Go!Mama build lactation pods in S’pore so mums can breastfeed on-the-go

Vivian Lee and Eunice Lim have been mates for greater than 15 years, and so they’re now additionally enterprise companions to one another.

Propelled by challenges of their respective breastfeeding journey, the duo launched into their first enterprise enterprise along with Go!Mama, which is Singapore’s first lactation pod system.

“Like most individuals, after the beginning of my daughter in 2019, I needed to return to work and be out and about. Breastfeeding turned actually difficult then. It was so troublesome to discover a personal house to precise milk or breastfeed,” defined Vivian, co-founder of Go!Mama.

“At work, I principally pumped in a storeroom that couldn’t be locked and was walked in a number of occasions by males colleagues. Nevertheless, it was my solely choice moreover the feminine lavatory, which was fairly unhygienic. Once I visited my shoppers within the hospitals, there have been additionally (typically) no devoted facility for lactation goal.”

Noting this hole, she determined to stop her job as a enterprise improvement government at a medical firm in January 2021 and take part in a three-month NUS Enterprise Constructing programme by NUS Enterprise, — the entrepreneurial arm of the Nationwide College of Singapore — and supported by Enterprise SG (ESG), that goals to assist aspiring entrepreneurs get their ft off the bottom.

On the finish of the programme, she obtained a S$50,000 Startup SG Founder grant from ESG and S$10,000 from NUS Enterprise because the Accredited Mentor Companion. Following this success, Eunice ultimately joined Vivian full-time and the 2 formally launched Go!Mama in March 2021.

Moreover the 2 authorities grants, Go!Mama has raised S$500,000 seed funding thus far.

The co-founders spent the primary few months specializing in product improvement, together with conducting interviews with a number of breastfeeding moms to higher perceive methods to finest design the lactation pods. Additionally they labored with a neighborhood producer to construct a prototype, leveraging obtainable makerspace at Republic Polytechnic.

What’s distinctive about these lactation pods?

The present answer (for breastfeeding in public) are nursing rooms usually positioned in locations similar to procuring malls, or progressive places of work. Nevertheless, the drawback of such services is that they’re everlasting, which implies it might be a waste of assets ought to there be no nursing moms utilizing the rooms.

– Vivian Lee, co-founder of Go!Mama

In distinction, Go!Mama’s lactation pods are free-standing, ready-built pods which can be powered by good know-how. They supply moms with a clear, personal and secure setting to nurse their child or categorical their breast milk.

There’s additionally a USB charger throughout the lactation pod, which permits customers to recharge their electrical breast pump for the subsequent use.

Furthermore, because the pods are designed within the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the founders made certain that their pods will be simply cleaned and disinfected. All inside fittings are non-upholstered to allow them to be merely wiped down, and a UV disinfection course of can also be triggered after each use to stop cross-contamination of viruses or micro organism.

The pods even have plug-and-play specs, permitting them to be put in at any location that has an influence level for electrical energy. That is very best for operators who should not in a position to construct a lactation room throughout the location.

To make use of the lactation pods, customers must first obtain Go!Mama’s cell app. The app permits them view a complete listing of all lactation areas in Singapore, find and navigate their strategy to the closest pod, verify its occupancy, and achieve safe entry to the pods.

Customers want to supply a pin quantity to enter the lactation pods, that are solely despatched after their profile has been verified on Singpass. “This ensures that the pods are utilized by moms in must breastfeed their infants or categorical breastmilk, with lowered threat of abuse,” explains Vivian.

COVID-19 challenges

Beginning up a enterprise amid the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a number of challenges.

Since their enterprise entails constructing a {hardware} product, they wanted to accomplice with product builders and producers, however the pandemic has restricted them from touring overseas and discover working with abroad factories.

In the meantime, Vivian famous that native factories are going through a scarcity of fabric and manpower. Many services suppliers are additionally tightening their budgets, so a lactation facility might not be the highest of their priorities.

Moreover, with extra individuals working from house, places of work are additionally much less prone to require lactation pods although that is anticipated to alter with extra workers now returning to the office.

Go!Mama has a B2B mannequin, the place our prospects — who can pay for the lactation pods to be put in — are usually facility managers and never our finish customers (the lactating mums). It’s fairly troublesome to essentially articulate the ache and challenges of a mum who has to breastfeed on-the-go to individuals who haven’t skilled this drawback.

As lots of our prospects haven’t personally gone by means of the breastfeeding journey earlier than, it’s not really easy for them to narrate. That is one thing I’m nonetheless engaged on at the moment, as a result of I consider that the extra they’ll perceive the ache, the extra they’ll see the necessity and worth our options.

– Vivian Lee, co-founder of Go!Mama

Furthermore, as Go!Mama’s idea is the first-of-its-kind in Singapore, in addition they face problem in aligning themselves to the prevailing laws.

To facilitate this, they’ve labored with Ministry of Commerce and Trade (MTI) Professional-Enterprise Panel beneath the First Mover Framework and New Thought Scheme, who has helped join them with related authorities companies to discover collaborations.

Following Sentosa trial, they’re eyeing deployment at MRT stations subsequent

Go!Mama has since launched a six-month public trial at Sentosa through which they deployed 5 of their lactation pods throughout the island in December 2021. The mobility of the pods signifies that they are often moved simply to totally different places, ought to one location have low visitors.

The trial remains to be ongoing, however Vivian mentioned that “a superb variety of mums” have already used their pods and expressed their appreciation in the direction of this initiative.

Some additionally voiced out that they want to see the deployment of the pods past Sentosa. In keeping with this suggestions, Go!Mama is in talks with different native attraction suppliers to implement their lactation pods and this month, it is going to even be trialling their pods within the JTC launchpad @ one-north.

“We hope that this would be the begin to many extra pods being deployed in work and manufacturing unit settings to assist mums at work,” mentioned Vivian, including that its key focus now could be to work intently with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to deploy their pods at MRT stations subsequent.

“Breastfeeding mums really want extra assist, and the group can do extra to assist,” urged Vivian.

“In Singapore, 99 per cent of moms try breastfeeding as a result of it’s optimum (for) toddler well being, development and improvement. The truth is, mums can’t be house 24/7 and (be) hooked up to their infants.”

Actually, primarily based on final 12 months’s knowledge from the Singapore Division of Statistics, greater than half of the native workforce are made up of ladies.

Having to hunt for a personal house each three hours — mums must sustain with expressing (milk) and breastfeeding six to eight occasions a day to keep up provide — is de facto worrying for mums. They’re already juggling a lot — work, a brand new child, lack of sleeps, (operating) errands and extra.

Go!Mama desires to redefine the expertise of mums who’re breastfeeding on the go. We additionally need to construct a brand new community of lactation services quick, and (our) pods can assist obtain that.

– Vivian Lee, co-founder of Go!Mama

Transferring ahead, Go!Mama is seeking to discover new options in its lactation pods, together with air-conditioning for higher consolation in addition to the incorporation of photo voltaic panels to faucet on sustainable power in order that their pods can grow to be a really free-standing unit.

Within the 12 months forward, in addition they plan to trial extra Go!Mama lactation pods at totally different places round Singapore.

Featured Picture Credit score: Go!Mama