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| Newsworthy Boston Globe Article - December 2006 Beyond Tupperware More suburban mothers are leaving corporate jobs to run their own show By Lauren K. Meade, Globe Correspondent · December 14, 2006 While their 3-year-olds romped on the climbing gym and slides at Dover's Caryl Park, Kristin Miller and Adrienne Boerger strategized about product placement and Web-based advertising. The women, who met at their children's day-care center, both left the corporate world to launch retail businesses from their homes. Miller created a skin-care line called Garden Girl and Boerger a jewelry company, Inspired Designs. From playgrounds to living rooms to coffee shops, entrepreneurial women are building informal networks to share tips, pool resources, and market products. They even hold home shopping parties, but don't think Tupperware: The stakes are much higher. Without the built-in support that comes with a national franchise, their companies face the same challenges of establishing name recognition as other start-ups. Here are the stories of five start-ups in Needham. In addition to Miller and Boerger are Marcia McDonald, who co-owns a women's accessory business; Jill Rudberg, who makes pearl jewelry; and Jill Cohen, who makes clay jewelry and home decorations. McDonald and Miller got to know each other because their husbands went to the same high school. McDonald met her business partner because they grew up in the same hometown near the Cape. She recently hosted a home party with Cohen and Rudberg, who struck up a conversation at a trade show because they have the same first name. With the holiday shopping season in full swing, the women are busy producing enough inventory to last through January and hosting weekly home parties, which take hours to plan and set up, said Boerger. Some of them are already gearing up for the spring trade shows. Home parties, complete with hors d'oeuvres, have become popular among shoppers who want to avoid crowded mall traffic and impersonal clerks. "Parties in someone's home sounds so '70s," Miller said, but women "are looking for a reason to get together, and if they can do it while shopping, that's even better." Building on dreams Miller worked as a marketing executive for Staples Inc. when her children were young. While the company offered a day-care center and was otherwise accommodating to working mothers, she wanted to start an enterprise of her own. Boerger, who has a doctorate in microbiology from Harvard Medical School and had been a full-time patent consultant for Global Prior Art Inc., had always dreamed of owning a jewelry store. As they launch their new businesses, both women continue to consult in their previous fields. Boerger, who networks mostly online, showed Miller how to write a blog. Miller, who has connections with many local business owners, hooked Boerger up with a Newton boutique that sells jewelry. Miller started Garden Girl skin care last January; the line is now sold in six stores, online, and at home parties. She hopes to turn her one-woman company into a brand name, supplying stores nationwide. After taking out a home equity loan, she purchased the name and website (www.gardengirl.us) from a woman who wanted to devote more time to her organic spices and herbs business. She chatted about what goes into her products and how they are packaged, as her son, Aiden, cuddled in her lap, squirting skin toners in his hands and swiping a chocolate cookie. Miller said she enjoyed putting a little of herself into the product line, something fun and funky. Her pink and chocolate-brown logo features a stylish woman wearing a pink spaghetti-strap dress and large-brimmed hat. She got help designing it from her friend David Ekizian, who has done graphics work for Tommy Hilfiger and L.L. Bean. She had fun with the names, too: No Worries eye cream, Nature versus Nurture exfoliating night cream, and Chill Out calming body lotion. Her baby products include Rub-a-Dub shampoo and body wash and Little Lamb lotion. "The products are a little off-the-wall. That's me," she said with a laugh. Having no chemistry background, Miller contracted a supplier to develop the formulas and manufacture the products. She declined to name the company, citing fierce competition in the cosmetics industry. She said she avoids ingredients that could cause skin irritations, such as parabens, used as preservatives, and sulfates, used to create foam. She also eschews petroleum-based products, saying she doesn't want to contribute to the Mideast oil trade. Boerger began making earrings, necklaces, and anklets for herself as a hobby. Perusing jewelry at stores, she decided she could produce similar styles for much less money. Consulting such websites as Work at Home Moms (www.wahm.com) and the Small Business Resource Network (www.buzgate.org), she researched how to start a business. She also joined an entrepreneurs group on www.Meetup.com, which gets together in downtown Boston. Not surprisingly, other jewelers aren't anxious to share their trade secrets, but Boerger said she has been helped by business owners in a variety of other industries. Drawing on months of research on the Internet, she imports sterling silver from Thailand and Indonesia; Swarovski crystals from Switzerland; and pearls, topaz, onyx, garnet, amber, and glass beads from China, the Czech Republic, and local artisans. She learned about the trade by working part time in college at an upscale Vermont jewelry store. Having found a niche among quality-conscious buyers in the western suburbs, she sells her jewelry in a Newton boutique, at home parties, and through her website (inspireddesignsbeads.com). Juggling kids and customers Both Boerger and Miller said that while they appreciate the flexibility of working from home, it does have disadvantages. Trying to stay focused on work can be tough with kids running around, laundry piling up, and the phone ringing. Miller said she misses the social aspect of the corporate world, such as lunching with her friends. Marcia McDonald, who with her partner, Martha Cunningham of Marshfield, co-owns an accessory company called Marty GirlZ, said she often waits until her kids -- three daughters under age 7 -- are engaged in a game before making important phone calls -- or she resorts to lollipop bribery. Another challenge, she said, is scheduling her business day around carpools. Still, McDonald said, she is seeing many mothers starting their own companies. "It's often professional women who had children and are looking to get back into something without a commute," she said. McDonald graduated with a business degree from Providence College and went on to pursue a marketing career at MCI, which later merged into WorldCom. She worked part time for several years after her first daughter was born before deciding to go into business herself. Marty GirlZ does not have a website, though McDonald and Cunningham e-mail photo slide shows of their products to potential and current customers. Experience, McDonald said, taught her the power of networking. She said she regularly consults other women entrepreneurs on topics such as accepting credit cards, finding reliable wholesalers, and choosing the best merchandise fairs. The party circuit By holding joint parties, the women expand their customer bases and rotate sales locations. On a recent Wednesday, McDonald, Cohen, and Rudberg hosted their first home party as a trio, staging it at Rudberg's Central Avenue home in Needham. It was a marathon affair, beginning at 3 p.m. By 7:30, they had drawn 50 customers and were still expecting an after-dinner rush. Rudberg, who used to be a ski instructor, launched Oriental Pearl to sell her own pearl jewelry. She got the idea five years ago when she was in Singapore, where her banker husband had been transferred. There she helped a friend, who owned a small jewelry company, set up craft fairs at hotels. When she held her first home party back in the states, she attracted 80 customers. Cohen worked in human resources for 23 years before she started Art From the Heart, selling handmade clay jewelry and home decor objects. She began by making brooches, necklaces, and ornaments as gifts. Among her most popular items are mirrors framed with a mosaic of tiles in vibrant blues, purples, and greens. Six customers floated through three spacious showrooms made up in Rudberg's kitchen, dining room, and foyer. Each host had a display room. Rudberg offered chocolate cookies, apple cider, and wine. Even though they're running separate businesses, Cohen said, the women help one another out with customers when it gets busy. "It feels natural," she said. Rudberg said she receives invitations to home parties almost weekly. Sometimes several parties take place on the same street, with customers going from one house to another in what becomes a merchant block party. Among the best customers are fellow entrepreneurs. McDonald said she mostly buys gifts, clothes, and accessories from the women she meets at trade shows and home parties. "I haven't gone to the mall in two years," she said. Lauren K. Meade can be reached at l_meade@globe.com. © Copyright 2006 The New York Times Company Click here to learn more about Garden Girl products. |
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