What a difference a year makes!

I never imagined myself sitting down to write this piece after one year of officially owning my own business.

For those of you who don’t know Mini Magoos Sensory Play is an independent business that I formed when I returned to the working world after maternity leave. I don’t have the security of a franchise behind me and having never being self-employed before, I knew I was taking a huge risk. Luckily, I have had the most amazing support from my family, friends and most importantly my customers. Sometimes I must pinch myself to see how lucky I have been with all of these!

But, surviving the first year is just one major milestone! Only 4 in 10 small businesses are still trading after five years, so my mountain is still yet to be climbed. I’ve only just about reached base camp! This is what keeps me working hard to make Mini Magoos as successful as possible. Long hours, late nights and weekends are just some of the sacrifices that need to be made. But when I see those smiling faces every week and giving our mums something fun to look forward to, it means it is worth it!

That meme you see is very true – “when you buy from a small business, a person does a little happy dance” EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

Mini Magoos has changed its format over the past year as I’ve learned what my customer base is looking for. I have added a new Baby Sign Time class which is a beautiful class for both mums and babies, and I absolutely love hearing all the stories about babies beginning to sign with their parents. I am attending Enhanced Makaton training in June and then it will be on to some Makaton Regional Tutor training next year! This class has inspired me to develop even more and that is down to having such amazing customers who have been on this course!

I have also recently added our Teeny Magoos class! Teaching new mums the benefits of Sensory Play, Infant Massage and Baby Yoga all rolled into one course. It’s a great intro to our main sensory sessions but more importantly a safe environment for new mums to get themselves out and about. I felt this was one of the hardest things to do as a new parent and I needed a slower paced, welcoming environment to get me started!

The next year is going to hopefully be really exciting for Mini Magoos and my promise is to continue to make it the best it can possibly be! Both or our babies and for our mums!