If the past year and a half have taught us anything, it’s that good mental and physical health are key. With Covid-19 taking a toll on everyone’s health, whether it be mental or physical, these entrepreneurs have helped themselves and others around Hong Kong and across the world.
Trixie Velez, Founder of Defin8 Fitness
Health and wellness have been a continuous factor in Trixie Velez life. She first moved to Hong Kong nine years ago to pursue a full-time position as a pilates instructor, but the city’s infectious drive for success soon led her to open her own fitness studio. Along with her husband Leo Velez, she set out to create a warm and inviting boutique fitness and pilates studio. The studio would be where clients could achieve results within a desired timeframe. Fast forward five years and the duo are gearing up to open their new 4,300 square foot studio in the coming months. “We really started from scratch using all our savings and we are so proud of how far we’ve come. It’s only the beginning of this new challenge”.
As a wife, mother and entrepreneur, Velez has a loyal following thanks to her ability to help clients achieve their fitness goals and a positive can-do approach. She is best known for delivering the six-week challenge programme through which she helps clients identify their fitness goals, monitors their progress and is on hand throughout to offer physical and emotional support. “We’ve been offering this programme since the company started and we have always seen incredible results”. No business operates without its challenges. There is no doubt that the past year has been difficult for gyms and fitness studios in Hong Kong. “It certainly hasn’t been easy. There are many others in the same situation though, we’ve just got to do our best and remain positive”. When the studio had to close due to government restrictions, Velez moved her classes outside and online.
She then started her own YouTube channel to help those stuck indoors to stay fit. “Looking back, this challenge has only helped us to better serve our clients in the long run”. As many people started prioritising their health, Velez noticed clients didn’t want to just focus on losing weight. Instead, they but instead wanted to achieve results for a healthier lifestyle. “We helped clients create a workout plan that suited their lifestyle. That way, they could enjoy fitness and commit long term. Our aim is to create a plan that helps our clients get in shape, increase strength, prevent future injuries and become the overall best version of themselves that they can be”.
The studio currently offers a wide range of classes including Defin8 Barre, Fatburn + Abs Blaze, Trx Circuit, Hiit Strength, Pilates Reformer, Zumba and one-on-one training with it’s fully equipped Pilates facility and is hoping to continue to expand its offers and make Defin8 Hong Kong’s number one fitness and pilates studio. Over the next few months Velez will be focusing on the new gym space with additional classes and will hopefully be adding a new addition to the family.
Gianne Chan, Founder of Calmed & Co
Nearly six years ago, Gianne Chan began her battle with severe depression. Upon searching for supportive services in Hong Kong, she realised what this city was missing: affordable mental health options. “To top it all off, though Hong Kong is a well-developed city, it’s still entrenched with deep social stigma towards mental illnesses. This is presumably due to poor mental health education”. That’s when she was introduced to CBD wellness products. These products helped improve the quality of her sleep and levels of stress. “Eventually, I started feeling uplifted and calmer, CBD also ultimately stabilized my mood swings.
To me, CBD is more than just a supplement. It is a feeling belonging to calmness, which I would like to share with everyone”. From depression to entrepreneurship, Chan launched Calmed & Co to establish “a support system in our broken society by delivering high-quality wellness products, as well as an experience of love and care through our wellness events. Calmed is a safe and open community for every beautiful soul to be vulnerable and hold spaces for each other. There is absolutely nothing wrong or shameful to be mentally ill and with Calmed & Co, no one is fighting alone”. Over the past year, the industry grew rapidly with CBD distributor stores in major shopping malls now.
However, most CBD products in the market are still quite unaffordable. Chan believes that being in a state of serenity, tranquillity and peace is not a privilege. It is something that everyone deserves. “That’s why we keep our products affordable. We hope our products could also make up for the limited support services in Hong Kong”. The CBD industry is beginning to gain a lot of traction in Hong Kong, which has opened the skies for Calmed & Co to really provide the services that Chan is passionate about. “We don’t just focus on delivering high-quality products. We also focus on delivering an experience of love and care”. With Chan switching gears and careers, she’s finally found some contentment.
