A globetrotting former cowgirl is setting up her own business providing hands-on healing from around the world.
Emily Bridges, from Ruthin, is setting up as a therapy practitioner thanks to the help of rural regeneration agency Cadwyn Clwyd.
It’s a new venture for Emily who has packed more into her 30 years than most people do a lifetime.
She has studied art, sculpture and stained glass windows, been an Aussie cowgirl, and trained in alternative therapies.
With Cadwyn Clwyd’s help, the young entrepreneur has now taken over a vacant shop in Clwyd Street, Ruthin, to open EB Therapies whose treatments include Swedish back massage, Indian head massage and the Japanese Reiki therapy.
She also provides a whole host of complementary therapies such as reflexology, holistic facials, hot stones and crystal treatments and aromatherapy.
She has been supported through Cadwyn Clwyd’s Rural Denbighshire Enterprise Bursary scheme, from the Rural Development Fund for Wales 2007-2013, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the Welsh Government.
The Bursaries of up to £2,000 each are now being rolled out in Denbighshire after being successfully piloted by Cadwyn Clwyd in Flintshire.
Born in Gillingham, Emily moved to Llandrillo, near Corwen, in North Wales with her family when she was five when her father’s job with Lego necessitated a move.
The family also lived in Carrog and Corwen and is now based in Ruthin where her mother, Ann Bridges, is a well-known artist whose work has been exhibited nationally and internationally.
After school in Bala, Llangollen and finally at Ysgol Brynhyfryd, Ruthin, Emily went on to study BTech arts and crafts and A-level fine art sculpture and also for a BTech national diploma in stained glass.
After working in Kwik Save and saving her money, Emily left for Australia.
“I worked there for two years as a cowgirl. I went to the Northern Territories after I did training in Brisbane learning how to fix fences, ride and brand.
“I worked as a cowgirl and then went to work in a polo yard in Bullsbrook in Western Australia before I went back to work at the cattle station in Northern Territories.”
When she returned to the UK she enrolled on a Llandrillo College course at Wrexham Training in Ruabon Road, Wrexham.
“For two years I studied anatomy and physiology,” said Emily, who also acquired the skills she would need for her new business venture.
One of the skills she acquired – Reiki – was an unexpected bonus and the result of one of the lecturers also being a Reiki Master.
Reiki was developed in 1922 by Japanese Buddhist Mikau Usui and involves palm healing or hands-on healing, delivered through the practitioner’s palms, which allows for self-healing.
Emily said: “Cadwyn Clwyd provided me with a really good service and were very quick as well. They provided me with £2,000 of funding with help for my deposit on the shop and two months rent and the purchase of equipment.”
She is now also looking into creating a website and wants to get onto Twitter to help promote her business which has already started well, with Swedish back massage, Indian head massage and aromatherapy among the most popular treatments.
Cadwyn Clwyd Project Officer in Denbighshire, Louise Humm, said: “We believe everyone has a business idea in them but not everyone has the confidence to try it out.
“Starting out in business is a scary prospect but we can take that fear away by being able to help financially and with expert advice and guidance.
To qualify for a business start up bursary of up to £2,000, applicants must live in rural Denbighshire or rural Flintshire and be aged 16-30 or if over 30 must be unemployed. The money can be used to buy equipment or pay for business premises or other services that may be needed to help get a business established.
There is funding for up to 30 people to take advantage of the scheme.
For more information about Rural Denbighshire Enterprise Bursaries contact Louise Humm at Cadwyn Clwyd either by telephone on 01824 705802 or by emailing [email protected]
Cadwyn Clwyd continues to look for innovative projects to support which help safeguard the area’s natural, cultural and heritage assets and maximise their economic potential for local businesses and communities.
To find out more or share your idea for a project call 01824 705802 or email [email protected]
