For most people managing one business is enough, however for Daina Clark, her twin passions for podiatry and trail running has led her to establish two local businesses, Townsville Podiatry and Destination Adventure.
Tell us about yourself and your business.
I’ve been a podiatrist for many years now and had always been content as “just” a clinician, never wanting to have my own business. Now here I am with two businesses and loving life.
Moving from Melbourne to Townsville in 2004 was the change my career needed. I landed a job that was 100% biomechanical focused, treating people with lower limb musculoskeletal pain.
I finally took the leap in February 2020 to go out on my own and opened Townsville Podiatry, a lower limb pain and injury focused clinic. My focus is my patients; to provide exceptional care to address their pain, to keep them moving and enjoying their best life. The most important KPI for my business is patient outcomes and I believe this is one of the reasons Townsville Podiatry is so busy.
My other company, Destination Adventure, began from wanting to share my love of Magnetic Island and the benefits of being physically active with North Queenslanders.
My event, The Great Island Trek, is a non-competitive hike aimed at those members of the community who wouldn’t normally participate in a sporting event. It provides an opportunity for first time event-goers to participate in a safe, supportive environment with likeminded people, to give them a challenging yet achievable goal, and the confidence to continue physical activity post Trek.
Another goal of the event is to promote the magnificent trail network of the Magnetic Island National Park to a broader audience and showcase the beauty of the island.
What has been the most challenging aspect of being a business owner?
I’m sure, like many people who have opened their own business, the biggest challenge is managing the many different aspects of the businesses and always feeling like you must be “on”. My hats include clinician, bookkeeper, orthotic technician, social media marketer, office manager, event coordinator, and business developer. In terms of running larger scale events, public liability insurance has become more difficult to acquire and premiums have increased by 400%.
What is a fun fact about yourself?
My love of being active comes from being a sports nut. Over the years, I’ve represented Victoria in cricket, played golf off a handicap of 1, and been a competitive road cyclist, mountain biker, marathon runner, and adventure racer. Now I am happiest out in nature enjoying the trails and wildlife of Maggie Island.
What is the best piece of career/business advice you ever received?
Best piece of advice I ever received was do what you love and love what you do. I am fortunate enough to have two businesses that let me do what I love.
I absolutely love being a podiatrist, helping people get back on their feet. It is incredibly rewarding. For example, peri-menopausal women are over 70% more likely to suffer musculoskeletal pain than pre-menopausal women. As a result, many of my patients are middle aged women with hip, knee, leg, ankle, or foot pain. I am a big kid at heart and love helping children move better and be pain free; treating conditions like heel pain, in toeing, tip toeing , delayed walking, sports injuries, growth plate injuries and hypermobility disorders
Destination Adventure allows me to share the magic of Magnetic Island and I love when so many people come to The Great Island Trek, have fun, and enjoy the trails.
Going forward, what is next on the cards for your business/career?
Townsville Podiatry continues to grow its client base on the back of a reputation of high-quality individualised care and excellent outcomes for patients.
The next chapter for Townsville Podiatry is to create regular continuing education seminars for our community of allied health professionals in North Queensland. These seminars will provide up to date, evidence based education from Australia’s leading health professionals and researchers.
My vision is to develop The Great Island Trek to be Northern Australia’s most unique and sustainable activity-based event and a must-do on the Australian events calendar. My event development strategy incorporates the production of high-quality visual media to promote both the event and Magnetic Island through social media to increase potential regional and national media opportunities. The plan then is to add a second non-competitive event, hopefully in April 2023
Find out more information about Townsville Podiatry here.
Find out more information about Destination Adventure here.
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