Melissa Armour

Prior to joining the Kalma Life team, I worked with pre-school SEND children and families throughout their diagnosis journey, providing support within their chosen family hub setting. It was a rewarding and sensitive role, which really highlighted for me the lack of emotional support for children and their families, particularly those with SEND needs.

I also had a child of my own, who is still at the age of 9 a budding yogi thanks to our Vic! As well as having a new baby in 2022, which was my turning point of realisation that my current role was no longer suitable for our home-life dynamic and that I needed something to allow me to really home in on something I love, while giving me the flexibility to be fully present for my children.

Kalma Life has been part of our lives for almost 10 years, with my eldest yogi starting at just 4 weeks old in a massage group in South Tyneside. We quickly saw the benefits, and this was the only class we stuck at consistently throughout our maternity leave!

What really captured me about Kalma Life, truthfully, was how passionate and motivated Vic is in her business. This has always been something I have searched for, and to see it first-hand, as well as having attended classes and seen for myself how positively this impacted our children, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

It just so happened to be the right place and right time that the opportunity came to light, and as impulsive as I am, it was a very easy yes!

Prior to setting up in Sunderland, I worked as a class leader for South Tyneside. This provided training and hands-on experience, as well as shadowing, to gain the confidence to know that I could take on a business — and the rest is history!

Launching my own franchise was a breeze, truth be told, and a lot less daunting than anticipated thanks to consistent reassurance and communication. It has been so exciting to see opportunities unfold with the support of HQ and the other franchisees, and the team dynamic is just lovely and supportive.

Fast forward 3 years and Kalma Life Sunderland has gone from strength to strength. We have expanded from solely myself teaching and working behind the scenes to adding four more wonderful team members to our branch. We have also expanded into the Washington area, bringing more opportunities to provide our wellbeing services to a wider community.

We run several community classes, from massage and baby yoga to home education and SEND in the community; school sessions for both primary and secondary pupils; sports partnerships within both areas; holiday clubs funded through several local councils; and a partnership with the NHS which has just expanded into neonatal support, alongside many more local links within the community.

Truthfully, this is the most relaxed I’ve been in my home and work life. I have full control over how often I teach, and my team of amazing teachers are superb at what they do, meaning it’s so easy to hand over the reins and trust they will do their best.

My husband works away, so the flexibility is super important for me to be able to spend quality time with him while he is back home. I’m also able to take annual leave whenever I need or want to. Those with kids will understand that the sports schedules are real, and being able to say yes to all of the matches, training, team days, grading and everything the school schedule has to offer — and seeing my kids’ faces when I’m in the crowd — is just priceless.

The difficult part for me has always been switching off from work, and some days I still struggle with this. When you own your business, there’s always a to-do list, a lead to follow or an idea to pursue, but with time and experience this is slowly getting better. I am learning to switch off the laptop, put away the phone and know that this is okay.

Everything we provide at Kalma Life is a special experience, with so many different qualities within the sessions that make them amazing and fulfilling.

At our Sunderland branch, something I am very proud of is that we support a lot of schools, individual children, community groups and nurture groups from the SEND community, and really home in on something I am extremely passionate about providing. The impact we have on the mental health and wellbeing of children who are already struggling is just extraordinary, and this is something we strive to excel in.

“Stop waiting for tomorrow to say yes; what if tomorrow never comes?

I’m a believer that what is meant for you will never pass you by, so if you’re reading this and have a niggle that Kalma Life — owning your own worth, wealth, flexibility and schedule — may be for you, then just say yes!

It’s a yes I will never, ever regret.”