We've been featured on...
bebo mia inc has been guest/expert speakers and panelists for Entrepreneurial Feminist Form, Evidence Based Birth, Mamas & Co, Baby Shows, Birth Summits, Podcasts and more!
We've also been featured in Huffington Post, Global News, Breakfast Television, Today’s Parent, Toronto Star, Fast Company, Mothering Magazine and more!
Meet the
#bebobabes!
The path that Bianca Sprague has taken to get to where they are now was anything but smooth.
Originally owning Toronto’s largest doula agency (that opened its doors in 2008) and Canada’s first pre & postnatal fitness company, they spent their days supporting hundreds of trying to conceive, expecting and new parents. They started the business with $25 each and a whole lot of sweat equity to invest. Within two years they grew the agency into a 6 figure business.
They wanted to change how people experienced birth and parenting. They also wanted a business that would allow them to have their children home with them. And finally, they wanted the business to reflect a community of people that could support them as entrepreneurs and parents.
In 2014 they began closing the doors to their brick and mortar locations across Toronto and by 2015 had moved exclusively online to offer education and support for people wanting to start or grow their pregnancy and parenting business.
They took the model that existed for training doulas, childbirth educators, breastfeeding educators & other birth pros & flipped it on its head.
Typically the model was a weekend crash course that had no business development and zero follow up support from the instructor. And, it was logistically unrealistic. It can be incredibly challenging to travel to an urban centre for 3-4 days for most parents; and mom’s make up a large portion of the doula market. So, instead, Bianca & Natasha built a training that was more in depth, inclusive and accessible.
When they moved online they were scared that they would lose the ‘touch’ that they had created in their brick and mortar space. What they were delighted to learn was that they actually created MORE connection in the digital space. People from around the world joined the programs and shared their cultural experiences and wisdom with everyone. Everyone had 24/7 access to one another. They now have students in over 23 countries!
They also discovered that the pregnancy and birth trainings and businesses out there were predominantly based on a heteronormative, cis-gendered, able bodied, thin, white, middle class model. Actually, what was even more prevalent was that these businesses were using an antiquated entrepreneurship model and it simply did not work for them.
The #bebobabes wanted to create an organization where all bodies and all people would be represented and honoured.
They are the first doula training organization to remove gendered language from their teaching manuals & slides. They are the first doula training to add a land acknowledgment at the beginning of their programs and followed it up by connecting with Indigenous communities to learn what needs they can fulfill as a training organization. And they are the only doula training organization that has introduced a plan to offer online group therapy to support their students as they process their own trauma(s) while learning.
After almost a decade as fertility, birth and parenting experts the women who founded bebo mia inc. have had a wild ride. Bianca discusses the beautiful, the terrible, the joyful, and the messy of being mompreneurs, dealing with loss, raising children and a business and so much more.
Bianca and the #bebobabes are dynamic speakers that incorporate humour, evidence and an approachable way of presenting that leave viewers moved and inspired.
Oh, and they were nominees for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2016 & 2017… that experience is a whole other story!
Topic examples
(but not limited to):
- Myths around plus-sized pregnancy and getting the birth you want in a fatphobic system
- Getting clear on your mission and using it as a roadmap for your success journey
- Mindfulness preparation for pregnancy & birth
- Creating a postpartum plan that will protect your mental wellness
- Building a brave community - even online!
- Building an inclusive business
- Understanding your target market and niching
- Feminist business - what can you do to shift your business?
- Growing a 6 figure doula business on sweat equity
- Mindfulness business practices
- Getting the joy back in motherhood: and how the patriarchy steals it!
- Getting comfortable in tech - and how the digital space is leveling the playing field for women
- Building your support community at home and at work - it is the only way we can do this!
- Resilience in business: confidence in the business world & understanding the overnight success myth
- Creating and building online workshops and courses, everything from content to tech!
The #bebobabes are perennial Heavy Flow faves! Listeners love their inclusive and evidence-based approach to all things birth. As a host I love interviewing smart, engaging people who are as entertaining as they are informative which is why I've had Bianca, Natasha and Alana on the show again and again