Business lessons learnt from London Mums conference
A successful sell-out mumpreneurs conference that took place earlier this month, came up with vital advice for mums seriously considering taking the plunge into the world of business, no matter how small.
The conference hosted by London Mums and Eddie Catz, saw a wealth of advice and discussion from top mumpreneurs Amanda Hamilton and founder of JoJo Maman Bebe Laura Tenison amongst many others.
Topics discussed at the event ranged from work-life balance, how to find business mentors and even childcare issues, all substantial obstacles for mothers returning to work.
London Mums have now put together ten important lessons mumpreneurs learnt from the conference, which they believe will be helpful for other mums at the start up stage.
1 ‘Begin with the end in mind’ (Amanda Hamilton)
2 ‘The Internet has levelled the marketplace and anybody has the same business opportunities so start-ups can now compete with the big companies.’ (Anna Gibson and Philippa Gogarty)
3 ‘Naivety is great when you start a business because you don’t know what you are going to get into and makes you brave.’ (Laura Tenison)
4 ‘In business always try to look like a swan gliding effortlessly across the water even if underneath the surface your legs are paddling like mad just to stay afloat’ (Penny Avis)
5 ‘If you think you’re going to start making money within a year or two – think again or stick to the day job – It’s a labour of love and passion for the first few years’ (Kumud Gandhi)
6 ‘Women should help each other, set up mini focus groups and ask the mums who know best. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Don’t be afraid to ask!’ (Amanda Frolich)
7 ‘Go and talk to someone who already runs your type of business’ (Laura Tenison)
8 ‘Involve the kids in business depending on their age. Even quite young children can do things such as count and roll coins. If you work at home and your child is old enough, you might have him or her actually work in your business by doing basic office work such as filing.’ (Monica Costa)
9 ‘Make networking with mumpreneurs facing the same challenges one of your top priorities’ (Maria Johnson, founder of Eddie Catz)
10 ‘You don’t get if you don’t ask’ (Amanda Hamilton).
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