CBS Atlanta-
Consumer Reporter Kim Fettig shows us how three local women are turning their passions into profit.
May 12, 2009
The Wall Street Journal
Career Women, Remade
By ALEXANDRA LEVIT
It wasn’t too long ago that women began taking sledgehammers to the glass ceilings of corporate America. In the years that followed, women were allowed into the privileged society of male executives, and as they marched up the ladder and commanded high salaries, everyone cheered. Even so, some powerful women wondered what they had gotten into.
“A lot of women found that the male model of success — with its emphasis on full time and face time, extensive investment during the thirtysomething years, and money as the primary motivator — didn’t work for them,” says Kathy Caprino, a work-life coach and author of “Breakdown, Breakthrough: The Professional Woman’s Guide to Claiming a Life of Passion, Power, and Purpose.”
Mary Beth Reeves, of Atlanta, had worked her way up to a high-level training and development position at Starwood Hotels & Resorts when she found out she was pregnant with quadruplet girls. “I was career driven and competitive,” she recalls. “I’d get on a plane to go to a meeting at a moment’s notice, and once there, I’d stick around longer to have drinks.”
But once her daughters were born, Ms. Reeves, then 37, says her priorities changed. “I didn’t need the prestigious title, and I wanted to do my job and go home.”
Seeking meaningful work as well as more personal time, Ms. Reeves, now 40, created a new career on her own terms. She launched her own business, Scrapbook Mamma, which develops custom photo books.
She employs a nanny to help with her daughters while she runs her business from home. “Necessity was the cause of my reinvention,” she says. “I’d been happy in my hospitality career, but then one day, I wasn’t.”
If you’re a mid-career woman who wants to make a change, where should you begin? First, it’s important to consider the type of work you’re drawn to, and then think through the details. For example, you may want to work for yourself because you think that will provide you with more time for family. But in some entrepreneurial ventures, you will end up working more hours and with more stress than in most corporate jobs.
Try interviewing other women who have succeeded and failed at what you want to do. They can provide a reality check regarding the day-to-day life of your prospective career path and assist you in overcoming challenging emotions like fear and insecurity. For mid-career women who aren’t accustomed to negotiating or advocating for themselves, empowered mentors can make the difference between succeeding — or not.
As you move forward with your reinvention, keep in mind that you don’t have to emulate superwoman. While you are setting up a situation that will provide you with better work-life balance in the long term, your focus may need to be primarily on your career. You shouldn’t feel guilty about asking for help.
“Women do more in their lives than is appropriate and healthy, but they need to empower their families to take on more of the demands of the household,” says Ms. Caprino.
Take the career leap!
By Laura Raines
For the AJC
Do you have a long-held career dream? Are you waiting until you have the money, the time and conditions to be right with the universe to leap into it?
Three weeks before Christmas, MaryBeth Reeves was downsized from her job as corporate trainer for Starwood Hotels. She had other corporate job offers, but decided to invest fully in her passion for making custom-printed scrapbooks for individuals and companies.
“I had been working toward leaving corporate life,” said Reeves, the mother of 2-year-old quadruplet daughters, “but was scared to pull the trigger. When I was laid off, I figured it was for a reason. I thought if I don’t take this chance now, I’ll never take it.”
She had already turned her hobby into a business, Scrapbook Mamma, with help from Women Who Launch, a media company that provides resources and connections for women entrepreneurs.
“I went to a seminar where I heard from other women pursuing their dreams and got a lot of practical ideas and advice,” Reeves said.
She loves that she can work creatively and has more time with her husband and girls.
“I like being a part of the special times in people’s lives and giving them something that makes them cry,” she said. “I’m still figuring out the financial part, but I’ve learned that you can’t wait until everything’s right to do what you want. Even starting out wrong is better than not starting.”
