Kendra October 13th, 2008
Have the events of the past week in the stock market and econcomy caused you stress? One great stress reliever is massage.
Ballard Massage, a business on 15th Ave. NW opened its doors in November 2003. Currently 13 therapists work there. Eric, the owner, took the time to answer my questions about not only his business, but about massage in general.
Question: What kinds of massage do you offer? Is there anything your center specializes in?
Answer: We are primarily a Deep Tissue clinic, though we do have some therapists who lean more towards the Swedish, relaxation type of massage. Nowadays most people are looking for Deep Tissue. The deeper the better. That’s actually a popular misperception, based on the concept of “getting the best bang for the buck.” As therapists, we often see clients are asking for more pressure than they really need. After a certain point the muscles revolt; they tighten to protect themselves. But the client doesn’t realize what’s happening because they believe that massage should be painful. Less is often better, really.
Question: How often should the average person get massages?
Answer: Wouldn’t every day be nice? Even I don’t do that, but once a month is good for maintenance. The key is to disrupt the pattern of tension in the body. Most of us walk around without realizing how tense we really are. Massage breaks that tension up, makes us aware so that we know when we’re getting tense and, hopefully, can do something about it. For people who are working on chronic problems, it’s better to do a quick series of visits in the shortest time possible. Three times a week for a couple of weeks really makes an improvement. After that it comes down to maintenance and self-care.
What are some things people should do in between massage to maintain the benefits of the massage?
Answer: Stretch. For Pete’s sake, stretch. Take breaks from the computer. Stop every hour or so, let your arms fall to your sides and take a deep breath. Notice how much your shoulders drop. That’s how much tension you’re carrying around. Once you become aware of that, you can begin to make a real change in your overall tension/stress levels.
Question: How/why did you choose Ballard as the location for your business? Are Ballardites more stressed out than people in Fremont or Wallingford?
Answer: Admittedly, choosing a location in Ballard was somewhat random. I originally wanted to buy an existing business in Wallingford. When that fell through I turned my attention to opening a new business. Top priority was finding the right space, at the right price, as close to Wallingford as possible. I had been practicing there along with a couple of therapists I knew would join me so we wanted to be accessible for our existing clients. I found the perfect location in Ballard and jumped on it. What’s funny to me is that I drove around Ballard one night looking for competitors – no idea why I didn’t use the internet – and blatantly drove by three of them without noticing. I had blinders on, apparently. I was meant to open in a business in Ballard.
Question: Was there a particular reason you located the business on 15th Ave. NW as opposed to Market Street?
Answer: 15th has excellent visibility while still enjoying what I like to call “parking opportunities.” This area is still being developed, true, but it’s worked great for us.
Question: What percentages of clients simply have a massage for relaxation vs. for medical issues?
Answer: About 25% of the people we see are just here for relaxation. Most people have some form of pain or discomfort they want to be relieved of. That can be anything from a chronic back pain that’s been nagging them for years to something more isolated, like a strained neck from driving or sore wrists and arms from spending lots of time on a computer.
Question: With people having extra stress due to the economy, traffic, political situation, etc. – are you seeing an increase in business? Or have the current economic conditions slowed business down as people are spending more on gas and groceries and consider massage a luxury?
Answer: There has definitely been a transition lately. People are feeling the pinch. We basically have three types of clients: the casual user, who comes once or twice a year at the most, the frequent user who can afford once or more a month on a regular basis, and insurance clients who typically do a series of six to twelve visits in a short period of time. The casual clients are declining right now. They’re holding onto their money. The frequent users are cutting back a bit as well. Fortunately for us there are plenty of insurance clients who are filling those spots so we are still thriving, but the impact of the economy is noticeable.
