Mum-of-two trades two-hour commute for home-based venture with a difference

Natalia Kalacova is celebrating becoming the latest franchisee of Alchemy VA – an all-encompassing virtual assistant franchise

After becoming a mum and spending most of her career working in hospitality, Natalia Kalacova’s priorities changed completely, and she decided to trade her two-hour commute to London for something that would keep her closer to home. As a busy working mum, Natalia is confident joining the remote administration franchise, Alchemy VA, will free her from her regular commute.

“I live in Reading, but I’ve been commuting into London every day for the last four years,” said Natalia. “As a mother of two young children, a two-hour commute didn’t suit my lifestyle anymore. Due to the pandemic, I’ve experienced the benefits of working from home. After welcoming my son, Max, to our growing family in October last year, I came to the conclusion that joining a franchise would improve my own sense of wellbeing and allow me to spend more time with them during those crucial early years. When you commute regularly, you miss the simple things like being able to pick your children up from school, and I no longer felt comfortable constantly missing out on those special moments.”

Following her launch last month, Natalia’s career experience is setting her up for success with the virtual assistant franchise.

She said: “Whilst studying for my degree in travel and tourism, my husband was completing a law degree, and I really enjoyed helping him. After university, I started working for an internationally recognised five-star hotel chain. I was offered the role partly because I had a legal secretary qualification. The job in London allowed me to combine my love of administrative work with an opportunity to gain a qualification in HR – CIPD Level 5 in HR management. As part of that role, I managed the opening of a new residence where I oversaw the recruitment, training and HR needs of over 30 employees. When I decided I wanted to reduce my commuting hours, I began formulating a plan for how I could use these skills in my own business – that’s when I decided to invest in my Alchemy VA location.”

As part of its franchise offering, Alchemy VA provides expert administrative, practical marketing and flexible PA services to small, people-centred businesses across the UK.

“I know how difficult balancing work and children can be,” admitted Natalia. “With the support of the Alchemy VA network, I know I can swap my commute for a lucrative stay-at-home business. Partnering with Alchemy VA is a low-risk, high-impact way of building a successful enterprise, and I’m so excited about what is in store for my location in the future. It’s difficult to start a business at the best of times, but with a young family, it can seem impossible. With the Alchemy VA franchise, I have all the tools to build something special from my home without ever feeling alone.”