Kate Call of “Late with Kate” Shares Being a “Momtrepreneur” and Finding Your Sense of Identity Through Your Business
Kate Call shares how passions can lead to great ideas that will spark an entire business.
For Call, her first business started as a hobby. With three kids and her husband in law school, she turned her crafting hobby into her first business, Ivory Kay, where she sold shoes and headbands. From there, she utilized Instagram to sell her products, and eventually she found her way to Lates by Kate, her pajama line.
“Business is such an evolution,” says Call. “Rarely do you start somewhere where you end up. You just have to evolve.”
Remember that parenthood is a very special and unique piece of a larger puzzle that is your identity. Call has learned to lean into her various interests in order to become a successful entrepreneur. When she was exploring business ideas, Call decided to make watercolor images to be printed onto t-shirts. “I’m not an artist, but I saw something similar once and I thought to myself, ‘I can do that,’ so I just did a hundred paintings until one of them looked good,” she says. Give yourself the chance to explore new roads. You don’t have to be confined to one area of expertise or talent.
Call shares that her first business was new and exciting, but she didn’t have the passion for it. That being said, her first business was still a really important stepping stone for her career. “It gave me the foundation for my next business, which I have all the passion for,” she says. Lates by Kate are pajama sets that are oh-so-cozy and cute. Pajamas have always been a favorite for Call, so she knew that she could channel her passion into a successful product.
“I want people to feel comfortable in their own skin, no matter what they’re going through,” she says. “I want to make them feel like they are not alone, and pajamas were a way to make that feeling tangible.”
“When I was creating my very first product, I took an old leather skirt and cut it up to make six pairs of baby shoes,” explains Kate. If you’re starting off with little to no experience, don’t worry. Like Call, you can find ways to save money and be scrappy. If you see a need that you think you know how to fill, take a chance on yourself.
“Pick up pieces of inspiration from others, or solve a problem that nobody has solved,” says Call. “I think that’s how all the best businesses start.”
It can take some time to hire outside sources to help get an idea off the ground. “In the beginning, my daughters used to help me ship shoes and sort headbands,” says Call. Involving your family, especially your young children, helps them feel ownership with you in the company. Additionally, those little ones can be inspirational for you in creating a business idea or plan.
Call is not only a powerful businesswoman — she’s an incredible comedian (and her Instagram can attest to that)! “I definitely have insecurities,” says Call. “But I usually just make them into a joke and laugh it off.” She goes on to share that, if you have found your passion, outside opinions begin to matter less and less. Comparing yourself will only discourage you from reaching your dreams.
“I really do just take it step by step,” Call says. If you’re overwhelmed, stick with it and just keep letting it evolve into your full passion. “You have to have the drive to do it and the longevity to do it,” she shares. “Oftentimes, running a business looks a lot easier than it is, especially looking at one that is successful.”
For more real-life parenting tips and tricks, check out the MomForce Podcast! Vanessa Quigley, mother of 7 and co-founder of Chatbooks, hosts this refreshing take on all things mom. Along with her 4 sisters, they’ll get into the nitty-gritty of parenting together, bringing in experts to get to the source of your most-Googled "adulting" questions. Check out the #MOMFORCE BY CHATBOOKS FACEBOOK PAGE and find us on Instagram @THEMOMFORCEPODCAST.
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