Q&A
Q. Tell us about your store! What made you decide to open up your own retail space?
A. Village Maternity is a family business - my mom started Village Maternity in 1983. She was looking for a place where she could find safe and beautiful products for mama and baby, and when she couldn't find it she opened up Village Maternity. 40 years later, our mission remains the same - we want Village Maternity to be a community resource for expectant parents, new parents, and their babies at this challenging and rewarding time of life.
Q. What is your favorite thing about running your store?
A. My favorite part of the store is interacting with customers and seeing them find their “going home from the hospital" outfit for baby, or a maternity dress that makes them feel beautiful. It is such an exciting time and I love having a business that is part of the journey for new parents. Also, I love working with our team of incredible and creative women that work really hard to make Village Maternity run so smoothly.
Q. What does a typical day look like for you?
A. My family and I (Bowman 2yo, Theodora 4yo) recently moved to Portugal for an adventure and so my days look very different here than they did in Seattle. I wake much too early (thanks to my children who don't sleep:) and get the kids ready for school. My daughter goes to an international school and my son is still home with us. We normally walk to school in the sunshine, which has been a magical part of living here. After, I hop on my email for a few hours while the U.S. wakes up and then it is meeting meeting meeting. Every day is very different depending on the time of year. Sometimes it is buying review (my favorite!) where we review everything we are bringing into the store.Other times it is talking through personnel changes or marketing meetings. I also own a maternity clothing line - NOM Maternity - so my day is split between the two businesses. We do everything via video and our teams are based all over the world. We are almost all moms so it is great to be able to talk about work but also relate on all the struggles and magical moments of being working moms.
Q. How do you select the brands you carry?
A. Our Criteria:
- Products are made of natural materials and organic when possible
- No toxic chemicals (that includes the big ones you’ve heard about—BPA, BPS, phthalates, toxic dyes & perfumes, pesticides, PVC, and formaldehyde—and many you haven’t heard of yet)
- We’ve tried it, we loved it, and we think it’s cute and stylish enough for modern families
Q. If we had one day in your hometown, where should we visit?
A. First off, if you are going to Seattle, go in the summer! It is hard to beat :) One of my favorite spots is Madrona beach for hanging by the lake. Bring a picnic and finish the day off at Bottle House for yummy snacks and drinks. With kids, University Village is hard to beat with a great little playground, easy, family friendly restaurants and fountains to play in! Other things to not miss with kids: the Aquarium, the Zoo, the ferry to Bainbridge for ice cream, Volunteer Park.
Connect with Village Maternity:
Location: 2615 NE University Village St. Seattle, WA 98105
Website: villagematernity.com
Instagram: @villagematernity