“Work-life balance is quite an impossible task and I am still working on it, just like many of you. However, I enjoy working on my own brand, especially when I hear the stories of how we have guided people on their journey to peace and inspired those who are struggling. To me, this is life and I am beyond grateful”. Though Chan has been quite forthcoming about her struggles, vulnerability does not come easy to her. This is especially when speaking about something so personal. “It is without a doubt stepping out of my comfort zone and talking about my depression publicly. Back then, my past of being mentally ill was my insecurity. It was a weakness. Now, it has transformed into a tool for me to empower those around me”.
Her advice is to “know your limits. It is crucial to understand yourself, from the level of stress you can handle to identifying the most comfortable distance in relationships. From there, set your boundaries clearly. This can prevent us from getting overwhelmed by life”.
Kirsty Hulme, Managing Director of Sure Step Asia
Since moving to Hong Kong 18 years ago, Kirsty Hulme has firmly made her mark in the health and wellness community. She founded Sure Step Asia in 2009 with a mission to bring premium sports brands, apparel, tech and nutrition to the city. “Over the last 12 years, we’ve worked extremely hard on establishing strong and lasting relationships with suppliers, global brands and local businesses. We continue to build on this foundation so our partners and stakeholders understand our commitment to trust and reliability”.
Over the course of 12 years, Hulme has represented over 20 local and international brands including 2XU, Varley, Pressio and Soar. “The road to success is rarely smooth and we’re constantly adjusting and learning how to respond to challenges. One of our biggest achievements has been keeping the team together and keeping our heads above water in some of the most difficult years ever”. Like many Hong Kong-based companies the past few years have been a challenge for Hulme and her team. The city’s network of talented business owners and entrepreneurs though, have supported each other by sharing experiences and advice. “Our industry is strong and rebounding which is super exciting”.
“Hong Kong is really open to new ideas and innovations. With an educated and worldly view and a desire to experience new brands, Hongkongers are curious and eager to understand technologies and functionality”. The glamorous side of owning a business is frequently spoken about. But, owning a business also takes a lot of hard work and grit. While Hulme is passionate about her business, she also believes that a healthy work/life balance is key. “People have historically defined a strong work ethic by the number of hours spent in the office and by tending to emails at all hours of the night. I think that Hong Kong people now understand the importance of exercise”.
She believes there is a direct link between happiness and higher productivity at work and in life when people find time to exercise. “The well-being derived from regular exercise and nutrition enables performance improvements and higher productivity in the workplace or other pursuits”. By switching off and adjusting her focus during her downtime, Hulme is able to focus on family and support her children through their passions. She deos this while continuing her own fitness journey which includes playing better tennis and mastering the Uttanasana yoga pose. Over the next few years, she is looking forward to bringing more sports and fitness related innovation to Hong Kong, engaging with the sporting and athleisure community by delivering the latest and greatest in sporting technology.
Dee Oh, Founder of Dee Dream Life
After leaving a promising career as an investment banker in 2016, Dee Oh sought out a more personally fulfilling profession. A profession that would add value to others’ lives. That journey led to founding Dee Dream Life, a studio that integrates dance, fitness, yoga, meditation and life coaching. It is done in a holistic way that allows her clients to be supported through life and find their maximum potential in a personalised, deep and meaningful way in a positive and supportive environment for all ages and social statuses. “I love inspiring, motivating and encouraging others to achieve their maximum potential in life”.
After experiencing mental health challenges and depression as a teenager, Oh turned to movement, music and meditation as a coping mechanism. These things helped her spring back to life from some difficult times. In her 20s, she struggled with finding the right job. She soon realised that she was stuck in an industry and profession that was not meant to be her path. Through her soul searching discovery, she landed into a career in coaching and is particularly passionate to assist others to find their right career path in life too as she understands how depressing it can be to be feeling out of place in a job that is not right for oneself. “In hindsight, I see these challenges as the biggest inspiration behind my passion to help others. I struggled through many ups and downs but somehow always had the strength and guidance to push through”.
