If you were at our AwakenHub event on 10 November you will know that our theme this month has been women founders who have pivoted their business during COVID. We had three great speakers on the evening who were Aveline O’Sullivan of Bloom in a Box, Sarah Scullion of Community Calling & Sunnibha Corcoran of SMC Food Safety Management Consultants.

Another woman in the AwakenHub community who has also pivoted early in lockdown is Yasmina Lenahan founder of The Wellness Circle. We had a conversation back in the early days of lockdown, pre Yasmina’s pivot. We met again in one of the AwakenHub breakout rooms so I decided to catch up with Yasmina and hear how her new business is going. Below is our conversation. If like us you’re obsessed with buying local and love a discount, keep an eye out for #GreenFriday promotion on 27 November which Yasmina and The Wellness Circle is participating in.

MM Thanks for joining us on the AwakenHub blog Yasmina. You’ve done a massive pivot of your business during COVID and your new offer is beautiful Irish Wellness gift-boxes that people can order online & send to their friends or corporates can buy to reward their teams with. Can you start by telling us what you used to do before?

YL Thank you Mary. Prior to March this year I offered ‘Corporate Wellness’ to corporate teams in Dublin. Each programme offered ‘Health Talks, Onsite Yoga & Onsite Massage’ for staff members. The approach was to help team members feel connected, destressed and empowered in their own Health and Wellbeing. I delivered each programme from start to finish. After graduating from college I worked in universities in Ireland and overseas and I witnessed a lot of burn-out. Health and wellness has always been a priority and passion for me and I’m delighted these Wellness gift-boxes prompt and offer a connection to Wellbeing.

MM Have you always been interested in wellness and self-care rituals and how do you incorporate those elements into your life?

YL Yes, I remember from a very young age going on hikes with my family in the Dublin and Wicklow Mountains. My love for the outdoors came from there. We spent our summers swimming in the Mediterranean Sea and so I associate ‘Wellness’ as being connected with nature and very much to ‘your own self’. I’ve Spanish blood and my Grandmother and my Mum taught me how to cook. I loved watching and learning and tasting! Everything was cooked from scratch and importance was placed on enjoying meals each day. We were rarely allowed takeaways or fast food and at the time I thought we were deprived! For me there’s a strong connection between food and wellness. I practise yoga every morning, eat well and have to get my dose of sea air! I love swimming.

I try to switch off from work in the evenings and enjoy family time. I love skin care rituals to unwind and promote a good night’s rest.

Me-TIme -ProductLineuptouse.jpg — MM The box designs are gorgeous – who created those for you?

YL They were designed by the Bankhouse Media Design team who are based in Belfast and Dublin. They were lovely to work with and I’m delighted with the designs.

MM Ah – a cross-border company. Are the boxes just for women or do you cater for men as well?

YL Each Box is for both Men and Women (except for the ‘Mother & Baby’ Box). They are adapted with more masculine scents for soaps, like Cedarwood. There’s a unisex Corporate range that includes an artwork print from an Irish artist. All the lifestyle products can be used by both men and women (natural beeswax candles, Lavender eye pillows, naturally scented bath bombs, body oils & the essential oils). I’m going to introduce some Men’s balms. It was important to me that the boxes catered for both Men and Women.

MM Talk us through how the pivot came about in terms of your own thought process?

YL I started thinking about pivoting my business towards the end of April. The pivot took 4 months in total from the initial idea to launching my e-commerce website and Gift Box range.

I found great clarity when I started to look more inward. Initially I found the online world too busy and distracting. Then I realised it might be some time before I would be back onsite in a corporate office so I decided to pause my previous offering.

Once I aligned my values and my ‘why’ I had fun with creative ideas and possibilities for creating a ‘Wellness Box’. The idea came from lockdown. I found myself creating time daily for self-care and also for my family. There was a comforting certainty to it. It helped keep us positive and calm. I found simple self-care practices so welcoming and nourishing. Connections with nature. I wanted to offer a gift for a loved one or as a treat to buy for yourself. It’s good to provide an alternative Corporate Gift to wine and chocolates. The aim was to help someone ‘feel good’ and also to help prompt self–care rituals or even to help unwind a busy mind. It was important too that the products helped to connect the senses by for example including uplifting scents and beautiful lifestyle products.

