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[nurseshannansreviews]

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[sonatdistills-blog]

Redefining a Mother Owned Business

I co-founded KOVAL Distillery with my husband in 2008. Leaving my career as a professor to start Chicago’s first distillery since the mid-1800s was liberating. It afforded me the freedom to run my business, while being a full time mom and homeschooler. Now that my boys are 9 and 6, I have managed this dichotomy for as long as I have had my business. Has it been difficult? Yes.  Difficult, however, does not mean that it isn’t also wonderful.

I had never thought about the difference between a working-woman vs. a working mother before having children of my own. Growing up, I had been led to believe that women could achieve anything; however children would probably have to wait or be a hindrance.  When I had children of my own while starting a business, I followed the debate as to whether women can have it all. I could not help but think I am lucky if I have time for a shower.  Nevertheless, I have what is most important for me: I am doing things the way I want, and in a manner that expands what many women think is even possible; regardless of whether they would want to work full time and home school their children.

After all, my husband and I left our careers so that we could focus on what truly mattered to us: working together, having our family close by, living in the city we loved, and doing something of which we could be proud. It was worth giving up our careers and moving across the country for the chance to achieve this. If our goal was to focus on what mattered to us most, what was really keeping me from applying this to how I wanted to raise my children? Who was keeping me from trying to integrate motherhood into my work life? After all, it was my business.

So with the support of my parents and my husband, I have organized my day entirely around my boys, despite running the sales, distribution, and marketing for an international liquor company. Having children has never been detrimental to the success of my business; and I am actually more productive and focused then ever before. It is really a matter of determination, a strong support system, and down to the minute time management.

Being with my children while working has created an opportunity for thinking about motherhood and entrepreneurship in a new way. When they were young, I conducted a state-wide sales meeting for a distributor with my youngest happily attached to my body.  I was also part of a panel discussion to a crowd of hundreds about the meaning of craft, while my son nursed in his sling. There have also been countless conference calls with my boys audible in the background. These calls often turned what could have been a dry business discussion into one that went beyond work, with many of those on the line sharing stories about their children. This is not a traditional way of conducting business, but I did not want my business life to override my desire to be involved in my boys’ education and day-to-day life.

As my boys got older, I had to figure out just how I could find ways for them to play and engage in activities in a manner that would also allow me to work. This would not have been as easy a generation ago. I found places where I could work and they could play and learn. I started to think that a quiet feminist revolution was taking place at Little Beans Café, where I joined a cadre of working mothers enjoying high speed internet and coffee, while our children played happily. I could organize snack breaks, break up fights over train set hogging, and accompany them to the bathroom, all while increasing our distribution across the country and gaining Duty Free placements for my whiskey at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport.  

I do spend time at the distillery, either with my boys or alone while they are taking a class. When they join me at the distillery, we try to encourage them to do homework in their “office.” This works sometimes. Other times, they want to engage in office banter, use the copy machine to give everyone the latest edition of their comics, and tend to make a good bit of “unnecessary noise.” However, they understand our business and are always asking us questions: “What was your meeting about?” It feels very much like the family business we envisioned when we took what was supposed to be a down payment on a house, bought a still instead, and moved in with my parents to get our business going.

I have always wanted my boys to have an education that values languages, music, and art, but in being with us, they are getting a real sense of business too. During a recent trip to Starbucks, my boys were handed two small samples of a Unicorn Frappuccino. When asked by the barista, “What did you think?”

My older son replied, “I think it’s really good marketing to give me a free sample.”