Innovator Stories
When the first Mamava pod was installed at the Burlington, Vt., airport in 2013, parents had already spent eons trying to find safe, supportive spaces to nurse their babies and pump milk. Sascha Mayer was one of those parents—and her work has now helped move the needle on breastfeeding while creating realistic infrastructure solutions that can be applied almost anywhere.
Breast milk’s benefits are widely regarded, and resources, encouragement, and tools to help mothers reach their breastfeeding goals are more commonplace nowadays, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement. “The pendulum has swung in some ways in terms of cultural awareness, but there still can be a lack of infrastructure,” Mayer said. “There’s all this messaging, but then you go back to work and your employer doesn’t support it. There’s an extra emotional burden of feeling like you’ve failed.”
Innovator Stories
Meet Sascha Mayer
When the first Mamava pod was installed at the Burlington, Vt., airport in 2013, parents had already spent eons trying to find safe, supportive spaces to nurse their babies and pump milk. Sascha Mayer was one of those parents—and her work has now helped move the needle on breastfeeding while creating realistic infrastructure solutions that can be applied almost anywhere.
Breast milk’s benefits are widely regarded, and resources, encouragement, and tools to help mothers reach their breastfeeding goals are more commonplace nowadays, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement. “The pendulum has swung in some ways in terms of cultural awareness, but there still can be a lack of infrastructure,” Mayer said. “There’s all this messaging, but then you go back to work and your employer doesn’t support it. There’s an extra emotional burden of feeling like you’ve failed.”
Breastfeeding moms need to express milk every few hours to maintain their supply, and babies can need anywhere from 12-36 ounces of milk every day. When she was breastfeeding, Mayer experienced the common challenge of finding a place to feed her babies while she was out and about, and while she had room to pump at work, she saw other moms struggle with milk production because their jobs didn’t have accessible spaces.
Mayer and co-founder Christine Dodson, who both worked at brand strategy studio Solidarity of Unbridled Labour in Burlington, applied their branding and design expertise to the problem. “We realized it was needed everywhere working parents go,” she said. Mamava’s solution, a freestanding lactation pod built for privacy and comfort for parents, was the first of its kind.
Mamava also provides breastfeeding resources for employers, organizations, and people who are pumping and nursing. Mamava’s website offers information about laws related to breastfeeding and employment in every state, and it recently launched an app that helps people find lactation spaces wherever they go. “From the beginning, we’ve cared a lot about advocacy,” Mayer said.
The pods also offer quick implementation and flexibility for the company’s customers, which can range from major distribution warehouses to convention centers to malls and corporate spaces. Today, Mamava offers a wide range of products, as well as a consulting branch that can help companies assess their needs in supporting employees who are breastfeeding, all from its Vermont headquarters.
Mayer graduated from the University of Vermont and built her career, and her company, there. “It’s an excellent state to start a business, especially one that’s socially oriented and progressive,” she said. “There was an independent spirit there that we followed.”
Since the Vermont startup community is smaller, “networking is great, because you’re one degree of separation from all these founders,” Mayer said. The flagship lactation pod at the Burlington Airport came about on a handshake between Mayer and the airport’s business manager, who she knew through the local business community. “Amazing things can happen in rural places,” she said. “I always think, ‘if we were in a larger market, would that have happened?’”
As a board member for Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, Mayer received mentorship from folks at major companies like SunCommon and Cabot Cheese, and has been able to mentor other entrepreneurs as well. She’s also a mentor through VT Womenpreneurs and FamTech Founder Collaborative.
As Mamava grows, there are nearly infinite avenues for its pods and its advocacy work. You can already find Mamava pods everywhere, including at medical centers, car dealerships, Walmart stores, the Seattle Storm’s Climate Pledge Arena, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. “I think we still have really only scratched the surface,” Mayer said.
Breastfeeding moms need to express milk every few hours to maintain their supply, and babies can need anywhere from 12-36 ounces of milk every day. When she was breastfeeding, Mayer experienced the common challenge of finding a place to feed her babies while she was out and about, and while she had room to pump at work, she saw other moms struggle with milk production because their jobs didn’t have accessible spaces.
Mayer and co-founder Christine Dodson, who both worked at brand strategy studio Solidarity of Unbridled Labour in Burlington, applied their branding and design expertise to the problem. “We realized it was needed everywhere working parents go,” she said. Mamava’s solution, a freestanding lactation pod built for privacy and comfort for parents, was the first of its kind.
Mamava also provides breastfeeding resources for employers, organizations, and people who are pumping and nursing. Mamava’s website offers information about laws related to breastfeeding and employment in every state, and it recently launched an app that helps people find lactation spaces wherever they go. “From the beginning, we’ve cared a lot about advocacy,” Mayer said.
The pods also offer quick implementation and flexibility for the company’s customers, which can range from major distribution warehouses to convention centers to malls and corporate spaces. Today, Mamava offers a wide range of products, as well as a consulting branch that can help companies assess their needs in supporting employees who are breastfeeding, all from its Vermont headquarters.
Mayer graduated from the University of Vermont and built her career, and her company, there. “It’s an excellent state to start a business, especially one that’s socially oriented and progressive,” she said. “There was an independent spirit there that we followed.”
Since the Vermont startup community is smaller, “networking is great, because you’re one degree of separation from all these founders,” Mayer said. The flagship lactation pod at the Burlington Airport came about on a handshake between Mayer and the airport’s business manager, who she knew through the local business community. “Amazing things can happen in rural places,” she said. “I always think, ‘if we were in a larger market, would that have happened?’”
As a board member for Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, Mayer received mentorship from folks at major companies like SunCommon and Cabot Cheese, and has been able to mentor other entrepreneurs as well. She’s also a mentor through VT Womenpreneurs and FamTech Founder Collaborative.
As Mamava grows, there are nearly infinite avenues for its pods and its advocacy work. You can already find Mamava pods everywhere, including at medical centers, car dealerships, Walmart stores, the Seattle Storm’s Climate Pledge Arena, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. “I think we still have really only scratched the surface,” Mayer said.