then my team can only call if there is a fire’
Photography: Nine IJff
Mariëlle Smit (33) lives with Steve, with whom she has daughters Stevie (4) and Sammie (1.5). She founded Mama Deli, a fresh-frozen baby food company. Before that she was the owner of employment agency MME Hospitality.
“Just before the launch of Mama Deli, more than two years ago, I found out that I was pregnant again. Very desirable, but also spicy. My employment agency had a hard time due to the corona crisis and I started a new company. I didn’t want the baby to suffer from my stress and asked the midwife if it could have an impact. She reassured me, but I still tried to take my rest moments. Not easy, because I’m not the type that likes to sit still.
Startup
Mama Deli is a real start-up, so no day is the same. I drive all over the Netherlands to further develop my products, talk to retailers, have countless meetings and do marketing work. Very nice, but also busy. Yet I now work ‘differently’ than when I was not yet a mother. Then I kept on working seven days a week and took my laptop with me on vacation. Now my kids are always number one.
“Before I was a mother, I used to buffalo all week long and took my laptop with me on holiday”
For example, I try to attend Stevie’s swimming lessons every week and I deliberately keep my agenda free at those times. Fridays are also sacred: then I am with my daughters and my team is only allowed to call if there is a fire. We live in the polder and I prefer to take my girls into nature; on an adventure, looking for critters, that idea.
To combine
People sometimes ask how I combine my work and family life. Honestly, I don’t have a romantic answer to that. I often work in the evenings. I used to stop at two o’clock in the morning, but my friend didn’t like that. Now I close my laptop before midnight.
I enjoy my work a lot, I think that is an important condition. In addition, I couldn’t do it without my friend and our dear babysitter, grandfathers and grandmothers. And sometimes it also means you have to make choices. For example, I sold my first company last year: I could no longer give it the attention it deserved. That was difficult, because after corona it was a thriving business again, but in the end I chose happiness and focus instead of financial security.
Example
As my mother is an example to me – my parents had several clothing stores – I hope to be that for my daughters. They are still very young, but I want to tell them that things don’t go smoothly and you have to work hard to get somewhere. Although I hope they will have a little more peace in their bodies than their mother; a little less is sometimes nice.”
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