MUMS INTO BUSINESS Project report
06/2021
Mums into Business are a phenomenal group of women! The group started in 2018 with the goal of supporting mothers, facing multiple barriers to set up and run their own successful,
sustainable
businesses. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic which wreaked havoc and disruption across the globe, Mums into Business have survived and thrived. Meeting regularly throughout lockdown, continuing to support and inspire each other, growing, developing and innovating.
What we are all about... Mums into Business is all about providing highly creative and tailored business support to a group of women facing multiple barriers who want to set up their own businesses. At the heart of this is helping the women to increase their confidence and self-esteem alongside their knowledge, abilities and skills. We work with women to identify the specific barriers they face and collectively come up with creative and practical ways to overcome them. We work with these same women to identify the knowledge, skills and expertise they need to take their businesses to the next level; then we deliver sessions to upskill the women in these specific and identified areas.
A bit of background... Mums into Business (MIB) used to meet weekly at WHALE Arts, their children were looked after in the MIB creche while the mums held their business sessions upstairs. Since lockdown, March 2020, the group switched to fortnightly zoom sessions and did their best to manage with the kids at home too. In May 2020 Sindy Santos, an original MIB member took on the role of group facilitator and a small pot of funding helped us keep the group going throughout lockdown. In October 2020 Mums into Business was awarded £5000 from the Travis Perkins City of Edinburgh Council Community Benefit Fund via the One City Trust which ensured we could sustain the group for a further 6 months.
Aims and objectives... The overall aim of MIB has always been to support women wanting to set up their own businesses to overcome the many barriers faced so they can set up and run sustainable, successful and economically viable creative enterprises. Funding specific aims included securing a project coordinator with business skills, providing a programme of inspirational speakers, opportunities for experiential learning and the continuation of our free creche. A little reflection showed us that we had so many skills within the group that we did not need to look far to achieve these aims.
"The arts help me to think outside the parameters of normal day-today life and help me to create meaning without using words which is really nurturing for my soul." (I MIB member) Our very own Sindy Santos was already facilitating the group sessions and the legendary Yvonne Bostock - business consultant, mentor, life coach and trainer - who has worked with the group on a voluntary basis since the beginning, was delighted to continue working in a more specific and tailored way. Our primary objectives were to... Continue the delivery of our free creche Further develop our highly supportive network & peer learning opportunities Develop a series of specialist business skills sessions Grow our online presence
What we did with the money... We continued to run online MIB sessions every fortnight. Yvonne developed a series of 'Business in Bites' sessions, all delivered via zoom, which covered topics including goal setting, confidence and selfworth, basic accounting for business, tax -returns & HMRC, creating an elevator pitch and effective selling techniques. She also started offering one to one sessions to support individual members to progress further with their businesses. Working in partnership with Edinburgh Play and Wellbeing we developed and launched our innovative online play-space - a virtual creche where our kids can be entertained while their mums focus on their online business sessions.
"I got involved with MIB through working at WHALE now pursuing & starting my own Reiki business after becoming a qualified practitioner in 2019." V (MIB member) Since October 2020,
two MIB members attended a series of digital
skills workshops delivered by Creative Edinburgh. Three attended an International Women's Day Conference hosted by Business Gateway. The group took part in a series of community consultations with freelance artist Morvern Odling and we had an inspirational session on manifesting your dreams delivered by Gaida Gaslini. Sindy, who has a background in journalism, has been working hard to grow our online presence, set up a YouTube channel and promote members' individual businesses on social media. Thanks to her and newest member Verity's efforts, the group were featured in this months edition of The Skinny (see link - pg 51) https://issuu.com/theskinny/docs/the_skinny_june_2021
What difference did it make... "I met Sindy holding the Mums into Business Banner at the library. A time when I take my twin boys to read. The idea of starting my own business has always been on my mind & when I had twins, I knew this had to be the time to get out of my comfort zone and just take that leap of faith. " I (MIB member)
Before lockdown, we had 9 active members in the group. The numbers dropped during lockdown but we retained 4 core members who attended regularly. Since October 2020 our numbers have grown. We are back up to 8 with one previous member who is about to have her second child and is planning to rejoin once her baby is born.
