Latest Winner of Bizcover.com.au $60,000 ‘Small Business Buddy Program’
Michelton resident Charlotte Hansen last week marked a major milestone when she went from cancer patient to cancer survivor. Her next big goal is to grow her new personal fitness training business, focused on seniors, and thanks to Bizcover.com.au’s Small Business Buddy program that dream is one step closer.
Ms Hansen is the sixth and latest winner of a $2000 wish granted to Australian micro and small businesses who submit a wish online. Launched in June, BizCover Founder and Managing Director Michael Gottlieb has dedicated $60,000 towards the new Small Business Buddy Program (www.smallbusinessbuddy.com.au), in a feel-good mission to give back to the SME community who they service.
“Our success is due to the small business community, who over the past seven years have embraced our online insurance services over more traditional methods of buying insurance,” said Gottlieb, who adds BizCover have 25,000 small business customers across 2,000 plus occupations ranging from dog walkers to hairdressers to café owners and IT consultants.
Only begun a few months ago, Magnii Fitness is dedicated to providing clients in the Michelton area with fun fitness classes for seniors, including weights training. The $2000 Bizcover.com.au wish will be used to purchase a range of relevant equipment such as anti-burst Swiss balls, resistance tubes and foam balance beams for her expanding clientele.
“I was so excited to be granted this wish from Bizcover.com.au. The equipment I can now buy will be used to create fun and varied training specifically for seniors,” said Ms Hansen. “The focus of this training is to improve overall fitness and health by including weight bearing to prevent osteoporosis, balancing work to prevent falls and functional training allowing participants to-do things like lift groceries and walk up and down stairs to ensure an independent lifestyle for longer. The variety of equipment selected is to ensure that the classes will remain varied and interesting to encourage long term attendance; but also to cater for both males and females of varying strength and fitness levels.” A Magni Fitness web site is due to launch on 1 October. Currently, Ms Hansen uses fliers and other more traditional direct marketing to reach her senior clientele – some of whom are living in retirement villages. Ms Hansen, who is passionate about fitness and helping others become healthier too, switched careers to become a qualified personal trainer as of May. It was while studying a Certificate III and IV in Fitness, she was tragically diagnosed with cancer. Determined to completer her course, she did so, despite surgery and post-operative health restrictions and undergoing chemotherapy and radiation. “Battling cancer made it hard to focus on my personal training business. I was unable to commit regular training of client as I would never know how I would feel in advance,” she explains.
“However, the good news is I finished all my treatment last week and have only just transitioned from cancer patient to survivor. I am now keen to get back to my business plan. Unfortunately, the money I had to start my business has now been used to pay for doctors and medication as well as general living costs.” Being granted a $2000 Small Business Buddy wish now means Ms Hansen can immediately start training seniors sooner, with the latest equipment, and start making a difference to people’s life.
A wish will be granted by Bizcover.com.au every fortnight in the form of a specific product or service valued at up to $2000. Wishes can be made by any small business with ten employees or less and an annual turnover under $2 million dollars. Businesses must have a valid ABN to apply but don’t need to be an existing BizCover customer to enter.
Wishes can be submitted online via www.smallbusinessbuddy.com.au.
What: The Small Business Buddy Program
When: Wishes will be granted twice a month
Where: www.smallbusinessbuddy.com.au
About BizCover
BizCover is Australia’s leading online insurance service and is changing the way micro, small and medium sized businesses buy Professional Indemnity, Public Liability, Business Insurance, Management Liability and now Cyber Insurance. BizCover provides multiple insurance quotes instantly online and the ability to select and purchase the right cover immediately.
BizCover partners with leading insurers to provide cover for over 2000 occupations and have taken the hassle out of buying insurance for more than 25,000 businesses so far.
They are supporters of a range of other small business programs such as the Small Business Champion Awards, which they sponsor, and partnerships with the government’s New Enterprise Incentive Scheme (NEIS) and Business Enterprise Centres (BEC) across Australia.
Contact BizCover on 1300 249 268 or visit www.bizcover.com.au
