Amazon.com: Mommy Millionaire: How I Turned My Kitchen Table Idea into a Million Dollars and How You Can, Too!: Kim Lavine: Books

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. People only learn to think like a millionaire by becoming one," says Lavine, who tucks her impressive entrepreneurial saga inside this top-notch how-to guide on launching a business. Founder and president of Green Daisy Inc., she tells how she converted a comfy pillow she invented into a successful company, sharing poignant insights about her challenges and growth. Lavine dispels many myths by discussing her failures, such as getting stung by sleazy partners, a cash flow crisis from hell and blending her roles as mom and company president ("Don't apologize for having kids!"). Lavine seamlessly weaves her journey of discovery with checklists, links, resources and how-tos drawn from her experience. While her advice to avoid doing business with "people who wear bad shoes" may seem offbeat, several pages later she provides a smart, clear description of how to create a cash flow analysis and use it as the basis for all key decisions. Lavine's human and authoritative story makes this one of the most engaging and useful resources available for readers hoping to convert their passion into a healthy company—any man who perceives her lessons as gender-specific will lose out on a rare gem. (Feb.)
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Review

"Mommy Millionaire is loaded with resources for a fledgling business person--woman or man--armed with a good idea and boundless energy."

--USA Today

“Top-notch how-to guide on launching a business... Lavine's human and authoritative story makes this one of the most engaging and useful resources available for readers hoping to convert their passion into a healthy company... A rare gem.”
–Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Strategy and Business Magazine chose Mommy Millionaire as one of the best business books of 2007: “Kim Lavine’s memoir-cum-business-primer breaks new ground in the crowded field of startup sagas. By seamlessly blending the epiphanies that she gained through launching a business with practical lessons, Lavine has packaged a core set of new-venture tenets into something fresh and relevant.”

“Mommy Millionaire is an inspiring gift and roadmap to success for anyone who's ever had a dream.”

—Barbara De Angelis, Ph.D., #1 New York Times bestselling author of How Did I Get Here

“Lavine has good tips for anyone interested in launching a home-based business.”
–Library Journal

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

Hardcover: 352 pages
Publisher: St. Martin's Press (February 20, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312354576
ISBN-13: 978-0312354572
Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (36 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #473,202 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
Discerning opportunity in the day's mundane moments is the instinct necessary to entrepreneurial survival; having the courage and the ability to act upon opportunity is what essentially separates those who succeed from those who fail. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
minimum opening order, kitchen table idea, retailing season, millionaire mentors, green daisy, leasing manager, retail price point, vendor portal, master rep, first trade show, booth design, mezzanine financing, big retailers, elevator pitch, angel investors

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Symphony Money, New Money, Product Search, Corporate Money, Old Money, Break-Even Analysis, Cash Flow Spreadsheet, Saks Inc, Today's Special Value, Bad Money, East Coast, Mall of Georgia, Wuvit Wady, Advance Pricing, Cash Flow Analysis, Detection Machine, Entrepreneur Number, New Jersey, Commerce Department, Social Security, Specialty Retail Report, Washington Money, Boss Mom, Demo Event

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	77% buy the item featured on this page: Mommy Millionaire: How I Turned My Kitchen Table Idea into a Million Dollars and How You Can, Too! 4.3 out of 5 stars (36) $23.95
	15% buy The Mom Inventors Handbook: How to Turn Your Great Idea into the Next Big Thing 4.9 out of 5 stars (31) $12.89
	4% buy Secrets of Millionaire Moms: Learn How They Turned Great Ideas Into Booming Businesses 4.1 out of 5 stars (8) $11.53
	2% buy Ladies Who Launch: Embracing Entrepreneurship & Creativity as a Lifestyle 4.3 out of 5 stars (26) $16.47

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Customer Reviews

36 Reviews

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (36 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A riveting story, but actually DISCOURAGED me, July 15, 2007

