almost overnight. The inspiration? My kids.
My husband was away for work often and I had two toddlers at home. We
had just moved to a new town and I didn't know anyone there. It felt as
if everything was stacked against me. What I learned through the process
was priceless.”
What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
“I asked my 8 year old son and 10 year old daughter, who have
had me working from home since their toddler years, how they would like
to encourage other moms. Their response was, ‘Stick to what you're
doing. Do what is healthy for you and your kids.’ As I began typing, I
left out the ‘you’ part. My son immediately said, ‘That's important. You
have to remind the moms to do what's best for them, too.’ He's right.
We are often so worried about everyone else, that we forget to take care
of ourselves. Also, don't forget when you become
successful, that it's not always about you. It's about the platform
you've been given to encourage and help others."
We are often so worried about everyone else, that we forget to take care of ourselves.
Patricia drew from her experience as a
beauty vlogger to create Y-HAIR – a line of extensions aimed at
simplifying the daunting purchasing process usually associated with the
product. Patricia’s story:
“I started my business only a few
months before finding out I was pregnant with my first child. Knowing I
was going to have a baby was both exhilarating and scary at the same
time but I knew it was only going to fuel my aspirations and not stifle
them. There’s nothing like having to provide for your own child to
inspire you to do the best you’ve ever done before.” What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
“Time is the most precious commodity.
Find a balance, cut off when you have to, plan ahead and do as much as
you can when you have downtime. Great support is essential, you can’t do
it alone so don’t be afraid to ask for help!”
Time is the most precious commodity.
Fave business resource?
“Youtube. One of my all time favourite channels is by female entrepreneur, author and philanthropist Marie Forleo. She shares lots of practical tips on living life to the fullest, and turning dreams into a profitable reality.”
3. Leslie Plank & Stacy Gnewkowski
Co-Founders of Hawthorne Collection, Best Friends, Moms
It all started with $300 and a glass
of wine. In their first year of business, they shipped over 8000
packages from their homes, and three years later, Hawthorne Collection
now operates out of two retail locations. Being moms first, and business owners second, their priorities drive how they run their businesses:
“We are a very mom and kid friendly
environment. We often hold babies or entertain small children so moms
can shop. We don’t make anyone feel like they don’t belong in our
store, we want it to be a comfortable place for everyone to come.”
What does balance look like for you?
“Living
in the midwest, our company policy is that if the local schools have a
snow day, we are closed. This is not only for the safety of our
employees on bad roads, but also because then we have a complex issue of
‘all the kids are home but we need to work’. One particular snow day,
we also had a lot online orders to pack up and ship out. Thinking it
would be a great idea to go in when the store was closed and get the
orders packed, we loaded up all 5 kids and headed into the store. It
would have been fine except one of us forgot to lock the door behind us.
Within minutes the store was full of customers, and the backroom was
full of 5 very energetic and loud children. We quickly realized it was
maybe not the best idea.”
What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
“Network.
Help each other out! In our early stages there were a few key local
women business owners that helped us out and encouraged us. Now that our
store is larger, we have had the opportunity to help out other
women-owned businesses launch and grow.”
Fave business resource?
“We are very data-minded people. Data is key in determining what our best sellers are, what we need to restock, and what trends are hot.”
4. Jai Nam “Mommy” Choi
Founder of Mommy Sauce, Mom, Grandma
Mommy Sauce was born out of a love of cooking and family. Encouraged
by her son, a renowned chef, she built a business of her own, selling
her secret recipes to the world. Mommy Choi’s story:
"I grew up in a family of 11 kids and
spent a lot of time in the kitchen. We were always eating! I then moved
to America, met my husband, and his food tastes and family background
were completely different from mine. I learned to make food that meshed
the two different styles of Korean cooking and after I had my two kids,
my cooking evolved even further to incorporate new flavors and tastes as
we started eating more American food. My husband and I worked very hard
7 days a week doing every job that came our way so that we could
support our family, but every night, we looked forward to our family
meals at home. Food is a big part of our lives and that is why I think my son became such a famous chef!
Our friends and family felt comfortable in our house and were over all
the time, and I was always feeding everyone! It was inspiring to see
everyone enjoying my food, and that gave me the energy to work harder to
develop my special sauces!"
What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
"Juggling work and family can be
tough, but when you're passionate about something, go for it. It doesn't
matter how old you are, you're never too old to start something new!"
Fave business resource?
"My family and friends."
5. Bita Doagoo
President of Detox Market (Canada), Mom
Detox Market was created to cut through the greenwashing, and offer products with clean, transparent ingredients. Bita’s Story:
“My son was 15 months old when we opened The Detox Market.
