We were lucky to catch up with Qua’Shellea Fairley recently and have shared our conversation below.
Qua’Shellea, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?
I have been emancipated since 18 and eagar for the possibilities in life. After aging out of shelter, I have been determined to create a righteous life for myself. Living with congenital scoliosis has added a unique battle to my journey as well. I choose to not allow the circumstance to define me. Since a young age, I’ve endured physical pain and thought I wouldn’t live a normal life. I wanted to find that “thing” that’s my calling. I didn’t want to accept the limitations I was “told” I had to live by.
Being self-employed, running my own business has always been a dream. Whether teaching, helping others or just overall making a difference with my presence.
I knew that with my efforts, focus and faith in God, I could accomplish anything I set my mind to- which led me to expanding my trade work ability. After graduating Gulfport High School in 2015, I attended and graduated from Gulfport Job Corps as a Certified Nursing Assistant, made the highest on my exam and was asked to speak to upcoming class. After working in different healthcare settings, I realized I felt capped in growth potential.
A year later, at 19 years old I enrolled in Crescent School of Gaming and Bartending. I went through all Emancipation court processes necessary to permit me to attend and was awarded the privilege despite my age. I was truly thankful-and became the youngest table games dealer on the Coast in 2018.
After ascending and experiencing over 5 casinos workflow, in addition to the heart of the job position, I realized that table games dealing did not fill my desire to impact others. While table games dealing, I use to daydream about being my own boss. Once I began giving shoulder massages to the dealers (while we’re rotating tables for breaks) they always appreciated the1 min decompression of the shoulders (which increases blood flow and circulation) and I knew in those moments that I should make that massage my next path.
I continued to do research on how to become a LMT, steps to starting a business, pros and cons on the financial capability and legal structuring. I wrote about it daily in my journal, describing what it would look like structurally, how I’d operate the business etc. I then came up with the name “A Queens Touch Massage Therapy”
After having my first child, as a single mother, I enrolled into Blue Cliff College for the Massage Therapy program while working night shift at Scarlet Pearl Casino. I went to school 8am to 3pm and worked at casino from 8pm to 4am. I did that for over a year, and it was HARD!
There were nights after work I’d doze off while driving. The process has not been easy, but it has been worthwhile.
Two months before graduating I was offered a LMT position at Golden Nugget Casino that was not secure until I pass the state exam. After passing, I began working at the casino Spa the following week. I then worked 3 days a week (as this was post COVID) servicing 6-7 clients a day. In doing so, I was able to learn how to operate in Spa setting individually and handle employee relations. I was the lead therapist and most requested yet only received 30% of commission. In that moment, I was empowered to pave my own path.
I also became Zumba certified and began teaching classes at the MS Kroc Center to buildup experience to be an instructor. The original instructor did not show up one day, and I stepped up and lead the class. This circumstance has led me to obtain my Hip Hop Aerobics & Dance Fitness Instructor Certificate. I started to volunteer my wellness services to local retirement communities to build my brand.
I took a leap of faith and began renting a room from a local day spa “Coast Day Spa” to build up my clientele on the side to eventually become self-employed full time. I was accepted into ELEVATE MS – a 12-week incubator business literacy and fundamental program to help prepare entrepreneurs. During my breaks as a Golden Nugget employee, I would attend the virtual classes. Upon completing and graduating I was awarded $500 as seed grant for my business.
As I began looking to grow and expand my business, I partnered with The Blakes at Biloxi Retirement Community, where I was offered the opportunity to sublease a spa and salon space. They were aligned with my massage and wellness concept centered around enhancing quality of life, and I truly felt divinely led to step into that opportunity.
During that time, I managed the spa and salon within the community, hired a team of cosmetologists as independent contractors, and opened the space to both residents and the outside public. In addition to that, I also served as a wellness vendor, teaching exercise classes three times a week for the community.
That season played a significant role in my growth—not just professionally, but personally. However, as I continued evolving, I began to feel the need for expansion beyond that space. While I was grateful for the opportunity, I recognized that operating within another business limited my exposure and accessibility. Some of my clients expressed challenges with the check-in process and parking, which created barriers to their overall experience.
That feedback, combined with my own vision, led me to begin searching for a new location—one that I could fully call my own. I wanted a space where I could create a seamless experience for my clients and continue building Core Essence with more visibility, freedom, and intention.
February 2025, I found a 1200sq.ft space and claimed it on faith. No grants or loans. Just hope and high faith. The landlord gave me 3 months no rent to do all renovations. I manually did ALL labor needed. From painting pulling up astro turf to exterior work.
EACH DAY I journaled the experience and recorded on video because it felt so surreal and uncertain. I didn’t know how I was going to do it all, each day I just showed up, adding from the previous day. It took me 3 months to get the place presentable, not fully complete (just yet)
In the midst of building the place up, I became a medical LMP servicing Veterans on insurance so now my current practice is centered around helping those in need rather than just pampering. I’m so grateful to have found a passion where I’m able to support one in healing
I’ve done my best to shorten my journey, and my advice to any young person is that “you get in what you put out and the only limit they have is the one the put on themselves. DARE to dream, step outside the box and be UNIQUE. Your pain has purpose and it’s not what OTHERS say about YOU. It’s what YOU say about YOU!
