Mompreneur Life during the Pandemic: The Truth Behind...
I hit rock bottom a year ago.
Being a mompreneur is not always as glamorous as it looks on social media. I want to be honest about my journey and would like to share with you what happened. Here is the true story of MOMRISE.
Before 2020, I was only selling my activewear line on the local market. But I had bigger dreams. My goal was to sell internationally.
Let me tell you, it’s not as simple as it sounds. I had to work out the technical side of automating my webshop. I agreed with a fulfillment service provider to take care of the logistics. Then I placed my bulk order for new products. Everything was going great.
The year started out fantastic. In January 2020, I was optimistic and full of plans. I just received my stock of beautiful yoga pants and tank tops from my (now former) manufacturer in Pakistan. My goal was to open my new webshop in March 2020. Everything was going according to my plans.
By the time we got home, the pandemic was just around the corner. We were required to stay home to self-quarantine for 15 days. Once our quarantine time had passed, our government announced the lockdown.
If a worldwide pandemic and a lockdown weren’t enough, I started experiencing some problems with my business. Before the MOMRISE brand was born, I had another brand name. I was about to get it registered as a trademark in the EU when I found out that a huge manufacturer company with a very different brand had a somewhat similar name. You know the story of the big fish and the small fish… Well, I was the small fish in this story. Legal procedures that cost a fortune had followed.
I was disappointed and angry, to say the least. Instead of getting ready to open my dream webshop, I lost my brand...all this while navigating a pandemic…
But I am a warrior and a badass. A problem like this can’t break me. There is always an upward-facing dog after a downward dog after all. Besides hopelessness and sadness, I know that I still wanted to do this. I wanted to figure it out!
I contacted my manufacturer right away only to receive more bad news. I learned that the factory was closed down. Even the factory that manufactured the fabrics closed. With the airports being closed too, it was a dead end.
I know that I just said that I am a warrior and a badass when it comes to my dreams, I am also a human being, a loving wife, and a mom. This was a truly challenging time. To release stress and anxiety, I knew I had to recharge my batteries to have energy and a positive mindset to do this without giving up.
As always, I turned to yoga. Having some active me-time and practicing yoga helped me tremendously to clear my mind and release tension from my body and my mind.
After one of my yoga sessions, I came up with a new idea. What if I relocated the production here to Hungary? If I had everything here, locally, I could have better control over quality and small details. Being a control freak, this sounded like the ideal scenario.
Lucky me, there are some excellent garment production facilities in Hungary. I was able to find a great one. They were incredibly helpful and accommodating. They are truly a gem.
They told me that they could take care of the sewing, but I had to take care of sourcing the material. Since my old manufacturer took care of everything, even packaging, and labeling, I was shocked at first. But I took my chance.
I know the features of the high-quality technical fabrics I was looking for, so I began my search. I was able to find some high-quality Italian and Turkish fabrics with perfectly matching yarns. I also found sourced labels and packaging materials.
In the meantime, I also found my new brand name. It was not easy. I had a hard time letting go of the old one and kept trying to find something similar. Once I was ready for a restart, I found something completely different. It was fresh. It embodies my mission and my products perfectly.
The MOMRISE brand was born.
And you know what, I love MOMRISE from the first moment. I knew it was the right one right away. I love it more than my old brand. It was truly meant to be.
Developing and creating our newest Mom Flow Collection from sourcing to labels was time-consuming. I learned a lot during this journey. I met some helpful and wonderful people who turned into my business partners. By the end of this complicated journey, I loved my new brand more than my old one.
I am proud that I am able to source and provide work locally and support my local community. I am excited that I have more control over the quality of my products and have a personal connection even during these isolated times.
After a never-ending downward spiral, my story finally reached its happy ending (or rather, my thriving business got its happy beginning).
Remember, even during the darkest hours, even if it seems difficult to imagine at the moment, we have to believe that something better will come and we will find our way. Handling #momlife and #mompreneurlife while keeping a positive attitude would not be possible for me without having active me-time for mental and physical relief and recharge.
Remember: Reclaim your active me-time. Recharge your batteries. Refresh your mind and body. Give yourself a hug. Never give up on your dreams.
