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May and June 2007
our feature mompreneuer
citrus...it's silver with a twist!
karen lamont [founder/owner/mom]
what is CITRUS?
citrus is a a collection of beautiful and stylish handcrafted sterling silver pendants. citrus combines extraordinary sterling silver jewellery with hand stamped craftsmanship designed and customized specifically for each client. Names, words, or dates that have special meaning are hand stamped into sterling silver pendants to create a personalized, unique piece of jewellery. citrus offers a beautiful selection of pendants, ranging in sizes and designs. All pendants are 100 percent Canadian made, and the chains are sourced from around the world.
Popular choices for stamping include the names or birth dates of children, grandchildren, special family members…..even pets! The possibilities are endless and can include special hobbies or proudest accomplishments. It is a creative vessel intended to showcase any dates, names words that are important to the person wearing it.
what is the story behind your business name?
I consider my products to be fresh and fun…I think citrus really captures that. Plus, citrus is…. silver with a twist!
how, when, and where did CITRUS come to life?
I have always loved jewellery, and of course I love my kids. Citrus is where they meet. I carved out whatever time I could find to develop my business venture. The business concept and jewellery designs were done after the kids went to bed. Business calls and research were squeezed in when my youngest was napping and my eldest was engaged in a book or craft. I had jewellery manufacturers make my silver pendants in the designs that I had crafted from my kids’ construction paper. Supplier meetings were conducted with at least one of my daughters in tow, hoping that a lollipop would afford a 30 minute meeting with few interruptions. After a lot of hard work and applying my business expertise, Citrus was born in the second half of 2006.
what inspires you to do what you do?
As moms, our kids give us a tremendous amount of pride, and citrus is a wonderful way to showcase it. I’m inspired every time I hear how much someone “LOVES” their citrus jewellery. I often receive feedback when someone buys it as a gift for someone else, that the person cried when they received it. It doesn’t get more emotional than that!
what did you do before CITRUS?
I was a VP at a marketing firm. I had worked pretty hard, but the payoff wasn’t directly benefiting me or my family. It was time for a change!
how do you market and sell your products and/or services?
Citrus products are sold only online, and not in stores. My e-commerce website allows customers to select, customize and pay online. It has just launched in time for Mother’s Day, so it’s been word-of-mouth until now. I have a PR campaign underway and will be advertising online and in print.
My home-based studio allows flexibility, an absolute requirement for my business model. It is an ideal mompreneur environment that ultimately allows me to be close to my children, even when I'm hard at work.
what are the 3 words that you would use to describe yourself as a mompreneur?
- passionate
- dedicated
- enthusiastic!
what are the 3 (inanimate!) things that you couldn't live without as a mompreneur?
- belief in my abilities
- belief in my products
- and email!
what are the 3 greatest challenges that you face/d as a mompreneur?
- lack of sleep,
- finding enough time to get it ALL done,
- guilt with doing my chores before the kids go to bed, so I can plough through work once they’re down.
finally, what would you advise a mom who is thinking of starting her own business?
Get some help with your kids at the same time each week. Then you have a day set aside to book meetings. Because the time is at premium you really make the most of it.
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founder/owner: Karen Lamont
telephone: 416.919.1726
email: karen@citrussilver.com
website/s: www.citrussilver.com
mail: Suite 6-133 2100 Bloor Street West Toronto, Ontario M6S 5A5 Canada
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would you like to be our next featured mompreneur? if you have a product or service that caters to moms or babies, or is kid-friendly, or family-oriented, you could be our next featured mompreneur! each month, mom2mom toronto spotlights a different mom and business on our website and newsletter -- click here for advertising cost and for more details.
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did you know...
- that investing in building your online reputation through articles and online networking groups is one key ingredient to your success as a mompreneur?
( from © The Globe and Mail." Stay-at-home Moms Stay the Business Ccourse," by Roma Luciw. Saturday, March 3rd 2007 )
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