We recently connected with Elena Sosa and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Elena thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Time to Breathe Concierge is a San Diego business that thrives on servicing seniors. Our services include; de-cluttering, downsizing, organizing, home decorating, facilitating move services, managing smaller home projects, and real estate. Our combined services help senior clients make better sense of their time when preparing for their next chapter in life. Whether a senior decides to stay in place or downsize, sell their home and move to a senior living community, my concierge services will assist seniors throughout the process. Our mission at Time to Breathe Concierge is to focus on the senior client’s needs, advocate for them, and follow through before, during, and after our concierge service.

The mission behind my business is something I am very proud of. Through some of my own experiences, I have had to overcome decisions made by others, and their decisions were not made for the best interest of the person who needed it most. Besides my own experience, which I will share with you further down in the article, I wanted to take a moment and share a recent situation with a client. My senior client and her husband moved into a Senior Independent Living Retirement Community. Due to their ages, both had decided it would be best to sell their home and move. I met with the couple, and almost instantly, we were connected in such a special way. I facilitated their move and had them settled into their new home by recreating the spaces they had in the house they left.

Within two months after their move, the husband had a stroke and died a few weeks later in the hospital. Knowing he had set up his wife in case anything happened to him, he knew she would be taken care of. One year later, after her husband died, she too suffered a stroke and needed to leave the last home they lived in for only a few months together. She will be moving to assisted living because the level of care has changed to maintain her daily routines. When I met with her brother, who is having a difficult time over his sister’s stroke, we discussed her next move as her final move. I looked through her apartment and glanced at the walls of all the pictures I hung for her husband. It was his legacy of love for his wife. They had the perfect love story. A young Japanese woman fell in love with a serviceman. Marriage was looked down upon during that time because she was Japanese. But he loved her so much, and no matter what, he would love and take care of her as his wife and bring her home to the United States. He carried out his promise for sixty years. It wasn’t easy for the two of them due to the discrimination issues. But she was tiny and tough and overcame much resistance from other military wives. As I mentioned before, we developed this special connection. They shared their stories of what brought them together and how their Christian faith kept them together. A very uncomfortable situation happened during the meeting with her brother to help with his sister’s final move. The sister-in-law was deciding what my client could and could not have when she moved to her next apartment. The brother and sister-In law argued over the decisions being made and not focusing on the only important person, my client. My client’s brother insisted on bringing things surrounding her with what she loved and remembered about her life and home. Her brother’s wife was about the things and packing them up as if they belonged to her, not my client. You could cut the tension with a knife; it was so bad.

Finally, I had to say we are doing this for my client. I told her brother I would do everything I could to recreate the areas of her home that meant the most to her and fill her walls with the same pictures. Our goal is to focus on helping her get her life back, even if it is for only a short time. Part of her healing process is to try to keep things normal around her and not take all she knows away from her. This situation is an example of why my mission is so important. I am addressing my client’s needs first, not her family; I am advocating for my client because her voice is not being heard, and I will follow through before, during, and after to ensure she is ok.

Elena, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I started a concierge service that focuses on the needs of seniors. I enjoy bringing a sense of calmness into their lives by making better sense of their time. I focus on what they need to do so they can start enjoying the things they want to do. Having started my own business after the pandemic was one of my best decisions. I have previously owned other companies, from designing clothing to fashion home parties and as an Interior Decorator. I understood the work ethic needed to thrive in owning your business, especially when you start with very little revenue. It can be a lot to overcome from marketing, building a brand, staying consistent with your audience, being yourself, and having a reputable reputation within your industry. Others in the business can either be harsh, threatened by competition, or choose to realize we are all here for the same reason. I have always believed in the latter to be successful. We can collaborate and create partnerships to serve those in our community better.

The “why” I chose to work with seniors is because I experienced a life-changing event within my own family. It taught me how easily a life can be taken from you and how little a voice is heard.

My dad was the biggest inspiration in my life and the reason behind my entrepreneurial spirit. By sharing the tragedy of his life, I hope to bring more awareness in the senior industry of what can happen in a typical functional, loving family. It can be one voice that changes everything. But, unfortunately, more often than most, it’s not the voice of the senior person that should be heard but rather the voice of the person that affects a horrific change in their life.
In 2015, my 85-year-old dad was returning home from a 20-mile bicycle ride. I received a call my dad was hit by a distracted driver traveling 40mph. My dad was airlifted to the nearest trauma hospital. Even though he survived this tragic accident, his life and ours changed forever. During these visits with my dad, I experienced what skilled nursing facilities were like. Watching the lack of care for these seniors recovering from falls, strokes, and other accidents was a nightmare. I visited my dad daily and sometimes stayed until he went to sleep. We watched old movies together, held each other’s hands, and shared our love. I prayed my dad would heal quickly and return home. Unfortunately, while my dad was recovering, things shifted. His wife filed for guardianship of my dad and moved him out of the skilled nursing facility to another state, away from his friends, family, and home.

Due to the guardianship, my dad was torn from all he knew and was never given a choice to return home. Communication and visitation with my dad were limited on his wife’s terms. When COVID-19 hit, everyone was kept away from visiting him. In May of 2021, my dad turned 90 years old. We had planned to celebrate his 90th birthday together, but again we were not allowed to visit him. With Father’s Day coming up soon, we were hoping to be granted a visit with him in June. Unfortunately, he was not feeling well when he was admitted to the hospital a few days before Father’s Day. Even though I tried, I was not allowed to be with him while he was sick. Just two days before Father’s Day on June 18, 2021, I received a text message from my dad’s wife that he was gone; my dad had died. It was so hard to believe he was gone.