MaryBeth Reeves: Scrapbook Mamma– Side Hobby To Main Source Of Income
Your Name: MaryBeth Reeves
Business Name: Scrapbook Mamma, a service that turns photos into scrapbooks and personal digital photo books
Type of Business: Arts & Entertainment/Children’s Goods & Services/Home & Housewares/Gifts
Business Location: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Website www.scrapbookmamma.com
Twitter @Quadmamma
Facebook www.facebook.com/scrapbookmamma
Pinterest http://pinterest.com/scrapbookmamma/
Reason for starting
I wanted to have my own business so I could control my world a little better. In December 2008 my position as a Corporate Trainer for Starwood Hotels and Resorts was eliminated and I found myself without a job after 11 years with the same company. I started my own business out of necessity. My company is called Scrapbook Mamma and I make custom photo books for those who want to do something wonderful with their pictures, but don’t have the time or the inclination to do it themselves. This was something I did for myself often with the millions of pictures I had of my daughters and gave as gifts to family and friends. It was my creative outlet, and a hobby I could do while having 4 babies to care for. I have quadruplet daughters who are now 6 ½ years old. I had so many other people tell me they wish they could have someone make something like that for themselves with their pictures and an idea was sparked. I thought it might make a nice little business and when I found myself without a job, I decided to jump in with both feet.
How do you define success?
The fact that I am able to have my own business is itself a huge success to me. It sounds like a cliché, but it is true. Following my passion and doing a job a love while still being able to be where I need to be for my family is the perfect situation for me.
Biggest Success
So far my biggest successes are that there are copies of my books featured in the lobby of the W Atlanta Buckhead and getting my first yearbook client that ordered 200 copies of the same book.
What is your top challenge and how have you addressed it?
Time and money are my top challenges to growing my business. I am self funded and all of the revenue I make goes back into the business. I barter for help and services to find people who have strength in areas that are not my own. This allows me to focus on things I am strong in saving me both time and money.
Who is your most important role model?
The Mom and Women Entrepreneurs that have come before me like Kim Levine, Angela Stalcup, Laura West, Joyce Bone, Victoria Colligan, Adrienne Graham, Heather Allard and many more. Reading the stories of how these moms started, grew and continue to improve their businesses gave me the courage to start. Being able to meet some of them in person has been inspirational to me. I continue to strive to improve my business, and follow their lead!
July 2009
Scrapbook Mamma founder is top mompreneur
Mary Beth Reeves, Norcross, has been selected as one of the country’s best 200 mompreneurs. Reeves runs Scrapbook Mamma from her home, while taking care of her quadruplet daughters.
Her company was named one of the top 200 mom-based businesses in the Leading Moms in Business competition, finishing in 23rd place, top from the state of Georgia and metro Atlanta. The contest was sponsored by Internet firms StartupNation and VerticalResponse. They report that from January through March, the public cast more than 600,000 votes for thousands of contestants before naming the winners…
August 27, 2009
Do You Want to Be Your Own Boss?
… MaryBeth Reeves does just that. After getting laid off from her corporate position in December 2008, she changed gears. As a mother to quadruplet daughters, spending time and making memories with her family was vital, and she figured other working mothers felt the same.
“I decided to look at this development as an opportunity to be my own boss, to do something I love to do, that will also allow me to spend more time with my family,” Reeves says. “I started a business making custom photo books and scrapbooks for people who like the idea, but don’t have the time or desire to make one themselves. Scrapbook Mamma creates books using digital images or traditional photographs. As a bonus, I put [the images] on a CD and make a slide show set to music so they can enjoy their memories a variety of ways.”
July 21, 2009
STRATA Member – MaryBeth Reeves, Scrapbok Mamma
MaryBeth Reeves is the Founder of Scrapbook Mamma, where she makes custom art quality photo books with personal photos for people who want a unique and creative keepsake, but don’t have the time or inclination to do it themselves. What sets her apart from other photo book sites, is she does the work for you. MaryBeth will take your photos, art work, poems, or anything else you wish and create a one of a kind books that help to honor your memories…
May 4, 2009
MaryBeth, congratulations again on being named one of the Top 200 Winners in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business competition. Featured Stories
We also encourage you to read the feature stories we added to StartupNation.com that profiles some of the key trends and notable winners in the 2009 ranking.
