Answers By: Ericka Perry, MS CEO/Founder MommyMaiDD Services Inc. – The Stork Bag and The PostBump Bag
Location: Tinley Park, Illinois
Websites: thestorkbag.com & mommymaidd.com
Instagram: @MommyMaiDD
Facebook: MommyMaiDD
Twitter: @MommyMaiDD
1) How long have you been in business?
I launched my parent company, MommyMaiDD Services Inc. a little over three years ago and my flagship product The Stork Bag, back in November 2014.
2) Why have you chosen to dedicate yourself to this particular business/industry?
I am a mother who has always had a passion for helping women and mothers. I initially started my professional career working in the nonprofit sector with mothers who were addicted to controlled substances. After working in the demanding nonprofit field for seven years and securing a leadership position, I begin to realize that my life had changed drastically in that seven-year-span as I became a wife and mother and my priorities shifted. I discovered my love for business and innovation, which became fuel for my passion. Having [the] opportunity to work for fun is amazing and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.
3) What makes business/product unique?
MommyMaiDD was created to fill a gap in the millennial family structure. I believe the preoccupation with technology takes away from the parent/child relationship. I created MommyMaiDD with a mission to lessen the burden [of] busy millennial parents by giving parents the opportunity to hire “mommy assistants” who could act as temporary personal domestic assistants for families. At the time that mommymaidd.com was created there we no other web-based services out that did this, which is what made it unique.
The Stork Bag is unique because it is the first of its kind. With the popularity of subscription-based services I was surprised to see a virtually untapped market of pregnant women. I noticed cute maternity products but no real “gifting” product that combined a traditional timeless gift with a modern flare. When creating The Stork Bag I went with the idea of the subscription-based care package but elaborated a bit by using branded reusable bags instead of cardboard boxes and full-sized products along with samples to excite the customer experience in a way that had never been done before.
4) You could have worked for anyone and would have been successful, why become an entrepreneur?
Service is the most important thing to me, there are people who are content with working in corporate America and there are people who created corporate America, neither is wrong it’s a matter of preference. I am a creator and when the opportunity to create is taken away from me my purpose is hindered. I believe I came to this Earth to serve at a magnitude that wouldn’t allow me to fully fulfill my purpose without being an entrepreneur and having the opportunity to create without any restrictions.
5) What was your last, “why did I go into business for myself” moment?
I think all entrepreneurs have those moments everyday especially mom entrepreneurs. I recently had a Friday that was so busy I totally forgot to eat until 7pm when my husband said “What’s for dinner?” At the end of that Friday night, I lay in bed so exhausted that I couldn’t even fall asleep because I was thinking about everything I needed to do the next day, it was at that time that I begin to question my sanity and question entrepreneurship all together. I quickly snapped out of it when I realized everything that I had asked for was happening right before my eyes.
6) Every female professional should have __________.
Courage.
7) If you could steal some business mojo from another mogul, who would it be and why?
Lucille Ball. She made history without even knowing or caring if she was making history, she just did what she loved and the people saw that. Lucy’s effortless business mojo carried on well into her old age when she became the first woman to run a major television production network.
8) What is your business motto?
“Thoughts become things.” I know that if I can think it, I can have it. I’ve seen this come true for me so far and I continue to see my thoughts materialize.
9) If you could give other entrepreneurs three tips, what would they be?
- If you think you can do it, you will. Keep going even on the hard days.
- If your goal is to turn your small business into a large business, treat it as so right now, never settle.
- Never, ever compare yourself or your business to any other person or business.
10) Has there been a piece of technology or software that has been a lifesaver to you?
Access to a computer and Internet in general, you can find and do almost anything online today.
11) What is your goal for the next year?
To ship my 100,000th Stork Bag/PostBump Bag.
12) When someone is telling their friend about your business, what do you hope they say?
“You’re pregnant? You need a Stork Bag!”
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