Mountain Mama Customs

NOW is the time to get started! I need earn my way through school and internship. I'm training to be a midwife! But I've spent over 30 years working with textiles, and I have a modest talent for business. The holiday season is coming and I don't want to miss this opportunity to get to work!

• My mission is to create quality personalized items for individuals or for teams, classes, schools, or other organizations for fundraising. My favorite organizations to work with for fundraising are educational ones!
• I'm seeking start-up funds. I have the machine and the computer to do the work. I have the space and the time. I don't have basic things like the backing materials, the many, many colors of thread needed for most individualized custom projects, the items that folks often want to have personalized, for example at this time of year tree skirts, aprons, especially Stockings! I need cash to get the materials to put my machines and talents to work!
• What is the market size/opportunity? Truthfully? Limitless. There are always people who would love to have a bag, a shirt, a pillow.... so many, many things personalized. The picture above is of an apron I did for a school International club. The kids sold the aprons to raise money for their trip to France. Because their teacher is a dear friend, I did the aprons at cost plus 10% (I'd usually have done cost +17%). Being involved in fundraisers is a great way for me to support community activities while taking care of my family--I especially love to work with education related groups!
• I'm seeking funding at this time to get my business restarted. "Now" because Christmas is coming and that's always a great time to market personalized items!
  I am a student midwife and I'm on call a great deal of the time. I can't get a regular job to help support my family where I'd have to bail on my team members and leave if I get called to a birth. Custom embroidery work is something I can do from home so I'm around for my children; set my own hours and be the only one in a business affected if I have to jump up and leave for a birth (I can just pause the machine, and then restart it when I get home); and I can use the talents I have been polishing over a lifetime and the creativity I was gifted to earn income to help support my family and pay for my internship fees.
• As of right now, I am my only employee. I'm going to finish my degree and be a midwife, but even as a midwife, I will want to supplement my income; no one becomes a midwife to get rich, most I know are barely breaking even!
  I would very much like to expand out over time and purchase a multi-head embroidery machine. I would like to include other types of customization work that I have a background/talent for: Silk Screening, Vinyl lettering for shirts and banners, and my top goal is to buy and utilize a laser engraver for plaques, trophies, and leather customization. I would hope over time to be able to employ as many as five people, and to select people who have similar flexibility needs to mine, whether they be parents of small children, interns of different types, or retired people who maybe need extra income, but can't keep up with the physical demands of a retail or food service job. But for now, I'm starting small. One step in this project at a time.
• Thank you for considering helping me get Mountain Mama Customs up and running. Hopefully I can get to work soon, and start turning out beautiful, personalized products that will bring people happy memories and good feelings for years and years to come!
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