Scrapbook Mamma ranked # 23 among several thousand contestants
A Norcross resident has been selected as one of the country’s best 200 mompreneurs. Mary Beth Reeves, 40, runs Scrapbook Mamma from her home, while taking care of her four children—quadruplet daughters, all who will turn three in a few weeks.
Her company was named one of the top 200 mom-based businesses in the Leading Moms in Business competition, finishing in 23rd place, top from the state of Georgia and Atlanta. The contest was sponsored by two Internet firms, StartupNation (www.startupnation.com) and VerticalResponse (www.verticalresponse.com). They report that from January through March, the public cast more than 600,000 votes for thousands of contestants before naming the winners.
“Moms across America were honored in this year’s ranking, showing that they’re capable of starting and running successful businesses while managing to balance family, career, home and self,” said Rich Sloan, co-founder of StartupNation.”Well over 600,000 votes were cast in support of several thousand contestants. What an incredible achievement to be named a winner, and what an inspiration for anyone looking to start their own business.”
What do they win? Bragging rights, promotional support, and digital winner’s emblems recognizing their achievements as the Leading Moms in Business.
“It’s challenging for anyone to start and run a successful business – particularly in this economy,” said Janine Popick, founder and CEO of VerticalResponse. “These women are setting the standard for innovation and creativity.”
When Reeves started creating scrapbooks in 2003, she was a newlywed and a full-time employee of Starwood Hotels and Resorts with 20 years of experience in the industry. Her first creation was a book featuring the professional photos from her wedding.
Three years later, Reeves returned to scrapbooking. In 2006, she gave birth to quadruplet daughters, and “like all new parents, I was obsessed with taking pictures of my babies,” she says. “And I had four of them to focus on!”
To share pictures of her children in an organized way, she created photo books as Christmas presents for family members. “People loved them,” she says. “Everyone said how great it would be to have a photo book with their pictures if only someone else would do the work.”
Over the next eight months, Reeves wrote a business plan, launched a website and snagged her first order. Although the hobby was clearly presenting itself as a viable business, she continued working full time in a job she loved. Scrapbooking didn’t enter the realm of “full-time career” until she was laid off from Starwood last December.
“It was sooner than I had planned, but I jumped in with both feet working for myself and decided to make a go of it,” Reeves said.
Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood-Woman of Ruth
The Wall Street Journal recently published an interesting article on success-driven, career-minded women, whose desires radically change upon having children. The story is illustrated by one such woman who dropped her career and started a business out of the home so she could be at home with her daughters:
“Mary Beth Reeves, of Atlanta, had worked her way up to a high-level training and development position at Starwood Hotels & Resorts when she found out she was pregnant with quadruplet girls.” I was career driven and competitive,” she recalls. “I’d get on a plane to go to a meeting at a moment’s notice, and once there, I’d stick around longer to have drinks…”
This article is reprinted from the Career Journal, the executive career section of the Wall Street Journal on IMDiversity.com
Start-Up Success Stories: Scrapbook Mamma
June 2009
MaryBeth Reeves worked for a large hotel chain as a corporate trainer, but when the company downsized, Reeves lost her job. She first pursued other corporate positions but soon she realized the corporate world was not where her interests lay. Reeves decided to challenge herself and pursue an alternative career path that would allow her to channel her creative side. With help from the media company, Women Who Launch, Reeves put her plan into action and began her own scrapbooking business, Scrapbook Mamma, which creates custom-made digital scrapbooks. While the road has not always been smooth, it has been rewarding, and today Reeves is doing something she loves while having more time to spend with her family.
Small Business Chronicle-
Good Ideas Turning Into Businesses
Picture This
MaryBeth Reeves made a traditional scrapbook of her wedding photos, but when she had quadruplets, she discovered she didn’t have time to make four separate books using paper and embellishments. So she created digital scrapbooks for her daughters. When people at her workplace saw the scrapbooks, they often wanted Reeves to make one for them. So Reeves launched her business, Scrapbook Mamma. She enjoys sharing in the special moments of people’s lives and being able to use her creativity in her work.
