On International Women’s Day we asked people to nominate great businesses in the New England run by women. We got so many nominations we had to break it down into a number of stories. In part 4 of our series, meet a pilates instructor, a recruiter, a tutor, and a brand specialist.
Nicole Casson from NJOY Pilates
Nicole Casson started NJOY Pilates in May of 2021.
“The whole world had changed in the preceding year, but I was still passionate about bringing people together to move their bodies,” Nicole explained.
“Firstly, my Father was paralysed playing rugby and left a Quadriplegic; which is an extremely life-altering situation yet he was never bitter about his accident. This taught me to be forever grateful for the privilege of being able to move my own body.”
“Secondly, I went through an eating disorder as a young adult and had a very negative relationship with my body and exercise during this time. Discovering Pilates helped me reinvent this relationship and rediscover my love of movement. After coming out the other side, I wanted to share this love and enjoyment with as many people as possible.”
Nicole says the in-person environment is much more motivating, and helps keep you much more accountable to a movement routine than working out by yourself at home.
“NJOY Pilates is a safe space for people to experience a different type of workout that is enjoyable, and possibly quite different from any other group fitness they might have participated in before.”
“There is no judgement or competitiveness, all ability levels are welcomed and we have created a nurturing community who honour themselves, their bodies and each other.”
Bronwyn Pearson from Pinnacle People Solutions
Pinnacle People Solutions (PPS) opened for business in 2013 after founder and CEO, Bronwyn Pearson, identified a real need in local business to understand their human resources and work health and safety obligations, both legal and ethical.
“People start a business to do what they’re good at and what they love to do, and so often as that business finds success, they take on staff without a full picture of what that involves!”
Bronwyn felt there was an opportunity to use her expertise to help small and medium regional businesses and not-for-profit organisations meet their legal obligations and achieve long-term sustainability, growth and success. She believes that helping businesses in regional communities meet their obligations as employers leads to better outcomes for the community as a whole.
So, Pinnacle People Solutions began its journey in Armidale in 2013 with just one founder and a laptop, and has since grown into a team of seven dedicated professionals.
Pinnacle People Solutions is a HR service provider that helps small to medium regional businesses and not-for-profit organisations meet their legal obligations by providing professional, tailored, and specialised advice. Their services include comprehensive HR and Work Health and Safety audits, whole of organisation HR solutions, specialised recruitment, workforce planning, succession planning, industrial and workplace relations, coaching, team building, payroll support and advice, and education.
Florence Champion de Crespigny from Your Tutor
Florence Champion de Crespigny founded Your Tutor Armidale as a safety net to catch students who could otherwise fall through the cracks in traditional schools.
“In over 30 years spent teaching in our beautiful city both in private and public schools, co-educational and single-sex settings, I have seen students struggle with their schooling,” Florence shares.
“The one-size-fits-all approach to classroom learning does not work for all; some students’ reluctance to ask for help, coupled with disruptive and challenging learning environments means that many do not fulfil their potential and feel disengaged from their learning.”
“We specialise in delivering face-to-face, personalised instruction to students in primary and secondary school, either individually or in small groups, in a nurturing and safe environment where they are placed at the very centre of the learning process.”
Services at the Armidale CBD tutoring centre are tailored for Primary and Secondary students across Mathematics, English, Science, and Modern Languages.
Anna Andre from For Brand Sake
Another new business in our collection is For Brand Sake, started by Anna Andre in June 2022 after returning home from seven years in the US.
“I started my business to make sure that small businesses had access to digital marketing resources without the complicated agency jargon and fees.”
“My hope is to educate my clients and get them excited about marketing rather than overwhelmed with it.”
For Brand Sake offers digital marketing specialising in Social Media and Digital Marketing Strategy, full social media management, influencer campaigns and direct marketing campaigns.
Thank you to everyone who nominated these amazing women and their businesses! We’ll have another 4 great local businesses for you next week.
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