Don't know much about Just 4 Mums Maternitywear? You can read about some of our achievements and general information about our business here.

Press Release
Media Key

Pregnant mums are urged to show off their pregnancy with pride as former legal secretary launches new on line shopping service to help pregnant mums (and new mums) to find maternity wear.

The new service - Just 4 Mums - has been launched because many department stores no longer stock maternity clothes and many frustrated women are finding they cannot get stylish and comfortable maternity clothes.

Kerry Scanlon says the idea that maternity wear is "horrible and you should stay out of it for as long as you can" is total nonsense.

A new service has just been launched to help mums to be and new mums to find stylish quality maternity wear.

The on line shopping service - called "imaternitywear.com.au" - was set up by former legal secretary Kerry Scanlon.  She says maternity wear is a big issue for many women now because many department stores simply do not stock it and many major retailers only carry a very limited range.

Kerry Scanlon says it was obvious many frustrated mums to be could not find the kind of wardrobe they wanted.

In launching the new service, Kerry Scanlon said one of the big problems is that many people now seem to believe maternity wear is "horrible and you should stay out of it for as long as you can".  Kerry Scanlon says nothing could be further from the truth.  She says one of the prime reasons she set up the new service was to help mums to be and new mums around the nation because there is so little maternity wear now available.

Kerry Scanlon said, "we've set up the new service to help expectant mothers.  It is to help mums get the best out of a maternity wardrobe and find what they need.  We help people mix and match.  Many large department stores now simply have a very casual basic range.  Some fashion editors have a terrible attitude to maternity wear and think it has nothing to do with fashion.  That's just not true".

"We have a simple message which is that you can feel great throughout your pregnancy with a small range of comfortable, fashionable and affordable maternity clothes.  You absolutely don't need to buy a whole new wardrobe.  Just a few good mix and match pieces - which you can dress up and down - will give you confidence as your pregnancy progresses".

Through the new service mums to be and new mothers can get everything from casual maternity wear to work wear, maternity denims, maternity wear for the gym, formal evening maternity wear, maternity swim wear, breastfeeding tops, maternity lingerie and many other items.  There is a whole range of skirts, jackets, pants and tops.

Kerry Scanlon said, "Ultimately we are a specialty boutique.  We are catering for fashion conscious women.  Often one of the disappointments for women is they go to a big retailer to find there's virtually nothing there at all except for one little rack of clothes.  As a result they think there's simply no maternity wear out there".

"People in regional areas around Australia in particular find it difficult to get decent maternity wear.  That's one of the reasons our on line shopping service has been launched.  Women who are size 20 plus find it even harder to find maternity wear - we do have a range for them.  We've ended up posting garments to the UK, the USA and even Bermuda because of our new service".

The new on line service has details and images of many stylish maternity items.  Many clothes can be delivered as quickly as the next day through Australia Post Express Post.  Just 4 Mums will help people with sizing before sending anything.  Many mums to be are already finding the on line shopping service convenient and easy to use.

Kerry Scanlon added, "We're catering for Mums who want a casual wardrobe, a work wardrobe and something for special occasions.  We are a one stop shop for maternity wear with all those hard to find things as well as the more obvious.  We minimise the stress of finding clothes for women.  You never need to forgo your fashion sense during pregnancy - which is a very special time for any woman".

To see the full range, just visit www.imaternitywear.com.au

People wanting to visit the store (in Melbourne) can find the store inside the BabyCo store at Narre Warren, located at Shop 4, Fountain Gate Super Centre, Victor Crescent, Narre Warren, Victoria (telephone:  (03) 9704 9994).  Easy carparking is provided.

Ideal Fit for Baby Boom
Herald Sun, 20 March 2008

Moving her small business into a leading baby retail chain was a dream come true for Kerry Scanlon.

Just 4 Mums Maternitywear is based at BabyCo's Narre Warren store after six months of persistence and an impressive business proposal.

Mrs Scanlon, 34, runs the business as a separate entity and pays to rent 60sq m in the store.

"It's a great opportunity and I'm very grateful to BabyCo for giving me this chance," she said.

