A MOTHER-of-two is celebrating cyber success after her online business directory ‘by mums for mums’ became an instant hit.

Michelle Aston, 35, from Witney, set up ‘Supermum’ on Facebook in March.

Since then the page has gone from no ‘likes’ to more than 1,000, with scores of local businesses run by parents available to view online.

Mrs Aston walked away from a project management role at Thames Valley Police to set up her own business after her second child was born.

She received help in the early stages from husband Darren, who runs Aston & James Office Supplies in Witney, but initial response was slow.

She said: “I was looking for ways of promoting my business, and then I met a woman in Surrey who had set up Supermum there. I thought it was a great idea. She was looking to expand and I thought, I could do both.

“I now get contacted on a daily basis by mums who have got their own business on the side, and people with businesses of interest to mums and parents. I’m just trying to get people aware of it.”

From graphic designers to dog walkers, home baking to bouncy castle hire, Supermum offers an eclectic range of businesses. Mrs Aston said: “You name it, I’ve found it.”

While on maternity leave with Alexander, now 18 months, she had created Bathtime & Beyond, an organic products range for babies.

Mrs Aston, who also has a three-year-old daughter, Belle, and had previously been travelling an hour to Kidlington HQ for work, said: “I wanted to do something for myself, and work more flexibly around the kids.”

Her own business has taken “a bit of a back seat” for the time being with the expansion of Supermum, which also functions as a space to advertise local events and activities like baby dance classes and nearly-new sales.

Fortunately Mrs Aston has some breathing space as Alexander is often cared for by mother-in-law, Rita Aston, a childminder.

But she added that not all would-be-entrepreneurs with children were so lucky: “It’s hard when you have a small business, especially when you’re a mum. A lot of networking events are first thing in the morning or in the evening. It was definitely challenging for me. You’ve got to get your name out there; Supermum is one way of doing that.”

At the moment, Supermum is only accessible on Facebook but a full website with an online directory will be available in the near future.

For more information visit facebook.com/Supermumoxfordshire