Success is in the soul

One Monday ten years ago, Sally Ilsley left her college course convinced she had it in her to run a successful business. By the Friday, she had launched the Life & Soul Academy. Now, Sally runs the performing arts academy and an events venue with over a dozen staff and hundreds of students of all ages. And all along, Business Link has been there to guide her steps.

The Challenge

“I was 17, studying leisure and tourism at school and thought to myself, ‘I can do a better job of this myself’,” explains Sally. “I left school on the Monday and by the end of the week had launched the Life and Soul Academy.”

Still living at home at the time, Sally took over her parent’s front room, installing a computer, business telephone line, filing cabinets and all the paraphernalia needed by a business run from home. Looking back, Sally is nostalgic about the early days: “Before we bought our own venue, we used church halls, school assembly halls, any space where we could hold a class. And I was responsible for organising an instructor and the students to be in the right place at the right time.”

Now, the Life & Soul Academy of Performing Arts, Wellbeing and Lifestyle boasts its own bespoke venue, Boxmoor Hall in Hemel Hempstead, which Sally bought and totally renovated. It now includes fully equipped studios, a therapy room, lounge, café and juice bar, retail units and a resource centre.

The academy caters for customers from 18 months upwards, teaching performing arts and providing a range of wellbeing treatments designed to relieve the stresses of modern life. All this took a lot of hard work on Sally’s part, and constant support over the years from Business Link.

The Solution

Business Link Adviser Lesley Crisp takes up the story: “Although Sally had previous experience of Business Link via our courses and Advisers, I first visited her when she was still working out of her parent’s front room. During that time, we were able to signpost Sally to suppliers who could assist her with management accounts and to workshops on topics like tax, finance and marketing.”

Business Link were invaluable in supporting Sally through the purchase of Boxmoor Hall, which at times, she admits, was tortuous: “We had numerous objections related to planning, and Business Link were able to guide me through the maze of acquiring the former council property and turning it into a bespoke unit for the Life & Soul Academy.”

Sally also relied on Business Link for information and support on obtaining a drinks licence when she decided to market the refurbished premises as a venue for functions such as weddings, christenings and corporate events, which has proved highly successful.

“With a rapidly expanding staff and diversified service offering, Sally needed to invest in training,” continues Lesley. “So we have assisted with an application for funding under the Beyond 2010 scheme, which provides up to 50% matched funding for training that will support the achievement of the Academy’s business objectives.”

According to Sally, the huge expansion in her customer base, and the need to target a wider number of market segments for the Academy’s events services, meant evaluating the business’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system: “I’m in touch with Business Link specialist advisers in IT and may even benefit from a TakeITon grant to upgrade our CRM.”

The Impact

With ongoing assistance from Business Link, in less than a decade Sally has created a hugely successful business. She also has ambitious plans for the future: “I want to add a restaurant to our existing services, host a wider range of events, plus make available residential facilities so customers can fully experience the wellness programmes we offer.” She concludes. “Business Link has been with me over the past ten years, and I’ll be looking to the Business Link team for support as we continue to expand in future.”

About Business Link in the East of England:

Business Link provides information, practical advice and support to help people to start, run or grow their businesses

Our clients fall in to two main categories:

-Those running or working in established small and medium sized businesses

-Those who want to start their own business

Both client groups can access independent, impartial and, in most instances, free help and support from Business Link in the form of:

-Free one-to-one help from an experienced Business Adviser (established businesses) or Enterprise Champion (start-ups)

-Workshops and briefings on a range of business subjects such as business planning, sales and marketing, legislation, developing people

-Telephone and online support through our Regional Information and Intelligence centre

Business Link in the East of England works with businesses and entrepreneurs in the 6 counties in the East of England: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk

Business Link is a government initiative to promote enterprise, funded in the East of England by the East of England Development Agency