According to the latest census numbers (2008), women make $0.77 to every man's dollar (1) and the average revenues of majority women-owned businesses were still only 27% of the average of majority men-owned businesses (2). My hope for Sparking Cinderalla is to foster a community of support for female entrepreneurs as well as provide a little juicy insight into who these women are in their everyday lives. After all, as Mama Gena says, "Women are the greatest untapped natural resource in the world."



Friday, January 7, 2011

Jocelyn Chia: MomsLoveIt.com

THE FACTS
Name:
Jocelyn Chia
Job Description: CEO of MomsLoveIt.com
Company info: http://www.momsloveit.com/

Momsloveit.com is a group-buying website featuring great deals for moms and their families launching January 2011.  We also have a lifestyle component focused on bringing moms back to themselves - a place where they can come to and receive inspiration, encouragement, and also quality deals to help them put themselves first for once.  The site features blogs by other mommy guest bloggers on topics such as "how I go from mommy mode to sexy woman mode," "top tips to reach hotmamadom" and "prioritizing one's needs first, even before your kid" (controversial I know! But we believe that a mom has to be happy first before she can be the best everything else that she is - mom, wife, career-woman, sister etc).  We even have hot giveaways like a $1000 soul styling makeover by the fabulous stylist Dame Lori http://www.damelori.com/, and we'll chronicle the transformation on our vlog!  Another mommy organizer is also giving away a 4 hour home organization/transformation session.  We also plan to organize events for moms such as mommy-nanny speed-dating events (for moms to meet their potential nannys and baby-sitters), S-factor pole dancing classes for moms, and lots more. 

WHO ARE YOU?
1. What made you decide to start your company?

It all started when I got downsized from my law firm during the recent economic downturn.  No longer being a high-income earning attorney, it was the group-buying websites like Groupon and Living Social that enabled me to still maintain a certain quality of life that I otherwise would not have been able to.  I really loved their business model because of the positive impact it had on me, as well as on this economy. So I decided to start a business along that model. I noticed at the time that none of these group-buying sites were serving the family market, and we all know how expensive kids can be!  And when a mom has to tighten the purse-strings the first person she compromises upon is herself.  So I decided to use the same group-buying business model to cater to the mommy market.

2. Where do you see your business in 5 years?
There is a lot I'd like to see us do and be in 5 years.  I'm creating this company to be a socially responsible one, where a portion of our proceeds benefit less privileged women and children around the world, and we partner with other charities and non-profits in a variety of different projects.   Because this is a highly scalable business, my vision is that my business has a large multi-national presence and be able to have a great impact on not only on the women and families who are our direct customers, but also on women and children who may have never heard of us, via the charities and non-profits that we partner with.

3. Who was your inspiration?
For the business I'd have to say Andrew Mason, who turned the world onto Groupon and group-buying.  Groupon started out as The Point, a site for collective social action.  I'm now looking to bring some of the social change that The Point does into my business model. 

4. What turns you on?
New, exciting ideas, talking to and working with simply brilliant and inspirational people.

5. What advice to you have for tomorrow’s female entrepreneurs?
Work hard but be sure to take good care of yourself too!  You are only as effective as you are happy and healthy so keep that front and center and everything else will flow from there.  Also try your best to help other entrepreneurs out in any manner you can - the entrepreneurial community is a beautifully supportive one, much more so than corporate America, and what you give out often comes back to you multiple times over! (and at the very least leaves you with a glow :) Know when and who to ask for help, because you absolutely cannot do this alone.  You'll be surprised by how willing people are to help you out - just remember to show your appreciation and pay it forward! And finally, keep on learning - read books, attend lectures/seminars/classes, learn from people who are more experienced than you are - invest in yourself and do whatever you can to keep improving your entrepreneurial skill-set. 

6. Tell us a sexy secret ;-)
Haha..oh dear...ah I was in an off-broadway play a couple of years ago called Miracle on Mulberry Street, and was written up in a review for my role as the Material Girlfriend of a Hollywood star as combining "bouncy burlesque moves with ultra-wry line readings and the largest pocket mirror in the history of the world." Oh, and I'm pursuing stand-up comedy classes right now! So there is quite the performing bent in this entrepreneur :)

1 comment:

  1. Great write-up! Can't wait till the site launches. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete