Made for Mothers
30. Building Mom-Centric Workspaces: The Story of Yalla Childcare w/ Natalie Martin
Today’s episode features Natalie Martin, a seasoned entrepreneur and co-founder of not one, but two remarkable businesses!
Natalie Martin co-founded Yalla Childcare, a unique co-working and childcare space located in San Diego, CA. She is also the co-founder of Rising Tide Social, an inclusive social media marketing agency dedicated to setting business owners and brands apart and making waves in their industry. Alongside her sister Allyson, Natalie is passionate about supporting mothers through their ventures. Yalla Childcare, their latest endeavor, was created to support working families seeking closer connections with their children. Natalie and Allyson aim to address the lack of support for working moms and families within corporate structures by offering a co-working space with onsite childcare—an innovative concept much needed in today’s world.
In today’s conversation, Natalie and I explore the challenges and triumphs faced by working mothers in corporate environments. We discuss Natalie’s personal awakening after becoming a mother for the first time, the unique skills motherhood fosters, the pivotal decision to launch a pioneering childcare workspace (including navigating licensing complexities), Natalie’s ambitious vision for Yalla, and much more.
Natalie offers a candid glimpse into her journey, emphasizing the importance of mindset shifts, mental health, and well-being in entrepreneurship. Tune in to this inspirational episode for insights that will empower you and underscore the vital integration of work and family life!
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Connect with Natalie on Instagram @risingtidesocial and @yallachildcare
Learn more about working with Natalie and the Rising Tide Social Team by visiting her website
Join Natalie’s free Facebook group for women entrepreneurs and creatives (local to San Diego)
Connect with me on Instagram
Learn more about booking a Biz Therapy session and working together by visiting my website
Today’s episode features Natalie Martin, a seasoned entrepreneur and co-founder of not one, but two remarkable businesses!
Natalie Martin co-founded Yalla Childcare, a unique co-working and childcare space located in San Diego, CA. She is also the co-founder of Rising Tide Social, an inclusive social media marketing agency dedicated to setting business owners and brands apart and making waves in their industry. Alongside her sister Allyson, Natalie is passionate about supporting mothers through their ventures. Yalla Childcare, their latest endeavor, was created to support working families seeking closer connections with their children. Natalie and Allyson aim to address the lack of support for working moms and families within corporate structures by offering a co-working space with onsite childcare—an innovative concept much needed in today’s world.
In today’s conversation, Natalie and I explore the challenges and triumphs faced by working mothers in corporate environments. We discuss Natalie’s personal awakening after becoming a mother for the first time, the unique skills motherhood fosters, the pivotal decision to launch a pioneering childcare workspace (including navigating licensing complexities), Natalie’s ambitious vision for Yalla, and much more.
Natalie offers a candid glimpse into her journey, emphasizing the importance of mindset shifts, mental health, and well-being in entrepreneurship. Tune in to this inspirational episode for insights that will empower you and underscore the vital integration of work and family life!
____
Connect with Natalie on Instagram @risingtidesocial and @yallachildcare
Learn more about working with Natalie and the Rising Tide Social Team by visiting her website
Join Natalie’s free Facebook group for women entrepreneurs and creatives (local to San Diego)
Connect with me on Instagram
Learn more about booking a Biz Therapy session and working together by visiting my website
I'm Natalie Martin. I am the co-founder of Yella, a co-working and child care space in San Diego. I also am the co-founder of Rising Tide Social, which is a marketing agency. We are super passionate about supporting moms in both of our businesses in Rising Tide and in Yella. So Yella is our newest venture that is created to support working families who want closeness with their kids.
Speaker 2:Hello and welcome to the Made for Mothers podcast, your one-stop shop for candid and relatable conversations about motherhood and entrepreneurship. Think of the show as your new mom friend, where we dive into all things marketing, branding, mindset, money, childcare and growing your business while we all navigate our roles as both CEO and mom. I'm your host, maria Stockman, and I wear a bunch of hats I'm a boy mama, I'm serving as a marketing mentor for mothers, I'm running a six-figure marketing agency and, on top of that, I'm the proud founder of the Made for Mothers community. This show is about sharing the real stories and the practical strategies from fellow mother-run businesses. So dive in, grab your headphones, reheat that coffee and let's go.
Speaker 2:Hello, hello, hello and welcome to another episode of the Made for Mothers podcast. I am your host, mariah Stockman, founder of the Made for Mothers world community, boy mama and business therapist, slash mentor for moms in business, and I am so excited to be sitting in front of Natalie Martin right now. Hi, natalie, hi, good morning, really good morning, because you're in San Diego, so it's like morning morning there. Natalie is the co-founder of Yella, which is literally like the dreamiest looking co-working child care center I've ever seen. Would you like totally agree that it is like you guys are building, like the dreamiest co-working space.
Speaker 1:That is the goal I like really. I went to school for design and I've never really used that like in my professional life. So when this was when we started this, I was like this is going to be my little design baby. So we also worked with a designer and we just collaborated on everything and the goal was really just to make it like a unique space that feels really good, like that was my big thing, like I want it to feel good for everybody.
Speaker 2:Okay, so let's back up. So why don't you share a little bit about what's the space, how? So let's back up. So why don't you share a little bit about what's the space, how? Who are you Like? Let us into your world, introduce yourself all the good things.
Speaker 1:Okay, so the space Yela is designed for working families, so it's not just for moms, but the whole point of it is so that moms can like breastfeed and moms can be close to their babies while working. Moms can breastfeed and moms can be close to their babies while working. And my sister and I who I own both of our businesses with we found this need for ourselves and we are just kind of like go-getters I guess Love that so much. We have a need and we figure out a solution, a solution, and even with Yella I was like man.
Speaker 1:The solution really can't be for us to start a brick and mortar, like a real physical business in San Diego. That cannot be the solution, right? But because we were like this is what we need. We need to be able to breast. It's honestly like we want to breastfeed our babies and we don't want to be separated from them all day. We started our digital marketing agency so that we could be home with our kids. We created Yellow so that we could still be close to our kids and have like a dedicated space to work but also have just that proximity to our kids and not feel like we're just like dropping them off and driving away and you guys have two kids each right.
Speaker 2:We each have two kids, yeah, and what are their ages? Just so for context.
Speaker 1:Yes, so mine are five and two, and then Allison's are four and one and a half, and then she's having a baby in June. Oh wow, congratulations, allie. Yeah.
Speaker 2:So the whole point of Yela is so that if you want to be in close proximity with your kids that's the concept, co-working and childcare. However, you have a background in marketing, so I want to get into that. I want to get into that later, but let's talk about like rewind for us. So what was it like before you had kids, or why you had kids, like how did you get into entrepreneurship? Like before you had kids, or why you're at kids, like how did you get into entrepreneurship? I know you had a corporate. You have a corporate background. Do you want to share a little bit about that story?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so, when I first found out I was pregnant with my oldest. I was actually working like an administrative job for a church. My first baby was a surprise baby and I was like this is not in my bingo card and I was really planning on just being a stay-at-home mom. So I found a remote job and so I started to work for a tech startup and I was pregnant at the time and so I was like, listen, I'm not planning on sending my child to childcare, so is this something that I can do? If it's like admin, is this something I can do with my baby? Yeah, and like startup culture is like very I don't know. Like yes to all the things. And like work-life balance yes, like we got you, that's great, we want to support you in that. And so I started working there when my daughter was a little baby. It was kind of easy, like she was sleeping most of the day and then it was like right around like the six month mark where, like she was requiring like more interactive. Yeah, she's like hey, I'm here.
Speaker 2:I want to play, I want tummy time, I want to be in. I'm going to crawl soon.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, all the things, yeah, and so my job was like just admin work A lot of stuff that I could do like late at night, early in the morning, and it was always like the understanding, like cool, you have your baby, that's fine. But then. So basically in the startup culture, they're kind of good with all of the things like yes, you can do this and we want you to have work-life balance, until there's a fire, and they're like someone needs to put this out, and I ended up being that someone. So I would be like juggling all of the things during the day and they're like natalie, you need to make this call to the client right now, in which clearly there can't be a crying child in the background, and so I'd be scrambling texting my friends can anybody watch my daughter for literally 10 minutes? Yeah.
Speaker 2:Literally the worst feeling in the world.
Speaker 1:Yes, it is, and you're just scrambling and then you're getting frustrated with your little precious innocent baby and I was just maxed out like driving across town to have friends watch her, for quick calls and things like that. And and there were just other things too, like I think I was maybe three weeks postpartum and I was on maternity leave which is shit in Kentucky and they asked me to go to a conference in like Manabuth, and I was just like nobody's quite understanding that I just had a baby. Did you have to go? Wait? Oh, no, I was.
Speaker 1:I was like I, I, as the mother, I'm literally still in diapers and I cannot go. Yeah, yeah, it's just not not going to be an option for me. Yeah, it's just not going to be an option for me, yeah. So I just started to realize there really isn't that support, or it wasn't really the space where I could be fully mom and a fully a great employee. I was doing great in my job. It just wasn't able to meet their demands of putting out those fires and I was like just maxed out, sounds like it was just like a huge reality check.
Speaker 2:I was in, like I mean, I had my own version of that like in my own, in my own process of like reality check, of like mine wasn't so much like with corporate but it was like having clients who weren't moms and I know and how that it just it did not work. It did not work like and I know I can like very deeply feel like almost like that over cortisol rush of like horrible adrenaline, of like frustration and fear and stress and it's like all of that on your already like fragile, like postpartum life, I mean my son's two years old. So you know, like I feel like you can have some like empathy for me, like I'm just getting, like I'm just getting back to like my brain is just finally like functioning at like some semblance of like full cylinders again. Like it took like a full two years to sort of heal that part of me.
Speaker 2:But I can't imagine being like stressing to get my childcare, to figure this out for a job that like I don't even know if you like liked that job and like you know it's it's different when we're working for ourselves and then we're trying to get things done, because it's like our purpose, our passion, our mission, but when we're working for someone else, and then it's all that stress on top of that in our mission, but when we're working for someone else, and then it's all that stress on top of that, I mean it's just it's like humbling in the worst way, to realize like, wow, I very much believe corporate life is really rigged against moms and really rigged against families, and so it's interesting that you've created this space, because really it's like answering a need for so many, but there's like a really strong sense of like advocacy, work there within what you're doing as well, which is just like if the system that we're all supposed to operate in which is like we all most of us have to work, we need child care to work, who's going to give us that?
Speaker 2:Like this whole concept of the village is gone, like we have to go out and build that, but like the systems are so broken for us, and so it's like it's so inspiring that you filled that need and it's also so disappointing that that is also there.
Speaker 1:You know, it's like it's such a double-edged situation totally, and we've actually have been talking with parents that have been touring and sometimes it's come up like we really shouldn't meet yellow. You know, like this shouldn't be something that needs to be created, but we're all trying to like make it and we're all trying to pay our bills and be present parents and this is this is what we have to do. You know, like this is this is our solution, because we have not been given the support in the corporate world, even with, like, my old job is kind of when this, like I had like this light bulb moment, or like this pivotal.
Speaker 2:We call it the pivotal moment. It's a pivotal moment that every mom, working mom, has. Yes, tell us, tell us and I was like, wait a second.
Speaker 1:I am so much better at my work now that I'm a mom and why does it feel like I have to like prove my worth as a, as a worker, as an employee, 10 times more than I did before? Kids Like I am so much more, my attention to detail is so much better, I work so much harder and now I'm having to like prove myself. Like that does not make sense, and so a big thing that we always talk about with Yela and with Rising Tide is like we are better at our work because we are a parent. We have developed skills as parents that have made us incredible employees or entrepreneurs, creatives that we have not been allowed to show in the corporate world. Because we have to fit through this nine to five, I love this full thread right here.
Speaker 2:So let's, I want to like yank on it a little bit because I don't know if you feel this, but would you agree that if there's moms listening to this who are still working like a traditional corporate life, who maybe say to themselves like yeah, but I don't, what would I do? Like I need to get out, I want to work for myself, I want to start my own thing. I don't have any skills. I don't know what my business would be. I'm like Natalie, just list off those skills, Cause I could list off those skills. I fully agree. I am so much better at running my business now that I have restricted, like I don't get to just like. I don't get to just mess around. I have to get things done and I know I have 20 hours a week of childcare and that's it Right. So list off some of those skills for you. Or maybe, if you could think about your co-founder, Ali, what looks different for you now? How are you better now? Let's hear some of those.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so the first thing is efficiency. Like you just said, we can get so much more done in a short amount of time because we have limited, like nap time is only so long. And like attention to detail, organization, the ability to get things done, like execution, I feel like has, just as moms like we know how to execute, Like that's what we're doing all day long, Like okay, how are we going to get the kids ready out the door to school on time? Like all of these things we're spending our days executing, and so if there's a way that you can translate that into a professional like any sort of planning service or coaching or anything, that is like all, all we do as moms like lead. So any leadership role you're going to be great at.
Speaker 2:All we do is lead and delegate and plan and like forward thinking. And I love what you talk about the execution and the time management. And I cannot stand. I see all these things like you'll never hear me say you'll just never hear me say mompreneur, it's just not in my time management. And I cannot stand. I see all these things like you'll never hear me say you'll just never hear me say mompreneur, it's just not in my brand voice, it's not in my are made for mothers ethos. I don't know why. It just isn't. Okay, I probably if I dug deep I would know why. But like probably because I don't ever see dadpreneur anywhere and so I have a weird thing about it.
Speaker 2:Okay, mompreneurs, all of the things I see out there are like download this freebie for 10 tips for better time management. And I'm like whoa, that's just not what moms need. We actually don't need tips for time management because we are the time management. Are you kidding me? I'm the maestro of like I'm holding so many things, like I'm like the master puppeteer or whatever. You know what I mean Of like all the things. Like just, and I'm not saying that my husband doesn't hold those things, I'm just saying he's. There's a reason why my car gets cleaned out and there's a reason why the track, like we have our roles, you know.
Speaker 2:However, I do think that, like in the bigger picture, with what moms actually need, is they need someone giving them permission and telling them like you can do it, like you need to go and you can do it, and it's totally possible. Time management for mompreneurs, which is something they've already freaking mastered just through having a baby. It's like, you know, 10 mindset shifts you can make throughout the day to I don't know like there's so much around like the mindset, I think, because I do strongly believe that the mental load of motherhood is like very, very real and very heavy, and I do believe that limiting beliefs of entrepreneurship is very, very heavy and moms in business are carrying both those weights simultaneously and all of that is mindset and that sort of support. So, anyways, that was a little tangent on the tip side, but to bring it back to Yela, in terms of you left corporate, you started a marketing agency, you do everything with your sister, love that we're also recording this podcast. This is like a baby you just birthed this business. I mean you just.
Speaker 1:We're in labor.
Speaker 2:You're in labor. You're in labor, you're giving tours, you're getting it booked out. You just had an open house. I mean this just launched. So you were like I mean, you're a seasoned entrepreneur with your marketing agency, yes, but this new, like physical brick and mortar space is brand new and is a totally different version of a business. How are you coping? How has this been? Let's Look at that face. Tell me, be honest, because to me it seems like it'd be scary, but limiting beliefs it's so scary.
Speaker 1:Well, and because with our marketing agency there's not, it's a service, right. So it's just different. With Yella there is so much more on the line. We start with a hefty rent, we start with some pretty hefty payroll, we're starting with a lot on the line and we don't have investors or rich family members that are just like handing us money like this is very much like bootstrapped and it's very much like our. This is like our blood, sweat, tears, yes, like yes, and it's all on the line um and so it's been.
Speaker 1:It's been so exciting and so scary. Uh, because I also realized when we gave, like our first, our first day of tours. Like this is the first time that I've been present to see someone's physical reaction to something I built. Oh my gosh, yes.
Speaker 2:Yes, 100%. I totally get that.
Speaker 1:I'm just sitting there watching and I'm like, okay, I hope they love it so much Because this is nothing. We did not create Yella to make money we really didn't and so it's really just we created it to serve a need for families and it's something that we need for our families, and so I'm just like hoping to God that it resonates with other people and like that it meets a need for other people and that they feel what we've been wanting to feel for so long. So it's scary in that sense, because you're just like I hope that this, I hope that people find value. But it's also been so exciting because we've met so many people that have seen the value and are just like this is an answer to a problem I didn't know I had an answer to.
Speaker 2:So how did you guys so? Did you guys get small business loan, did you guys? Are you guys just? Are you just micro-investing from your other business? Are you just pouring in profit from your agency? I'm just curious how you guys went about the financial piece of the launch.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so we got one small business loan, one small, small business loan.
Speaker 2:It's good, though I feel like people need to. Moms need to understand like the best investment you can make in your business is yourself and like small business loans. Actually, they have a pretty low interest. I don't know about your interest rate, but they typically have a pretty low interest rate.
Speaker 1:I think ours is not that great, but it's.
Speaker 1:Well, that could be a reflection of the interest rates across the board right now, but historically, yeah, yeah, and it's one of those things where I always kind of assumed that people who start businesses like this have money, that it's like a passion project that they're doing with all this extra money, that it's like a passion project that they're doing with all this extra money and so to have to really like come up with the financial part of it and in a short amount of time like we could spend a year to like doing grant writings and fundraising, all of this stuff, yeah, but we're like we need this now for us, so we don't have Wait back up.
Speaker 2:But what was that? When did you guys get the idea? And now it's May 1st 2024 and you're doing tours.
Speaker 1:I think we wrote our business plan. It's probably been like eight months.
Speaker 2:Whoa, and if that, okay. If that is not like, let's make a t-shirt. Okay. If that is not like, let's make a t-shirt. Like, that is not the exact, perfect example of ambitious moms getting things done. I love that energy so much. I'm very much like that. I'm actually kind of healing that part of me, like moving a little bit slower. However, the idea of ideation to birth of something new, of some like big new thing in eight months, like that's so impressive, natalie, that's so impressive, just like, figure it out, just figure it out, just get it, get it done.
Speaker 1:That's very much like how we do things and I think it's like, because we're moms like we, we don't have time to just, you know, like be spinning our wheels or, like you know, brainstorming like no, we, we need a solution, we're going to figure it out, and it would have been a lot quicker, except for a week. So we found our, our space, which a space for coworking in childcare is like very specific that you need to find it.
Speaker 2:So why tell? Wait, I'm curious. I'm so curious about all the that's, I don't even care if the listener is not curious. I'm like I'm so curious. I'm like what about your licensing? Who's in the childcare spot? Like what does the space have to be like? I'm so fascinated, I'm like fascinated by this very niche industry because there's there are there's a few here, Like there are a bunch of like co-working and child. There's not, I wouldn't say there's a bunch, but there's. I follow a handful and I've seen a handful done really well. I've never seen ever one as beautifully designed as yours. I will say like that's like, that's like magazine worthy. But like, what were some of the criteria of this for the space?
Speaker 1:yeah, so I also.
Speaker 1:That's something I'll I want to circle back to too about like licensing I will, yeah, teachers and all of that, yeah, but there has to be a certain amount of square footage per child, oh, okay, access to outdoor space and there has to be a certain amount of outdoor square footage, which in san diego, that's hard, and because we didn't have a lot of capital, we're like we can't renovate, like we don't have the money of capital. We're like we can't renovate, like we don't have the money to do these huge build out Like busting down walls and redoing and expanding yeah. Yeah, yeah, like we, we can't spend our money doing that.
Speaker 2:Especially because, as I'm a native Californian, the permitting is also really hard in California. Like it's very, it's very different, I think, in California to build than it is pretty much anywhere else in the country. So like, even if you did have the capital, you would have been so bogged down in red tape in like all of the building codes and laws.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and then and then. Like the timeline would have been so much longer.
Speaker 2:And then you're just paying. Paying for a lease that's empty, which is like bleeding money, yeah for sure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and then location was just another thing. We wanted it to be very central.
Speaker 2:Yeah, especially because San Diego is so vast, it's so big and traffic is so bad.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so those were. And then for me, I'm always been like a big design person and I went to school for interior design and like that is just like my, my little passion. So every time I walk into a space, I'm like it has to feel good, like that is like I don't care what the rules like as far as, like, the design rules are, it needs to feel good. It needs to feel good. And when we walked into this building, I'm like this feels like it's an old home that has been turned into an office building and our whole thing is like we want this to feel like home and it has to be the space.
Speaker 1:And it took so long to negotiate and it took so long, I mean, because we walked in with our kids to tour this place, we had no business plan, we had nothing, and we met the owner and we were like I don't know, will you just rent it to us?
Speaker 1:And he was great and he had a marketing agency and was just like I see the story in this and I want you all to be here, but we've got to do a few things before I can feel good about renting this to you. Sure, and there were so many times where we were just like, ah, this isn't going to happen. It's not going to happen and if the location falls through, like we're kind of back to square one, and it could be years, that was just like it's whole, a whole thing of itself. And um, so we ended up securing the lease. That was like a little bit of a yeah. We ended up securing the lease for the space that we found, and if we had been able to do that sooner, like we would have flipped this much quicker. But I feel like eight months is not bad.
Speaker 2:That's great. I think it's great. Okay, so something I heard you just describe was like you're like, oh, childcare, square footage per kid. So like here you are, you're owning a marketing agency, it's. I think it's one thing to start a co-working space, like I think that would have been. You would have been like, yep, done good, let's start a co-working space. But now you're stepping into like child care center law and licensing and all of that. So you guys really had to I mean, you had to do, you had to become like experts in this, like self-taught experts in this, like pretty fast.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and there are also. It's funny because you're like in sorry, sorry.
Speaker 2:You're in interior design school, you start a marketing agency and now you're going to own like a childcare center which is just like, if that's not the like, the transition of like, why it really honestly never matters what you study and what you do and how you pivot, like it's all so connected. I just like love that, just that whole concept.
Speaker 1:Okay, so back.
Speaker 2:Yes, Okay. So child care center licensing, becoming experts in all of that.
Speaker 1:Yes, so there are a few similar things in San Diego that offer like a coworking space and childcare and we tried them in our. Our biggest issue has always been like quality care. We didn't really want to be a drop in babysitter kind of situation. We want it to be enriching childcare, daycare, preschool, and so with having this model, there's like an exemption so we don't have to be licensed if we require parents to stay on fit.
Speaker 2:So a lot of models like this, like a gym, right, yeah, right.
Speaker 1:However, we are super passionate about being licensed, because that licensing holds a standard of care and you have to have certain requirements to be a teacher in a licensed facility.
Speaker 2:Like credibility.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we wouldn't want to send our kids to an unlicensed facility because of all of these safety concerns and whatnot, and so we don't want to do that for our, for our parents. We want to be licensed, so it also allows them the freedom to leave for like lunch or whatever. They just want to have a day at home, they can do that.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's so nice, that's so. Or they're like hey, I want to go run errands or something. Yes, yes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so that is like been our, that has been our main goal. We need to be licensed, so currently we are operating license exempt, but we are operating like we're licensed, if that makes sense, because licensing can take some time six months-ish but yeah, there's a lot of things that you have to know about licensing before you find a space, because if your space doesn't work, you can't get licensed yeah, and then you don't want to have to get out of a lease.
Speaker 1:I mean, that's just that sounds yeah crazy, right yeah so, yeah, we had to learn a lot about like access points and square footage and where sinks and toilets need to be and all of these things just to even start the business, because we needed that to find a space. But now we have a director who handles like all of the licensing thing, which is great.
Speaker 2:Wow, that makes sense about what you said about the payroll.
Speaker 2:Okay, that makes sense now, because you're like oh we have payroll, okay, okay, okay, okay, plus the teachers and all that. Yeah, yeah, okay. So you guys became total experts at licensing, got the branding down, got the space down, all of it. How did you and Allie, how did you guys navigate moments of so? You've been in this for eight months and it's super scary and there's huge overhead. It's a huge investment. It's a totally brand new concept. You were learning everything basically from the ground up, self-taught. How did you two support each other and what did you sort of resource in yourselves or externally from others like mentors, partners, friends, community in those moments that were probably many of like I don't know if we should do this.
