We were lucky to catch up with Hannah Murphy recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hannah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear the backstory of how you established your own practice.
Roaming Remedy (my Massage Therapy practice) began overseas, inspired by travel and community. After years of working in luxury spas, I decided it was time to provide a more affordable and professional service for ALL. As the business expanded upon returning stateside, Roaming Remedy continues to create connection and comfort in our Portland Oregon based studio.
Starting my own massage practice began after wanting separation from the factory feel of the spa industry, and desiring to create a more therapeutic practice where I have more autonomy as a practitioner. I first began offering massage outside of the spa industry while living in Australia on a working holiday visa; this evolved into a mobile massage service in New Zealand, and eventually I landed back in the U.S. over the course of the pandemic. Beginning to run my business full time after being outside the U.S. for 3 1/2 years felt daunting, particularly amidst the first year of the pandemic. Despite my hesitations, I decided this was a time people needed connection and touch the most. So, I began Roaming Remedy as a mobile massage service in Vermont (my hometown) when things felt safe enough and proceeded with very high standards of hygiene. People really enjoyed being in the safety of their home and appreciated the connection exponentially at this time.
In the beginning things were slow to start and eventually word of mouth helped me build clientele so I could work full time. After about 1 year I became tired of the constant set up of my mobile service and opened my first massage studio in Burlington Vermont. At this point I had a great number of clients and was comfortably working full time. I believe it can be very intimidating to step out of your comfort zone, take a chance, and let go of stability that employment can sometimes offer. Being self-employed, or the sole owner of your practice can grant you many freedoms and ultimate autonomy in your work life; though there are many “unpaid” hours and steps needed to get to a comfortable and propelling place in your practice. Some of my initial challenges arose at the very beginning; starting up your own business isn’t always cheap, and I supplemented my income with side jobs until things picked up. For example, I only took massage bookings over the phone versus paying for online booking through my website- this was a GREAT relief when I was able to afford this service and saved me so much time. I also had a lot to learn about marketing and advertising along the way, as well as social media marketing (to my dismay). I learned that neighborhood forums are often free or relatively cheap for advertising and bring me the most clientele as opposed to Google or Instagram. Another overlooked subset of owning your own business is all of the hours you need to invest in growing your business. I still (after nearly 4 years) do my own laundry and cleaning, as I (gratefully) have the time and wish to have fewer overhead expenses. There are also many hours spent marketing, networking, and budgeting that are “unpaid”. My greatest advice for those considering starting their own practice would be that you absolutely get out what you put in. Patience is virtue and giving yourself realistic goals and timeframes for your vision is imperative to your well-being in the process. Avoid burnout by knowing when to take a break, it’s okay to rest; this will always be more virtuous to the success of you and your business.
Hannah, 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?
Hannah (she/her) is the sole owner and Massage Therapist of Roaming Remedy. It was during my bachelor’s program in Wellness & Alternative Medicine while in Vermont that I explored a Massage Therapy internship and fell in love with the work. I was always intrigued by human anatomy & physiology; with a strong desire to help people alleviate their pain so they can function in this world in an optimal way. Allowing people to step out of their pain even for a short duration can give them the space to live their lives much more virtuously. I think there is a lot of human potential that is stunted by illness, pain, and lack of connection or touch.
At Roaming Remedy, I offer a wide variety of Massage Modalities including Swedish, Deep Tissue, Reflexology Prenatal, Lomi Lomi, Modern Cupping Therapy, Hot Stone Massage, and Thai Yoga Bodywork. Each treatment is custom tailored to meet the individual needs of the client and understood from having in depth conversations about health history. Most clients I see come in regularly to manage chronic pain, and we are constantly evolving each massage session to work with their progression.
Community is a large part of my life and I make great efforts to support my local community. Roaming Remedy uses locally made products from aromatherapy to our organic hypoallergenic massage oil. We strive to use products that are as sweet to your skin as they are to our environment.
Extensive training, paired with 9 years working as a massage therapist around the globe, has created value in bringing autonomy and inclusivity to the table. After working in high end spas with exorbitant rates for massage, I saw a colossal issue in the accessibility of not only massage therapy but also of wellness services. Even while working in the luxury spas, I never felt that I could afford a treatment there (at least not often), so I wanted to provide a service and environment for massage that reached a wider audience. In my eyes, wellness and health services should not be exclusive and with greater accessibility could create a healthier community. Living outside the U.S. in countries with health care coverage widened my eyes to much deeper-rooted issues in our healthcare system that I hope will be more heavily addressed in our lifetime; I do not think that service industry workers such as myself should carry the weight of making health services affordable to the public, though for now I do my best to support my community as I can. At Roaming Remedy, we have created community care opportunities in effort to provide an accessible, professional and safe treatment space to a wider audience. Each month we offer three treatments at 10%, 20%, and 30% discount with no questions asked. We use the Green Bottle Method (link below) as a guide for people to gain clarity on their financial privilege. This is based on an honor system, and we ask that these discounts are left available to community members who need it the most, though they are accessible to anyone without judgement. We believe that massage should be accessible to EVERYONE and strive to make our services affordable to our community while also allowing us to earn a living doing what we love.
Can you open up about how you managed the initial funding?
Beginning a business is no small feat. I had been employed as a Massage Therapist for nearly 5 years and learned many skills from the industry before deciding to work for myself. I knew that starting my own practice would likely be expensive, though I am extremely frugal and strive to work with what I have at that moment. Initially I was not in a place to immediately begin renting a studio space; I wanted to gain clientele and build funds to invest back into my business with momentum. Thus, creating a Mobile Massage service. Doing mobile work felt much more attainable at the time, as there would be little overhead without paying monthly rent. I was able to get all I needed for the service for under $1,000. A massage table, a carefully organized bag of massage linens, oils, a Bluetooth speaker for soothing sounds, sanitizing products, and all the tools imperative to any massage therapy practice packed into my small Pontiac Vibe. Perhaps the set up wasn’t the most luxurious or perfect but I found that this service made people feel taken care of and in the luxury of their own home. A new sense of comfort and vulnerability was created when people could relax in their own space. Having the opportunity to provide an in-home massage service allowed me to build clientele, save money to invest in my business, and evolve the structure of my work. I have a lot of gratitude for this time doing mobile work as it has provided me with a wonderful studio space and a growing business.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Working with the community to provide inclusivity and accessibility goes a long way. People feel respected and heard when you provide a more humanitarian environment, especially in a wellness setting. Providing a service that focuses on the client’s individual needs from start to finish is imperative to any good massage practice. I also provide tools and resources for clients to utilize after massage sessions that allow them to have autonomy in their bodies and healing process. I feel it is too often we put too much weight and power on the practitioner to “fix” or find a solution; and I believe an integral part of healing begins with trust in yourself, lifestyle changes and autonomy in our bodies. There is much to be heard from listening to our bodies, when to rest, when to change, and what we need. This is a paramount key to achieving our health goals. I think that in giving more autonomy and power to each client, I have received a great reputation in my community while simultaneously granting better results for my clients.
Contact Info:
- Website: [email protected]
- Instagram: @roamingremedy
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/roamingremedy/