When did you start Mamamade and why?
The idea for Mamamade started to sort of percolate around the time my daughter was 9 months old – so just over 4 years ago. I felt really overwhelmed as a new parent, and I certainly didn’t have enough of the right support in place. I really struggled to keep up with mealtimes but felt guilty turning to traditional baby food on the shelf, as I couldn’t be entirely sure what was inside of it, and I wanted to feel like I had more of a hand in her mealtimes. I strongly believed there was room for another option – a way for parents to feel supported, to alleviate the guilt, to give them the confidence that they’re doing things right – and keep things healthy for babies. It’s sort of taken off from here! Sort of crazy to think that we launched in January 2020, and now we’re serving thousands and thousands of meals each week!
How did you find starting a business with a young baby?
Not wanting to sound dramatic, but in a way starting Mamamade completely rescued me. I felt so lost when I first had my daughter. My entire sense of self vanished. I struggled to bond with my daughter and I didn’t feel like I was cut out for parenting. When I realised that what I was lacking was actually a support system and that I could create that support system, I suddenly had a drive and purpose. I’ve learned so much about myself throughout this process of building Mamamade, and I’ve met so many incredible, talented people, including the parents in our community – my world has been cracked wide open and I feel very grateful and very fulfilled, despite all the challenges it brings.
How did you find navigating the pandemic as both a business and mum?
I don’t think there’s any parent of a young child who hasn’t emerged from the pandemic feeling battered and bruised. It was the most challenging experience I’ve ever endured. I’m definitely still processing that entire period – to think that I was building Mamamade, fell pregnant and had a baby, raised two rounds of investment and looked after a 2.5/3-year-old at home, all with no outside support…I’ve gotten a lot of strength from the Mamamade community. The parents I’ve met online through Mamamade have kept me motivated and have also helped me feel seen and heard during a time that was extremely isolating.
How do you manage your time and what does a typical working week look like for you with childcare etc?
My husband is my partner in Mamamade and I genuinely couldn’t do it without him. We also have a nanny 4 days a week who looks after my toddler during the day and does the school runs for my eldest. She’s really part of the family now and it feels so good knowing my kids are being cared for by someone who genuinely loves them. Initially, having a nanny felt like a very indulgent route for us, and I was somewhat embarrassed to talk about it. But I’ve come around, and now I’m a strong believer in childcare as an investment in my career, and it allows me to achieve my goals – even if my entire salary goes to cover hers!
My husband and I tag team throughout the week so that only one of us is ever home for dinner/bath/bedtime – it works for us as it means we can both have time to get our work done, take time for ourselves, and also be disciplined about being present for our kids. I diarise everything and will always say no to something if it doesn’t serve me or my goals. I used to feel bad about saying no but I’ve gotten over it! Generally, this allows me to be quite strict with work/life boundaries – I try really hard not to work while I’m with my kids, and I am fairly religious about making it to school pick-up at least twice a week.
As a team, we typically work from the office on Monday. Tuesdays and Wednesdays I work from home, which means I get to pick up my daughter and take her to her swimming lesson or play dates. Thursdays I usually go into the office again, even on my own, and Fridays I’m with both kids. I do end up working late at night on occasion (like now!), but that’s the beauty of flexible working – my days feel very full of life and work, and it’s important to me that the Mamamade team know that they, too, should feel flexible to do the same.
What obstacles have you found when trying to run a business whilst also being a mother?
See above! The main issue is that my time isn’t completely mine – there is a very clear ‘end’ to the day with bed and bath. Sometimes I wish I could just work nonstop and around the clock without the forced breaks that kids bring – I think Mamamade would be much bigger than we are. I hate feeling like I have to be offline like I’m not a tougher ‘girl boss’ like so many other startup founders.
Saying that I know it’s also a blessing to be forced to take time out, and I definitely couldn’t do what I’m doing or connect with the Mamamade community if I didn’t have my children!
Young children bring a lot of distraction and baby brain is a very real thing!!! It’s not always been easy to stay motivated – running a startup is extremely demanding under the best of circumstances, and it often feels impossible when you’re also responsible for young children. When I first had my son Arthur during the pandemic, I just wanted to stay in bed all day – but I knew I had to keep things moving, so I was online within a week of giving birth.
Staying focused on our purpose, our strategy, and our bigger objectives really help me to stay motivated when it all feels impossible.
Do you have any tips for those wanting to start a business with small children?
Running and building Mamamade whilst also raising two young children is truly the most fulfilling thing I’ve ever done – so I am very encouraging of anyone who has an idea to just go for it. There are so many learnings to be had, and it’s sure to be a wild, exciting ride.
In order to feel like you can achieve some measure of balance, be very clear on your goals and objectives. Know what you’re working toward, and why you’re doing what you’re doing. If you’re not clear, no one around you will be.
Optimise childcare and get in all the help you can get. There’s no medal for ‘doing it all’ at the end of this!
Find the people who will know how to pick you up when it all feels impossible. You can’t do this without a support system in the business world either, and the best way to meet people is to put yourself out there!
But really, just go for it. Before you take the leap, ask yourself what the really worst-case scenario is – chances are, it’s nothing you won’t be able to bounce back from. And the best-case scenario, you find true success and fulfilment.
You recently underwent a crowdfunding campaign-how did you find that given it is often tricky for female founders to do this?
The incredible thing about crowdfunding is that it allowed us to offer a piece of Mamamade to our community – people who love Mamamade and want to support us on our journey could buy a piece of the business for as little as £12. The stats on women raising money are very grim – and as a woman who’s gone through the process, I can confirm that it is a very heart-wrenching process. Crowdfunding was an incredible opportunity for us to connect with our community in a new way whilst avoiding some of the pitfalls of the traditional route to investment.
How do you feel when people judge premade toddler and baby food?
I have seen a huge transformation over the course of the few years I’ve been working on Mamamade – parents are now much more accepting of packaged foods, and thankfully the atmosphere feels a lot less judgmental than it did even 2 years ago! When it comes to parenting, everyone has an opinion about how to do things ‘right’ – and what we’re trying to do at Mamamade is get rid of that conversation entirely. We’re here to give you the confidence to trust your gut, to appreciate that you know your child best of all, and also to know that it’s always ok to ask for help! Parenting is so challenging, and we weren’t designed to do it without a village.