Mompreneurs

And that means taking care of themselves, as much as their families.

“My goal is to be a happy mommy, versus being a perfect mother,” says Voedisch. “In order to do that, I need to have my own time. I need to take care of myself. That can be done in so many different ways.”

For these four women, it’s done through hard work, late nights and lots of juggling. But the results extend far beyond a new brand name and a self-made paycheck.

“[Being an entrepreneur] pushes me to face challenges,” says Conn. “I’m a more confident person as a result.”

These mompreneurs are also teaching their kids that anything’s possible. “In school, they’re taught ‘this is what you have to learn and know,’” says Conn. “They’re not given space to explore their gifts. That’s the message my husband and I continually give them: You can be in charge.”

When it comes to balancing career and family, mompreneurs are proof that maybe you can have your cake and eat it, too.

FORREST VOEDISCH & JENNIFER CONN

FORREST VOEDISCH HAS ALWAYS BEEN AN IDEA GIRL, but she didn’t always recognize that trait for what it was: the entrepreneurial spirit. She’s also a lover of art, and when she became a mother, she couldn’t wait to share that passion with her two boys.But the kids’ crafting scene was bleak. “All I could find were 15-minute crafts with gross materials,” Voedisch, 40, recalls. Step-by-step directions left little room for creativity, and the materials were cheap and uninspiring. This glaring gap in the arts and crafts market quickly turned into Voedisch’s next big idea—but this time, it was the one that snapped her future into focus.That was in 2006. Two years later, Voedisch launched Artterro, offering art kits full of beautiful, eco-friendly, artist-quality materials designed to inspire both kids and adults. Shortly after starting the business, she met her future co-owner, graphic designer Jennifer Conn, 41, at an open gym where their kids played.In the early days, the two women ran the business entirely out of their homes. “I was putting kits together on my kitchen table with two boys running around,” Voedisch recalls. Work-life balance was a challenge right away, and both women battled their share of mommy guilt.

Getting the business off the ground was also much more emotionally stressful than either of them had anticipated. Voedisch and Conn credit two essential skills for getting them through those days: prioritization and letting go. “Letting go of perfectionism, not caring that the house is a mess… you have to practice it,” says Conn. “It’s like a yoga practice.”

To date, the women have sold more than $1 million of product.

But it was never all about the money. Voedisch and Conn say their true measure of success is that they’ve managed to create a brand and products people love while also excelling at their most important jobs: being moms.

“I FEEL VERY CONNECTED TO MY KIDS,” SAYS VOEDISCH. “AND I FEEL GOOD SLEEPING AT NIGHT KNOWING I’M A HAPPY MOM.”

Their advice for mom preneur hopefuls? Be the person you want to be. “KIDS WANT US TO BE HAPPY,” SAYS VOEDISCH. “A LOT OF TIMES, WE FORGET THAT AS PARENTS. BUT WE SHOULD FOLLOW OUR DREAMS—THEY WANT THAT FOR US.”

Both women also emphasize the importance of having mentors, especially fellow mom mentors, and a solid support network. For them, this includes two extremely supportive husbands.

“And you need kittens,” they laugh. “Lots of kittens.”

To learn more about Artterro, visit Artterro.com.

NICKI MAYNARD

NICKI MAYNARD ALWAYS PLANNED to stay home with her kids. What she didn’t anticipate was building a multimillion dollar retail business specializing in cloth diapers and other eco-friendly parenting products out of that home.You could say that Maynard, 36, is naturally driven—but that’s putting it lightly. She graduated from UW-Stevens Point in 2000 with a double major in business administration and psychology, and a double minor in finance and accounting.At home with her first son in 2003, she was restless, despite still working remotely as an accountant. “I’m very type A,” she says. “I had to be doing something all the time.” She laughs about how she used to plan her baby’s days, incorporating things like “music time” and “gym time” (where she would bicycle his legs on the floor).The Maynards were a green family, so the decision to use cloth diapers with their children was a nobrainer. The problem was that cloth diapers were surprisingly difficult to find around town. In the end, Maynard bought her diapers online, making her a trailblazer at the time.

