Hero Lifestyle is a new business offering nutrition advice, yoga and fitness training. Now, thanks to the business support from Lancaster University’s Health Innovation Campus, founder Helen Kimber says she has built the valuable connections she needs to drive her business forward.

“It taught me about the fantastic opportunities that are out there and helped me gain clarity on where I want to take my business. I also built relationships with some of the other business leaders at the workshop which has really opened some doors for me.”

A former teacher and Master of Nutritional Medicine, Helen set up Hero Lifestyle in early 2019 with the ambition of combining her passion for nutrition, yoga and fitness into a unique health and wellbeing service. The company takes a holistic approach to diet, exercise and mindfulness teaching businesses’ and individuals through workshops or one to one consultation.

“I wanted to set up Hero Lifestyle because I know my knowledge and expertise can really help people improve their life for the better. The strapline for my business is ‘be your own hero’ because in a society filled with media pressure to be perfect, I want to encourage people to be proud of their own personal achievements rather than comparing themselves to others.”

Helen learned about the fully funded health innovation workshops at Lancaster through a contact at a local networking event, and as a true believer that you can always learn something new, she decided to sign up.

“I attended with a completely open mind, I really didn’t know what to expect, but I got so much out of it. You don’t realise one or two days after, it’s actually a few months down the line when you get the most out of it. It makes you think about your business differently, it made me look at opportunities and challenges in a structured way which enabled me to recognise when I needed to take a step back.”

The workshop was facilitated by Dr Ian Gordon from the Management School and is designed to help leaders to assess the foundations of their business and understand areas blocking innovation so they can respond to opportunities to grow in the health and wellbeing sector. Helen commented, “The facilitator was really good, he shared his own business successes, failures and the importance of knowing your customers.”

A direct, tangible benefit of the workshop for Helen was an exciting business partnership. “One key outcome for me was that I met a lady on the workshop who manages a respected and long-established eating disorder clinic, just a short drive away. And, following a few more meetings, I am now signed up as a consultant working on Wednesdays and Fridays for them.”

“Through our support for businesses we are encouraging them to step back and think critically about what they are doing, giving them the tools to do this. It can be hard to explain the benefits before businesses engage with us; we ask them to trust the process and like Helen, they soon realise it was invaluable taking that time away from the business”, explained Melanie Burton, Project Delivery Manager.

The Health Innovation workshops are fully-funded through the European Regional Development Fund and available to Lancashire-based SMEs (eligibility criteria applies). To find out more about upcoming health innovation workshops and how to sign up visit www.lancaster.ac.uk/health-innovation/business or contact 01524 595005.