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What inspired you to start your business?

Sloco Massage + Wellness Spa came into existence about ten years ago when Natasha realized traditional spa settings were missing the boat on the therapeutic aspects of massage. Spas were all about relaxation-style massages and fancy facilities. You had to go to a private practitioner if you actually wanted bodywork done. She was one of those practitioners tucked away in a chiropractor’s office, until 2014, when she decided it was time to bring the therapeutic approach into a spa setting. She considers herself a leader in the spa industry when it comes to using her business as a force for good. Sloco is really proud to be the first-day spa in the world to become a Certified B-Corp! Natasha is also a proud member of 1% for the Planet and an early adopter of WeVow.
 
Moving from a small space with fixed expenses into a 1,500-square-foot building with employees became a major challenge. It took really diving into the financials to understand her cost per hour while addressing the root cause of whatever was preventing her business from increasing its profitability.

Over time, and due to a global pandemic, Sloco Massage + Wellness Spa evolved into Sloco Health + Wellness. Her center specializes in providing express services that don’t require close contact and are designed to reduce inflammation and stress, as well as improve health at a cellular level. Sloco aims to be a resource for the community, providing alternatives to pills and surgeries, even during times when it feels like these are the only options.

How SCORE helped.

SCORE helped Natasha learn to value herself and her business. Natasha knows, as a massage therapist, that it is an ongoing struggle because you want to share your work and make it accessible to as many people as possible, but often has a hard time putting a price on this healing art. SCORE reminded her that in order to do all she aspired to, she had to reverse engineer her dream to set her pricing. She believes, that because her SCORE mentors had no emotional attachment to her business, they were able to help her acknowledge her blind spots. They not only challenged her, they encouraged her.

Natasha states, “I was lucky enough to have found my passion for massage at the age of 20, which eventually led to the discovery of my love of entrepreneurship. I get to take my ideas and make them come to life. We were able to pivot during a pandemic and reinvent ourselves in a way that may have an influence on our industry. To top it off, I still love what I do every day. My husband and I get to work together to make our visions a reality. To me, that’s a success!”