Founding story May 2024: extrakind - survival with twins and triplets

Alexandra Jaeger is the mother of five children aged 17, 15, 9 and twice 6. After three children, she thought she knew all about pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period. But when her twins stormed into her heart and everyday life, she quickly realized that she had to start all over again. That was the birth of extrakind. The start-up has since become the only competence center for parents of twins and triplets in Germany. As an information marketplace for all moms and dads who will give birth or have given birth to more than one baby at the same time, the extrakind team not only answers all kinds of questions, but also sees itself as a parenting school, family center and, of course, a community.
© extrakind


Alexandra, what exactly does extrakind do?

I founded extrakind in 2019 as a very small start-up. When I was pregnant with my twins, I quickly learned from the reaction of doctors and midwives that this pregnancy was different. The birthing center where I had my other children rejected the twin birth, as did my midwife. I then ended up at Hannover Medical School and learned a lot of new things there. With extrakind, I want to pass this knowledge on to other parents. From people who deal with multiple pregnancies and births every day. There is a lot of nonsense and half-truths circulating on the internet, and fears are also being stirred up. That doesn't have to be the case. At extrakind, we are now a great team of 16 experts - from midwives to breastfeeding consultants, from trainers to housekeepers - who are either mothers of multiples themselves or accompany double and triple miracle parents every day. We want to give parents a good feeling and not leave them alone. This ensures greater serenity and joy.

What exactly do you offer parents?

In addition to comprehensive information, we offer special birth preparation courses for parents of twins and triplets, which are unique in Germany. Our special concept has now even been recognized by the health insurance companies. In addition, we offer special courses during pregnancy and after the birth, we have developed sports programs for moms with twins and triplets, there is the extrakind PLUS Club and we currently have six partner clinics throughout Germany as so-called Level 1 hospitals with maximum care. These hospitals offer first-class expertise and ensure that parents-to-be feel well looked after. With all the people who work for and with us, it is important to us that they have experience with multiple births. We now support 500 couples a year and have over 35,000 parents of multiples in our community. This shows how great the need is.

What are your goals for extrakind?

I set up the center for multiple parents in Hanover. This will also be available in other cities at some point. In Germany, there are 12,000 twin births and around 240 triplet births every year. These figures alone make it clear that we can do a lot more. For example, there is no parent app yet. Our work is already helping to reduce medical costs for health insurance companies. But we can also expand this even further.

What tips do you have for other founders?

Put aside your shyness and find out what funding is available. I founded my company from scratch without any outside funding. I wouldn't do that again today. I would advise every start-up team, especially women, not to hide their good idea under a bushel and sell it short. Be self-confident, go out and ask for support! hannoverimpuls is a good place to go.

How did hannoverimpuls support you?

When I came to hannoverimpuls, I had already made my first decisions. Nevertheless, the talks really helped me to sort out my thoughts. I was encouraged, I realized that my bank wasn't the right one for me and I gained access to networks that I didn't have before. There is someone here who is there for you, who helps you when there are problems and who looks at your figures with you.

© extrakind

extrakind - surviving with twins and triplets
Alexandra Jaeger
Groß-Buchholzer Straße 30
30655 Hanover

Phone: 05101 8557974
E-Mail: Info@extrakind.de

www.extrakind.de

Alexandra on the cooperation with hannoverimpuls:

I should have gone to hannoverimpuls much earlier. But even in the growth phase I'm in now, every tip is valuable and important. The discussions also made me a little proud and showed me what I have already achieved on my own. Now my focus is sharpened once again and I know where the journey is taking me.

Anke Pawla, Project Manager Start-up and Entrepreneurship at hannoverimpuls, on Alexandra Jaeger and extrakind:

It is great for our team to support what Alexandra - motivated by her own experiences - has created for parents of multiples. You can't get any closer to the market and your target group! The portfolio is a perfect fit and demand is correspondingly high.

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