Qua’Shellea, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Qua’Shellea Fairley, and I am the owner of Core Essence, a wellness studio where I provide massage therapy, movement-based fitness, and life coaching. What I do is rooted in helping people return to themselves—physically, mentally, and emotionally.
My journey into this work didn’t just come from training, it came from lived experience. I’ve always been someone who carried a lot—responsibility, pressure, and life transitions—while still showing up for others. Over time, I began to understand how much stress the body holds, and how easily we ignore it until it begins to affect our health, posture, and overall quality of life.
I was also born with scoliosis, which gave me a very personal understanding of the body at a young age. Navigating that condition taught me the importance of alignment, movement, and intentional care. It wasn’t just something I learned professionally—it was something I had to live and adapt to. That experience shaped how I approach both fitness and massage, because I know firsthand what it means to work through imbalance and still build strength.
That realization led me into massage therapy, but it didn’t stop there. As I grew, I saw that true wellness goes beyond just the physical. It’s also about movement, mindset, and discipline. That’s what led me to expand into dance fitness and life coaching. I wanted to create something that supports the full person, not just one area. Core Essence became a reflection of that—a space where people can come to release tension, rebuild their strength, and reconnect with who they are at their core.
I provide services such as relaxation and deep tissue massage, movement and stretch-based fitness, and coaching that focuses on mindset and personal development. The common thread through all of it is restoration. Many of my clients come in feeling overwhelmed, burnt out, or physically drained. My role is to help them reset—not just temporarily, but in a way that encourages consistency and long-term care.
What sets me apart is the intention behind what I do. This isn’t just a service for me, it’s a practice built from real understanding. I don’t just work on the body, I pay attention to how people carry stress, how their posture reflects their lifestyle, and how their mental state shows up physically. I approach each client with awareness, not routine.
One of the things I’m most proud of is building this business on my own while being a mother and navigating life transitions. There were seasons where I had to push through exhaustion, self-doubt, and uncertainty, but I stayed committed to the vision. I’ve learned that consistency, even in small steps, builds something meaningful over time.
I want people to know that Core Essence is not just about booking a massage—it’s about investing in your overall well-being. It’s about taking care of your body before it forces you to stop, and learning to move, think, and live in a more balanced way.
At the end of the day, my goal is simple: to help people feel better, move better, and live more intentionally.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
One of the most defining moments of resilience in my journey came when I realized that pushing through everything wasn’t sustainable.
There was a time where I was booking over 16 clients a week, trying to grow my business, take care of my responsibilities as a mother, and maintain everything else in my life. On the outside, it looked like progress. But physically, my body was overwhelmed. I had reached a point where I was exhausted, and I had to make the difficult decision to cancel and reschedule sessions because my body simply could not keep up.
That moment was humbling. As someone who is used to showing up and pushing through, it forced me to confront the reality that I couldn’t build something meaningful by running myself into the ground. I had to shift from a mindset of “doing more” to a mindset of being more intentional with how I worked.
It taught me the importance of listening to my body, setting boundaries, and building structure instead of relying solely on effort. That experience changed how I approach my business and my life. It’s one of the reasons I now emphasize consistency, balance, and sustainable wellness with my clients, because I understand what it feels like to be overwhelmed and still trying to keep going.
Resilience, for me, is no longer about pushing through everything. It’s about knowing when to pause, recalibrate, and come back stronger and more aligned.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
One of the biggest lessons I had to unlearn was people-pleasing, and on the other side of that, hyper-independence.
For a long time, I found my value in being there for everyone else. I was the one who could handle things, figure things out, and show up no matter what. I didn’t want to disappoint anyone, so I would overextend myself, say yes when I should have said no, and carry more than I needed to. That naturally turned into me becoming very independent—to the point where I felt like I had to do everything on my own.
The backstory behind that came from survival and responsibility. I got used to figuring things out without relying on others, and over time, it became my normal. But what I didn’t realize was that both people-pleasing and hyper-independence were costing me. I was draining myself, not setting healthy boundaries, and not allowing myself to receive support.
There came a point in my life and business where I realized I couldn’t grow, heal, or build sustainably while operating that way. I had to unlearn the idea that I had to be everything for everyone and that asking for help made me weak.
Now, I’ve learned that true strength is balance. It’s knowing when to give, but also when to step back. It’s being able to show up for others without abandoning myself, and allowing myself to receive help without guilt. That shift has not only helped me personally, but it has also shaped how I show up for my clients. I now lead from a place of awareness, boundaries, and intention—not pressure.
Unlearning those patterns has allowed me to grow into a more grounded version of myself, both in life and in business.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.essenceofthecore.com
