Shoreline Dad Ian Maddox Receives The First Years Parentpreneur Grant

(January 14, 2016) ― Recognizing that running or starting a business with kids in tow can throw a lot of unpredictability into life’s journey, The First Years – a leading global juvenile products manufacturer – launched its inaugural Parentpreneur Grant Program in fall 2015. New and expecting parent entrepreneurs from across the United States were invited to apply for a pool of grant funding totaling $50,000. Today, The First Years proudly announces that Ian Maddox of Shoreline, WA will receive $4,000 in grant funding for Joule, to help make his dream job a reality.

Maddox (dad of 5-year-old Olive and 2-year-old Ani) set out to reinvent the idea of car ownership. Joule takes care of auto maintenance and management, allowing drivers to swap vehicles as their needs change or when the car needs service. If a user is driving a small car but needs to swap for an SUV, the Joule app can be used to summon the replacement and have it delivered in as little as an hour. Maddox will use his grant funding for Joule toward hiring a new employee, and a marketing campaign. For more information about the business, visit gojoule.com.

More than 100 applications for individual grants of up to $10,000 were submitted by innovative parents who are running small businesses founded less than five years ago, and parents with new business concepts. These entrepreneurial pursuits and ideas are being developed and overseen by smart, savvy and creative new parents, all with at least one child under five years old.

“For more than 60 years, The First Years has manufactured juvenile products to help prepare new and expecting parents for the unpredictable journey of parenting, from stopping the food fights during mealtime, to soaking up the fun during bath time and providing tools for successful potty training,” says Lynne Mello, Vice President of Marketing Communications for The First Years. “Our Parentpreneur Grant Program recognizes that running or starting your own business while also caring for little ones takes these daily parenting challenges to a whole new level. We were blown away by the innovation and creativity we saw coming from today’s parent entrepreneurs, and were thrilled by the response we received.”

Each grant program applicant was evaluated by The First Years judging panel based on the strength and validity of their business concept or plan, ability to demonstrate need and specify what grant funding will be used for, and ability to best express why their entity is deserving of funding through the application and related supporting documents.

“For the grant program’s inaugural year, The First Years is proud to award funding to ten deserving businesses, including Joule,” added Mello. “We’re excited to see how our grants will help entrepreneurial parents like Ian Maddox reach their goals.”

For information about the additional nine businesses from across the country that received funding through The First Years Parentpreneur Grant Program, and to see photos of each of the 10 grant recipients with their families, please visit thefirstyears.com/grants.