‘Her baby was drowning’: how a cafe accident and £400 turned into a genius business idea that’s going global
Only 18% of companies in the UK are led by women, and although data suggests that female entrepreneurs are on the rise, men still receive more funding and are entrusted with average loans to start them up.
In an eight-part series every Tuesday, Money Blog reporter Jess Sharp talks to women who lead her in their fields – hearing their stories, struggles and advice for those who want to follow in their footsteps.
This week she spoke to Jenny Dunman, founder and owner of Daisy First Aid…
Many people dream of starting a business all their lives – for Jenny, it was quite an accident.
“I was on my day off and I went out for coffee with a friend and my daughter was sitting on a high chair, my daughter was choking and she didn’t know what to do,” Jenny explained.
“As a police officer, I had already been trained in first aid, so I was able to pick up her daughter and give her a return blow, I removed the blockage very quickly and she made a full recovery.
“That night I went home to my husband and said, ‘Why don’t parents know this really basic thing?’
A brilliant idea for first aid classes aimed at providing medical care to children was born – and now, having started with just £400, Daisy First Aid is on the verge of going global.
It’s been quite a journey for Jen, who left education at 16, moved house and worked three jobs just to make the rent.
Living in Crystal Palace, south-east London at the time, she says she wasn’t surrounded by the best people, and after losing her son and eventually taking her own life, she decided to make a drastic change.
“I went through a really dark time in my life and I kind of decided at that point after I hit rock bottom that I either had to try again and be successful or I had to completely change my life,” the 44-year-old said.
Jenny joined the Metropolitan Police.
“I didn’t live in a particularly nice neighborhood and I didn’t live with particularly nice people, so I decided I was just going to completely cut ties with everyone,” she said.
Back in his training days, the police would cover recruits’ room and board during their 18-week course, he explained.
“I basically had somewhere to completely reset my life. It completely changed my life. I loved it.”
Jenny eventually rose to Detective Sergeant, met her husband in the force when he came to her rescue and was one of the first officers on the scene during the 7/7 bombings.
“I think that’s probably where I found my love for first aid,” he said. “I really loved that side of things.”
An emergency situation that led to his idea
A few years later and now a mother of two, Jenny was struggling to juggle work and a busy home.
In 2013, when she was pregnant with her third child, her business idea was sparked by an incident in a cafe.
“They do all these amazing parenting classes, but if your baby stops breathing or is choking or has a seizure, why don’t they teach this basic first aid?” she said.
Jenny began looking online to see what larger organizations were already offering, and found a gap in the market with parent-only classes.
One pavilion, two customers and friendly kindness
Initially, she started holding a first aid class at her local pavilion in Sutton and posted on Facebook inviting people and their babies.
The two-hour class taught people the signs of meningitis, how to treat burns and seizures and broken bones in a way that was “simple and easy to remember.”
His initial start-up costs were £400, which was mainly spent on classroom mannequins.
“I had two bookings that both cost £25 and I asked all my friends to join me to make it look busy, so they all came with their kids and we had a good class,” Jenny said.
After that, word spread quickly and he began to gain more and more customers as his business grew organically.
“I took a career break from the police and started bookings from London, Surrey, Kent… I realized I was on to something,” he said.
Study, study and more study
As her company thrived and she struggled to keep up with demand, Jenny began to figure out how to structure it.
From the beginning, he wanted a work-life balance that was not offered to him in the police force, and worked long hours at school, running and picking up.
Using Google and teaching himself, he came across the idea of franchising.
“I knew nothing about starting a business, I knew absolutely zero, so I learned a lot along the way. I learned about franchising and tried and tested the model,” he said.
“I took two franchisees who were both policewomen who lived in other areas and taught them how to grow their business and do what I was doing.
“It just exploded beautifully and really quickly became what it is now, which is 115 franchises in the UK with plans to expand worldwide.
“We’ve helped save hundreds of thousands of children’s lives.”
“I receive offers for investment – but I refuse”
Daisy First Aid is now set to launch in Dubai before the end of the year, with Jenny aspiring to take it to Australia and Europe as well.
“What was supposed to be a small business for me to help me get a little maternity pay ended up being a game changer for me and my other franchisees,” she said.
Unlike many businesses, Jenny never took any investment, self-funding the startup and growing it ever since.
“I probably get investment offers twice a month, but I’ve never gotten an investment, so I own 100% of the business. Some people think I’m crazy, but I’m really happy,” he said.
“Our model works very nicely and we know we can replicate it everywhere.”
What about the challenges?
Jenny said the “biggest battle” she had to overcome was her own mind, and it was something she still had to work on every day.
“I think most of us are taught by our parents and our ancestors and others to just survive and stay safe… you know, go to school, get a job, get a pension, retire and then you die.” she said.
“I really think now that we can remove those blocks just to open up because we’re meant for more.”
He explained how he has had to work over the last 20 years to overcome his fear of failure, but also his “fear of boasting and success”.
“So far, my biggest challenge is sabotaging myself and myself,” he added.
“There are so many fears that we all have that hold us back from achieving more.”
Jenny’s advice
Jenny admitted she was “massively obsessed” with learning and advised others to explore and learn the skills they lacked.
“All the information you need is on the Internet, you can find out, but also don’t be afraid to ask other experts for help,” he said.
He recalled the first time he hired an accountant and asked him to explain everything as if he were 10 years old.
“Sometimes as entrepreneurs, people expect us to know everything, but we’re never going to know anything. However, we can be brave enough to ask other experts.
“There are a lot of people who will give up their free time to help you, and there’s so much information online, so it doesn’t have to be expensive.”
He also takes these five daily steps to keep his mindset positive:
- Practice Gratitude – Take time to remember and feel grateful for the positive things in your life
- Write down your goals – write them down and illustrate them
- Mind your words – stop complaining and don’t be negative. Changing the words you use out loud and in your head can have a positive effect
- Create a Wave of Happiness – Do one thing a day to make someone else happy – it will make them happy too
- Leave positive reviews and give compliments – if someone did a good job, tell them about it.
