Jessica Clarke on Co-Owning a Business
Jessica Clarke joined SweatNET Nashville and Denver this past July as an events coordinator and shortly became a co-owner with Meghan O’Rourke. SweatNET Nashville and Denver are licensed cities from SweatNET, which started in Charlotte, NC. SweatNET works like an online coupon book for wellness. Members pay monthly and then get access to the deals and discounts listed on the site as well as free entry to 4-6 free events they host every month. “Our business partners range from workout studies, healthy restaurants, and spas to saunas and hair salons. We believe that wellness is all-encompassing, so we want out members to be able to take care of themselves in whatever way they feel is effective for them specifically.” They also offer marketing packages to their business partners that they hope will help them to stand out in the wellness space. “We want to create a smaller community within the wellness category.”
Jessica grew up in an active family and was a college athlete, so athletics have always been a big part of her life. “Mainly I think to keep my brothers and I out of trouble, but I really do love moving and taking care of my body.” She thinks that it makes her more effective in her every day life and with her friendships. “I always thought that I could own a business, but never believed that I would. My dad is an entrepreneur and I majored in communications and marketing with a business minor in school. However, co-owning a business really does feel like a dream come true!”
When it comes to co-owning SweatNET, her favorite part would be her incredible team that she gets to work with. “They are the two most wonderful women and they challenge and teach me so much! I love the community aspect of what we do. At the events I get to see women become friends with each other because they have this common bond of wellness and then the same people will come to more workouts, etc. It's really fun to know that we have a small part in bringing people together. I also get to see this with our ambassador program. We have the best ambassadors who are just as passionate about what we do.”
The advice Jessica would give to someone who may want to create their own business would be to surround themselves with the right people. “Usually it’s going to be people who are smarter than you and learn from them! Do your research and understand the time commitment that comes with it. You can't be driven by money because you won't make any at first and that's okay. The key to all of it really is patience, hard work, and a genuine passion for what you are doing. It's not easy but it is so so worth it.”
In five years, Jessica hopes that SweatNET is running itself. “I hope that it is a household name as a business and our events are selling out every time.” She really wants for it to succeed in bringing people together. “I plan on going to school again so hopefully that is finished and I’ll have another business up and running by then!” She also hopes that she has accomplished a safe space for women to come together. “I hope we support one another as a community and learn to communicate with kindness.”