Oh’s road to success has been paved with lots of hard work, patience and persistence. She believes that her studio is something that Hong Kong really needs and has received overwhelming support from the community. Dee Dream Life is more than just a platform to have fun and get fit. The studio centres around the need to fill a gap within society. This provides a warm and safe place with community spirit for students from all walks of life. They get to engage their body, mind and soul through enriching activities. While Hong Kong’s wellness scene has been growing over the years, Oh believes there is still room for improvement.
“To be very honest, the industry here could be infused with more soul and authenticity. A lot of services revolve around a setting that is still relatively commercially driven, materialistic and appealing to a certain vibe/crowd that is not very healthy. I would ideally like to bring more high quality, down to earth and community-spirited services for adults and children to have as part of their wellness routines”. The past year has forced many people to reflect on their lives and become more self-aware. They have started to put in place more practices for themselves and their children to be able to deal with more unstable and unpredictable conditions.
By continuously listening to what society needs, Oh has not only survived but thrived through the pandemic with online and international classes. She hopes the next few years can further solidify her work in the wellness industry and keep on growing. “I want to keep growing awareness of the need for a warm, loving community and spirited services in Hong Kong. I want to continue to grow the Dee Dream Life team”. She will also be opening a new studio in Central.
Sonia Samtani, Founder All About You Hong Kong
Growing up in Hong Kong, Sonia Samtani experienced a range of cultures and beliefs from an early age. She believes the city provided her with the space to learn many valuable lessons in life. As a young girl, Samtani thought she’d find the route to happiness by changing her behaviour and appearance. While it initially made a difference, it didn’t generate the deep confidence that she hoped for. “I realised very early on, that no amount of changing the outside would suffice. The biggest source of my dissatisfactions were my own belief systems”.
Upon entering her 20s Samtani began to make a fundamental shift in her mental work and inner-beliefs. She the started to see positive changes in her confidence, health and relationship with others. “I realised that everything starts from looking inside and I wanted to share those tools with others. I have always maintained that I am my very first and most frequent client,” says Samtani. She started as a solo practitioner and founded All About You. All About You is Hong Kong’s only English-speaking centre that trains people to become mental wellness practitioners, in 2013. “My vision was to empower individuals with simple, yet powerful tools. These tools would be used to navigate through the ups and downs of life with awareness and acceptance”.
The centre specialises in private sessions, workshops and practitioner training programmes in Mental Wellness. With the challenges from the past few years, HongKonger’s were forced to take a look at their lives and feelings. “I believe that people are becoming increasingly aware of their mental and emotional health, which has several positive consequences. One that I am particularly happy about is that we are normalising the concept of going to a mental health professional. We need to have real conversations rather than succumbing to ‘shoulds’ and pretending all is well”. One of the biggest challenges many people face is the fear of the unknown. It has been exacerbated by the pandemic. Samtani has been guiding her clients through online workshops and private sessions. An increas of 50 percent was seen as of last year.
“People have had the time to focus inwards or feel so uncomfortable with their anxiety that they’ve been more willing to ask for emotional support”. While Samtani was helping people overcome the trauma of the past year, she had also been working on some new projects, one of which was her first book. Her book is called ’52 thoughts for conscious living’, which was published last December. “I’d been saying for years that I wanted to write a book. I wanted to put out my own curriculum but had been ‘too busy’ with travel outings. Last year I decided it was time to step up. I launched my first book, co-authored a second book #MyVoice and even started a personal development course Be Your Own Master in August 2021″.
