In honor of Mother’s Day, the National Women’s Business Council gives special tribute to mom-entrepreneurs. As a council, we are proud to acknowledge the dual CEO roles women play as mothers and business owners. Many women business owners are tasked with managing family-related responsibilities and business obligations.
Considering that women are the fastest growing sector in the small business community, a significant portion of women business owners are entrepreneurial mothers. Our research shows that 36% of women business owners have at least 1 child living at home, often times juggling a start-up and a child. Motherhood in itself can be a fulltime job and entrepreneurial mothers face unique challenges when it comes to nurturing their families and nurturing the growth of their business.
Along with the challenges are unique opportunities associated with being a mom-entrepreneur. Moms start businesses for a variety of reasons; many moms in business discover a need — often inspired by motherhood — that leads to a successful business. History gives us great examples of how unmet household needs can turn into highly successful businesses. Take Margaret Rudkin, a Connecticut housewife and mother of three young children. Rudkin was determined to create bread from scratch that didn’t cause her son to have an allergic reaction to preservatives found in commercial breads. Her recipes are what we know today as Pepperidge Farm breads.
It’s stories like this that drives the mommy-market where entrepreneurial mothers find a void and go on to build successful businesses. The economic impact of women business owners across the board continues to thrive and we proudly acknowledge entrepreneurial mothers, honorary moms, and the special moms that sit on the board of the National Women’s Business Council: Tara Abraham, Roz Alford, Shelly Kapoor-Collins, Magdalah Racine-Silva, and Laura Yamanaka.