Location: Ventura
Established: April 2009 (under her ownership)
Employees: 1

Services: Breastfeeding and New Mother Support. Breastfeeding Consultations, Prenatal Breastfeeding Classes, Weekly Breastfeeding Support Groups, New Parent Classes, Music Together ™ Classes, Cloth Diapering Workshops
Products: Breast pump sales and rentals, breast pump parts and supplies, nursing bras, baby carriers

www.mothersguild.com

In early 2009, Mother’s Guild, an established resource for new mothers in Ventura County, planned to close its doors. At the time Renee was working as a part-time employee for Mother’s Guild. She could not accept the thought of the community losing the organization whose mission she supported passionately.

She enrolled in WEV’s Self-Employment Training course, which gave her the confidence to buy Mother’s Guild and the know-how to put in place changes that have lowered the overhead costs of operation.

To Renee, the birth of a baby is also the birth of a mother. With Mothers Guild still present in the community, she is pursuing her passion of supporting young families in their first stages of parenthood.

Is this a new business or are you growing an existing business?
When the former Mothers Guild owner planned to close the business in order to move closer to her aging parents, I knew the community needed this resource and that it had a great reputation among moms in Ventura. I loved working there and I couldn’t stand the thought of its demise. At the time, the overhead too drastically exceeded the projected income and I was hesitant to take on that kind of financial liability. It was a challenging endeavor from the business perspective, but from the emotional perspective it had my heart. I was in.

So I purchased the name, email list, and some of the products. I moved them into an office setting in a building that has a conference room for classes and groups, and a childbirth educator colleague I cross-refer with. Rather than pay an employee to have the doors open, I meet clients by appointment for sales and consultations 5 – 6 days/week, depending on the customers’ needs. I also provide homevisits for breastfeeding consultation, a niche that is not yet met in Ventura County.

What prompted you to go into business for yourself? 
I had already been self-employed as a lactation counselor and had worked part-time at the “old” Mothers Guild.  Buying the business was a perfect fit for my work vision and mission. I felt that adding products to my line of services fit perfectly, as I had already been recommending the products I have come to sell.

What has been your biggest business challenge? 
Bookkeeping and business record keeping! I am still learning to be proficient with Quickbooks and learning to do my Profit & Loss statements. I would say that fully taking on marketing has also been a challenge I am still learning to meet. 

What has been your biggest business success? 
We have a wonderful relationship with Surfside Pediatrics whereby Mothers Guild reaches out to all their new mothers to answer breastfeeding questions, invite them to our weekly Breastfeeding Support Group, and offer home or office consultation if they desire. This mutually supportive relationship enhances the care Surfside provides, improves breastfeeding initiation and duration rates (thereby improving the health of mothers and babies and resulting in cost savings for the family), as well as fulfill our mission to be of service to new families. We have plans to have a small boutique of Mothers Guild products at Surfside Pediatrics in the future.

Who is your ideal customer?
Brand new and expectant mothers! A pediatrician wishing to enhance breastfeeding support for their patients is my very best customer, because of the kind of arrangement we have with Surfside. In the case of Surfside, they have us reaching out to women in the first week of their babies’ lives, when the opportunity and need for breastfeeding support is timely and crucial. Another great customer for us is a busy OB/GYN practice that is interested in having us provide breastfeeding education prenatally for their patients. They provide access to us to reach out to the expectant mother with the intention to breastfeed. Additionally, a large corporate setting, such as Amgen, could be a big referral source if we were to teach prenatal breastfeeding classes there.

What has been the biggest surprise about owning a business? 
“If you’re not marketing, you don’t have a business.”  Okay, maybe that’s not the biggest “surprise” but it is the biggest challenge.

How do you juggle all the pieces of your life (family/work/self/volunteering) to make it all come together? 
Still figuring this one out! I “intend” to do most of my work during the week days and weekday evenings, and attempt to block out “self/volunteer” time for weekends. I have learned there needs to be an end to the workday, every day. I used to push it push it push it and I realized that’s not a long term plan. Some evenings I work until midnight on the books and the advertising. But sometimes it's seven o’clock and I say “you know what, I’ve worked enough. Yes, there is a boatload of stuff waiting, but I’m going to be crazy if I don’t take some time.”

What advice do you offer other women who might want to start their own company?
LOVE what you do because you will be doing lots of it! Luckily, being a breastfeeding consultant and selling top-quality, helpful products for young families IS my passion!  However, realize that there is so much work other than the client contact. Quickbooks and marketing are parts of running my business that are NOT my passion, but they are inevitable parts of success. Be willing to learn them or hire out, because it must be done!

How did WEV help you to achieve your goal or dream?
If I had not enrolled in WEV’s SET course, I would not have had the courage to “go for it!” I am so glad I did, thanks to the support of my SET instructor, fellow students and Mastermind team! The “rah-rah” as well as the concrete sources of support such as referrals and getting answers to “how do I…?” were so helpful.

Is there something you learned from WEV that you use every day?
“If you’re not marketing, you don’t have a business.”

What does ‘success’ mean to you?
I love this question!  Success means living a life I love. For me, that includes being of service on the planet and fulfilling a calling. It is absolutely fulfilling to help a new family get off to a good start, feel supported in their parenting roles, mirror their strengths and encourage the bonding and attachment with the new baby. To me, success also means bringing in enough income to be comfortable to meet my needs, pay bills fully and on-time, with enough left over to be generous with my family, friends and charitable interests. 

What is the biggest reward you get from your business? What makes it all worthwhile?
See the last question!  The birth of a baby also is the birth of a mother. The childbearing year involves a tremendous rite of passage for mothers and at Mothers Guild, I am holding space for that transition. All rites of passage involve loss, and involve growth.  Families need special support at this special, vulnerable time and being available to them is truly fulfilling. Creating groups and classes where they can be with their peers is also a wonderful form of support for parents. It’s so fulfilling to see a family from pregnancy through the baby’s first birthday!  I am one of those that can say I truly love my work!

How do you picture you and your business in: one year? 5 years? 10 years?
One year: Serving over 8 new moms per week in breastfeeding consultation. Adding another lactation counselor and two more groups per week.  We have two additional pediatric practices and two ob/gyn groups referring regularly. Renting 20 pumps out monthly.  Mothers Guild boutique successfully launched at Surfside; total pump sales over 5 per month. Total nursing bra sales over 10 per month; total pump bra sales over 10 per month.  Total baby carrier sales over 10 per month.    Bringing in over $600 monthly in parts and supplies.  Relationship growing with VCMC, yielding at least 3 referrals for services and products weekly.  Corporate lactation avenues opening and increased business coming in from Amgen.

If your business is being affected by the economy right now, how? And what are you doing to deal with this challenge?
Yes, it is. The same month we opened our doors, the local hospital opened a breastfeeding center. They provide drop-in breastfeeding support free of charge.  In a tight economy, some new parents will just go with what is free. However, at Mothers Guild we charge for consultation and this initiates a relationship with a family that continues until they feel their needs have been met.  We offer personalized services, not just a one-time visit for a new mom. 

What we are doing about this challenge is pursuing relationships with physicians who value the extra care and expertise shared with their patients. We are networking with community providers to provide free PR through partnerships with like-minded providers. Additionally, we are building our website for product sales. 

Rather than be focusing on a down economy, we are choosing to be focused on our mission and creative ways to fulfill it, realizing that there are plenty of families who need help, and being creative in our  marketing approaches.

Photography courtesy of Maria Carreras Photography: www.mariacarrerasphotography.com