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Gurnee mom turns author, role model
 August
29, 2002
BY ANGELA D. SYKORA
Gurnee resident Kristie Rimmele is an entrepreneur
and a stay-at-home mother of two with a mission to empower
other mothers to get the most out of life, work, and family.
“I've done the two working parent thing. I
didn’t want to live that way,” she said.
After starting a successful Web design business
from her home three years ago, women from all over the country
began sending her letters asking how she made it work. Tamsevicius,
who has a background in marketing, is writing back.
Her first book, “eBizMoms: The Ultimate Guide
to Home Based Business,” will be published nationwide sometime
next year. She spent a year researching and writing the
informational guide, she said, and is planning a second
book called “Raising Entrepreneurial Kids.”
“I'm very excited. I really enjoy helping
new people get started in business.”
Not ready to stop at writing a book, Tamsevicius
partnered with childhood friend Michelle Floyd of Iowa and
created a national on-line community called WebMomz devoted
to the needs of working and stay-at-home mothers. “We grew
up together. It’s a dream come true.”
The site, http://www.webmomz.com/, was built in April and
came on-line earlier this month. It already has 100 members,
and virtual classes instructing women on how to start a
home business are now forming.
“I always wanted to be a stay-at-home mom,”
said Floyd, WebMomz co-founder who quit her job in marketing
after the birth of her daughter.
“When I grew up, you were either a career
woman or a stay-at-home mom. That was the mindset.”
Inspired by surfing the Internet’s plethora
of baby-related Web sites while at home caring for her daughter,
Floyd created http://www.mybabyconnection.com/ in January of 2000
as a comprehensive resource for parents. It started off
as just a hobby, something to keep her mind occupied while
staying home with her baby, she said. Then came the call
from Tamsevicius, who proposed the idea for WebMomz. It’s
turning out to be a successful venture, she said.
“You can have both,” said Floyd, referring
to an at-home business and family.
Home businesses
Tamsevicius said WebMomz offers how-to information
on creating home-based businesses. A good start would be
for women to review their work-related skills, talents,
hobbies and interests, she said. “Do what you’re best at.”
Better yet, she said, find someone who’s doing
what you want to do and ask to spend a day “in their world.”
The key to creating a successful Web-based
business, said Tamsevicius, is to find your niche or specialty.
Be an expert in something, she advises, because you'll be
competing with sites from all over the world. “If you can
be the expert in a specialized niche, you can compete.”
Some of the top home-based careers, she said,
are virtual assistants, business/personal coaches and medical
billing. Also, the Internet has plenty of franchise opportunities.
The drawback to working from home, though,
said both women, is managing the many distractions. “The
danger lies in that you never leave your office,” said Tamsevicius.
She said women who work from home have to
be disciplined enough to set aside chunks of time for work
and family obligations. Tamsevicius usually works from 6
a.m. until noon so she can have the afternoons off for her
two children, ages 5 and 7.
WebMomz is planning a retreat for next spring,
and is sponsoring a business grant program to help aspiring
women entrepreneurs establish their home-based business.
WebMomz will award a $1,000 grant to a qualified applicant.
Applicants must submit their business plan and why they
think they should win the grant. Entries are due by May
15, 2003, and the winner will be announced in June. More
information can be found on-line.
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