Strawberry Communications: Writing & PR
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Anita Lincolne-Lomax with baby Grace
A special hug or kiss (or both) from their children is what makes Australian mums happy.
A survey1 of mothers over the Mother’s Day weekend by wholesale product gateway Babes in Arms revealed mums have simple wishes when it comes to what puts a smile on their faces.
Full results
A hug/kiss from their child/ren 21%
Having my family with me 18%
Waking up to my child/ren smiling at me 17%
All of the above 11%
Sleeping in 11%
A hug/kiss from their partner 7%
Adding to a big year in business that saw director Anita Lincolne-Lomax named the 2011 AusMumpreneur of the Year, Babes in Arms can now include Australian Small Business Champion finalist in its accolades.
The specialist national distributor of baby carriers and slings and babywearing expert, Babes in Arms, is a finalist in two categories – Entrepreneurship and Specialised Small Business – in the awards, which are the largest small business awards program in Australia.
2011 AusMumpreneur Anita Lincolne-Lomax
Anita Lincolne-Lomax from Babes in Arms has been named the 2011 AusMumpreneur of the Year at the Bio-Oil AusMumpreneur Awards Ceremony during The Australasian Mumpreneurs Conference at the Mercure Sydney on Saturday.
The ceremony was an opportunity for business mums to celebrate and recognise the best and brightest entrepreneurs, acknowledging success in business, product development, services and innovation.
From throughout Australia and New Zealand mums were motivated and inspired by seeing how others balanced family time with their own successful businesses.
Anita, who is about to have her fourth child, has sourced the best baby carriers from around the globe to build an expansive range suitable for premmies to pre-schoolers.
Imagine business life working alongside like-minded mums who understand you, your business, and, most importantly, your responsibilities as a mother. The Clever Mamma community appreciates these experiences and connects mums in business.
Clever Mamma is an online directory connecting Australian mums in business, allowing them to outsource and call on fellow talented business mums to enhance the services they themselves provide.
The specialist target for Clever Mamma is service-based business owners who can then connect to support and encourage the growth of one another’s business.
Founder Danielle Price started Clever Mamma because she noticed a lack of resources where savvy business mums could seek out others in similar situations, connect and network online.
Essential tool for business mums
Almost one million Australians operate a business from home. Many of these businesses are run by mothers who are trying to create the lifestyle they want with their family while contributing to the family income at the same time.
While there are many books and guides to help people wanting to start a business from home, there’s not much available specifically to help entrepreneurial mothers. Mothers in business face all the usual start-ups issues such as market research, business registration, taxation and marketing, but they also have to make all this work around their family, so have limited time, suffer from mother guilt and may even need to factor in the housework as well!
So why do it? The answer is simple – many women don’t want to be “just a mum” or finish their career as an employee. They want to experience success they have created themselves. These women are mistresses of their own destinies and they have an armoury of skills which can be utilised while they are bringing up the baby.
A new type of entrepreneur is on the rise in Australia, combining their business pursuits with family life. They are mumpreneurs.
Mumpreneurs are successful, confident and innovative entrepreneurs who choose to be self-employed operating a business from home, while caring for their children and families at the same time. They need to be innovative, professional, have great time management skills and flexibility and many women, like Queensland’s own Peace Mitchell and Katy Garner who run online community Connect2Mums, are finding success in this new industry.
Taking time out from running the Connect2Mums community conference and associated AusMumpreneur Awards to be held next week, sisters Peace and Katy want to share their entrepreneurial success with other mums.
“Connect2Mums provides a safe and supportive environment for women in online businesses to get together and share information, network and gain support,” Peace explained.
“The site provides members with relevant information and opportunities to interact and socialise with other mums across Australia and New Zealand, such as Friday night live chats, newsletters, product reviews, events, competitions and articles.
“These are professional women who value their time with their children, but are also highly ambitious and want to feel successful as businesswomen. They believe that when it comes to success in career and in family you can have it all,” she added.
The Connect2mums Mumpreneurs Conference and AusMumpreneur Awards are another way that Peace and Katy support, celebrate and acknowledge the achievements of Australian and New Zealand women in business, as well as men who combine business and family life.
These exciting events provide the opportunity for women from all over Australia to come together to gain new skills, connect with fellow mumpreneurs (and some brave dadpreneurs), be inspired by leading business experts and celebrate the success of the best and brightest in the industry over three days.
The AusMumpreneur Awards take place at a glamorous event at Rydges, Southbank, Brisbane on Saturday, 31 July. These awards are the only events of their kind in Australia and will be officially opened by Hon Karen Struthers MP the Minister for Women, with Queensland premier Anna Bligh recording a video message for the event.
For more information on the Mumpreneurs Conference or the AusMumpreneur Awards visit www.connect2mums.com.au or email connect2mums@gmail.com