Read more: Hong Kong Living Influencer Awards 2020: Health and wellness
Sarah Keates, Founder of White Orchid Insights
Sarah Keates is the woman behind White Orchid Insights, a marketing & PR agency in Hong Kong with a focus on luxury and business aviation. Keates also co-founded WELL, Magazine Asia, an advocate for health and mental wellness and a mother with a large following on Instagram. Having moved to Hong Kong nearly a decade ago, Keates has accomplished so much in Hong Kong. Personally and professionally. But, it wasn’t without its challenges. “Hong Kong is a city like no other – full of incredibly ambitious, hard-working people. But it takes a toll mentally and physically and not everyone has the privilege of wellness (time)”. This is why, at the forefront of Keates’ philosophy for life is health, family and your own wellbeing.
“My everyday wellness practice includes waking at dawn for an outside run, yoga, or a hike. Time with good people, a hard ‘no’ on toxicity. Hydration, home-cooked food, time in nature, meditation, time alone, endless audiobooks and podcasts, and early nights (where possible)”. While this is something she lives by, this city is notorious for sweeping people up in the current of its hustle and bustle. This is something that Keates is no stranger to and a feeling she embraces when it comes. “I don’t always have balance. There are weeks I will work 80 hours and be in tears by the time the weekend comes. There were years I travelled 30-40 overseas trips per year; it was exhausting mentally and physically. There’s no point in pretending it’s easy, I don’t think that’s a helpful message”.
The reason Keates works so hard is because of her consultancy, which she founded in 2019. “Hong Kong is a very competitive environment, and it pushes you to achieve your potential. It’s a place where people thrive on hard work, accomplishments, and success – whatever that means to the individual. Practically, it’s incredibly easy to open a business, get started with little capital, build a powerful network, and get your message out. You can set up a business registration, open a bank account, brand a business and away you go. The entrepreneur community is supportive, and there are ample opportunities for businesses of all sizes to grow”.
While Keates is passionate about White Orchid Insights, she also sees so much value in taking care of yourself–in more ways than one. She believes that this rhetoric should be applied on a larger scale, and companies are catching on. “Businesses are now under pressure to roll out wellness programs in the workplace and this ought to help give people the permission they previously lacked to take care of themselves. Wellness is about more than fitness; it’s about being able to have frank and open conversations about how we’re doing overall”.
Keates’ wellness journey began when she faced a devastating loss. “The sudden death of my father, his sudden passing whilst on holiday with my mother, came as a massive shock. I realised that life is too short, and it instantly gave me clarity and strength. I appreciate that that statement sounds cheesy, but it is the truth. From that day onwards, I took steps to change my life and be my best self, even when that was/is messy and painful. I am a very different person now to who I was 7 years ago when the process began. The most rewarding part is when someone reaches out and says that I have helped them make positive changes in their own lives”.
Minal Mahtani, Founder of OCD & Anxiety Support Hong Kong
Minal Mahtani knows what it’s like to grapple with anxiety. She overcame it and made a full recovery thanks to the treatment she received overseas, commitment to getting better, hard work and support from her loved ones. Having struggled through her own battle with anxiety, Mahtani is well aware of the gaps in mental health services in Hong Kong.
On the other hand, because of her personal experience and the years she’s spent working with people with mental health disorders, Mahtani understands what is needed to break the systemic cycle of inadequate help. On top of providing mental health education, resources and counselling to those who need it, Mahtani is also establishing The Rainbow of Hope later this year. “A low-cost counselling clinic for those who cannot afford treatment for their mental health”, joining the ranks of NGOs and charities that provide counselling services to “disadvantaged, low socio-economic and minority groups”.
Although Hong Kong has improved it’s attitude toward mental health greatly over the last ten years, Mahtani is still conscious of the reality of the shortage of support. “It is very expensive to see a private psychologist, costing anywhere between $1500 to $3000 per hour and one needs several sessions to explore what they are going through to learn effective skills. Also, to reframe their thinking and to change their maladaptive behaviour”. Going the public hospital route isn’t any better, with the standard waiting time for an appointment with a psychologist or psychiatrist standing at 12 to 18 months.
