Meet Kellyn Van Laere | Massage Therapist Practice Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kellyn Van Laere and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kellyn, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I had been a massage therapist for 7 years when I made the move to start my own practice. After graduating from Massage School, I worked for the graduate clinic at my school and had a stint at Massage Envy, as most new therapists get into. Then ended up finding a great opportunity working for a new chiropractic office in Denver. It took a little time to get some real momentum going with a clientele base, but I was going back to school for an additional year of training, so it all worked out in my favor to have the flexibility for school but yet still working on making my mark. After 5 and a half years working at the chiropractic office, things came to light that the ladder I wanted to climb there had no more rungs for me to move to. It was a hard decision to have to make to leave a great team, but I was ready and needed more! My husband and I had been married for almost a year and were wanting to buy a house, travel more, start a family, do all the things. I was absolutely terrified to make the leap to go out on my own, but once I was in my new role, I wished I would have done it sooner! For me, the thought process was easy, I just had to commit to the idea. And take care of all the logistics of registering the business, getting a space, furniture, etc. I’m lucky that I’m in an industry that is easy to be your own boss. But now I’ve entered the world of being a boss to others, and that’s been an ever-evolving journey, especially in a pandemic!

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I own 7th Element Therapeutics; we are a massage therapy practice here in Denver. I think what sets us apart is that we take the time to listen to our clients and use all our training to help solve their issue. We combine a lot of different modalities in every session to get the best result, we don’t limit ourselves to just one type of massage.

I am so proud of what this business has become in the 6 years I have owned it. I owe all my success to my amazing clients. I never had to do any major marketing because I grew so quickly just by word-of-mouth referrals. When people love what you do, they tell everyone they know, and they start to come see you also. Starting out I was all on my own and got to a point I could longer take any new clients because I was booked out 6 weeks regularly. So, I decided to hire an employee and found 2 amazing therapists to be part of my team.

Covid definitely made me have to get creative in many aspects. The last 2 years have been quite the rollercoaster but I’m excited because I feel like we are finally reaching a turning point, or at least I can hope. We saw a dramatic decrease in clients wanting to come in for appointments, even though we were doing everything in our power to keep everyone safe. But you can’t force anyone to do something they aren’t comfortable with, and even more so in this line of work. We are seeing that more and more people are wanting to get back to their regular routines and we are happy to be here to help.

We are not your average massage! We see such a wide range of client needs on a daily basis and strive on the fact that no 2 massage sessions will be the same. Your body is never exactly the same each day, so we love to adapt what we do to make sure we are getting the best affect.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
The one thing I love about Denver, and Colorado, is that there is so much to do and see no matter what you’re in to. I am such a foodie and love to try new places, so I would start each day with brunch before heading out for the adventure of the day. My favorite spots are, Bacon Social House and Snooze. We would of course head to the mountains for a day or more trip. Glenwood Springs is one of my favorite little towns. I just love the atmosphere and shops everywhere, not to mention the Hot Springs! If it was summer, we would head off to go hiking, Maybe hit a 14er depending on the friend.
I would never let them leave without having a least one night visiting Red Square downtown!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Oh, my there are so many! My husband and family have always been my main support group and always encourage me to chase after my dreams. I think they deserve the most credit! I have some other colleagues that have been great resources through the years. Helping to navigate situations with clients and help me make sure my own body stays in shape to help my clients every day.

Website: www.7thelementtherapeutics.com

Instagram: @7thelementtherapeutics

Facebook: 7th Element Therapeutics