Eight
years ago, Middleton mum-of-three Leah was in a stressful media sales job.
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| Leah Clyne |
Lack
of sleep and a constant cycle of stress saw her sink into depression and turn
for solace to the comfort of a drink; before she knew it, the reassurance of a
glass of wine had become a daily habit.
Under
treatment by the doctor for depression, she said she didn’t mention her habit
because she didn’t consider it a problem.
Then,
when the weight piled on, she admits she lost her self-esteem and her
self-confidence.
“I was in a mess,” she confessed.
Life
threw Leah a further challenge when her son, who is now 29, was diagnosed, with
ADHD and autism as an adult. Leah said the family had battled for years to look
after him, oblivious of his condition.
With
a daughter who was about to leave school and unsure of her future, as well as
caring for her youngest who was aged just two, Leah had a lot on her plate.
Then,
dealing her one further blow, her partner left the family home, leaving Leah to
face these challenges as a single parent.
Leah
knew that something needed to change; she dug deep, and took the first step in
completely transforming her life.
She
said: “One day I woke up, opened my eyes, I'm not sure what happened, but I
decided to join a gym.
“I
started classes, and after months of hard work I started to feel better.
“I
stopped drinking, and a year later I decided to help other people get fit and
healthy and show them that there is a way through.”
Leah
then moved to set up her own business, V Gymwear, producing a range of outfits
for avid gym-goers.
She
said: “Being a fitness instructor and personal trainer, plus a busy mum, I
realised that quality, affordable gym wear was a must for me and began my
journey to find these products, and that's when I realised I could share this
with other women in my industry and clients.”
Eager
to learn valuable entrepreneurial skills and develop her business even more,
“rather than be the lady with a bin bag of gym wear for sale”, she enrolled
with Excelerate Labs, a business support and advice project run by The Women’s Organisastion,
in Manchester.
Her
advisor, Mike Marsden, guided Leah towards setting up an online shop and helped
her achieve her targets, advising her on how best to advertise her business on
social media to reach an even wider audience.
Then,
the pandemic hit.
Leah
said: “It stopped me in my tracks.
“No
gyms open. No classes to teach personal training. It was like the world had
ended.
“I
was actually devastated.”
Faced
with such a massive obstacle so early on, she admits that at one stage she even
felt like going back to her old ways of using alcohol as a soother.
However,
her gym wear website pulled her round and gave her the focus she needed to get
her routine back on track and in order.
“I
focused on the website, the online sales, the advertising, and this has been
proved to work.
“Sales
are coming through. My Instagram has grown tremendously, and I actually feel
overwhelmed – but in the best possible way,” she said.
Leah
has also expanded her services through her laptop by offering free online
exercise classes via Facebook live, in aid of a Manchester charity.
“Instead
of asking people to pay for the classes, I decided to find a local charity to
send their donations to.”
Leah
chose Home-Start Manchester, which helps vulnerable families, a charity she
feels an affinity with: “I’ve been there,” she said.
She
added: “Knowing I could help someone who is in a situation I can relate to
meant a lot to me, so it comes from the heart.”
So
far, Leah has raised nearly £400 for the charity, and has set herself a target
of £1,000.
Her
business mentor, Mike, is still around to offer a guiding hand. He said:
“It’s been absolute delight working with Leah, and what a roller coaster
it has been. We have seen her Instagram following increase from a few thousand
to over 17900 followers; the web enquiries are up, conversion is up, sales are
up and number of customers returning is up.
“The products are getting better and better and
Leah tirelessly works to improve them. It’s not just nice-looking gym wear for
women, its gym wear that actually works in the gym.
“Nobody is working harder than Leah right now.
Sometimes Leah can send me 5 texts a day, and it’s always positive: new sales,
new targets reached, her products have been improved and it’s just a pleasure
to watch.
“We can’t wait to see what she does next!”
Excelerate Labs are part funded by European Regional Development Fund to support businesses in Greater Manchester. Continuing to work with local businesses shifting their model to continue to grow despite the challenges presented by the pandemic, Excelerate Labs offers FREE professional business advice. To find out more contact exceleratelabs@thewo.org.uk
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