"It's a marketing dream with both of us marketing to the same customer base.  Hopefully we'll have many opportunities within our co-partnering agreement to improve sales and customer service."

After a decade as a legal secretary and selling real estate, Mrs Scanlon started her own business when pregnant friends and family complained about lack of choice in maternity clothes and difficulty finding them.

Retail and fashion were in the blood, with her parents owning a wholesale plant nursery and siblings in retail businesses.  "We've always had businesses in the family so I thought I would try it," she said.

An older cousin, Violet Muddyman, who helped establish Portmans, also provided inspiration.

"I used to talk to her about clothes and fabric, and she would make little flanelette pillowcases for us as presents which we loved.  She inspired me because she used to travel for her work,"  Mrs Scanlon said.

The maternity store concept began after she visited maternity shops, writing down label names, then approaching manufacturers and developing relationships.  She now stocks seven brands of fashionable and affordable casual gear, work gear, lingerie, hosiery, gym wear, swimwear, formal wear for sale or hire, and soon uniforms.  She also developed her own label.

"Choice is everything" she said.

"I could see a gap in corporate and casual wear and developed Joey Maternity."

After three years running the business in Pakenham, Berwick and online, she knew she needed more traffic and thought BabyCo would be the perfect opportunity to grow the business, and retain the online store.

"BabyCo has more than 30 stores nationwide so I thought if goes well, there might be opportunities to expand into other stores and states," she said.

Mrs Scanlon wrote to BabyCo saying she had a business proposal and spent six months phoning and sending correspondence.

"It was more persistence than anything else - ringing and not giving up," she said.

She received an interview and moved in last month.

"I stressed that I won't just sit here and let them do all the work.  I'm in control of what I do," she said.

Mrs Scanlon credits Small Business Mentoring Service mentor Brenda Rossman with helping secure the BabyCo deal.  She met Brenda through a City of Casey and Cardinia Shire program.

"Even though I had the idea, Brenda showed me how to market myself in a professional way with a personal profile and business profile.  I knew about this from my secretarial background but didn't apply it to retail," Mrs Scanlon said.

Ms Rossman encouraged her to be persistent, professional, get help when needed and listen.

"We all think we know best and don't listen to other peoples' ideas but listening is such an important key in business," Mrs Scanlon said.

"It's also improtant to allocate time each day to think about ideas, work out what you could change and how you could do it."

She was a Small Business Champion Awards 2007 Victorian state finalist in fashion, won the Cardinia Business Judges Encouragement Award in 2006 and was a South East Business Park manufacturing award finalist in 2006.

Great Expectations
Small Business Mentoring Service

Kerry Scanlon's business is literally her baby, and her fashionable and affordable maternity label is thriving thanks to the Small Business Mentoring Service (SBMS).

Kerry, who set up Just 4 Mums Maternitywear three years ago, is now based in the Narre Warren BabyCo store which will provide great exposure and help her grow the business.  She also sells online.

Just 4 Mums sells a range of quality, reasonably priced and fashionable maternity clothing and accessories such as belly belts.  It stocks casual gear, work gear, lingerie, gym wear, swimwear, hosiery and formal hire.  Kerry also has her own label, Joey Maternity, for the corporate mum.

She doesn't have her own children yet, but fashion is in Kerry's blood.  An older cousin helped set up what became the Portmans empire.  Its simple philosophy of making quality clothes cheaply and turning them over in high volume has continued in Just 4 Mums.

Kerry's skills as a legal secretary and in real estate were instrumental in establishing her business, but she needed help to promote it and take it to the next level.

Kerry met SBMS mentor Brenda Rossman through a City of Casey and Cardinia Shire program which funded sessions with business mentors.  The SBMS is a non-government, non-profit organisation of volunteer expert mentors who give their time and experience to help small businesses.  Brenda has successfully led and developed several small businesses in the health and human resources fields, and is a marketing expert.

Brenda was impressed with Kerry's eye for fashion and her label, but found she needed help marketing it.  Brenda encouraged Kerry to network, create personal and company profiles, research and persist in her attempt to sell her products in a BabyCo store.

