Kari Sturtevant holds the title of business owner, but she doesn’t let that go to her head.
“I’m also the secretary, the janitor, the accounting office, etcetera,” said the 29-year-old owner of Peak Performance physical therapy clinic in Appleton.
Last May, Sturtevant, a degreed physical therapist hired another therapist and opened a two-person physical rehabilitation practice on Ballard Road.
The decision to start a business in her hometown came after years of working elsewhere.
“I took a traveling job with a national company and spent two years working all over North Carolina,” she said.
As an independent contractor she worked temporary physical therapy jobs at hospitals, elderly care facilities or anywhere else she was needed.
“I’d fill in if someone was on maternity leave or if a business was short staffed,” Sturtevant said.
“I always had it in the back of my mind to run a business,” she said. “Everywhere I worked I saw things and said ‘I could do that a little better if I did this or that.’”
The business has grown as athletes of all levels, as well as individuals with orthopedic problems, have started taking notice of her business.
As an athlete herself – she’s a member of local rowing and cycling teams – Sturtevant meets a lot of people that need physical therapy services.
Client Char Sigman has received physical therapy for her shoulder and knee problems.
“She takes an interest in your problem and listens to you, not to just what the doctors say,” Sigman said.
Sturtevant isn’t overly concerned whether her business expands much, as long as she retains a reputation for quality service, she said.
“I’m really excited by what I do,” Sturtevant said.
“I want to try to help get health care back to a personal, thorough and affordable level.”