When Zoe Lawson found out she was pregnant and wouldn’t be able to manage Sweetpea Cafe, her mum Jane came to the rescue and cancelled her retirement plans.
The 28-year-old former chef opened her Broughty Ferry cafe in September 2018 after buying the fully-fitted premises.
Her dad helped her find the Brook Street venue, with both her parents encouraging her to take the leap into running her own business.
At first, she thought getting all the old fittings was great as everything was ready to go, but she quickly realised just how many things can break.
Be it a broken panini press or tripped wires, Zoe learnt how to fix equipment and get around any problems popping up.
When the Covid pandemic hit 18 months after opening, she offered takeaway services and did up the cafe for reopening. She even got married in it.
In February 2021, two months before the big hospitality reopening, she found out she was pregnant.
“I said to my mum, oh my God, this is so exciting, but I don’t know what this means for the cafe,” Zoe remembers.
“I thought, it’s just a baby, it’ll be dead easy. And then when it happens you’re like, how am I going to do all this?”
Sweetpea Cafe closed for only one week after Lily’s birth
Zoe’s mum Jane Forbes retired from her healthcare job in March, and started at Sweetpea Cafe just before the reopening.
With a cafe manager in place, Zoe could step away from the cafe and focus on baking and admin tasks.
Once again, an unexpected event popped up. The same day Zoe and Jane were running a trial shift, baby Lily was born six weeks early.
“It was a total shock to me and work, but we just changed the rota about, the staff got on with it, then Lily came and everything was fine,” says the 28-year-old.
“She looked like a wee baby bird, she was tiny.
“I ended up being quite ill, so we were in hospital for two weeks all together. During that time, I was doing emails, contracts, the rota, making sure everyone was happy.”
During the new mum’s hospital stay, Jane took care of all the baking to keep the cafe open. To take some pressure off, Sweetpea ran a limited menu, but customers still kept coming to hear how the mum and baby were doing.
The cafe ended up being closed for just a week before Zoe had to get back to work again.
“There was no other option,” she says.
“If I don’t bake, the cafe doesn’t open.”
Comfortable space at Sweetpea Cafe
The new mum quickly got used to baby wearing, keeping Lily close whether she was baking at home or serving customers in the cafe.
From the beginning of Sweetpea, Zoe wanted a relaxed space where everyone feels comfortable.
She thinks this, and knowing how to fix issues and broken things, made the cafe a safe space to work and bring up Lily.
“We had been through all that drama of getting around problems, which made life easier when Lily did come along,” she says.
“I think because my team give out that relaxed feeling, the customers are more relaxed too.
“I’ve tried to create somewhere that new mums feel comfortable, because they’ve seen me wander around with Lily and breastfeeding in the corner. Everyone should feel comfortable when they come in.”
The wee girl, turning two this month, has become somewhat of a cafe celebrity. Staff and regulars love chatting and playing with her.
When she’s not in people ask about her, and for Christmases and birthdays she gets plenty of cards.
“She is so social, chatting to everyone because she’s so used to it,” says the proud mum.
“I think it’s really benefitted her coming in with me, her development has been amazing.
“If I was working somewhere else, I’d have to fit into their schedule instead of bringing Lily when I wanted. It’s nice having that here.”
Family is key to making it work
There is one very important ingredient in Zoe’s recipe for motherhood and business success – family.
Had her mum not come onboard to run the cafe, she would have hired a manager. But being able to see her every day has been great for both Zoe and Lily.
Husband and dad Graham is a civil engineer who spends all weekend with the toddler if Zoe is in the cafe.
Though she had no maternity leave, she’s spent lots of time with Lily over the past two years while working.
She says: “If I didn’t have support from my mum, sister, brother-in-law and husband, it would have been a completely different story.
“I probably would have been back right away and she’d be in nursery full-time. It would have created a very different balance.
“Now I get to spend all day with Lily, with my husband, and we’re able to have a balance of work and personal life.”
Taking care of a baby and a cafe at the same time means sometimes baking late at night. Other times it means sorting out wages when you’d rather go to bed.
While there have been hard moments – as with any baby – Zoe counts herself lucky that Lily is a good sleeper.
“She’s such a happy wee thing, it makes my life so much easier,” she says.
“We did a lot of sleep training, so I know when she goes down at seven at night she sleeps until seven in the morning. Then I can bake or watch a movie with my husband.
“I know a lot of new mums with their own businesses have really struggled because they haven’t had the same kind of support network as me.”
Room for more babies at Sweetpea Cafe
As Sweetpea’s fifth anniversary – and Lily’s second birthday – approaches, Zoe is preparing to open a baking unit. That will allow her to take on more kitchen staff and have more well-earned time off.
Jane is also training another manager in the cafe, so the three ladies can spend some time together outside of work.
While the cafe is busier than ever – which Zoe thinks is down to its reputation of free-from bakes – the owner feels more relaxed than before she became a mum.
She explains: “Before having Lily, when things went wrong at work it was really hard.
“Although I maybe didn’t show it, when everyone left at the end of the day I would get really emotional. Whereas now if things go wrong, it’s no bother.
“Because Lily’s such a happy wee thing it’s made me more relaxed, I know that as long as she’s happy we’re all good.”
