Today we are introducing you to Melinda who is the small business owner of Rise Training in Melbourne VIC.
Before starting her own small business, Melinda hadn’t felt inspired by her work for a while. Her business idea for Rise Training was the perfect combination of her two passions; the human body and sharing her knowledge through training. Despite only being able to meet her Many Rivers business coach online due to Melbourne’s lockdown restrictions, Melinda’s business has been thriving since she opened her doors a year old.
Rise Training offers affordable, and nationally accredited first aid training as well as training that supports other workplace activities. Melinda’s business is part of the post -COVID-19 era, offering a new COVID-19 Infection and Protection Control course which she expects will soon become very popular across different workplaces.
“At the beginning of my journey, Gina (my Many Rivers business coach) helped me solidify my business idea and she recommended the best way for me to set up my business. As circumstances change during my journey, I can give her a call and chat about what to do next.”
Read more about her business journey so far.
Meet Melinda
Meet MelindaMy business is Rise Training and we offer first aid training. I have just celebrated my first anniversary! My journey started in June 2020 and I officially opened for business in October 2020.
Rise Training offers affordable, and nationally accredited first aid training as well as training that supports other workplace activities. For example, Manual Handling and COVID-19 Infection and Protection Control courses. These are courses that people may require in their role at their workplace or if they want to improve their employability.
Before Rise Training
I was working for a recruitment organisation for two years. My background is in the corporate world. I found the politics of the corporate world very challenging. At that time, I was looking for something that allowed me the flexibility and generated income. I qualified to be a remedial massage therapist and while I didn’t have a passion for this, I found that the human body is hugely interesting. It is like a fascinating piece of machinery. I had my own part-time massage business for 8 years and I trained students to be therapists. This led me to realise that I quite liked sharing my knowledge and training people. Combining my interests in the human body and sharing my knowledge led me to first aid training.
I felt as if I hadn’t found work that captured my interest or gave me flexibility in my career for the last 20 years until I started Rise Training. I did love my massage business but I hurt my back and knee so I could not do that anymore.
Working with Many Rivers
Gina has been a fabulous resource. She helped me put together my business plan, cashflow and marketing plan. She has been great throughout the whole process to bounce ideas off. At the beginning of my journey, she helped me solidify my business idea and recommended the best way to set up my business. Just general business support that could really lock in my business planning and slowly bring it to life. I started my business during COVID-19 and a year later, I have only ever met with Gina online!
Gina has been great as a sounding board and helps me to adjust my plans. As circumstances change during my journey, I can give her a call and chat about what to do next. Also having access to funding was so useful. If I took another path to get a loan, I would not have had access to the same rates and opportunities as Many Rivers loans.
I got a Many Rivers microloan at the beginning of my journey. It took a while to get it approved because Gina and I had to mail the documents back and forth during COVID-19. I used it to purchase equipment, such as mannequins.
Biggest Challenge
Keeping up with the administration of my business, for sure!
Biggest Success
Being able to put an employee on. She started in May which has been helpful to my business journey because she helps me keep up with administration. I would have more money without her, but it would be a lonely journey and would stunt the growth of the business. Having someone else on the journey with me keeps me on track. It’s been good to have that accountability. It has also been great to give a young person an opportunity to learn, and she is now training to be a trainer. I am a people person, so I prefer to have people around me and I enjoy having her around.
Biggest Change
That I can start taking some of this pressure off myself. It has been challenging for friends and family to understand when I can’t attend things. People have a misunderstanding about what it is like to be a small business owner. They think that because I don’t have anyone to keep me accountable, I can just choose to do what I want whenever I want. But then I must make up that time elsewhere because there is no one else there to help catch up on what I didn’t do.
Future Goals
My next step is to get my employee fully trained and working full-time so that I can get her to run courses. Then I will get another admin person to support the business growth. I would like to add other things to my training scope such as childcare or aged care but at the moment I am finding there is enough space and demand in the first aid world. Particularly with the nationally accredited COVID-19 Infection and Protection Control course. We think it will eventually be a requirement that every workplace has to have someone trained like they do for first aid. It has been a hard and challenging journey, but it has been worth it, and I am so glad I found Many Rivers.
Thanks Melinda!
Thank you Melinda for sharing the story of Rise Training with us. We can’t wait to support you on this journey to achieving your business goals.
Are you ready to take the first step towards making your business idea a reality? Our Many Rivers business coaches will be with you every step of the way, no matter where your journey takes you.
CLICK HERE to see if Many Rivers is right for you
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