More Than a Weekend in a Field: The Heart Behind Campervan Retreats

Running a business alongside family life

I am also a working mum, and balancing the business with family life can be both wonderful and difficult.

Like many women, I often feel pulled in several directions at once. There are children and family responsibilities, everyday household jobs and all the practical things that continue whether I am preparing for a retreat or not.

Another important part of my story is my experience of fighting stage 3 breast cancer. Going through diagnosis and treatment changed me physically and emotionally, and recovery has not simply meant returning to exactly who I was before. It has affected my energy, my confidence and the way I balance work with looking after myself. There are times when I have to listen to my body, slow down or accept that I cannot do everything at once, even when there is so much I want to achieve. At the same time, that experience has made me even more aware of how precious life is and how important it is to follow what gives us purpose. Campervan Retreats has become a meaningful part of rebuilding my life after cancer. It gives me something positive to work towards and allows me to create the kind of connection, freedom and joy that I know can be so important when life has been difficult. This makes the business deeply personal to me, but it also means that building it sustainably is essential—I need it to support my life and wellbeing, rather than asking me to sacrifice them.

Running your own business can offer freedom, but it can also be hard to switch off. There is always another email to answer, social media post to create, venue to research or problem to solve.

Sometimes I work in the evenings or around family commitments because that is the only time available. There are moments when I feel excited and inspired, and others when I wonder whether I am getting the balance right.

I do not always manage everything perfectly. I am learning as the business grows, and I am trying to build something sustainable without losing sight of the people and values at its heart.

My children are one of the reasons I want to make the business work. I hope they see that it is possible to follow something you believe in, even when it takes courage, persistence and a lot of hard work.

Understanding the cost

Occasionally, when I share a retreat on social media, someone comments that it seems expensive.

I completely understand that the retreats will not be affordable or suitable for everyone. We all have different circumstances, responsibilities and priorities, particularly when the cost of everyday life is already so high.

I never take it for granted when someone chooses to spend their money—and their precious time—with us.

I also understand that, at first glance, someone may see a three-night camping trip and compare it with the cost of booking an ordinary campsite.

But Campervan Retreats offers something quite different.

The price includes the privately hired setting, the planning and hosting of the weekend, the programme of activities, the facilitators and the opportunity to be part of a welcoming women-only community.

There is a great deal included in the experience, as well as a great deal of work that happens before and after the retreat itself.

The retreats are self-catering, which gives women the flexibility to eat what they enjoy and manage that part of their spending themselves. I also offer deposits and payment plans where possible because I know that spreading the cost can make a difference.

However, even with these options, I recognise that the retreats will not meet every budget—and that is okay.

Something can be valuable and thoughtfully priced while still being beyond what an individual is able or chooses to spend. It simply means it may not be the right option for that person at that particular time.

Making the retreats sustainable

One of the greatest challenges of running a small business is finding the balance between keeping something accessible and making sure it remains financially possible to continue.

The price must cover all the retreat costs, but the business also needs to make a viable profit.

That profit allows me to continue offering the retreats, invest in future venues, pay other small businesses fairly and improve the experience for the women who attend.

It also needs to recognise the time involved in planning, organising and hosting each event.

This is something many small-business owners find difficult to talk about, particularly women. We can feel uncomfortable putting a value on our time or worry that earning from something we love makes it less genuine.

For me, the opposite is true.

Building a sustainable business means Campervan Retreats can continue to exist. It means more women can have the opportunity to attend in the future, and I can keep dedicating the time and energy required to make each retreat special.

Passion may be the reason the business began, but it also needs a strong and sustainable foundation if it is going to continue.

The human being behind the post

Social media is an amazing tool for small businesses. It has helped Campervan Retreats reach women across the country and has allowed this wonderful community to grow.

However, it can also be a difficult space.

When a business posts regularly, it can begin to look like a company or a brand rather than a person. But behind every Campervan Retreats post is usually me—choosing photographs, finding the words, answering comments and hoping the message reaches a woman who may really need what we offer.

I try not to take negative comments personally, but I would not be honest if I said they never affected me.

When you have poured so much care, time and hope into something, it can feel difficult to read a quick judgment from someone who may not know what has gone into creating it.

A comment can take only a few seconds to write, but it may stay with the small-business owner who reads it for much longer.

I am always open to constructive feedback. Listening to the women who attend has helped the retreats grow and improve. I know I will not always get everything right, and I am willing to learn.

But I also hope we can remember that it is possible for something not to suit us without it being wrong.

Sometimes the kindest response is simply to scroll past an experience, product or service that is not for us.

Women encouraging women

Campervan Retreats was created around the idea of women supporting one another.

That support is visible at every retreat.

It is there when one woman helps another reverse her campervan into a pitch. It is there when someone notices a guest sitting alone and invites her into the conversation. It is there when women share stories, offer encouragement or quietly sit beside someone who needs company.

I believe that same spirit can extend to the way we respond to women who are trying to build something they care deeply about.

Supporting another woman does not always mean buying from her or booking what she offers.

It might mean sharing her post, recommending her work, leaving a review, sending a kind message or simply recognising the courage it takes to follow an idea and turn it into something real.

There is room for different businesses, experiences and budgets.

One woman succeeding does not take anything away from another. We can celebrate each other’s ideas, even when they are not personally right for us.

So many women put their own ambitions to one side while caring for families, supporting others or managing everything life brings. When a woman finds something that gives her purpose and decides to pursue it, I believe that deserves encouragement.

Why I continue

There are certainly easier ways to earn a living than organising retreats.

There are moments of stress, financial uncertainty, self-doubt and exhaustion. There are times when the responsibility feels heavy and times when a negative comment arrives on a day when I am already questioning myself.

But then the retreat begins.

The vans arrive. Women step out, sometimes looking nervous but hopeful. Slowly, the atmosphere changes.

Someone lights the campfire. A conversation begins between two women who may never otherwise have met. Someone laughs until she cries. Another woman tries something new or realises she is braver than she thought.

I watch women arrive alone and leave with new friends.

I see women finding the confidence to use their vans more, take up space, rest without guilt and reconnect with parts of themselves that may have been lost beneath work, caring and everyday responsibilities.

Those moments are why I continue.

Campervan Retreats is more than a weekend in a field. It is something I have built with a great deal of love, work and belief.

It will not be within everyone’s budget, and it will not be the right experience for everyone. But for the women who come and find exactly what they needed, it can be incredibly special.

I am proud of what Campervan Retreats has become, grateful to every woman who has trusted me with her time and money, and excited to see where this journey takes us next.

Most of all, I hope we can continue creating a community in which women feel able to rest, connect, follow their own calling and encourage others to do the same.