Entrepreneur Mom Starts Brand
Written by Corinne Garcia Tuesday, January 18 2011
Snapshot: Lara Hodgson
Mompreneur Lara Hodgson launched a business after seeing a need in the baby and toddler marketplace. Her Nourish products, co-owned with business partner Stacey Abrams, help parents feed their children on the go, help young children develop healthy habits, and help the earth as they are BPA-free. Nourish sells bottled purified spring water that is formula ready. But as much as Hodgson and Abrams focus on their business, they still find time to focus on family and philanthropy.
Womenetics: What prompted you to start your own business?
Lara Hodgson: Experiencing a market need prompted the launch of Nourish. As a new mom on the go – and a person used to being organized and in control – I was always frustrated trying to plan for and mix bottles on the go when I was out of the house or traveling. I complained for several weeks that there had to be a better way. Other moms agreed, and then I realized I could keep commiserating or I could create it! For many of us, a new experience leads us to see a market need but rarely do we do something about it. This time I did.
Womenetics: What’s it like being your own boss?
Hodgson: It’s freedom yet stressful; flexible yet demanding; exhilarating yet frustrating; exciting yet lonely. I work more now than I ever did when I worked for someone else, but I work on my own time and my own terms. If it’s a nice day and I want to take my son to the zoo, we go to the zoo. Sometimes I work at midnight, but that’s my choice. I love the highs and lows and the ultimate accountability, but mostly I love having a great business partner and knowing we are making a difference in the health and wellness of children and in the stress and convenience of families.
Womenetics: How do you mix family with running a business?
Hodgson: The word "mix" is perfect, because I hate the word “balance;” it implies that for every inch you lean one way that the other suffers. Especially when we are constantly told that work and family should be kept separate. Our business is about kids and family, and our No. 1 rule is that family and life come first. Women are so good at creating guilt. When we put work first, we feel guilty that we are not with our family. When we put family first, we feel guilty about neglecting work. But the guilt really comes from setting boundaries and then crossing them or letting others cross them. At Nourish, we trust that everyone brings value to the team, and we respect that our work will get done well. And we manage to do that with family coming first. When we do Nourish events, we include our families, and they have turned into some great family moments.
Womenetics: What’s the biggest goal as an entrepreneur?
Hodgson: My goal is significance. Many strive for success, but I believe success is finite; you accomplish a goal and then you’re done. Significance is infinite; it means you make a difference. I hope Nourish achieves significance for our investors, team members, partners, retailers, and customers. I hope that encouraging and enabling young children to drink water on the go enables healthy, active lifestyles, reducing childhood obesity and diabetes. I hope that our work with organizations, such as Renee and Scott Baio's Bailey's Angels, makes a positive impact on the lives of children born with health challenges or special needs. And I hope that our "Nourish Gives: 1 Million Bottles for Babies" program helps those who lack access to clean water.
Womenetics: What’s it like being a “green” business?
Hodgson: I don't often use the term "green business." I think too many companies use the term as nothing more than a marketing slogan, and it’s not part of their DNA. When we launched Nourish, our mission was, and is: to "Nourish our most precious resources: our children, our time, our health, and our world." We also decided that we would give back from day one and not wait until we were profitable to do so. So we have been supporting children who are victims of disasters and lack access to clean water, children with disabilities, and children who suffer from childhood diabetes or obesity. And we have done all of this with an eye toward being environmentally responsible. We have developed a product that is both reusable and recyclable and that is BPA and phthalate free. We are not perfect and we will continue to find ways to improve, but we are always trying. 
Womenetics: How do you mix business with philanthropy?
Hodgson: We live to give, but we realize that we must be profitable in order to continue that, so the two are complementary and not in conflict. Some operate a business that then donate some percentage of profits to a cause. We have chosen to integrate our philanthropy into our business operations. The two are very intertwined.
Womenetics: What do you hope to teach your children through your work and philanthropy?
Hodgson: I work closely with an organization called the Magic Wand Foundation, and they teach children that not only should you live to give and that will drive success and happiness, but also that the time is now. I hope my son sees that he can have a mind-set of philanthropy now, even at age 5. He often comes with me when Nourish participates in philanthropic activities. I hope he gains an appreciation for how blessed we are to have what we have, so we can only be successful and significant when we raise the bar for everyone. I hope he also realizes that actions make a difference that no collection of words can. We may not have all the answers, but when we start to work toward a solution we have a chance of finding one.
Womenetics: What’s your favorite was to spend a day with your son?
Hodgson: Laughing! And outdoors! And unplanned exploration! Kids are such a joy when we relax our attitude of stress and see the world as they see it. And being outdoors brings a child to life. Life is so planned and organized today that the best moments are those unplanned excursions which may go no further than our backyard and may involve turning a box into a spaceship. This year I turned 40. On my birthday, my gift to myself was to take my son to the botanical garden for the afternoon. We played in the sprinklers, blew bubbles, rolled in the grass, ate ice cream. I can't think of a better birthday.
Corinne Garcia is a freelance writer and editor living with her husband and two young boys in Bozeman, Mont. She has also written for Women’s Adventure, Christian Science Monitor, Northwest Travel, Pregnancy, Fit Pregnancy, and Fit Parent.