After 3 days at daycare he started biting us – we knew this wasn't going
to work. So he started coming to work with me! It was a temporary
solution, but it opened my eyes. Being a mother and an entrepreneur
didn't have to be compartmentalized into separate things. It was at that
point that I started to feel all parts of myself integrating. It made
me appreciate being a mother even more.”
Being a mother and an entrepreneur doesn't have to be compartmentalized into separate things.
What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
“Don't burn yourself out! Have a priority list, don't lose
sight on what's most important (your kids!). This will ground you and
renew your passion. Once you have that list, pace yourself.” Fave business resource?
“My husband! No book or app can ask you the objective questions like the people around you.”
“As a stay at home mom of two toddler boys, I wanted to work after my
youngest turned one, but I didn't want to have the conventional 9-5
job. I have always enjoyed helping small businesses and purchased many
things for my sons and myself from small online shop and small local
shops, and the idea of Mom 'n Tot Box was born. I am able to support
small businesses and deliver some amazing items to customers and also
have a job that I'm proud of. I can work from home, while enjoying the
day to day activities with my boys.” What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
“Enjoy all the moments with your kids and plan your day. I always set
aside a certain amount of time depending on the time of the month that I
work. I make sure all the other times while I'm not working that I'm
present and enjoying my family.” Fave business resource?
"7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey"
Emily attributes much of her success as a mom entrepreneur to her tight-knit and supportive community of fellow retailers. She admits that the balance was a struggle in the beginning:
"I had my first store, Blackbird for
four years, and during that time, I had two kids. When my second kid was
born, I basically took my babies to work. I nursed them behind the
counter, and put a crib in the bathroom." What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
"Find the balance and find it early!
My kids are in school from 9am to 3:30pm. I work 10am to 3pm and try
only to work weekends when necessary. So I've got time to get dinner
going and pick them up at school without my career choice affecting them
too much. I also include them in as much as I can – you'll find my 5
and 7-year-olds stamping hands at the door at my craft shows, or running
appetizers at my open houses." Fave business resource?
"Instagram. I use it as a marketing tool but I also expose who I am as a real life person. My followers get a
kick out of seeing how messy my life can be sometimes. I think it helps
make me relatable and leaves folks feeling like I'm someone they might
like to support."
My Instagram followers get a kick out of seeing how messy my life can be sometimes.
I caught Jordan just as she was taking some time off for maternity
leave. Her blog, an ode to parties and colour and beautiful things, owes
its 10-year momentum to creating original content and continually
investing back into the business. Two years ago, she added “Merchant” to
her many hats when the Oh Happy Day shop was born. A day in the life of Jordan:
"I spend the morning with my family and drop my kids off for school.
Mornings usually mean lots of meetings. I have meetings with the
Editorial team about content, meet with the Ads team about partnerships,
and meet with the Shop team about any issues with the store. I help
brainstorm photoshoots, or sign off on advertising partnerships. My main
job has been to focus on the big-picture stuff like working on new
products for the party shop." Fave business resources?
"Doughbies (we order cookies all the time), Lugg (it is like Uber for moving stuff), Uline and PsPrint."
Solly Baby’s versatile wraps were born out of the founders own frustration with baby carriers on the market. Elle’s Story:
"It's hard for me to believe it was
five years ago that Lucy, my then toddler, and I were pushing rolls of
fabric across our living and dining room floor for our first round of
wraps. Those were some crazy days with a toddler, a newborn, and a
husband in school full-time as Solly Baby began, but motherhood taught
me that our capacity is far greater than most of us believe. I learned
to do more with 15 minutes than I could previously do with 2 hours. Not
only that, there's something about raising children that has made me
acutely aware of how fleeting time is. It put the fire under me to go
after what I wanted. Not only for myself, but also to show them what's
possible." What advice would you offer to other moms starting a business?
"Really understand how your product or service adds value to the world and then work like crazy to share that."
Fave business resource?
"Other entrepreneurs. Surround yourself with people who get what you're doing and who you can exchange ideas with."
There's something about raising children that has made me acutely aware of how fleeting time is.
From all of us at Shopify, to all moms raising the next generation of entrepreneurs: thank you for all that you do.
Ready to put what you've learned into action? Build your own online store with Shopify! Don't forget to check in with our 24-7 customer service always available to assist!
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![10 Businesses Run by Badass Multitasking Super-Moms [Giveaway]](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0070/7032/files/mothers-day-founding-moms_78537eb7-c008-4f76-93c6-d87810572e64.jpg?17521986080912386969 "10 Businesses Run by Badass Multitasking Super-Moms [Giveaway]")
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