Melissa Mancini is a nurse, midwife and board-certified lactation consultant in the midst of a construction blitz.
That’s because she’s getting ready to open her brand new business More than Motherhood this fall.
Located on the corner of N. Santa Cruz and Ashler avenues in the old Wells Fargo mortgage center, Mancini’s business will offer fitness classes and support groups, in an attempt to aid new parents during a critical phase.
“A studio for moms to exercise while their kids are playing in the studio next door” is how Mancini describes the 2,500-square-foot location.
Mancini has run a business over the last seven years that focuses on the early postpartum period.
When her own kids were young, she could have benefitted from a studio like hers, she said.
Expecting mothers expect support
With one of Mancini’s kids now in elementary school and one in middle school, Mancini began to dream about a possible new business opportunity. After a few iterations of what that could look like, she landed on a wellness and fitness studio. “I realized there was a need for new moms to have a space to land,” said Mancini. In anticipation of their grand opening, they’ve been spreading the word, including by having pop-ups in Lululemon as well leading yoga at Oak Meadow Park. It was a way to build her community. Both Mancini and her husband grew up together in Turlock—they were high school sweethearts. They both then attended UCLA, followed by nursing school in Boston at Simmons University, while her husband attended MIT for his masters in engineering.
While looking for wedding venues in 2012, they arrived upon Nestldown in the Santa Cruz Mountains and serendipitously came to downtown Los Gatos. They fell in love with the town immediately. In 2021, they moved to Los Gatos. More Than Milk Breastfeeding, is a business Mancini began in 2019 that helps people navigate the early feeding struggles—breastfeeding, bottle feeding, pain from breastfeeding, and other vulnerabilities with the early stages of being a parent. This firsthand experience led her towards starting More than Motherhood as a business with a physical storefront.
Expecting clients of More than Motherhood can look forward to fitness classes like yoga, mat pilates and groups for moms at various stages of life. It will be membership-based, with “founding memberships” to go live by the fall.
“We are building a space for moms to come as they are, and bring their life with them,” said Mancini. With one of their memberships, childcare is included without any added cost, so mothers don’t have to make a decision to add on that feature. “I would love for this to be a community resource and hub that we could bring to other communities, so there are local resources outside of our area,” she added.
Passion project turned business
“I think my own dive into parenthood that I found in early parenthood to be incredibly humbling and overwhelming. I was constantly looking for a place I could bring my kids with me, but still get movement,” said Mancini. When Mancini became a midwife and launched her business, she realized she wasn’t the only person that needed this. It wasn’t just her own experience that was craving this sense of community. “I wish I had this space when my kids were little, but also when my kids are older,” said Mancini. Her business will offer services for expectant parents all the way to parents of kids finishing high school.
(Faizi Samadani / Los Gatan)
Mancini is deeply rooted in this community, with connections to pediatricians, midwives and community. “My husband and I eat out downtown several times a week at Centenove, Tasting House and Breaking Dawn. This is the perfect place. We searched for a year and a half to find this location,” said Mancini. Mancini has been a part of the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce’s women’s group that meets once a week. Through this avenue, she’s already felt a wonderful sense of community, she says.
Mancini believes her passion project of working with moms can also be a very real business. And she’s been working diligently towards this dream for years. “I would love it if my kids are growing up to see myself and other female entrepreneurs building projects,” she said. “There are so many female business owners around town. I think kids are growing up feeling, This is normal.” In addition to being a midwife, Mancini is also a healthcare provider that can care for women throughout their lives—from annual women’s care, pregnancy care, and even help a woman give birth, if needed.
Last year, another new business, called New Mom School, sat down with the Los Gatan. Owner Riya Dhaliwal says she’s glad to see another moms-focused company starting up. “I see it as a positive for our community,” Dhaliwal said. “The transition to parenthood is challenging, and moms benefit when there are more high-quality resources available. I think our businesses complement each other well. New Mom School specializes in supporting moms during the first year postpartum through evidence-based education, professionally facilitated support groups, and guidance from trusted maternal health and pediatric experts. I believe we’re working toward the same goal: helping moms and families in Los Gatos feel healthier, more supported and less alone. There’s plenty of room for organizations with different areas of expertise to strengthen the village for local families.”
Though being an expectant mother offers the anticipation of joy of new life, Mancini also speaks to the difficulties that can come with that time, as well. Sadly, for some this will mean a miscarriage. “I think the hardest part of miscarriages is that it’s the invisible part of motherhood,” Mancini said. “Building a community, a significant number of women experience miscarriages in their life, and when you’re around other women who have been through it, that’s really powerful.” Over the course of time, More than Motherhood plans to have groups for loss, whether that’s miscarriages or still birth, so that women have a safe space to show up. While the studio will focus around positivity and joy, there will be space for people to join in community to get support. Look forward to announcements for a ribbon-cutting this fall.
