Meet Teran Martin | Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Teran Martin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Teran, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My journey started with my own nursing struggles. I wanted so badly to long-term nurse my children, but my body would not cooperate. I struggled over my plight and knew that other women were facing the same challenges. Really the business side was secondary to the creation of the Nustle and it still is. My heart lies in the opportunity to help women through their nursing journey. While I have found that I love being my own boss and love learning new things daily and having the creative licensing to move the company in different ways; nothing fills my heart with more joy than hearing that the Nustle helped a mama meet or exceed her nursing goals.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Starting a business is never easy and we are still in the infancy stage with Mama’s Milk Wrap. The business or “work” side encompasses establishing a web presence, deciding on ad campaigns, social media influencers, tracking inventory cost… among other business needs. This all is a necessary focus, but it is not where my heart is. My desire is to help women that are nursing and need to increase supply or to find relief when the cycle ends. The Nustle is a labor of love and in the early days, each wrap was hand-stitched. The proudest day of my business life was receiving the first shipment from our manufactures. Just to know that it had come that far was exciting. The Nustle (which literally means to cherish) is a vision of how mamas should experience their breastfeeding journey. My vision and my heart are for every mama to find success in breastfeeding. I wanted the brand, the product name, and all it stands for to give encouragement.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week-long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc. In your view what are some of the most fun, interesting, exciting people, places or things to check out?
I live on family land with access to over 100 acres. Fun for me would be spending days riding horses, a hayride pulled by the old tractors, and catch and release fishing off the dock. We could have mud fights with the kids and take them for walks to pick wildflowers for the kitchen table. At night, the family would come together to play games… we get pretty competitive so be forewarned. The best nights though would be spent under the stars by a big bonfire while listening to old stories and classic rock music. There is nothing I cherish more than spending time with my family and friends.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First, I want to thank my family. If it weren’t for their support, efforts, and belief in me, the adventure of helping women in their nursing journey with the Nustle may have remained just an idea. My children are the reason why I realized that there was a need for improved products in the nursing market and therefore helped me to identify the need. I thank my husband for supporting my journey, through all the ups and downs, the emotional and physical stress that nursing a child puts on a family. He stayed up with me and helped me through those long nursing nights. It’s nice knowing I had someone going through the newborn exhaustion with me as it is incredibly vital to have support at home.
The biggest supporters of mine have always been my parents. I remember many nights sitting and talking through my ideas and brainstorming product development with them, and to this day they are still my biggest fans. My mom spent countless hours sitting with me and helping me sew our first orders. I’m so thankful to have had her company during those late nights. My father has always encouraged me to be the best that I can be and to strive after success far greater than he has. Let me tell you, he is a VP of a predominate bank and, boy, has he set the standards high. With his love and support, I have been successful in building up the business to what it is today.
They have both shared in the excitement from the very beginning and helped me to take the steps needed to protect the concept and product. When you develop such a new product it is important to keep it all on the down-low until all formal filings are in place to protect it.
Many great ideas start with simple inspirations. My grandmother taught me the skills I needed to start developing the Nustle. I remember as a child she spent many hours teaching me how to sew and showing me the love of Christ that would become the spiritual foundation that helped me develop the Nustle. I still think back and truly cherish the memories I had with her. As a tribute and to honor her memory I named one of our patterns after her, Lavana – Blush Pink.
In short, The Nustle is a testament to God. His design and inspiration can be seen in every aspect of the product. I know that the right people come along at the right time and let me tell you God placed this incredibly special gal in my path, Alisa. She is my business coach and has the skills that I lack. She helped me get connected with the right manufacturer and so many other amazing connections. She is a superstar and a Godsend, who has helped to take the business to the next level!
I really must thank my original product testers for their boldness, openness to express ideas for product improvements, and truly their willingness to test the product during such an important time in their and their babies’ lives. It also goes to show how willing nursing mothers are to find something that can make their journeys easier and more enjoyable. It is humbling to know that we had prototype users who saw Nustle’s potential.
I wanted mamas to get as much, if not more, support as I had. For me, having the support of lactation experts was vital to Nustle’s success. What I did not expect was that their support went well beyond just validation of the product but became ingrained in the overall mission of Mama’s Milk Wrap. With their inspiration, we began to build a team of lactation experts to provide a free one-time 30-minute consultation for all Nustle purchases.

Website: www.mamasmilkwrap.com

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Image Credits
Essentially Picturesque