At its core, a successful business idea is about simple problem solving. Enter Gwenn Nolan, founder of Mother Compost. As a busy mom and full time professional outside the home, she was frustrated by the amount of food she was throwing away and tried to compost herself at home. But she soon realized she did not have time for home composting. People want to do the right thing, but they also want the process to be easy, clean, and affordable.
So, in 2018 she began offering composting services through her business, Mother Compost. They are a composting service located in the Main Line suburbs providing affordable composting options to the towns along Lancaster Avenue (from City Avenue out to the Berwyn train station). They offer residential and commercial composting services to our local areas.
So why is this important? “Composting is a simple way to divert almost 40% of your household trash from landfills, and help rescue the nutrients in your leftover foods to be converted into compost and returned to the soil,” says Nolan.
Like other start up entrepreneurs, it isn’t always easy. Nolan advises anyone thinking of starting a business to try doing something small and inexpensive to bring it to life. And of course, do your market research. And make sure you are passionate about the idea because it will take a lot of steps for it to grow.
Social media and Canva have been great resources for Nolan in growing her business. She recommends focusing on 1 or 2 platforms to avoid getting overwhelmed. Use the ones you naturally connect with and focus your energy there.
She also credits thinking outside the box for ways to get the word out about her business for its growth. “Truly most of our growth comes from our subscribers or people seeing our trucks out in the wild,” says Nolan.
Like other small businesses, Mother Compost has felt the impact of Covid as well. “We were lucky in that our categorization as a waste management company allowed us to continue to operate, but supply chain issues, rising fuel costs, labor shortages etc. are also a part of the complex COVID 19 puzzle we have had to navigate,” Nolan shares.
Currently, Nolan is working on a home composting course that will support backyard composting efforts and help empower people to begin their composting journey.
For more information, please check out their website: mothercompost.com
And follow them on Instagram @mothercompost
Quickfire “Get to Know Gwenn” Round:
Favorite place to escape with a coffee and work: Ludington Library (Bryn Mawr)
Favorite business book: Start with Why (Simon Sinek)
Favorite quote: "Be the change you wish to see in the world."
Favorite local restaurant: Coco Thai Bistro (Narberth)
Song that gets you motivated: “Come Alive” from The Greatest Showman
Show you’ve recently binge watched and recommend: Ted Lasso - just fantastic all around
Photos provided by Gwenn Nolan.