Mother of four receives ‘heartwarming’ reaction to sharing reality of being a business owner in Northampton

A mother of four received a “heartwarming” reaction to sharing the reality of being a business owner in Northampton on her social media page.

Dani Martin, 35, is the founder of Simply Sweetie – a premium brand confectionery company with more than 100 varieties to choose from.

Along with collections from Dani’s home in Duston and local deliveries, the sweets are also available for nationwide delivery.

Having reflected during last year’s Christmas period, the 35-year-old wanted to post on social media to show the highs and lows of being an independent business owner.

Dani is a working mother and her children are the reason she started Simply Sweetie in the first place.

The mother of four shared the difficulties she faced in 2023 – from having her worst months of sales and releasing themed collections late, to having to ask customers to be patient with their orders. She was also set back by a designer who left her out of pocket and without a website.

Dani went on to proudly share her achievements. She took risks and attended bigger events, pushed herself out of her comfort zone, had multiple record-breaking months for sales, launched a TikTok shop, and connected with other local businesses.

What really struck a chord with those reading her social media post was that Dani started 2023 30 weeks pregnant and in hospital as her fourth daughter tried to make an early arrival.

Despite not giving birth until nine weeks later, Dani experienced what she described as a “difficult and quite traumatic” birth in February last year.

Having settled into life as a family six, her youngest daughter began having seizures and was blue-lighted to the hospital on a number of occasions.

As well as her daughter being unwell for the past six months, Dani also found herself in hospital and her business took a back seat during her recovery.

With the massive toll this took on Dani and her family, the 35-year-old had to think long and hard about whether she could continue with Simply Sweetie.

Though Dani knew of other sweet businesses that shut down after years of trade, she was determined to make a go of Simply Sweetie this year.

The 35-year-old will not be returning to her former job as a trampolining coach, in a bid to make her side hustle a full-time living.

Talking to the Chronicle & Echo, Dani shared what led her to start this venture in February 2021.

She knew being a sports coach did not fit around being a mother to young children and wanted to find another way to utilise her maternity leave and free time in lockdown.

As a big fan of pick and mix – which she ordered lots of during the pandemic – Dani described the “disappointment” she experienced when they arrived.

“I loved sweets and knew lots about it,” she said. “I knew if there was a time to do it, then was the right time.”

When asked how the business has been received by the Northampton community since then, the 35-year-old said: “It’s been amazing and I’ve had so much support.

“There are so many regular customers who come back, and people recommend it to family and friends. It's starting to grow as people spread the word.”

Dani believes it is the wide variety of premium quality sweets she stocks, as well as the fact they are fresh and not premixed, that keep people coming back for more.

She also prides herself on customer service and adding a personal touch by getting to know repeat customers.

The business owner hopes this is what sets her apart from competitors and has allowed her to keep going, when many others that set up at a similar time have shut down.

Dani says sharing the vulnerable social media post about her past and current situation was “so important”, as it helps customers understand her circumstances as a working mother.

“It got to a point just before Christmas where I hadn’t realised I was burnt out from the traumatic year,” she said.

“When the business was ready for a push, I wasn’t as organised as normal and hadn’t given the customers what they were used to.”

Having written the post and deleted it a number of times before posting, Dani said: “The response blew me away. I wondered if people wanted to hear about the personal side of the business.

“I wanted to get it down on paper and switched my phone off after posting it.”

It was not until someone told her to check out the reaction on social media that Dani saw the “outpouring of support”, which she said was “really heartwarming to see”.

As a “determined and strong person”, sharing her situation gave Dani the headspace she needed to make a success of the business.

Not only will she prioritise separating her home and work life this year, but giving herself time simply as Dani – aside from being a mother and a business owner.

The hope is to earn enough to make Simply Sweetie a sustainable business now she is not returning to coaching.

Dani would also like to get involved in bigger pop up events and get a website up and running to push Simply Sweetie beyond Northampton.

After the website debacle last year, Dani is continuing to sell her sweets through social media for now.

She encourages customers to share, like and comment on social media, recommend to family and friends, and leave reviews on Facebook to help out her independent business.

Her sweet lists and order information will be updated in the coming weeks, on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok shop.

You can check out Simply Sweetie’s Instagram page here.