Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Paula Hawkins-Guy. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Paula, appreciate you joining us today. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard.

R3 Station (Rehabilitation Restoration Relazation Station) has provided over 24 years of skilled occupational and massage therapy services to the Grand Rapids’ community. We are the only stand alone occupational therapy private practice that accepts all major insurances in the State of Michigan. Our mission is to afford everyone the opportunity of an active lifestyle free from pain and physical limitations through caring, skillful, and personalized treatment modalities. Paula Hawkins-Guy, OTR/L, CMT has provided therapy services to professional athletes and celebrities to Actor/Comedian Bernie Mac, Olympian and Professional Boxer Floyd Mayweather, and retired NFL Player David Harris to name a few.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I graduated from Western Michigan University as an occupational therapist and worked as a contractual therapist in multiple arenas elementary schools, nursing home facilities, hospitals, home health, community mental health, etc and was frustrated from issuing equipment for pain limitations and not actually treating the pain. So I went back to school to learn manual therapy and started a private practice to focus on muscle alignment, which resolved her patient’s pain, and the practice grew from there. We specialize in giving people a break from their pain to do functional activities.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

In 1999 I was searching for more than just handing out adaptive equipment to people who could not touch their feet to put on their shoes as an occupational therapist. I was a contractual traveling therapist covering short term positions for various facilities throughout Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo and Detroit areas. I noticed a vacant building and had my first manifestation to to open my own therapy business where patients can come to me; not knowing that a business like this did not exist yet. I went to the Urban League and they gave me an outline on how to write a business plan; and I wrote my first business plan in two weeks. I started sharing my ideas with friends and family and sending my business plan to banks for financing. I contacted the owner of the building and he agreed to a land contract requiring a $25,000.00 down payment, which I did have fortunately. I acquired the building, had my business plan, but no funding to remodel the building into a therapy center. I was giving my best friend a treatment in his office and he asked me multiple questions about my business plan and goals and how much money I needed to remodel the building. I shared all my ideas and plans for the future. After his treatment was completed he gifted me with a check for $25,000.00 to get my business up and running. I opened R3 Station on March 19, 2000, paid him back in 2005, and I have been practicing in the same building ever since.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Since 2019, The Covid Era, I had to pivot my private occupational therapy practice from focusing on insurance billable patients to include private/cash paying clients. The billable insurance world has changed significantly due to high deductibles, limited therapy visits and the loss of insurance/jobs. It has been an uphill battle to change people’s perception as health as a priority in their budgets. It has been a gradual increase of private pay clients, but worth the effort. I had to get creative and use all of my available resources, which includes renting out my building for small pamper parties on the weekends. Building a business is a journey and you have to prepare yourself for the ups and downs of being in business. I was fortunate to have a business advisor that helped me plan for the “down” times; but as the climate changes you must allow your business to change according the season.

Contact Info:

• Website: r3station.com
• Facebook: r3 station