Celebrity mom Kimora Lee Simmons and other experts discuss balancing motherhood and business.
By Jocelyn Vena
Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage
<P>Now that <a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/knowles_beyonce/artist.jhtml">Beyoncé</a> has added a new job to her résumé — mom — there's a slew of potential new projects the pop-star mogul might add to her ever-growing empire. Gwen Stefani, Madonna and Victoria Beckham are just a sampling of pop stars who have managed to write a whole new chapter into their careers thanks to motherhood.
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These celebs have expanded their personal brands to include children's clothing lines, books, songs and movies and have even revitalized themselves in their image as super-glam supermoms. As Beyoncé looks to the future and her role as <a href="/news/articles/1676906/beyonce-jay-z-baby-born-ivy-blue.jhtml">Blue Ivy</a>'s mama, mommy mogul Kimora Lee Simmons and Christopher Gavigan, who works with Jessica Alba on her Honest brand, talked to MTV News about the balance between parenthood and the business world.
"I always tell people I'm not the glamorous Hollywood mom," said Simmons, who continues to expand her own fashion brand to include the Shinto Clinical skin-care line. "I'm not the kind of celebrity that lives in the spotlight. I'm famous from work that I do. I've always been in the business and raised my family in the business so it's like a second nature for me. I think that's the key is striking a balance. For me it's always about prioritizing."
What's Simmons' advice for new celeb moms looking to follow her lead? "I think it's about choosing what you want and going after that. Do the best you can, but you don't have to be Superwoman."
And Simmons isn't the only Hollywood A-lister trying to do it all. Alba launched Honest with Gavigan to give moms a place to find eco-friendly products for their babies. "Jessica is like every other mom. Every other mom is a major multi-tasker," Gavigan said of working with the star. "Jessica was very in line with everyone, the average mom and dad out there."
"Find what you're passionate about and go do that," he advised to any future mom moguls. "You articulate that in a brand or in a way you feel from a business perspective that you feel you get your focus articulated in some meaningful or special way. A lot of it is partnerships and leveraging the greatest assets of each other."
With all that advice in mind, some celebrity experts weighed in on what B just might do now that she is a mom. "I think it's going to come very naturally for Beyoncé to emerge as this celebrity mom, just given all the current existing brand extensions she has," said David Caplan, who has worked at <i>Star</i> and <i>People</i> magazines. "Having a child will give her legitimacy, obviously, to the moms, and clearly there's lots and lots of money to be had there. So, I think you will see her lend her hand in the baby arena, whether it's her brand extensions intentionally or just emerging as some sort of Hollywood celebrity mom icon, which happens sometimes with these celebrity mothers.
"Whether it's intentional or not, I think she's definitely going to emerge as a celebrity mother icon," he continued. "And I'm sure she'll take advantage of that and invest in her brand."
A suggestion from another expert fits right in line with the first move her hubby, <a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/jay_z/artist.jhtml">Jay-Z</a>, made when he dropped his track <a href="/news/articles/1676945/blue-ivy-carter-new-jay-z-song-glory.jhtml">"Glory"</a> just says after Blue's birth, which features his <a href="/news/articles/1677033/blue-ivy-beyonce-jay-z-leaves-hospital.jhtml">baby girl</a>.
"I think that this is a woman that has tried terribly hard to keep her private life private," HuffPost celebrity columnist Rob Shuter said. "I think it'll be the same with her baby. I can't imagine her doing a Bethenny Frankel move."
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<i>How do you think motherhood will affect Beyoncé's career? Share your thoughts below!</i></p>
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