Speaker 1:That's such a good question, and I think that's why Allison and I work so well together, because she's just like go get her, let's do it, we'll figure it out. And I am such a safe player. I would have never started this without Allison, because I'm just like comfort. I like comfort, I don't want to be stretched. That, I think, has given us a really good balance, though, because I think of all of the what-ifs and all of these things that we need to think about before we dive into a business. That is a huge investment personally. But then Allison is very much like we have to do this, so we'll find solution, but we're doing this kind of thing, and so she pushes me and I keep her thinking about the logistics a bit more, and so that has just been a really good balance.
Speaker 1:There have been a lot of times where I'm like we don't have to do this and we did it. A lot of people were like why you have a successful marketing agency, why would you do this? And we're like well, we have to. Actually, we have to for ourselves, we can't not, and for me, I think, honestly, the biggest thing that like had me going, that like was like okay, you're diving into this and you're not looking back was watching my daughter play.
Speaker 1:She was like setting up this whole thing for her dolls and a table out of buckets and just being like so creative and so imaginative and all these things that I was just so inspired by watching her and I was like I. My first thought was like I hope that I can help her foster this and like I hope that she can like feel empowered to create. And then I kind of just like got in my head and started thinking like well, what kind of message does that show her? If I have an idea, a big idea that I'm too scared to do, like I want her to see me have an idea and run with it.
Speaker 2:I love that. It's like so much about the legacy, the legacy shifting like patterns and narratives shifting like patterns and narratives and I don't know. It's like I feel like we're we're so lucky to be living, I think, right now in the like age of entrepreneurism, like that. I mean I'm 38. So I feel like I was in sort of like the first earlier waves of it. I guess, where I know now kids who are like 19 and 20, like they don't want to go to college, like 18, they don't want to go to college, just want to go straight into, like starting their business. Like there's so many other trajectories at like for like an 18 year old than there was for when I was an 18 year old. But I feel so deeply about what you just said because I think it really does set the tone of like anything is possible and if you have the idea, like that idea is worthy and you are worthy and there's no like invisible rule book that, like some people are following and some people aren't. Like if you have an idea, just go for it, just figure it out, like put it into the world.
Speaker 2:Some of us will be like gosh, look at them over there. Like look at that person. They built this huge business. They're so successful. It's like they don't know something that you don't know, like they don't. They're not in some like secret club. They don't have some secret rule book that they're following. What they have is this internal piece of them that just keeps them going. They just never stopped. They had bad days, they had clients fire them, they had deals fall through, they had investments that went bad. They've been at a bottom and they've just worked through it unfiltered, unspoiled view of the world which is like so creative and so curious and so just like fun and playful.
Speaker 2:And then I feel like, as we get older, like it gets harder and harder and harder to access that creativity and curiosity and exploration and like playfulness. However, you know this, I know you know this because in entrepreneurship don't you feel like I mean know you know this because in entrepreneurship don't you feel like I mean I feel so lucky because I feel like in my own business I get to be so curious and so creative and so explored Like I get I get to be so playful, like I get to just like come up with ideas. But I've done a lot of that mindset work, you know, which sounds like even if you, even if you yourself, natalie, feel like you're a safe, a lower risk taker, you're still wildly creative and wildly bold and brave and just going for it. So I don't know.
Speaker 2:I love this whole concept of you've created a space not only for you and your sister, for your kids, to see your impact and how you're making your dreams come true and how that's going to influence, like your kids and your nieces or nephews. You're also creating a space where other people get to come and work and work on their dreams and be creative entrepreneurs or whatever they're doing in their business, and that their kids also get to see it. It's very cool that, like, this whole concept is happening for everyone working there, not just for you yourselves as like the owners. So, yeah, I feel like that's really. It's like a really cool, cool little angle of all of this. I think.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I feel so strongly that, like our work doesn't need to be. You know, like we talk a lot about work-life balance and I think for a lot of people that might look or feel like having work and then having family and I don't think that it necessarily has to be that Like. I think, that they could and should be more integrated and that we like. Balance doesn't necessarily mean keeping things separate, but finding a way to make them both work. That empowers you to be the best parent 100%.