So when I was asked ‘Why are you not selling online?’ I didn’t have a reply and the idea grew organically from there.

MM And was there tons of preparation and ground work to do?

YL Yes, there was quite a bit of work. I had to tick the boxes of a very long list (!) but there was an end goal in mind and a timeframe so that really helped with focus and direction. A new e-commerce website had to be designed and the boxes and products sourced and priced. I collaborated with over 20 Irish producers to source lifestyle and beauty products. I had to look at my offering and do market research. The design stage was very important to me as I wanted to really capture my brand and offering. I had help with the website e-commerce site and also with the beautiful Box design. I was lucky to have some expert advice and help along the way.

Employee of the month.jpg — MM How did you decide what to include in the boxes and do you assemble them yourself?

YL The products chosen for my 6 boxes had to offer relaxation and Wellness and Joy in some form.

For example, a prompt to unwind and nourish with a product choice or beautiful lifestyle items for the home or to wear. Some treats from Dr Coys and Mella Fudge are included in some boxes. I think a lot of us are extra busy these days and it’s so lovely to simply sit with a cuppa and a treat!

I wanted to use only Irish made products, 100 % natural and sustainable. Similarly, for the Lifestyle products. This was important to me especially with the times we are in. The products I decided on were ones I had used myself and as a therapist on others. I knew they were all gorgeous with health benefits and I’ve included some ‘Award winning producers’. I also chose products that offer connections to nature, Lavender & Lemon-grass soaps and dried Lavender Eye masks, Seaweed products and uplifting essential oils. For the Birthday Box I chose beautiful moon earrings (for her) to make a friend or loved one feel special. The ‘Me-Time' box is a more deluxe, pampering range and so it offers a beautiful selection of various products to try over time.

Yes, I’m packing them myself and I enjoy finishing that process with a handwritten note. I do sometimes have little helpers which is always welcome.

MM Do you think we should be creating “home-spas” to combat stress during current and maybe future lockdowns? How can we do that and what should we include?

YL Oh yes! There is nothing more soothing and nourishing than making that time for yourself to destress, especially now.

First pick a time for yourself to allow for this ‘Me-time spa’ so nothing gets in the way. I find Sunday evenings are great to set me up for the week ahead.

Check in with yourself, where is the tension, how is the head-space?

What do you need in that moment?

Do you need to simply lie down with soothing music? Or make it into a weekly meditation.

Do you have tight shoulders & a tense body? You could start with gentle stretches. (www.doyogawithme.com is a great resource for guided meditations and some guided Yoga)

Set up your space with soothing lights, candles, your favourite music playlist. Use your favourite products and scents. Scents like lavender and neroli play a great role in helping to soothe the nervous system whereas orange & citrus scents uplift the spirits.

Heat is a great source of relaxation especially coming into the winter. I love bath rituals and use Epsom Salts and seaweed, both really ease muscle tension and are full of Magnesium. If you don’t have a bath try a hot towel from the radiator to ease tension or hot water bottles.

You could also create a foot bath. Sometimes we neglect our feet which take so much daily! Similarly, our hands that can get tense from computer work, nothing lovelier than hot oils and soothing creams.

You could try a face massage if that’s your thing. You can self-massage the jaw line in circles where tension can build up and move your jaw around to help release tension too.

Afterwards, continue your evening in a slower mode to benefit most from the relaxation.

MM How’s your new business going and what’s the customer feedback been like?

YL I launched a month ago and I’m very happy with how it’s going so far. I do find I need more time daily to manage everything. It’s a real learning curve for me having an e-commerce site and I think I will continue to learn on this new venture. I’m delighted with all the suppliers I’m working with and excited about the future. Customer feedback has been really lovely and positive.

MM Any tips for anyone else who’s thinking about pivoting their business?

YL Follow your passion, take some expert advice and most of all be prepared to work hard!

So there you go. Thank you for sharing your story with us Yasmina and good luck in the future. I’m on my way to your website right now to buy some Gift-Box presents for my friends … I’m too impatient to wait for Green Friday 😊