This mother built a startup between breastfeeding sessions. It went on to make $90,000 in a month

A supermom in the truest sense, Julia Holden worked full-time as a senior relationship manager at an advertising company. She was paving her way into an entrepreneurial journey while taking care of her baby without paid assistance and, with no outside funding, grew her startup from an initial investment of $16,000 into a business generating five-figure monthly revenue.

Julia Holden built her business in 20-minute windows between breastfeeding sessions - proof that nothing is unachievable when a mother's strength is the driving force.

“I had no outside funding, no team, and no child care beyond family help,” Holden told CNBC in a February interview.

What did Julia Holden build?

Holden established a brand named Sleepy Hat.

"The Sleepy Hat is a baby hat with a soft, built-in eye cover designed to gently block light and visual distractions — helping your baby settle to sleep wherever you are", explains the brand on its page.

The original idea

Holden discovered that her infant fell asleep faster when his eyes were gently covered. She was disappointed when her search failed to give her the product she was desperately looking for. As a result, she began her entrepreneurial journey, something she had dreamed of since she was a young adult.

The early prototypes of Sleepy Hat failed, but she continued refining the design. Holden’s factory samples did not meet her expectations, and she incurred losses of $1,500 due to defective products.

Holden finally launched her website in September 2024.

Julia Holder remembers her ‘life-changing’ first sale from a stranger. “I was so excited but also terrified to actually ship the product.”

Sleepy Hat made $2,000 in sales in 2024. Holden began noticing traction on TikTok and an increase in sales after she registered her business as a third-party seller on Amazon in 2025.

The revenue

Julia Holden's business didn’t make good sales until she posted her product and website on the online marketplace Grommet. Holden told CNBC that her company is profitable.

Julia finally left her advertising job that paid her $95,000 annually in October 2025. She reinvested her profits into the business and drew only $2,500 as a salary.

Julia’s concept was simple - to solve a real problem.

The survival

Holden took $2,500 as her salary from the business in 2025. She has been managing her life with the remaining savings and her husband's income; he works as an assistant director at Princeton University.

"I’m still stressed, but for a more meaningful reason. It feels more important. It’s much more satisfying,” Holden told CNBC.

The strategy

Holden claims that she works approximately 30 to 60 hours per week, including weekends.

Holden planned to spend close to $10,000 to launch her business, but she overspent. Product development, creating patterns, prototyping, trademarking, and website building brought in more expenses than she earlier expected.

Having no experience in design, Holden, along with her mother, drew a pattern that was entirely wrong in size. Upon a friend's reference, she reached out to a factory in China that sent the prototypes. Her struggles didn't just stop there. Due to a faulty manufacturing contract blueprint, the product came out defective, resulting in a loss of $1,500.

Julia Holden told CNBC that she is now making most of her sales through paid online advertising. She is also designing new patterns with new materials, upgrading packaging as her strategy to further grow the brand. Holden is also focusing on making sales through social media.

In the process of building her own brand, Holden now knows that trusting her gut played the most valuable role in starting her venture. She recalled that her sister advised her not to get into entrepreneurship as a new mother. But she followed her heart and pursued it anyway.

“She was like, ‘I would not start a business right now. You’re [freshly] postpartum, and I was like, ‘OK, I hear you. I’m going to do it anyway." Holden told CNBC.

Julia Holden was making a pitch that was under preparation to hit a successful game with her early entrepreneurship experiments. Julia Holden earlier ran a T-shirt brand business and a website for women runners. Sleepy Hat was her third venture. Holden said that she had continuously been working on her financial and organizational acuity. She also worked with an accountant to overcome her weak traits.

FAQs

1. What is Sleepy Hat and how did it come about?
   Sleepy Hat is a baby hat designed by Julia Holden, which features a soft, built-in eye cover to block light and visual distractions, helping babies settle to sleep. The idea originated when Holden noticed her infant fell asleep faster with his eyes covered, and she could not find a suitable product on the market.
2. How did Julia Holden fund her business initially?
   Julia Holden started her business with an initial investment of $16,000, and she grew it without any outside funding or a formal team, primarily relying on family help for childcare.
3. What challenges did Julia Holden face while launching Sleepy Hat?
   Holden encountered several challenges, including design flaws with prototypes, a faulty manufacturing contract that led to a loss of $1,500, and overspending beyond her initial budget due to unexpected expenses in product development, trademarking, and website building.