The Night Owl portable breast pumps: Oli Atanasovska a built million-dollar business

A young mum has revealed how she built a multi-million dollar business from scratch while her baby slept.

Oli Atanasovska was just 24 when she came up with the idea of developing a hands-free breast pump.

The Australian mum was constantly tired and  felt like she didn’t have enough time to stop and pump milk for 40 minutes every few hours.

‘I struggled with breast feeding and pumping because it was so difficult to balance with the rest of early motherhood,’ she told FEMAIL.

‘I had to stop everything to pump – it was so exhausting and limiting. I kept thinking: there has to be a better way, there has to be something else I can do.’

She found herself day dreaming about how much time she would save if a hands free device existed – then decided to do something about it. 

‘I thought how good would it be if I could clean, work or go for a walk.’

‘There was just so much freedom that came with that thought. When you’re a new mum, every second feels even more crucial,’ she said.

Oli found some similar products online but said there were long wait times and a lot of uncertainty around the quality.

Eventually her daydreams and the lack of other options pushed her to take matters into her own hands. 

‘We (mums everywhere) deserve quality breast pumps that will get to us quickly,’ she said. ‘We have to deal with enough considering the overwhelming stress of a new baby,’ she said.

Oli leaned on her university background in business to get her idea off the ground, working at 3am while she struggled to sleep.

Oli Atanasovska was a 24-year-old mum when she first conceived of hands-free breast pumps – and how much time she’d save if such a device existed

The mum was plagued with self-doubt over the project but took a leap of faith because she knew she could help thousands of other mums in the same position. 

She was so afraid her business would fail she refused to put money into it at the start and instead relied on pre-orders to get it off the ground. 

It launched at the end of 2021 and took off overnight – The Night Owl sold out within 28 hours of releasing and made a million dollars within four months.

The house was soon packed to the brim with orders she had to ship spilling out of her home office and into the living room.

‘I was nearly drowning in all of the extra work,’ she said.

Oli revealed that she feared she wasn’t doing a good enough job as a mother and business owner because both jobs required her all

The Night Owl continued to grow, with the company reaching their highest sales day – making $40,000 in 24 hours – before their six-month mark. 

But the road to success hasn’t been easy.

Oli revealed that she feared she wasn’t doing a good enough job as a mother and business owner because both jobs required her all.

‘It was extremely difficult because I constantly felt like I was being pulled in two different directions,’ she said. 

‘I was learning how to be a mum and push myself into extra gear to grow the business and help it reach its potential.

‘When it first took off, I was a mess. I had hundreds of orders to pack and ship out but I couldn’t do any of it until my son was asleep. I’d be awake until 4am doing admin work most days.’

Her house had turned into a packing warehouse, with mounds of boxes and unsent packages piling up in every corner. 

Success has been incredible but Oli says she still feels the tug of motherhood and fears that working on her company takes too much time away from her toddler.

Even now, Oli feels like she’s missing out on motherhood and exhausting herself constantly

She now has a healthy 18-month-old baby boy with another child on the way. 

Even now, she feels like she’s missing out on motherhood and exhausting herself constantly.

‘The reality is that success doesn’t come without sacrifice,’ Oli said. ‘I spend a lot of time working when I could be with my family instead. 

‘But it is all worth it – my favourite part is being able to create a brand for mums and knowing I’m making a difference,’ she said. 

‘I’ve had so many women reach out to me and tell me that The Night Owl completely changed their outlook on feeding and and made their lives easier.’