The loss you experience when a guardian takes away a parent who meant the world to you is challenging to overcome. I can’t change what happened, but I can try to overcome the loss by building on something positive. I also had to learn from some of my dad’s own mistakes. First, trusting he had everything prepared in case anything happened to him and finding out after he wasn’t prepared.

Through my work, my mission is to help seniors the best way I can. I listen to what they want and advocate for what they need. I launched my business, Time to Breathe Concierge, in June 2021, two weeks before my dad’s death. I chose my profession to be a personal concierge to help seniors migrate through complicated tasks. I listen to their needs and help find a resource to serve them better. As a personal concierge, I choose to collaborate with other vetted professionals who are serving seniors. I have resources and partnerships to execute any size job or client need. I have connected seniors and their families to financial advisors, Will and Trust Attorneys, Placement providers, Caregiver Services, Hospice Services, Reverse Mortgage specialists, and Family therapists. Our goals are to work with seniors, advocate for their needs, and let them have as much of a voice in making their own decisions as possible.

Time to Breathe Concierge provides a detailed service to senior clients. I offer a free consultation to help assess their needs. I connect them to resources if they need assistance beyond what I provide. For example, some of my clients may need help with de-cluttering and organizing, so they can safely move about in their homes. I create a plan to help execute and complete this task if they need this. I will also observe any fall risks in the house and offer solutions to prevent a fall. If a senior has no family, I will help them find a caregiver if they are staying home or connect them to a reputable placement service to find them a home in a senior living community. If a senior decides to relocate, I will help them downsize, create a floor plan, measure furniture for placement, pack items moving with them, make arrangements for things to be donated or cleared out, schedule movers, oversee the moving team, unpack, organize the placement of furniture and items in their new home and decorate for a move-in ready experience. I combine my Time to Breathe Concierge Service and Real Estate for seniors relocating and selling their homes. As a Realtor with Harcourts Prime Properties, our team will work together for our clients to get the highest and best price for their home. Time to Breathe Concierge will facilitate the move at little or no cost to the senior client.

I enjoy bringing a sense of calm working with my senior clients. I stay focused on what they need to do so they can start enjoying the things they want to do. I know my dad would be proud of my service. He is with me every day.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

Time to Breathe Concierge builds relationships first. Our services fulfill the mission to complete the task, but the relationships help our business thrive. I always go beyond the service. I make it a personal mission to stay in touch with all my senior clients and any of the senior communities who referred my services or may refer me in the future. I leave no doors closed. One day, a senior community may see my business as an essential service to one of their prospects who may feel stuck and has no one to help. My services make it easier for their prospects to become residents. When I am not visiting or checking in with clients, I am networking with senior living communities and taking the time to say thank you for referring me. I drop off my lavender sachets and lotions to the sales team and brochures for their prospects. I am grateful every day for referrals. I believe in the relationships with the communities my senior clients are moving into. I get to know the staff and the communities and share with my clients how lucky they are to live in their new community. It’s a blessing to see everyone come together for one common goal, serving the seniors in our community.

Building long-lasting relationships with your clients is a gift and, in return, will create brand loyalty. I provide a detailed service for all my clients. Services are critiqued to fit their individual needs. When my clients need something, they know the high level of service I will provide them so they can schedule a visit. Or, as some have done, refer me to their friends to give the same service they had. My loyalty back to them is a discounted rate for a referral or continued service. Finally, you’ll need to talk with your clients and check in with them. I enjoy seeing them after our work is completed.

I recognize birthdays and holidays. I send cards and make visits with flowers or little treats to let them know they are still vital to me. During Halloween, I gave out treat bags of candy. I mailed Thanksgiving cards to thank my clients and vendors for being in my life and helping my business grow. During the Christmas Holiday, I stuffed 45 Christmas stockings and dropped them off at each client’s home. This year with the help of my friends, we gave blankets to seniors living alone. One of my friends started a new tradition. She crocheted a blanket for one of my seniors for Christmas. It was such a joy to give to my senior client. She felt special and remembered when her hands could knit and crochet. Next year we will have more crocheted or knitted blankets to pass out. I want to ask your readers, If you know anyone who would like to help us build a collection of newly made crocheted or knitted lap blankets for seniors, please let me know.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Listening skills, transparency, and authenticity are essential for my business’s growth. I stand behind the values and mission of my business. I also put a lot of valuable time and effort into helping my client with whatever tasks they need from the beginning, during, and even after.

Unfortunately, many changes can happen in the senior living arena, from a fall, stroke, memory loss, and even death. As a result, I have been asked to return to most of my clients to help with their relocation, find a caregiver to help maintain their quality of life or clear out a home after death. It’s not the returning business I look forward to, but it is significant to be asked once again to help when a client’s need changes. I am grateful whenever I am offered the opportunity to provide a service to help seniors.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @emsosa4
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/timetobreatheconcierge
• Linkedin: Elena Sosa, Business owner Time to Breathe Concierge, linkedin.com/in/elena-sosa-4469172b
• Other: email: [email protected] 760-525-5624