Happity Beginnings: Sara’s Story

Happity Beginnings: Sara’s Story

From Maternal Unemployment, Comes New Beginnings

Heavily pregnant with my second child and facing redundancy, I was at a loss. I love being a mum and thought I was looking forward to time off, but work was a big part of my identity. I struggled when people assumed I’d stop working (that thought made me want to run in the opposite direction!). But I didn’t know what I wanted to do, or what I could do to fit around my kids. With over a decade’s experience in strategy and business development, the roles I was finding on ‘mum job boards’ weren’t quite cutting it.

I got thinking. We’d just moved house with our two-year-old and I was looking for local activities. A mum near our old house had put up a simple website that listed activities for under-5s, but there wasn’t anything like that for our new area. Why were there no modern websites for mums? Why are parents stuck in the ‘90s with old-school message boards and desktop directories that don’t work on our phones?

I started to wonder just how much the world was missing through a lack of female entrepreneurs and women in tech.

As much as I wanted to create a modern website for mums, I didn’t have a clue about technology or startups. It struck me that there hadn’t been innovation for mums, precisely because mums like me don’t have the tools to make them happen (plus we’re busy with our babies!). I started to wonder how much the world was missing through a lack of female entrepreneurs and women in tech.

I decided to turn down that attractive offer of being a stay-at-home mum. I was going to start something.

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Spotlight on Jenny Thomas – Founder of Smallprint Books

Spotlight on Jenny Thomas – Founder of Smallprint Books

Jenny Thomas is the founder of internet bookshop Smallprint Online. After spotting a gap in the market, Jenny curated a beautiful selection of children’s books that’s a huge hit with customers.

Jenny opened her first bricks and mortar bookshop in Forest Hill in 2017 and now also offers activities for pre-school and primary aged children. How did she do it? Over to Jenny… (more…)

Why sugar isn’t necessarily the enemy for your kids, but you might be

Why sugar isn’t necessarily the enemy for your kids, but you might be

Nicole Freeman always had a love of food and cooking. But it was her own fussy eater that prompted her to set up The Kids’ Kitchen, her multi-award-winning cookery school for kids.

She aims to show kids how much fun cooking can be, and encourage them to try new foods, by involving them in preparing and cooking their own meals.

Here she explains why the effects of sugar on child health may not be as bad as you think…

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