Speaker 2:But don't you feel like moms need so much permission for that, because every single thing we've been told in this world is like keep your kids quiet, you know, show up for business, you know. Like that's, that's not. That's not what's happening in my world at all. I mean, I, I, my whole mission is like motherhood first, business second, like you're going to hear Henry, you're, I have a, I have a toddler, he's home. I don't want to put him in preschool. Like he's home with me, like I, you're going to hear him, he exists, you guys.
Speaker 1:And that's what we say in our marketing agency. For the first several years, our kids were home with us all day, every day, and so our thing on calls was like our kids are going to be on calls and if that is uncomfortable for you or you don't like that, that this isn't going to work for you know, like we're probably not the agency for you. Yeah, which has also been a really cool thing to see in. Almost all of our clients are either mom-owned businesses or want to support mom-owned businesses and like or like I wanted to work with you guys because I know that you guys kill it and that your moms and like I support you.
Speaker 1:know, I don't know, I just feel like people that don't like having our motherhood shown, are not going to be our clients.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. I only work with moms. So I like wholeheartedly agree Like I won't work with. I basically don't work with anyone who's not a mom anymore, just because I'm like I just doesn't work for me, like I need my, I need my clients to have that mom grace and I need it, like I need it back in in the same. So I just I love, I love hearing this story, I love it all so much. Natalie, have you guys, do you think you'll open more? I mean, like, do you feel like you maybe someday you'll franchise? Like I don't know? I'm just so curious. Is that a question for Allie?
Speaker 1:I was going to be like, yes, we're franchising, yes, we're expanding, yes, yeah, I don't know, we'll see, but I think that our goal is definitely to expand, to expand, because I do think that, with our model being very focused on being a licensed facility and also being an intentionally designed space, that makes a difference, and so I definitely see us expanding throughout San Diego and California and hopefully eventually nationwide, but that, I feel like, is a whole another.
Speaker 2:Gotta get this one filled first.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, but people have already been asking us about. They're like can I? I'm sure? Oh, my gosh, I'm sure I yeah yeah, oh, I could.
Speaker 2:That's why I asked. I was like I could see this. I like, love it. I I totally could see that because it is anyone who's listening like. Please go to their instagram and just see like. You'll understand immediately. Like it is so dreamy I can't even think of like another word. It's like you've created so much like FOMO of like just wanting to have that and be near that. So where can people find you Like? Where can they follow you for your marketing services? What do you guys do best if they want to work with you? You know all of that.
Speaker 1:So for our marketing business, we are called Rising Tide Social. You can find us on Instagram. Our website is risingtidesocialcom, and we work with all sorts of businesses and brands, but our heart is to work with mom-owned businesses and mom-owned brands, or mom-centric or family-centric brands. And then for Yela, you can also find us on Instagram. That is where I like to share the most, and you can also find us on our website, yelaspacesdcom. But yeah, I would love for everybody to follow along. I've just started a little Facebook community, for it's currently local, but it's for San Diego mom entrepreneurs and creatives.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love that so much. Well, natalie, thank you so much for sharing your story with us and just sort of like behind the curtain, of what it's been like to bring this business into the world, and I'm sure anyone who is listening and follows along will also just be like rooting for you. If anything in this story was relatable or inspiring, or if you go to their Instagram page and you're like, oh my gosh, this is so amazing, please just send them a DM and just say that you found them from the Made for Mothers podcast. I love all of those types of connections and creating this larger Made for Mothers community. Thank you again, natalie, for being here. I appreciate you and your story so much. Yeah, thank you, all. Right. Well, thanks for listening to another episode of the Made for Mothers podcast and we will talk to you soon. Yay, you just finished another episode of the Made for Mothers Podcast and we will talk to you soon. Yay, you just finished another episode of the Made for Mothers Podcast.
Speaker 2:As always, you can find more details about today's show in the show notes and be sure to give us a review. Subscribe so you don't miss a chance to grow your biz from fellow moms. Are you wanting more one-on-one support or are you looking to learn how to market your business in a way so you can spend more time with your family and less time stressing about what to do next? Then follow along on instagram at mariah stockman, or book a one-on-one biz therapy session with yours truly and let's find that work mamahood harmony we all deserve. Until next time, this is your host, mariah stockman, and thank you so much for tuning in.