When her successful diversity training business closed due to lockdown, Barbara Rowe started to weave self-care into her life, but found that many self-care websites were targeting specific groups and she felt there was a gap in the market for a more inclusive platform with access to uncomplicated, high-quality products and information and with that, takegoodcare was born!
But the business is not just about environmentally friendly products, corporate social responsibility is at the heart of everything it does. The company partners with One Tree Planted and since start-up has planted in excess of 120 trees. Barbara has also recently launched the Take Good Care Awards, recognising unsung heroes in her local community.
Barbara started the business in a small outlet in Lewes, but quickly discovered that she needed more space and a more professional environment to grow her business. It was important for Barbara to have an East Sussex based location close to home, avoiding heavy traffic and high parking costs.
Newhaven Enterprise Centre was the perfect solution, with good public transport links, free on-site parking, 24/7 access, and good accessibility and facilities for those with limited mobility. For Barbara, as an online business, close proximity to a Post and Sorting Office was also important.
"Moving to Newhaven Enterprise Centre was the best move I made last year. It isn’t just the facilities, but also the staff – who always have time to provide a listening ear as well as signposting for business advice and services"
Barbara Rowe, Take Good Care
Barbara contacted Locate East Sussex for support starting up and relocating her business, and was introduced to Business Manager, Emily Wright.
‘It was great to have Emily as a sounding board who was not connected to the business, so objective. Her encouragement to make myself visible as the founder of my brand and take ownership has had a huge effect on sales’
Barbara Rowe, Take Good Care
Working with Locate East Sussex has made a real impact on the business. Now settled at Newhaven on a flexible licence, Barbara has already moved into a larger unit within the Centre, improving efficiency and providing space to re-launch her diversity training business without compromising Take Good Care sales. The Centre has also given her access to a diverse range of businesses which has ‘added to the richness of my own work-life and development, giving me the opportunity to extend my working family and meet other local entrepreneurs, utilising the NEC team and businesses around me’.
So what’s next for Take Good Care? One thing that the pandemic taught Barbara was that you never know what’s around the corner and to concentrate on short-term goals that support her ethos of providing an ethical and sustainable service that truly makes a difference, whether that’s through expanding the Take Good Care Awards which acknowledges people in the community and the good that they do, obtaining Leaping Bunny Status or launching her new Equality & Diversity business.
Working with Emily Wright of Locate East Sussex and the move to Newhaven Enterprise Centre has given Barbara the confidence to make some huge decisions and have self-belief in her own abilities.
"It has been a pleasure working with Barbara and really getting to know her vision and plans for the future. I wish her every success with continuing to build her brand and becoming a pillar of the local community"
Emily Wright, Business Manager, Locate East Sussex
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Newhaven Enterprise Centre
Situated on a prominent site on Denton Island, an established business park in the heart of Newhaven, the Newhaven Enterprise Centre provides a wide range of flexible managed office space for small one or two-person units, through to mid-size and larger incubator units.
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