The persistence paid of when Narre Warren BabyCo agreed Kerry could base Just 4 Mums there, and there are hopes it will be the first of many outlets.  Kerry is also moving into the maternity uniform market, and has the uniforms made locally.

Brenda, who is impressed with Kerry's achievements so far, played a big role in motivating her and emphasising the importance of marketing no matter how great or unique the product.

"If you don't do marketing you don't get the sale and you don't get any revenue," Brenda says.  "It's what I tell all my clients".

Kerry now feels she has a better presence in the market and the opportunity to brand her company and label.  In time this should lead to improved profits, and linking websites with BabyCo should boost enquiries.  Exports are also planned.

"This is one of our next goals and I now feel like I have greater selling power behind my brand, which gives me confidence to move into the export market in the near future," Kerry says.

"I am the only staff of Just 4 Mums Maternitywear but my future now tells a different story.  Moving into BabyCo is going to be a new learning curve with expected higher customer attendance rates and therefore stock levels will need to be re-assessed and changed accordingly."

Kerry is grateful to Brenda for helping her pursue her BabyCo goal, which took six months.  Without the SBMS, Kerry says her business would not be enjoying the success that she now has.

"It took six months before I met with the owner of BabyCo and ... numerous forms of correspondence," she says.  "Brenda Rossman's encouragement to never give up and her advice that it takes at least three times before you may even be considered by a potential business helped me follow the goals that I had set.

"Moving into BabyCo is a marketing dream with both companies marketing to the same customer base.  We will have many opportunities within our co-partnering agreement to improve sales and provide solid customer service."

Kerry says Brenda's help has been "immeasurable".

"Speaking with business professionals at SBMS who have the experience to understand where you are at is very useful in helping put things back into some sort of balance ," she says.

"A can do attitude and new found confidence to keep striving for my goals through the encouragement of my business mentor has been invaluable.  Enjoying the change of fashions each season keeps me interested and wanting to find out what the next season holds.  Pushing myself beyond barriers I thought I could never do helps keep me creative and wanting more."

*Just 4 Mums is a Small Business Champion Awards Victorian State Finalist in fashion, and won the Cardinia Judges' Encouragement Award.  It was also a finalist in the South East Business Park Manufacturing Award.

Special Delivery at Just 4 Mums Maternitywear
The Sentinel

Award winning Just 4 Mums Maternitywear has been delivering their specialized maternity wear service to the Gippsland region for the past three and a half years.  From Warragul to Leongatha to Wonthaggi and beyond the idea of their brand is to bring fashionable maternity wear to everyone in need.  With their new location in the BabyCo store at Narre Warren this has only gotten easier!!!

With a great range of big name brands which include Ripe, Pea in a Pod, Belly Basics and more Just 4 Mums cater for all aspects of pregnancy.  With fashion, comfort and affordability in mind, Just 4 Mums stock maternity wear for all occasions including: casual maternity, maternity work wear, maternity swim wear, breastfeeding tops, maternity denims, plus size maternity wear, nursing bracelets, belly belts, maternity lingerie and hosiery, formal maternity evening wear, and they even offer a unique formal evening wear HIRE service as well as performing bra fittings.

Just 4 Mums Maternitywear is all about customer service and offer mix and match advice to help you find the right wardrobe for you during your pregnancy.  There is no longer any reason why pregnant women can't find attractive maternity wear that fits.  Catering for sizes 8 - 26, Just 4 Mums Maternitywear can help you find what you are looking for.

Owner Kerry Scanlon said that "we set up the business to cater for all shapes and sizes and make maternity wear more accessible to the country regions who should have the ability to look good and feel great throughout their pregnancy just like their city counterparts".  Kerry also added that "the whole point of the business is to make pregnant women feel good about themselves while their body is changing".

Just 4 Mums Maternitywear inside BabyCo can be found inside the BabyCo store at Shop 4, Fountain Gate Super Centre, Victor Crescent, Fountain Gate (next to Spotlight).  For more information you can simply go to the website at www.just4mums.com.au or contact Kerry on (03) 9704 9994.