A members' community for
mothers in the Cotswolds
Maison Mama started as a simple idea: create a community for mothers in the Cotswolds to meet, learn, and support each other. Not another Facebook group. Something with more intention: curated events, expert-led talks, and real-world socials in beautiful local venues.
The founder needed a platform that could handle membership sign-ups, event listings, and community communication without requiring technical knowledge to manage. It needed to feel warm, considered, and premium, reflecting the quality of the events themselves.
We designed and built the full platform: brand identity, website, membership system, and event management. The result is a community that has grown entirely through word of mouth.
Building community in a
digital world
The challenge with community platforms is that they need to feel personal despite being digital. Most community tools are either too corporate (Mighty Networks, Circle) or too chaotic (WhatsApp groups that lose their thread within hours).
Maison Mama needed something that sat in between: a platform with structure and reliability, but warmth and personality. The membership needed to be simple to join but valuable enough to retain. Events needed to be easy for the founder to create and manage without any technical knowledge. And the whole thing needed to look beautiful on a phone, because that's where mothers live.
Every feature earned its place
Brand identity
Complete brand system from scratch. Logo, colour palette, typography, tone of voice. Warm but not saccharine. Premium but not exclusionary. Everything designed to feel approachable and grown-up.
Membership system
Stripe-powered recurring subscriptions with automated welcome emails, renewal reminders, and easy cancellation. Members manage their own accounts without admin intervention.
Event management
Simple event creation and listing system built into the CMS. The founder can create events, set capacity limits, and manage RSVPs without touching code.
Responsive design
Every page designed mobile-first. Members browse events, manage their membership, and read community content primarily from their phones.
Content management
Payload CMS integration giving the founder full control over all site content, blog posts, and event descriptions. No developer needed for day-to-day updates.
Email integration
Automated transactional emails for membership confirmations, event reminders, and community updates. Consistent brand experience across every touchpoint.
A community built on
word of mouth
Maison Mama has grown to over 200 active members without spending a penny on advertising. The platform runs smoothly, the founder manages everything herself through the CMS, and the community continues to grow through personal recommendations.
This project shows what's possible when you invest in getting the foundations right. A beautiful brand, a simple membership flow, and a CMS that actually works for non-technical users. The technology gets out of the way and lets the community do what it does best.