Why I Hate The Term Mumpreneur

Sara Bragg - 13 May 19

These days, if you’re a mum who happens to be an entrepreneur,  you tend to get labelled a ‘mumpreneur’. But why do we get called mumpreneurs and dads get…well, they’re just regular entrepreneurs. If we suddenly started talking about dadpreneurs, the world would surely be in uproar.

It’s a bit Marmite isn’t it? The term divides opinion among women. Some find the term empowering and embrace it in their business marketing. Some find it patronising and not to sound too dramatic, a bit soul-destroying.

Officially, it means a woman who sets up and runs her own business in addition to caring for her young child or children. The Guardian says defining yourself as a mumpreneur is a powerful statement; the Daily Mail describes mumpreneurs as the “pin-money posse,” which I take to mean a kind of pretend business where the reward is pocket money for manciures and coffee dates, not serious return on investment.

As a mum of two and founder of my own business, Seventeen Minutes,  it seems to me that far from being an empowering word, mumpreneur is used by some as a way of devaluing entrepreneurial mums by calling them something other than what they are – entrepreneurs. You don’t ever hear about mum-lawyers or mum-doctors. Is that because we now consider lawyers and doctors professions that men and women are equally entitled to? So I struggle to understand why being an entrepreneur is any different.

My fear is that the reason society doesn’t use the term dadpreneur much (if at all), is because the word entrepreneur is subconsciously associated with being a man. Historically, the reason men have been able to go forth and conquer the business world is because his wife has been at home looking after the children. Or at the very least, taking on the role of primary carer. Harsh, but true.

Yet, at the same time, I can’t deny that the term describes my two roles as a mum and an entrepreneur. Some days I deal with nappies and nursery drop-offs, other days I deal with forecasts and cashflow.

I’m all for supporting women in business and breaking glass ceilings. Of course anyone who manages a flexible family life and is building a business should be saluted.

I just wish we lived in times where we weren’t separated in the business world when, as women, we face enough hurdles without giving ourselves another. Aren’t there enough labels in life without giving us an extra one? Please, let’s just forget the BS term mumpreneur and call us what we are – businesswomen, founders, entrepreneurs and mums.

** Seventeen Minutes is a self-care subscription box for mums. My mission is to motivate mums to take time to themselves and not feel guilty or selfish. Join the community on Instagram @seventeen_minutes or on Facebook. Subscribe to self-care boxes at www.seventeenminutes.co.uk. 

Sara Bragg

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