“Our public health care workers are overworked and do the best they can. But, those suffering from mental illness need more”. On top of Mahtani’s dedication to her work, she also approaches the topic of mental illness from a place of compassion and empathy, making her achievements in this field all the more meaningful. “Having a mental illness needs to be treated with the same care, attention and respect as physical health disorders such as cancer or diabetes. Another misconception about mental illness is that you are crazy, dangerous, violent or out of control if you are suffering. This is far from true. Having a mental illness doesn’t make you any of those things and with treatment, it is possible to make a full recovery”.
On a personal note, Mahtani is learning to impart some of the love and care she gives to others to herself, too. “I am learning to take time to look after myself physically and mentally the way that I do for others. Sometimes, it is easy to get caught up in your purpose or work and neglect your own personal needs. However, I am learning that you can’t pour from an empty cup”.
Read more: How Hong Kong’s fitness influencers stay positive in the face of adversity
Catherine Perera, Tarot reader and founder of Queen of Pentacles
Catherine Perera is a tarot reader and the founder of Queen of Pentacles, a service that deals in spirituality and astrology. “I was always drawn to astrology and was incredibly intuitive growing up, but didn’t know what to call it. I finally dabbled in spiritual practices during my trip to Bali. When I was going through an extremely rough time, that trip gave me so much clarity and joy. Just knowing how much control I had over my whole life”. From this moment on, Perera would seek purpose and fulfilment in spiritual practices as her line of work. Specifically in tarot readings.
Perera offers services in tarot readings for dream interpretation, career direction, love and plenty more. “Spirituality to me is so liberating and gives me so much self-empowerment. After starting Queen of Pentacles, my mother finally revealed to me that my grandmother’s sister was a spiritual healer. Turns out, there is actually a lineage of spirituality in my family”. For those who might be a bit apprehensive about tarot readings, allow Perera to clear things up.
“Tarot reading is a kind of divination practice and a method to seek answers from a higher energy source. Your life and destiny is not set in stone. Your choices and actions have implications, which can really change the course of your life. Hence, unlike palm reading or ‘fortune telling’ methods, tarot reading can be more accurate and specific. It looks solely into your current energy. The objective is not to tell your future. It is to look at possibilities and likely outcomes based on the current energy. Hence, the objective is to give clients guidance and clarity”.
Perera is also the founder of Astridify, a fashion brand. She’s had some difficulty with how people perceive Queen of Pentacles, especially compared to how they respond to Astridify. “The biggest challenge was trying to establish Queen of Pentacles as a name. Back in February or even March, I was constantly being rejected by organizers and venues that held pop ups because they didn’t recognize the name and found the concept too unconventional. A lot of organizers preferred to have my fashion brand on board because they usually hosted retail brands. I felt really defeated. I had to build an unscathed reputation in order to gain their trust”. That is exactly what Perera has been working tirelessly to do and will continue to.
She recognises how much Queen of Pentacles has not only contributed to the lives of her clients, but to her own. “Personally, I just can’t wait to connect deeper with my clients as I’ve developed very strong friendships with some of them. Also, I hope to collaborate with other wellness entrepreneurs and organize retreats in order to help spread the message of self-care and love, which is a core value I hold”. The impact Perera has made on her clients is the thing that keeps her going. Considering the struggle that the last few years have presented to Hongkongers, she feels there is so much to be gained from opening your mind to the possibility of co-creating our lives with a higher power.
“In the past few years, there has been a phenomenon concerning the destigmatisation of mental health issues and gaining more control over our mindsets. Hence, self-care and self-love are now ideas that we are all trying to incorporate into our lives. As self-care and self-love are prominent spiritual values embedded into this new-age movement, it makes it relatable for the general public, particularly youngsters that hold less traditional mindsets”.
Cynthia Poon, Founder of Wellsky Wholistic Health Consultancy
Cynthia Poon once had a career as a government translator. Now, she’s the founder of Wellsky Wholistic Health Consultancy. “I graduated in translation and had worked as a government translator for about eight years before I started exploring wellness myself. This was 24 years ago that I started my own self care learning, and it planted the seed for my career in wellness”. Anyone who has ever done it will attest that switching careers is no easy task. The only way to do it is by going all in–which is exactly what Poon did.
