Singapore, 17 August 2021 – The FinLab, UOB’s innovation accelerator, and Mumpreneurs-Go-Places, an arm of Mums@Work, today announced the launch of the Business Transformation Programme for Digital Mumpreneurs, an accelerator programme for aspiring mum entrepreneurs (mumpreneurs). The comprehensive five-week virtual accelerator programme aims to equip aspiring women entrepreneurs, particularly mothers, with the knowledge and resources to kick start and to grow their businesses.

Mrs Sher-li Torrey, Founder, Mums@Work, said: “While it is encouraging to see greater interest from mothers who are keen to start their own business, many are unsure of how to go about it. With the added challenge of working around their children’s home-based learning, they need more tailored guidance. We are grateful for our partnership with The FinLab as we are able to not only leverage their expertise, knowledge and connections, but also do it in a way that is considerate of our aspiring mumpreneurs.” 

During the pandemic, more mums have turned to entrepreneurship, with Mums@Work finding that nearly 3,000 of its members are interested in starting their entrepreneurial journey. This may be attributed to the fact that the pandemic has been an opportunity for them to explore alternative ways to work, or supplement their income. However, mum entrepreneurs still face challenges. Apart from having to juggle work and family responsibilities, they tend to lack an effective support network, including relevant financial, social and technological resources. Those who are interested in starting their own business also tend to have limited knowledge on sourcing for initial capital, deciding on a starting point or formulating an overall business strategy. Mitigating financial risks and coming up with an effective digital marketing strategy are two other key concerns that mumpreneurs-to-be have.

To help mum entrepreneurs overcome those challenges and to provide support needed to grow their businesses, participants will have free and exclusive access to The FinLab’s established business transformation programme. 

Ms Janet Young, Co-founder and Director of The FinLab, said: “Running your own business is never an easy feat – especially for mothers with young children. The FinLab’s expertise combined with Mums@Work’s understanding of the needs of women has enabled us to create an effective programme that really sets mums up for success. As UOB’s innovation accelerator, we are also able to tap the bank’s expertise in serving ASEAN SMEs and its connectivity in the region to help mumpreneurs succeed.”

The Business Transformation Programme for Digital Mumpreneurs is structured to be efficient, effective and convenient, allowing mum entrepreneurs to attend workshops based on their interests and needs, with a weekly commitment of three to six hours. Upon completion of the five week programme, participants will be equipped with the knowledge and resources necessary to build a solid business foundation which will give them a head start in their respective fields. The programme will also expose participants to business networks and connections that they can build and deepen to sustain their business.  

The five week programme covers:  

• Week 1: Setting up your business and understanding your financial needs – Learn how to properly register your business, and discover which forms of sales and payment collection methods are suited to your business needs. 
• Week 2: Digital marketing – Understand the differences between marketing channels, and learn to build effective digital marketing strategies that maximise sales for your business.
• Week 3: E-commerce – Understand the different e-commerce channels, and determine if creating an online store or leveraging marketplaces is the right move for your business. 
• Week 4: Back-end operations – Understand the different components and tools needed to efficiently run your day-to-day business operations.
• Week 5: Increasing sales and outreach + Tech Showcase Day –  Understand the ASEAN business landscape and discover the types of support you can receive when going regional with your business. Get a chance to also explore a suite of innovative solutions from a curated list of Tech Solution Providers during our Tech Showcase Day.

The Business Transformation Programme for Digital Mumpreneurs will run in cohorts with the first batch commencing on 12 August 2021. Subsequent intakes will be held every quarter. 

Find out more information about the programme here.

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About The FinLab

Founded in 2015, The FinLab is an innovation accelerator powered by United Overseas Bank (UOB) and SGInnovate for fintechs and start-ups to develop fit-for-market solutions. In 2018, it expanded its scope to help small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups to transform their businesses. In 2019, to support the needs of SMEs in the region and to serve UOB’s large SME customer base, The FinLab expanded to other ASEAN markets. The FinLab is currently present in three countries – Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand – to help businesses scale across ASEAN by connecting them to industry experts, mentors and facilitating the right technology solutions to power their growth, maximise their efficiency and enable long-term success.

In 2020, The FinLab Online was launched to enable more businesses to tap on the knowledge, tools and resources from The FinLab’s regional network established over the years.

About Mums@Work

Mums@Work is a social enterprise that was set up in 2010, to help mothers marry their

professional experience with the shift in priorities upon the inclusion of new family

members. Our main mission is to be a point of information source for mothers who

want to work flexi-time or run their own Mumpreneur business so as to have

sufficient time for family as well. Since our inception in 2010, we have included a

subsidiary (Career Navigators) that supports women returning to work as well as Mumpreneurs-Go-Places that specifically supports the growing Mum-entrepreneur network.

To date, Mums@Work (Singapore) has more than 45,000 female talents and has successfully listed more than 5000 flexi-work arrangement jobs (for professionals and executives). We hold numerous events every month, with our annual career fairs being the most popular events. We partner various organizations keen to be involved in the areas of ‘diversity and inclusion’. Our past corporate partners include J&J, Facebook, Google, EY, Mastercard, Visa, Citi, Standard Chartered, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Shopee, Bloomberg, Schroders, GSK, JP Morgan, Aviva, BP, Microsoft, Shell, LVMH, Frasers Property, LinkedIn, AWS, Intel, Airbnb, Gojek, Accenture, McKinsey Consulting, Citrix, DBS, UOB, Apple, Experian, Dow Chemical, Lazada, Love Bonito, P&G, Marina Bay Sands and many others.

For media queries and interview opportunities, please contact:

Richa Shah Mutant Communications +65 82656850 richa@mutant.com.sg

Phyllicia Gan  Mutant Communications +65 9720 0841 phyllicia@mutant.com.sg