Little Calm Company founder reveals how she took a £70 massage chair and turned into a successful business
Less than 20% of all active UK companies are led by women, and the pace of new business registrations is slowing down.
That’s according to analysis of Companies House data by Prowess, which also found women-led companies receive just 5.8% of all investments.
For our latest series in the Money blog, we’ve spoken to women who are bossing it in their respective fields as they tell us how they’ve overcome challenges and how others could do the same.
This week, live Money reporter Jess Sharp has spoken to Helen Richards, the founder and owner of The Little Calm Company…
When Helen Richards joined the Royal Navy at the age of 17, she knew her career was going to involve meaningful work – she just didn’t know it would involve massaging people.
One of the first things she realised after entering the world of work – and this continued when she joined the police force four years later – was that no one was paying attention to people’s wellbeing.
“I used to literally massage my colleagues at their desks, just for five minutes, and it was such a hit that I eventually trained up and I bought a second-hand massage chair – it didn’t even work properly, I had to take pliers around with me to tighten it up,” she laughs.
And that was the start of The Little Calm Company. Since then Helen, now 40, has recruited more than 50 massage therapists and is working with 320 organisations. Her turnover in the last year was £135,000.
But it hasn’t always been plain sailing…
‘I found two suicide notes’
In the middle of coping with the pandemic, which had decimated her thriving business and cancelled months of advanced bookings, disaster struck when her husband fell into a coma.
Ron had an infection of the heart, and when he woke up, he was paralysed.
“It was awful. I was literally trying to get my business back, I had a new baby and I had to care for my husband,” Helen says.
“I had too many hats. I think I almost lost the plot. It was the darkest time of my life.”
Ron’s condition was further complicated by an adverse effect to the anti-depressants he was taking.
“He was suicidal every day. I found two suicide notes and that was really tough. I had to keep going for my children but my business spurred me on, it made me feel like I had a purpose,” Helen says.
“As a woman I think I’m quite resilient. Being a mother, my children couldn’t see me in bits. I had to hold it together for them.
“The business was the one thing that kept me going because it was something completely separate from the problems I had and it was a distraction.
“I literally just started with nothing. I had a pot of massage cream, some anti-bac lotion and my £70 second-hand massage chair and my pliers, but I think when you are passionate about something, it comes through.”
Navigating a post-pandemic world
After helping to nurse her husband back to full health, and having her third child, Helen turned her focus to adapting her company to a post-COVID world.
She had initially started her company by building business contacts and a client base through messaging people every day on LinkedIn – so she had a starting point to return to.
Quickly, she started applying for various government grants, which helped her pay for marketing and hiring two therapists to help her get back on track.
Eventually, she started subcontracting the business and had 50 therapists working across the country.
“I started to get new clients coming forward and some of our old clients came back,” Helen says.
She now runs yoga workshops, sound baths and online wellbeing advice for companies.
Her success has even allowed her to start a similar venture – this time by taking investment.
Called the Office Retreat, this company incorporates all the holistic therapies she provides now, but also provides businesses with webinars on different wellbeing topics.
Eventually, she hopes to provide services and wellbeing spaces for veterans and people in deprived areas.
Of people in general, she says: “I don’t think we’re designed to be rushing around and we’re not really meant to be at desks but I can help people feel better.
“Everyone needs some form of physical wellbeing. Everyone needs something to destress them.”
What is her advice for others?
Her number one tip is not to chase “riches and flashy things” and to “just keep it simple”.
“People spend thousands on flashy websites, they buy everything sparkly new and then they launch the business and they wonder why money isn’t coming in,” she said.
“There’s always central and local grants that you can apply for to help you. You don’t need to spend much money at all to start your business. If you do, you’re going to be behind you’ve even started.”
Use Linkedin and be persistent when contacting people on the platform – that’s her next piece of advice.
Make sure you have a “really good accountant” to help you through the financials, she adds, and try to ensure your clients pay you upfront.
“I was waiting six months for payment sometimes and that put me in some difficult situations, especially when I had people to pay,” she says.