Meet the 'mumtrepreneur'
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Having a baby has been the inspiration for many a business idea, leading to parents leaving steady jobs and setting up their own companies. Sorcha Corcoran talks to one such ' mumtrepreneur' Lesley O'Mahony, founder of Babypotz
WHEN Lesley O'Mahony had her first child Emma 10 years ago, she was working as an offi ce manager in a computer company and decided to go part-time, doing five halfdays a week.
" I used a lot of jarred baby foods and didn't make much home-made food for Emma. When the second baby came four years later it was a total contrast. I took time off, but didn't want to do ' mummies who lunch' as I would get bored.
" I knew I needed to occupy myself so started experimenting with Rachel's food. I bought an Annabel Karmel recipe book and used ice-cube trays to freeze what I made."
This simple desire to feed her baby in the best way possible coincided with a visit to her sister, who owns a large packaging company in the UK. " My sister had made ice cream and frozen it in individual tubs – I became fascinated with the idea. When I went back to Dublin she sent me over pots of different sizes. I took them to the crèche for Rachel, and people started asking questions about them. It was then the light bulb went off."
From there, she started operating on a shoestring – setting up a website for US$ 20, sending fliers to public-health nurses and advertising in a free sheet distributed to crèches. " I'm not a natural saleswoman and didn't realise I was an entrepreneur. I just knew I was onto something that had helped me and could make other parents' lives easier."
Lesley kept up a part-time job in the early days as she wasn't making any money with the pots and soon she was into a demanding day-to-day routine.
" Both girls were in crèche and I was doing everything myself with the business, so would often be up until 2am. To create a buzz about the pots I used to log in as two different people on parenting websites and talk to myself about them! I have been known to wash a school uniform at midnight and leave the heat on overnight to dry it."
Babypotz became a viable business when Rachel was two years of age and things got easier for Lesley. " I would get up at 6.30am and my husband would bring the girls to school or crèche, which was quite far away, at 7.15am. My working day started at 7.30am and has done ever since.
" I dedicate the afternoons to the girls, shutting the laptop at 3pm until I go to bed. I would hate the girls to look back and say I was never there and all I ever did was work. The kids come fi rst and I work around them. They know I go to the sorting offi ce every day and sometimes they help me carry the boxes; if I have to go somewhere for work, like a pharmacy, they come with me. It's been good for them to see mum working hard."
Lesley recently hired a friend of hers to look after all online orders, which has freed up her time. " I was bad at delegating things but I've learned to hand things over and say 'so what' if there are mistakes."
She acknowledges luck has played a part in her success with Babypotz. In 2007, she won a competition to appear as a mumtrepreneur on an RTÉ pilot show called Deals on Heels, Heels which boosted her confi dence.
" I had no packaging or logo at that stage. During fi lming I had to make a pitch to people, sell ice creams on Dún Laoghaire pier and haggle on Moore Street. After that I got my fi rst deal with a pharmacy chain. " It is a bit about who you know. I know the managing director of Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland and this meant I got an appointment to meet a buyer. A distributor for SuperValu, National Organic, took on my products a few weeks ago and already over 60 stores have agreed to stock them."
Recently, Lesley was awarded an export grant from Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Enterprise Board to help her expand into continental Europe. The future is looking bright.
- Sorcha Corcoran
