We recently connected with Natalia Gaitan and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Natalia, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start big picture – what are some of biggest trends you are seeing in your industry?

As a Brand Strategist and Designer I connect with hundreds of small and local business owners throughout the year, businesses in all kinds of industries, and in the entrepreneur world there are many trends that are shifting the #supportlocal scene.

My favorite trend is MOM-owned businesses breaking the mold of what a CEO and small business owner looks like. When a mom starts a business the social perception is that this mother is starting a side hustle to make a couple of bucks while the kids are napping. In 2022 and beyond you will see moms claim their spot at the business table as savvy, talented business owners that can grow an empire faster than ever before. Being a mom used to be seen as a downfall and it will now be known as a superpower. MOM-owned businesses are here to stay and prove to everyone that it is not a “little side hustle” it is a company, a brand, and a business built with purpose and intention.

Natalia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Absolutely! I am originally from Colombia ( South America), currently, I live in Frisco, TX. I started my career in design in the United States 10 years ago. I worked in design and product development in a corporate setting for a fortune 500 company, for 9 years and now I am a full-time entrepreneur. Today I am the Founder and Creative Director of Power Up Brand and Design. Power Up offers Brand and Website design services for MOM-owned businesses. We are on a mission to elevate MOM-owned businesses and empower moms to claim the space and recognition they deserve as business owners and wealth generators through authentic and strategic Brand and Website design.

Power Up was born in 2020. Like many others, the pandemic brought me an opportunity to look at life from another angle. I was furloughed from my corporate job and I wasn’t sure how to move forward. Design is my passion and I really wanted to use my superpower to create something that would bring me joy, happiness, and purpose. That is why I reached out to my mom tribe, other local fellow moms going through the same transition, and asked “how can I help?”. As so many small businesses started to emerge during that time, the demand for Brand design and Website design was blooming! So I jumped in to use my background and expertise to support other moms to start and grow their businesses through graphic and website design.

It has been quite an adventure and I can’t believe I get to do what I love every day! The business grows every day, we are now a team of 2 and in the past 24 months, we have helped over 50 businesses across the country take their business to the next level. And we can’t wait to see what the next 5 years bring.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The biggest lesson I had to unlearn was that motherhood was going to hold back my career. The world is over saturated with information and examples of what a successful woman is supposed to look like, and what her priorities should be. My mother designed her life around me and my brother, she left her career behind and that was the only idea I had growing up of what motherhood could look like. It was either being a great mom or being a successful professional. My career was my first passion, design is my one true creative outlet, and becoming a designer and getting my first corporate job a was dream come true. Then I had my first daughter and the concepts of love and passion were rewritten. As my daughter grew up and my career demanded more of me, I started to feel the pressure to give in and accept the fact that I was going to be a mediocre mom if I was going to be at least “ok” at my job. But now 5 years into motherhood I have discovered that being a MOM is actually my SUPER POWER. You just have to write your own unique definition of success and move forward embracing your personal passion and your role as a mother. Only then you will thrive! Because no school could ever teach me the amazing things motherhood teaches me every day. You will never find a person more qualified to succeed in life and in business than a mother. No one can multitask like a mother, no one can time-manage like a mother, no one can negotiate like a mother and no one is as strong and as resilient as a mom that is running on 2 hours of sleep and 5 cups of coffee.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

Being a mompreneur and a one-woman show means you have to wear all the hats, so when I started designing the marketing strategy for my business I was struggling hard with impostor syndrome. I was pouring all my efforts into showing up in front of the camera as a powerful business owner and hiding the crazy behind the scenes that really went down at home, writing emails during nap time, and sketching after the kids went to bed. Being sleep deprived with two toddlers and having to ask for help from other experts. The amount of energy I was investing into pretending to be someone else was exhausting. It wasn’t until I worked with my marketing mentor Sherry Sutton from Didi Marketing Collective www.didi.marketing that I realized the only way to stand out was to be myself and show up authentically for my business. Since that day I decided to merge motherhood and business in all my marketing efforts. Now you can see me show up as my sleep-deprived, makeup-free self on all my content. I have also decided to have my girls join me on my brand photoshoots and my posts. Funny enough this has been a game changer for my business and I have been booked out 6 months in advance since then because now more women can relate to what I live and it is easier for them to trust me with their business. They know who I am and what I can do for them, no gimmicks, no pretending.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.powerup-bd.com
• Instagram: www.instagran.com/powerupbd
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/powerup.brandanddesign

Image Credits
Kylie Butler www.focusedcreativephotography.com www.instagram.com/focusedcreativephoto