“I couldn’t get to the office early and some days had to leave early. The hours were long and stressful,” the Central Coast mum of two said.
Ms Martin particularly realised the juggle after having her second child.
“I would get to the office and get the call to pick him up because he was sick or some days I would take him to the office out of necessity,” she said.
So when the opportunity arose to trade her corporate career for her own business, Ms Martin took it.
And she’s not alone. A new report has found the number of women running businesses with dependent children is on the rise.
The Australian Mums in Business report, commissioned by Mums & Co, an online support network for business mums, found half the women surveyed started their own business after finding that working for someone else was not viable.
And for those who took the leap to be their own boss, four in five said they were happier for it.
Carrie Kwan, co-founder of Mums & Co., said more women were moving into self-employment because of increasing childcare costs, workplace inflexibility and unequal pay.
“Australian mums in business contribute significantly to our economy and it’s time she’s acknowledged and better supported,” she said.
“Technology makes it easier than ever before to launch a business. They now want to take back control of what’s important to them.”
Her Mannering Park home has become a hive of activity since Ms Martin turned her hand to designing and manufacturing her own bespoke art jewellery and leather handbags.
“I’d always said I wanted to do something different and after my son was born the opportunity came to train as a jeweller,” she said.
“I still have to juggle but it is easier. I can set my own hours and plan around my family.
“There are so many women out there like me whose priorities change. I needed to make it more about them and I needed to achieve as well and now the two co-exist. That would be harder to do if I was answering to someone else.”
The report found flexibility and doing something they are passionate about were the two main benefits mums saw from running their own businesses. And an overwhelming 87 per cent said they believed they were setting a good example for their children.
As for being a role model, Ms Martin said: “I hope they will look at all their options when they are older and what makes them happy and choose to do what they love.”
Who is the typical mum in business?
● She has two kids and is likely to be educated. Half of all business mums are between 30 and 39 years old.
● One in 10 are single parents, nearly a third are born overseas and one in four have more than one business.
● More than half have businesses in a completely new field to what they were doing before.
● Six out of 10 mums who started their business this year have an infant or toddler.
