MOM BIZ SPOTLIGHT: MOLLY at TICK-A-TOO

Posted by Tisha Tolar on June 9, 2009

Website:

Tick-A-Too

Company Description:

Tick-A-Too is a unique online children’s boutique with a large selection of baby gifts, clothes, toys, and furniture.

Molly, proprietor of Tick-A-Too, was 18 when she had her first child. She had never held a job before that nor did she have a credit card or even a bank account. But starting Tick-A-Too was something Molly knew she wanted to do and did so without question.

“Starting a business was a pretty spontaneous decision for me. I spent a lot of time looking for bargains on clothing for my daughter. I wanted her to have nice clothes, but didn’t want to pay too much. One day I woke up and had a “light bulb moment“. What if I could buy the clothing wholesale? I would get the best price and I could also sell the clothing at a great price too. It would be a win-win. I registered my business that same day and started looking for products to sell. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing – but I did it anyway.”

When Molly first started Tick-A-Too, she had a family of three. Interestingly, while Molly had the support of her husband, she didn’t tell anyone else about what she was doing. Her reasoning was that she didn’t want anyone else to discourage her from following her dream. She already knew the beginning steps would be hard. But, at this point, she now has three kids and her business and inventory is growing. She has learned so much from when she started and she continues to learn new things about her business every single day.

Being a mother and an entrepreneur is no doubt a lot of work. Molly says “Now that the kids are a little older (ages 4,6,8), it’s getting much easier, but I do remember the days when it seemed impossible. You need to learn to work more by working less. I used to feel like I was working ALL the time and NOTHING was getting done. That can happen when you are trying to take care of everyone and everything at the same time. I love being with my kids. I love being there when they need me. If my kids forget their lunch, homework, or are feeling sick, I can be there within minutes. I can do so much more at home than I could working for someone else.”

Molly works from home. During the day, two of her children are in elementary school with the third one attending preschool part time. Molly plans her day using the hours her children are in school. “I try to get as much done before the kids come home from school. Once they are home, I turn off the computer and take care of the kids’ needs. It’s working out well. When they were younger. I used to work at night. That worked for a while, but eventually I got wiped out and that was not good for me, the kids, my husband or my business.”

Molly definitely feels successful at balancing work and family life but it took some time to realize the nature of priorities in her life. “I only felt success AFTER I shifted my priorities. My kids were always at the top of the list, but I always put myself last. It took me a while to figure out, that by putting myself last, I was not doing anyone any favors. I was either taking care of the kids or was working on my business during my spare time. That eventually took a toll. I didn’t exercise, eat right, or get the rest I needed. I felt like a zombie. I finally put myself at the top of that list and now I can feel the success. I now have the energy for my kids, husband and business.”

Working for yourself and managing a family, especially a young one, can often be the kiss of death for many entrepreneurial moms, who may end up feeling so overwhelmed with daily life that they eventually decide to give up the business. Molly has definitely had her share of those overwhelming feelings but offers this sage advice: “Don’t think about ALL the things that need to get done, think about ONE thing that needs to get done. Do it, and then think about the next thing that needs to get done.”

Molly has had her share of ups and downs learning the ins and outs of the business world. Her biggest stumbling block? “There are so many things I wish I knew before starting. One thing that probably would have saved me time and money is knowing which web designer/web hosting companies to go with. I had to go through a couple of designers and hosting companies before getting one that I was happy with.”

Her advise for other entrepreneurial moms who have the drive and ambition to start a new business idea is: “I know a lot of moms that have so much potential, but they just don’t know where to start or what to do. I knew absolutely nothing when I started. If I can do it, you can too. There is so much info on the internet. You can research everything and anything, from setting up your business to marketing your business. Maybe you have young kids and don’t want to jump in with both feet. You can take it slowly. It’s never to early/late to put your foot through the door.”

Thanks so much to Molly of Tick-A-Too for sharing her experience as an entrepreneurial mom! Tick-A-Too certainly looks like an amazing shop for moms and kids alike. Take some time today to check out Molly’s hard work. She even has some incredibly cute pictures of her little girls on there in the About Us section. If you place an order at Tick-A-Too (and really how could you not??), make sure you tell Molly you saw her story on Empowering Mom Blog.