From there, the seed of building her own diaper business germinated, and then bloomed. “Every baby group I went to, people would be like ‘oh, what’s that? Where’d you get that?’” Maynard recalls. Before she knew it, she was wholesaling out of a box under her bed. The box turned into a closet, then a basement, then a rented space, and today, a dozen years later, Maynard operates out of a 12,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution center in New Glarus with 40 employees. She also runs a brick-and-mortar store in Madison.

What started as Nicki’s Diapers, Maynard’s original wholesaling brand name, later expanded to include her own cloth diaper line, Best Bottom Diapers. She also manufactures and distributes products under three other brands: My Swim Baby, providing reusable swim diapers; Imagine Baby, with budget-friendly cloth diapering options; and Planet Wise, which offers a variety of reusable wet/dry bags, sandwich bags, wipes and other eco-friendly products.

Last year, the company netted more than $8 million in sales.

How did she do it? Maynard’s answer is simple: “I DID NOT SLEEP. AT ALL.”

She also has a supportive husband, who would come home from work and help her ship diapers until 3 a.m. (eventually, he left his job to join Nicki’s company full time). It helped, too, that the nature of her products paired well with raising a family. “I TOOK MY SON TO MEETINGS—HE WAS MY MODEL,” MAYNARD SAYS. “WHEN MY DAUGHTER WAS BORN, I WORE HER EVERYWHERE. IT WAS NEVER A PROBLEM.”

Plus, any personal sacrifices were worth it for what she got in exchange: She got to be there. “If one of my kids was sick, I was there. I volunteered for field trips. I didn’t miss anything. I was just…there.”

For more on Maynard’s products, visit nickisdiapers.com, bestbottomdiapers.com, myswimbaby.com, imaginebabyproducts.com, and planetwise.com.

JENNIFER DUTCHER

JENNIFER DUTCHER WILL NEVER FORGET THE FAMILY walk that changed her life.It was a chilly spring day in 2007, and she was wearing her little girl—the third of her now four daughters—in a baby carrier. When she noticed that the baby’s legs were cold under her hikedup pant legs, Dutcher headed home to dress her warmer. Wanting to skip the hassle of undressing her daughter just to put on a pair of tights, she took a shortcut: she snipped off the legs of the tights and slid them up to her daughter’s thighs.That same night, Dutcher, an interior designer turned stay-at-home mom, was online searching for thigh socks for babies. She was surprised to find that such a thing didn’t seem to exist—and that’s when her “ah-ha” moment hit her.“I knew it was a good idea right away,” Dutcher recalls. “As a mom, if I’m wanting this product, I can’t be the only one.”

Eight years later, Rock-a-Thigh Baby thigh socks are sold both nationally and internationally, and Dutcher’s biggest struggle is keeping up with customer demand. The socks come in a wide range of fun designs that fit kids from infants to age 8, and they’re taking off in ways Dutcher, 42, never considered. For example, it turns out that they’re perfect for children who wear leg braces, and for winter potty training.

Even with its success, Rock-a-Thigh Baby remains a one-woman show. The basement of the Dutchers’ Janesville home is still their warehouse, the Ping-Pong and hockey tables long ago folded away and replaced with giant bins of socks.

Dutcher says the best part of being a mompreneur is being able to greet her girls when they come home from school. The FLEXIBILITY IS HEAVEN, BUT IT ALSO MEANS SHE HAS TO BE EXTRA MINDFUL OF NOT LETTING HER WORK OVERRIDE HER KIDS’ NEEDS. “Any time I’m on the computer [and the girls need something], I always make a point of turning my chair around and making eye contact,” she says. “Children need to know that they’re first. They pick up on those cues.”

Dutcher also goes out of her way to include her daughters in the family business. “They submit designs for new socks,” she says, clearly proud. “They put hooks in the socks. They enjoy that—that helps.”

Her 12-year-old already talks about owning a cupcake business someday. Says Dutcher, “I HOPE TO SHOW MY GIRLS, BY EXAMPLE, THAT THEY CAN DO WHATEVER THEY PUT THEIR MINDS TO.”

To learn more about Rock-A-Thigh Baby, visit rockathighbaby.com.

– Kim Krueger