More than one million Canadian women are expected to run their own businesses by 2010, with 80 per cent married and more than half with children.
However, Scarsbrook points out starting a business is not a cakewalk.
“I’m not saying this is an easy route. We face a whole whack of challenges. I’m saying that this is an option and we want to provide support and put (entrepreneurs) in touch with the right people.”
One EMN member who likes the organization’s message is Jennifer Bogart, who started Vancouver-based Goober Baby Designs Inc. with friend and business partner Melissa Krezanski in 2006.
Like Scarsbrook, Bogart and Krezanski decided to leave their regular jobs because they wanted to spend more time with their daughters, who were born just 12 days apart.
“We finished our maternity leave and we both returned to work full-time,” Bogart said.
“But we’re both entrepreneurs at heart and once the clock started ticking, we realized we didn’t want to go back to work, so we started putting ideas down on paper. We wanted to spend more time with our girls. We wanted more flexibility.”
They started Goober Baby Designs - which features everyday essentials for moms, including baby change mats, tote bags and change purses. Their products are now sold in more than 100 stores and throughout the world.
Logo from Goober Baby.
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