Having the Mums into Business Support group during the pandemic has been very important to me. Im glad that even during tough times, we were still able to always have our zoom meetings & check up on each other, sharing our ideas & supporting one another. I (MIB member) That the group is growing is a huge indicator of success but even more exciting is the number of women from MIB who have now started their own businesses. 5 of our 8 current active members have set up their own businesses - more than double the 30% that we expected would set up their own business within 12 months. Huge congratulations to Fiji Boutique, So Caring Reflexology, Bee Chilled Holistic Therapies, Susie Lou Eco boxes and Easy Mummy Cooking who are all now up and running and actively trading.
Without a doubt, the biggest success indicator is what the women themselves say about the group.
In a recent survey, we asked the
women if they felt more confident since joining the group? If they felt more connected to their community, if they had learned new skills/knowledge or expertise; if MIB had helped them on their journey to setting up their own business and if they had started their own business. Answers options ranged from 'A great deal' (5 points) to 'None at all' (1 point). 80% scored 5 points and 20% 4 points for increased confidence. 80% scored 5 points and 20% scored 3 points for feeling more connected to their community 80% scored 5 points and 20% 4 points for learning new skills 80% scored 5 points and 20% 4 points for MIB helping their journey to set up their own business 100% scored 5 points for setting up their own business
"In Lockdown I kept in touch with the group that helped me not to be bored and always looking forward to see the ladies. I gained confidence and spent the pandemic time very busy cooking creating new recipes." S (MIB member)
Our online playspace is also growing in popularity. During lockdown, 5 MIB members' children engaged with the or online playspace and with them it's been a big hit. As many of our current group members children are now school age, we opened the online playspace to others in the local community and so far, a further 5 children from the local area have been using the online playspace. We hope that opening up the playspace will attract more members to the group long term.
Next steps & moving forward... "Right now MIB is helping me immensely because it makes me feel that I’m doing something towards my own personal development while being part of a group, which is really important when the world has been on hold, everything has been paused & I have felt very lost. Now is a particularly pertinent time for healing, self-care, mindfulness, being present in the moment & remembering what is important to you." SH (MIB member)
The last 6 months have been a whirlwind of activity for Mums into Business and there is no sign of slowing down. We are delighted to have secure funding for the next two years and have big plans on the horizon.
"I live near WHALE Arts and used to attend other groups in the past like cooking. I met Sindy and told her I needed some motivation and also help to turn my hobby of cooking into a business. I am a member of the group since the very beginning. Sindy always encouraged me to join the Mums into Business Markets and I offered my service of Eyebrow Threading in exchange of donations." S (MIB member) Finally, after almost a year and a half of meeting on zoom Mums into Business members had their first in-person session this June - a Welcome back to WHALE garden party which in true MIB style they jam packed with a cooking demonstration and some inspirational magic on positive affirmations from Yvonne. Looking to the future the groups main priorities are growing the membership both of the group itself and the online-playspace,
"The members of the group have been a great support for one another over lockdown - especially in terms of building selfconfidence. As we come out of lockdown, we plan to extend that to include the children of our members. As a coach and trainer I work with all ages and look forward to working with the group on our newest theme - 'KIDS INTO CONFIDENCE' - teaching children and young people to believe in themselves and build self esteem and selfconfidence" Yvonne Bostock growing our online presence, progressing individuals on their own entrepreneurial journeys and a new approach to working with our children
designed
to
inspire
confidence,
self
esteem
and
entrepreneurial skills in the younger generation. We'd like to say a huge thank you to the One City Trust and Travis Perkins City of Edinburgh Council Community Benefit Fund who made the achievements of the last 6 months possible.