By	M. Dodson "Mama24Gr8Kiddos" (Apex, NC United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I always thought the idea of owning a business would be great. I've dabbled on Ebay, with the whole intent being to stay at home and raise my kids while making money on the side. When I saw the title of this book it inspired me....maybe if I read it I could find some inspiration to start a business myself?
While the book itself is a good read (I didn't want to put it down!) I found the author's tenacity a bit scary. The product itself has limited potential....like a previous poster said, it's a fad product. Once everyone owns one, your income potential has pretty much dried up. The author fought really hard to make her business succeed by begging and borrowing, often at great personal risk. She often sacrificed time spent with family in her quest to make her business succeed. This to me represents the biggest conflict in her quest....the title "Mommy Millionaires" implies that this is something a Mommy can do "in her spare time" or when she isn't caring for her children. When in fact after reading this book I am more apt to believe the author traded in her time with her children FOR the business.....she even speaks about missing her children's birthday parties because she was too busy trying to promote her business.
I give this book 2 stars because it is a good read....but it misses its mark as an inspiration for other "mompreneurs". There are plenty of families out there who can successfully manage family and business. Moms shouldn't have to choose!

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11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Read, February 26, 2007

By	Avid Reader - See all my reviews

Lavine is an inspiration to all entrepreneurs--not just females. In this book she reveals how she developed an innovative pillow, founded the Green Daisy company, and sold her product on the QVC network. Lavine provides a wealth of information about business startups, and specifically focuses on how to create a cashflow analysis which becomes the cornerstone for all financial and business decisions. As in Mike Kiyosaki's Rich Dad series, Ms. Lavine emphasizes the importance of creating positive cashflow as the foundation of any profitable venture. This book reflects information the author learned from her successful experience as an entrepreneur, and is well worth reading.

For more info on achieving personal success and wealth, you may want to check out "The 17 Principles of Creating Wealth," by Phillip Collinsworth.

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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous insight to those starting their own business, April 13, 2007

By	S. Wong (Tempe, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm a stay at home mom starting my own business of children's furniture and reading Kim Lavine's book gave me so much insight. The thing I love most about her book is that it's not so much a how-to book, but more of a journal of her own experiences. There's plenty of good "how to start your own business" books, but this one really captures the essence of how much sweat, tears and plain hard work are involved with building up a successful business.

I bought this book because it I'm also a mom, but it really gives a lot of insight to any entrepreneur (trade shows, retailing products, finding funding, etc). I would highly recommend it to those that aren't even moms because reading about her journey is not only encouraging, but gives you the full pictures (all the ups and downs) of building a successful business.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book to get your entrepreneur spirit going
This book is a great resource for every mommy going into business. It's a great read to get your spirits going, very inspirational. Read more

Published 26 days ago by Martine Groeneveld, Author

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent
If you want to start a business, read this book! I found it on the bookshelf of a vacation house in Italy, left by someone else. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Working Mom

5.0 out of 5 stars Mommy Millionaire: How I Turned My Kitchen Table Idea into a Million Dollars and How You can, Too!
Kim Lavine, really done her homework with this awesome book! I could not put this book down! If you need helpful resources with starting a business, invention, or just knowing... Read more

Published 6 months ago by Evelyn Johnson

2.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely disgusted
As a female small business owner, I was excited to find this book. Not long into the book, my excitement was gone but I finished it anyway. Read more

Published 11 months ago by patti

5.0 out of 5 stars True tales from a fellow Mompreneur...
I absolutely loved the book! As a fellow Mom Entrepreneur, I found her story full of insight, helpful advice, and a great real world example of what happens to a company as they... Read more

Published 12 months ago by Glamajama, Heather Nolte

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun, informative read!
I had this book for nearly a year, it was highly recommended by a friend but I thought the subject of business might bore me so I did not start reading it until two days ago. Read more

Published 15 months ago by bloomsboutique

2.0 out of 5 stars There's not much Mommy in this book
After skimming and skipping through the first few chapters, I happened upon the story of how she left her two year old toddler in a car to go to a meeting with a lawyer. Read more

Published 15 months ago by H. Mitchell

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book!!!
This book was very informative and cut straight to the point from the beginning. It was not boring at all like other business books that's kinda like blah, you skip through it and... Read more

Published 17 months ago by L. Westry

5.0 out of 5 stars Full of resources and useful tips applicable to anyone starting a business
I checked this book out of the library. I'm about 1/3 of the way through, and already I've found it so useful that today I bought a copy at Borders. Read more

Published 19 months ago by MMG

3.0 out of 5 stars A novel masquarading as a business book which left me with no warm and fuzzy feeling.

This book was just OK. That's a 3-star on Amazon's scale. When I read a book that I plan to write a book review on I generally look at it as a teacher would when grading a... Read more

Published 20 months ago by Jeff Lippincott

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