12.12

This day on 12.12.24, exactly one year ago today, The Galpals Collective soft-launched on the Isle of Man. The rapid growth in online presence has been surreal to watch since Day One, making The GPC the fastest growing business acc in social media in that span of time, having spent no marketing budget then. The response has been incredible ever since 12.12 despite the many ups and downs.  A year later, and just a few months since opening our doors, we still get to hear incredible experiences  and the impact of The Galpals Collective in real time. 

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The GPC was not created for validation, attention, or praise, which is why you don't see the owners name or face plastered all over it. We do however, get many questions on who's behind it, where it came from, and what is it for. A year later since soft-launching the company online, and finally having the chance to exhale,  I wanted to take this moment to reflect on the past year since then. 

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Hi, my name is Chloe and I am the Founder of The Galpals Collective. To a lot of you, the gal who sits on the floor on her laptop every day in front of the heater with jazz or vibey coffeeshop music playing in the background, or having a vibe with our ladies upstairs in the gym.

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I created The Galpals Collective just a couple weeks after I got the verdict on my case to an awful event that happened to me in May 2024. I felt let down by the system, but ultimately wanted to focus on my health and get back to work. I found it ridiculous that I had to go to different areas of the island, just for a walk and get some fresh air. I often walked around different locations wondering who else was doing the same as me. Throughout my journey, I have met countless of women who also experience the same, if not worse. Women who also came to this beautiful island but may not have support systems. I thought how unfair? How unfair, that people get to do crappy things, but it is us who carry the shame, the anxiety, the embarrassment, of other people's actions. 

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Not being from the Isle of Man myself and having lived in multiple countries with different experiences and offerings, I often found the island to be 'beautiful, but boring'. I grew up in a unique position of entrepreneurship from a very early age and have taken that around the world - the last stop to the Isle of Man. Most of my life has been work, and that's where I have always found comfort. I decided to use what happened to me and the similar experiences of many many women on this island, to create a safe, fun, and useful space that we could use, while also being a healing project I could focus on. There also wasn't many stylish / pretty spaces on island so I figured we all needed a little bit of glam. 

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I remember sitting in my living room at the time, telling my friend how I wanted to bring something fun, community-led, and useful, to this island that was driven by the hardships and aftermath of DV for a pretty normal person. It's pretty cool looking back as I have recordings in my lounge (cctv for my lil bunnies), I get to rewatch that moment over and over, and the beginning of The GPC. Some memories just don't leave you, no matter what happens. 

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The concept of The Galpals Collective was a combination of everything I enjoyed and did in my personal life, under one roof and done with style and functionality. 

The ladies only gym and fitness areas was inspired by my gorgeous gym in Serbia. It was smaller, more intimate, but always had the best women and comforting vibes. The treatment room, inspired by my friends Afkshan and Marnie's spa in London - the places I felt most relaxed and seen. The self-massage meditation room born out of my need for quietness, stillness, comfort, and meditation. I mean we should all have a zero gravity chair if you ask me! The office space, designed as a smaller version of my office in Ireland. The creche - where I had some of my best memories growing up as a child, in my hometown gym/hotel called the Tullamore Court Hotel (to which you can still go and see!). It was the nicest, and most fun place where parents would leave their kids off while they went off for leisure or fitness. Lastly, The GPC Lounge, community and events, where the idea was to reconnect organically like the good old fashioned days when we weren't all so addicted to our phones and spoke to one another as humans who all seek connection. The Galpals Collective is essentially a women only clubhouse that was built for women to focus on themselves, feel supported, and have a place of no judgement and a space to call their own. Something I once really needed myself and has clearly resonated with thousands of people. 

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I could write a book on the trials and tribulations of being a multi-business owner at a young age, on an island where you don't have many resources, but that's not what we're here for. Despite the awful people in our society, the many missed deadlines, and having to carry a project of this scale, over five floors, on my own,  I got to open my doors to so many incredible women I've met along the way and continue to meet. There were many plot twists, so to speak. Excruciating hours, dealing with a lot in my personal life, the real life behind the scenes of business that people don't exactly want to display such as the many things that go wrong, the lack of support, betrayals, doubt, fears, plagiarism, and a whole list of things that you read from ChatGPT 'inspirational' stories from the same type of individuals. My body did pay the price during the making of The Galpals Collective, and I am now awaiting for a double organ transplant. Wish me luck!

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That said, even though there were times I lost faith and wanted to quit, I remember all those women before me. I remember, all the tours I did throughout the process and hearing stories from women of all ages, all industries, all walks of life, that had their own story and how the were waiting for a place like The Galpals Collective. The bullying, backlash, copying, theft, didn't seem like a good enough reason for me to quit because The GPC had become something much bigger than all of that. It was a place that gals from 15-67 needed or wanted to spend time in.

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Due to my health situation I had to adapt and with help of a dear friend, one I get to call my older brother of over a decade, I got to open the doors to The GPC on August 8th 2025. 

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While my support system is scattered around the globe, held on by an internet connection and countless Facetimes and texts, I was also blessed by incredible individuals I met on the Isle of Man, who came out to help and get these doors opened for the ladies who believed in me and who saw the potential of The GPC since soft-launch on 12.12.24. I will forever be thankful for those who showed up, offered to help a stranger, didn't try take advantage of the situation, and for those who continue to be some of the biggest cheerleaders behind The Galpals Collective - both men and women. I will never forget who gave me a hard time when I was already having a hard time, and I will never forget those who showed up for me in many different ways.

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It's been only four months since the doors opened and already, The GPC consists of the most amazing women I've ever met. 

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From the introverted anxious gals who needed community and support, the bored ladies who wanted something fulfilling for themselves on island, the fitness girls who just want to be left alone and do their own thing in a safe encouraging environment, the hardworking gals who deserve to relax, and  to the women who just needed their own space to disappear for a few hours to unwind and focus on themselves. Every single woman, appreciated for who she is, with all of us having one goal in common - to pour love back into ourselves.

 

On a daily basis, the team and I, have had the pleasure of witnessing women pour into their cups (some for the first time in over 40 years!), we watch women from opposite sides of life be there for one another. We've had to help wipe many tears, we shared the most ridiculous laughs, and we've shared pure joy for each of the gals successes whether that be through fitness, personal development, or simply just being their authentic selves. Whether you're a more quiet private member doing her own thing, or a gal coming out of her shell and making new friends, you are welcomed. You are supported. You are loved. You are seen. 

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We still have a little more to go, and a lot of exciting things to look forward to, but in the meantime, I wanted to personally take this time to thank you all for an amazing journey so far. This whole saving-your-life-in-the-process thing isn't so scary when you get to see the impact of your work on a daily basis and read the most heart warming feedback that many of you ladies and gentlemen take the time to write. To the women who use The Galpals Collective as their regular sanctuary, put their trust and loyalty into me and our community, thank you. 

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A year ago on 12.12, I hit publish and stepped into a journey that reshaped me in more ways than I ever expected. My life did a complete 180 in the making of this business, but every day I am surrounded by love, support and a reminder why I do what I do. The GPC earned awards ahead of opening, and I was honoured to be named Entrepreneur of the Year 2025. I am deeply grateful to every one of you who has walked through The GPC doors, shared the love online, bought memberships for your wives, family, and girlfriends, given the best feedback, and continue to show up and support The GPC,  our community we created, and each other in the building on a regular basis. I may have built the space, but it is all of you who brought the magic. The Galpals Collective has always been created by women, dedicated to women. The Galpals Collective doors are always here when you need us.​

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Much love and my deepest gratitude,

Chloe. 

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