We first told our readers about Mamaraderie, an online and in-person solution for moms to find friendship, community, and support, in our March 2023 newsletter.
This small business, who worked closely with our Business and Commercialization Innovation Centre, has a milestone to share.
Mamaraderie has announced a partnership with Banko Creative Studio. Banko, a Hamilton-based creative agency, has acquired an equity stake in Mamaraderie to foster significant growth and enhanced member experiences.
This collaboration brings together two organizations dedicated to community building. Banko Creative Studio, known for its creative approach and commitment to supporting local, aligns perfectly with Mamaraderie’s mission to support and connect moms.
Mamaraderie has spent the last three years bringing moms together in supportive environments, both in person and online. Through their online tool, moms can organize meet ups, join clubs that meet regularly, and find the resources they need to get through the day. This partnership will see some new changes and features added to those tools, all to help the community grow.
When the ladies started this company three years ago, they were still trying to define who they were. After having worked with Niagara College’s Business & Commercialization Innovation Centre, Ela and Shelbi are much more confident and validated in their company’s vision.
“We couldn’t believe that the Business and Commercialization Innovation Centre had a full team at their dispense. All these amazing resources were now dedicated to us to help us work on our web app. It was just nice to get the validation that we were on the right track. The team did a really great job.” – Ela, Cofounder, Mamaraderie
“Mamaraderie’s vision has always been to help moms connect easily online so they can build meaningful relationships in real life. We knew the technology aspect of our business would be crucial to creating a great member experience – to help you find moms in your area with shared interests and make it possible to find things to do together in-person,” said Ela.
What Mamaraderie was missing was the time, budget, and resources to really validate some of the work they were doing themselves. So, when they began working with the BCIC team, that was their innovation challenge so they were blown away by the team approach and what BCIC brought to the table, especially since being entrepreneurs can feel like a solo journey sometimes.
“We couldn’t believe that they had a full team at their dispense. All these amazing resources were now dedicated to us to help us work on our web app. It was just nice to get the validation that we were on the right track. The team did a really great job,” said Ela.
Since that time, the proprietary web app has transitioned to a progressive web app, thanks to being able to hire a developer in 2022.
The biggest value they received in the final report from BCIC were the consumer insights and the competitive analysis.
“Since we have to submit applications for pitches regularly, we’re so thankful to have this beautiful presentation deck the team created for us available at our fingertips, so that really was one of the biggest values that we got,” said Ela.
The BCIC team also worked on a few things that will come in useful long-term for Mamaraderie, like how to scale, additional revenue streams, and more.
The future of Mamaraderie is exciting as their online experience is about to get a major upgrade! They will be adding new functionality and making the app downloadable through the Apple and Google stores as early as this Fall (which means mobile push notifications!). Working with the Banko team will not only help expedite their technology development but also help them refine and execute their overall strategy and growth plans.
If you’re wanting to take your business to the next level, the Business and Commercialization Innovation Centre (BCIC) is here to boost your growth.
Not sure how to grow in the marketplace? Or what type of promotional advertising is best for you? Through market research, we will develop the strategy needed to set your business up for success. Our team of experts is here to help navigate the process of building a strong brand!
Funding is available to help offset the costs for those who meet eligibility requirements. Learn more about their capabilities on the Research and Innovation website.
