Business Women Awards 2025
ACHIEVEMENT HONOREE:
Britt Riley, The Haven Collection Inc. owner
OF ALL THE TALENTS working parents have to master, juggling tops the list. Then again, that necessity can be the mother of creative life planning.
Case in point: Britt Riley’s The Haven Collection Inc., a Middletown-based entity that combines licensed day care, shared workspace and a fitness facility.
Riley, a working mother of two, turned the struggle of balancing a career and parenting into a successful business venture. Her idea stemmed from personal frustration – wanting to excel as both a parent and a professional without sacrificing either. Drawing on her entrepreneurial upbringing in Portsmouth and her experience at family-friendly Patagonia Inc., Riley envisioned a space that integrated high-quality child care, shared workspaces and a fitness facility.
After graduating from Endicott College with a degree in business and marketing, Riley worked at Patagonia and later held marketing roles in Rhode Island and Florida. She returned to Rhode Island with her family in 2016, determined to create a solution for working parents like herself. She spoke with other parents and found a common theme: Many were overwhelmed and lacked adequate support systems.
Over two years, Riley developed a business plan, pitching the concept to investors. Despite early skepticism, she secured her first location – a former Montessori school – and partnered with Morgan Everson, who helped raise the initial $3.5 million in funding.
“We called it the Coggeshall Club, and it took off,” Riley said. “People would say this is too good to be true, but the universe plays a giant part in what we all do.”
The COVID-19 pandemic forced a temporary closure, but Riley used the time to refine the concept and attract more investors. Since then, she has raised nearly $20 million, expanded to four locations (three in Rhode Island, one in New Jersey) and initiated a franchising model. All locations now have waiting lists, a testament to the demand for such a service.
Riley credits her success to persistence and the ability to switch roles efficiently. At home, she fully engages with her children, even needlepointing to unwind.
“When I’m with my job, I’m with my job. When I’m home with my kids, I’m home with them,” she said.