“After I quit my government job, I spent 18 months studying abroad. I studied Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), Hypnotherapy and other disciplines of energy healing in the United States, Australia and Mexico. I worked with many renowned trainers. Then, I came back and set up Wellsky Wholistic Health Consultancy by the end of 2002. I did this with the help of my spiritual mentors Professor Ernest Martin, Dr Simon Chau and my Business Mentor Mr Cary Tu. I have been working as a full-time NLP trainer and wellness coach since then”.
Although Poon left her previous career to pursue this, she feels that her current ambition isn’t too much of a jump. After all, she still uses communication as a tool to find meaning and understanding, just like with her job as a translator. “With my background in communication, language and natural healing, I would love to bring more awareness to people in order to help them find internal peace and harmony with better self communication, self care and compassion. I am now another kind of translator, helping people to communicate better and build better relationships”.
Wellsky Wholistic Health Consultancy provides professional services in coaching and training individuals and corporations to achieve holistic health: Wellness in body, mind and spirit. Two years ago, Poon shifted more of her focus to one-on-one coaching for business operators. They’ve recently launched their online wellness shop, too. It’s refreshing to meet someone whose wellness focus puts so much emphasis on the importance of communication. Beyond that though, Poon believes in the power of self-improvement as a form of empowerment.
“In whatever circumstances you are facing, make sure you centre yourself and find emotional balance. Make whatever changes you need to to create better results and outcomes. Making use of a crisis is another great way to be influential. This is a message I particularly want to send to young ones. This is because you have higher chances of winning when all your counterparts are busy talking about negative things or quitting halfway. I hardly spend a day without learning and doing something new”.
Looking to the future, Poon has growth in mind. “I am planning and working on a wellness academy in the coming years. I want to work with more like minded professionals and to provide premium services to Hong Kong people through education and healing work in the wellness arena. This will incorporate a lot of creativities that I hope will bring more happiness and love to people”.
Samantha Sin, Founder of One Yoga Studio
Samantha Sin made quite a career switch. From being a registered nurse in an operating room to a qualified yoga teacher and founder of her own studio. The One Yoga Studio. Changing lanes after having dedicated so many years to becoming a registered nurse was far from easy. For Sin, it was the right thing to do. “Being a registered nurse was extremely stressful and I felt like my life was stuck. I knew that I didn’t want that life. Occasionally, a friend invited me to yoga class and I immediately fell in love with it. I was able to completely empty my mind and just focus on the poses and on every breath I took”. From there, she did her yoga teacher training and began teaching.
Only a few years later did she take the plunge and quit her full-time job. “Seeing the happy faces of my students after their classes has been the most rewarding part in this journey. Every time they tell me how yoga helped them, I know I’m doing the right thing”. Since opening her own studio, Sin has accomplished a lot more than entrepreneurship and yoga teachings. Thanks to the help of those in the wellness industry, Sin was able to create something that now serves a larger purpose beyond yoga classes.
“After having practiced for a while, some of my students expressed that they would like to take their practice to the advanced level. They would like to become yoga teachers. Then I started to think, why don’t I provide yoga teacher-training programs to train them to become yoga teachers?”. This is when Sin took her years of fighting for a life she could love and turned it into something bigger than herself. She created a community. “That’s when we turned our studio into an internationally recognised yoga training school. We put a lot of effort in providing diversified yoga training and building a yoga community for yogis. So far we have trained well over six hundred yoga teachers. We have our own alumni community. A lot of our alumni opened their own studios and have hired our graduates as yoga teachers”.
To Sin, switching careers meant so much more than leaving her job. She became able to take stock of her path and realise that it wasn’t just a change in profession. It was a change in mindset. Working in the yoga community through the worst of Covid only reaffirmed the lesson she’s learned since starting out. “Sometimes we take things for granted and think there is always the next time. People we love may leave us and the country we want to visit may lock down. Enjoy every moment. Do not let yourself regret anything”.
