MOMPRENEURS E
By Catherine Wysoczanski
very entrepreneur has their struggles. From creating a vision to executing and managing a team—there can be long days and even longer nights. Some brave moms take on double duty as entrepreneurs and moms, or ‘mompreneurs.’ Family! shares the challenges and triumphs of local mompreneurs, as they balance their businesses and families.
Today, Heather is the owner of HAS Art
Heather Sams, HAS Art Solutions
Heather Sams fell in love with art
galleries from a young age and her passion has continued to grow. “I love the way artwork is presented to people, to see how it moves them and how it affects everybody differently,” says Heather.
Tara Rawson, Ananda Kula
Tara Rawson has always been in tune
with her surroundings and the needs of others. She has been practicing yoga for about 16 years, with training in India and throughout the U.S. Tree years ago when she heard that an existing studio was for sale she jumped at the chance to buy it and opened her own studio—Ananda Kula. Ananda Kula allows Tara to share her passion for yoga through classes, workshops and training. “After my first teacher training I was so passionate about the practice of yoga that I completely immersed myself and noticed how life just started unfolding without effort,” says Tara.
Solutions, an art procurement firm specializing in corporate and residential art installations. “We are a combination of an art gallery and a marketing firm. With residential projects, we help people utilize their personal items in ways the client may not have imagined—a lot of it is helping people use what they have in a completely newly imagined way, which is exciting.” Te company does many artwork installations for health care facilities. All of the artwork for Nemours and a majority of the artwork at Wolfson Children’s Hospital was installed by HAS Art Solutions. “Many people have seen our work, they just don’t realize it’s us,” says Heather.
As a mother of four teenagers, Heather
has faced challenges being a mom and running a business. “When I first started the company in 2009 I wanted to keep it in my house as long as possible, but I couldn’t. I wanted to work all the time and I wanted to be a mom all the time, so I rented a small space that I used for work. Tat way, I could go to the space and work, then go home and be a mom.” Heather hoped her children would want to be involved in the company as they got older, so that was another reason she
After buying the studio, Tara realized
how important it is to balance work and home life. She plans her work schedule around her 4- and 9-year-old sons. “We have created a very unique and flexible lifestyle, and we home-school our children. Tis allows me to spend time with them during the day and enables us to take our children out of town with us when I am leading retreats and classes in other cities and out of the country.” Her children have taught her that patience is the key to balancing work and family. “It’s easy for business owners to be consumed by their job. It would be easy for me because I love what I do, but my children have taught me to keep life simple and mellow while running a business.” Her children are very involved with the business and Tara takes them to yoga classes at the studio.
moved the company out of the house. “I knew if the business was too much a part of their life they would resent it. It helped removing the company from the home and into its own space because all four of my children have developed interest and each help with the company in their own unique way.” By finding the fine line between working and family she was able to successfully run her business. Now that her children are growing up they help the business with different tasks, from installing art to brainstorming how a client’s project should be put together.
Heather continues to build her business
in art procurement. She knows she is making an impact on the First Coast with a growing level of trust and involvement that has shown within the company, and with clients. “When you are explaining a project to people that involves their home and lives it is important to believe [in the client] so that impactful impression is made in their life,” says Heather.
Trough teaching different classes and
workshops Tara continues her mission to bring the First Coast together by enriching lives through yoga. Tara believes it is a way to be immersed in a positive, happy and encouraging environment, and something she strives to instill in her children. “I have always been non-traditional and made my own way according to what my heart told me. I think that is what matters in life.”
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