Christian Career Center-
Reinvent Your Career
The Weekly-December 2010
MaryBeth Maly Reeves of Scrapbook Mamma named one of Startup Nation’s “2010 Leading Moms In Business”
Successful Mompreneuer Creates Scrapbooks While Taking Care of Quadruplets
Sept 23, 2009
Day-Night-profit Blog
Home Business Start-Up Idea: Turn Your Hobby Into A Business
… Whenever possible, start out on a small scale to test the waters. MaryBeth Reeves of launched ScrapBookMamma after years of making fabulous scrapbook creations for friends and family. She did it part time for some extra spending money until she was laid off, and that gave her the impetus to ramp things up…
Living My Moment Blog- April 2011
Creating Balance as a Mompreneur
From Hobby to Business, Moms Take Their Pastimes Full-Time
Rich Sloan May 2009
When MaryBeth Reeves launched Atlanta-based Scrapbookmamma, ranked No. 23 in the 2009 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business competition, she wasn’t looking for a new job. She actually had a full-time job with Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide and had been working in the industry for the past 20 years.
“I loved my job and the lifestyle that it provided me,” says Reeves, 40. “I traveled all the time, met a ton of people and was always doing something exciting.”
In 2003, she married her “soul mate” and created a photo book out of the professional pictures from the wedding. It was at that point that she casually picked up scrapbooking, setting into motion a part-time hobby that would ultimately become a career as a business owner.
Despite the popularity of her first photo book, three years passed before she put together another one. In 2006, she gave birth to quadruplet daughters, and “like all new parents, I was obsessed with taking pictures of my babies,” Reeves says. “And I had four of them to focus on!” As a way to share pictures of her daughters in an organized and creative way, she created photo books as Christmas presents for family members. “People loved them,” she says. “Everyone commented on how unique they were and how great it would be to have a photo book with their pictures if only someone would do the work for them.”
At that moment it hit her, and over the next eight months, Reeves wrote a business plan, launched a website and snagged her first order. Although the hobby was clearly presenting itself as a viable business, she still loved her job and continued working full time. Scrapbooking didn’t enter the realm of “full-time career” until she was laid off from Starwood last December. Recalls Reeves, “It was sooner than I had planned, but I jumped in with both feet working for myself and decided to make a go of it.”
As mentioned in Thomas Friedman’s best-seller, The World is Flat, “change” is only a bad thing if you’re unprepared for it. How smart of Reeves to have a side project ready to ramp up in the event of being pink slipped.
City-Town info.com- February 17, 2010
Recession Spawning New Entrepreneurs
Scrapbook Mamma
When MaryBeth Reeves was laid off from her job at Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide in December, 2008, she felt a combination of disappointment and relief.
An employee of the company for 11 years, it was a life adjustment, for sure. While the mother of three-year-old quadruplets admits to being initially hurt by the layoff, the opportunity to spend less time at the office was soon a welcome change.
“While I love working, being an employee of a big company was not conducive to having a family with small children,” said Reeves, 40. “I wanted to find a way to continue to work, on my own terms and to be able to spend the time I needed with my children at the same time.”
And from being a mom, her company was born.
“Making photobooks was a hobby I did as a new mom, and gave as gifts to family and friends,” Reeves said. “The first time someone offered to pay me to do something similar for them, I thought it might make a good business. I had a long-term plan to start a business at some point before the layoff, but my timing was significantly escalated.”
Reeves’ company Scrapbook Mamma, which Reeves funded with a portion of her severance package, creates custom photobooks and scrapbooks for people who want to preserve their memories into a keepsake but who don’t have the time or inclination to do it themselves.
While Reeves admits that there have been stresses along the way–specifically being limited by a lack of capital–she says that that for the most part the venture has been a success. She predicts that her company will show a profit in the first quarter of 2010.
“One of the best parts of starting my own business in this economy is that even given all the doom and gloom, there are still plenty people who are interested in buying my services. Things are going pretty well, and I hope that if they are going well in the not so great times, they should be excellent when the economy gets better.”