Graduate Entrepreneur Spotlight

Hillary Neville

Global Entrepreneurship Week takes place annually in mid-November. To celebrate, we will be spotlighting recent
graduates who are blazing trails as entrepreneurs in their fields of study. We asked them about their experience as a
business owner so far, what advice they would give to a post-secondary student who dreams of following a similar path
and more.

Today’s feature is Hillary Neville. Hillary graduated from our Massage Therapy program with Honours, Distinction and
perfect attendance in 2022, and currently owns and operates her own business as Hillary Neville RMT. Read on to hear
Hillary’s answers to some top questions from aspiring entrepreneurs and check out the photos to see her and her beautiful
work space!

Q: Did you always know you wanted to be an entrepreneur or did you decide along the way?

A: I always wanted to open my own business, that’s why I initially started a business degree at MUN. I wasn’t sure what type
of business I was going to aim for but when I realized I wanted a career that allowed to be hands on, as well as help
people, I decided I’d start aiming towards becoming a massage therapist and opening my own clinic. Entrepreneurship is
common in my family. My pop opened a barber shop in the 60s that is now ran by my father. My parents have their own
business, I own a gift shop that I opened up during my first year of massage therapy school, and my brother is in the process
of opening a pub in our hometown as well.

Q: What does a typical work day look like for you?

A: A typical work day for me is 9-6, except Thursdays I open 12-8 to allow later slots for some people who may not be able
to make it before 6. The bulk of my day is treating clients, I typically do 5 treatments a day, an hour long each. I do
however set aside a half hour in between clients to put through insurance claims, sanitize my work space, finish up my client
files and then prepare for the next client. It is just me in my clinic as of right now, so I take care of the receptionist duties as
well. After my last client of the day I spend an hour at my desk booking in other clients, responding to emails and getting
everything ready for the next day.

Q: What are you most excited about at work right now?

A: I just opened up 3 weeks ago so I’m most excited about seeing many clients coming to me and trusting me to be a part of
their health care team. It is so rewarding to hear how much effect an hour treatment can have on some people, not only for
their physical health but for their overall well being as well.

Q: If you could give one piece of advice to a post-secondary student who wants to start their own business, what would it
be?

A: If I could give one piece of advice to someone who wants to start their own business, it would be to never be afraid to ask
for help. I tried to get everything ready by myself and I got so overwhelmed that I was ready to give up. Once I started
asking people who had experience dealing with certain tasks I had to do, for example, how to direct bill, it became a lot
easier on me and I felt more comfortable than I did when I tried learning everything alone. I’m not typically someone who
asks for help but I quickly realized it is needed when you are starting your own business, especially if you have no
experience in that particular field.

Learn more about Hillary’s business on her social media pages and book in with her here:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086046036422
https://hillaryneville.clinicsense.com/book

Learn more about the Massage Therapy program here:
https://www.academycanada.com/faculty-of-health-and-personal-care/massage-therapy/