Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Campbell
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I began in the massage therapy industry in 2015. At the time I had been employed as a pharmacy manager for several years, working in a pharmacy that operated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The position offered decent pay and benefits, with the potential for growth and long-term sustainability with the company I worked for. While that was enough to make me accept the position, it ultimately would not be enough to make me stay.
The demanding position required long hours and provided little work/life balance, which I had managed, but I knew that it was time to make a change. I wanted to transition to another field as soon as possible, but I knew that starting in another field would require education and training to so.
Looking at education options that were short term with a high earning potential led me to massage therapy. It was only 2 months from the time I decided to make a change for myself, to the time that I enrolled in massage therapy school. That decision would lead me to a career that has been more rewarding than anything else I’ve done professionally.
Since graduating from massage therapy school, I’ve managed to find success while maintaining a work/life balance that had previously eluded me. I opened my own private practice, took over the teaching and operations of the very school which I attended, have won multiple awards recognizing my work as a Massage Therapist, and have been featured in several magazine articles.
In the last year my focus has shifted primarily to the teaching aspect of my career. I have doubled the number of classes I offer at school and created continuing education courses in percussive therapy as well as muscle scraping. My goals going forward are less to do with further building my own practice, and instead are about developing successful future therapists.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The biggest challenge I’ve faced in my career has been being a male massage therapist in a female dominated industry. Even in school I was the only male student in my class, a trend which still exists today as men only account for 12% of my students enrolled this year.
As a male therapist, I was often overlooked, or the last one chosen in school when scheduled in the student clinic. As a professional trying to build a clientele, both male and female clients would schedule appointments at my practice only to leave after arriving to find a man as the therapist they were booked with, simply saying they wouldn’t be comfortable with a man working on them.
The growth of my clientele may have been slower than that of my female counterparts, but ultimately, I am the only one from my massage therapy school class that is still in practice.
Today, as a teacher myself, I do all that I can to help develop my male students, giving them the opportunities that I was not afforded myself. While I am happy to teach any student, I actively encourage more men to enter the field, in hopes of breaking gender stereotypes and creating new opportunities. within the profession.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
My private practice is focused on deep relaxation. I incorporate Esalen, Swedish and Thai Massage techniques, with passive stretching, to create an experience designed to relieve stress and alleviate anxiety. I think of it as a physical approach to mental health.
I stand apart from other massage practitioners because my services are based on the deeply relaxing pace at which I work. Due to the slow speed at which I perform my massage, only so much of the body can be addressed based on the length of the session. In a 30-minute session I can only massage the neck, back and shoulders while maintaining the deliberately slow pace, while at least 90 minutes are required to achieve a full body experience.
I am most proud of the fact that my focus, timing and technique stand apart from what is considered the norm for my profession. I believe that it is because it is so different from your standard massage experience, that I have been recognized as the Best Massage Therapist of the year on 5 different occasions from different publications.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is not my massage practice or my teachings, but rather what massage therapy has given to me.
When my daughter was young, I was busy working and often missed out on a lot of time and experiences with her. I got into this profession to have a better work/life balance. Since entering the field, I have been able to spend more time sharing experiences and creating memories with her than I ever had the opportunity to before.
Today, I am able to celebrate holidays, attend events and take vacations, all things that previously came second to the long hours I would work. With my girlfriend, her son and my daughter at home, I now have the freedom to work when I want to, in order to spend time with them building family. Massage therapy has given me the freedom of time, a benefit that extends beyond my studio and into my home and my family.
Pricing:
- 30 MInutes…$50
- 60 Minutes…$80
- 90 Minutes…$120
- 120 Minutes…$160
Contact Info:
- Website: https://andrewcampbelllmt.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewcampbelllmt
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AndrewCampbellLMT
