Dancing Through Life: Embracing Passion and Purpose

In this inspiring episode, we celebrate creativity, empowerment, and reinvention for those aged 50 and beyond. Our guest, Susan Merry, exemplifies how age can be a gateway to joy, self-expression, and personal growth.

Join us as we explore:
🌟 Susan’s lifelong connection to dance and its role in her vitality.
🌟How she launched Inner Joy Activewear, a clothing line empowering women over 60.
🌟Her spiritual journey and workshops on mediumship and healing.
🌟Practical advice on embracing creativity and purpose later in life.
🌟Susan’s story proves that it’s never too late to dance into the next chapter with passion and resilience.

🎧 Listen now and get inspired!

TIMESTAMPS:
01:52 Meet Susan Merry: A Lifelong Journey in Dance
03:32 The Early Years: Discovering Dance
05:56 Reinvention: From Dance to Retail and Fashion
08:12 Launching Inner Joy Activewear
09:31 The Philosophy Behind Inner Joy
23:03 Mediumship and Spiritual Healing
32:02 Advice for Women Over 60
40:14 Conclusion: Living with Intention and Creativity

Emily: Welcome to Age of Reinvention, redefine Freedom, lifestyle, and Purpose at Midlife, the podcast celebrating creativity, empowerment, and reinvention at the 50 plus stage of life. Today, please meet Susan Merry, a lifelong dancer. Entrepreneur, mother, grandmother, and spiritual healer who proves the joy and self expression only grow with age from starting her.

Journey at the age of six to launching the Inner Joy activewear company at 76. Susan has seamlessly blended her love for movement passion, and helping others feel confident just as they are. Join us as we dive. Into Susan’s inspiring story of transformation, resilience, and purpose, and discover how her passion for dance, intuitive spirituality, and creative entrepreneurship can spark you inner joy.

Whether you want to reinvent yourself or embrace empowerment at any age, this podcast episode is for you. Let’s dance into this uplifting conversation together. Hello, Susan. I’m happy to welcome you to my studio.

Susan: Oh, thank you. I’m really happy to be here and grateful that you asked me to come.

Emily: Thank you.

And when I see you smile and I feel warmth of your soul. It’s really invitation to start a conversation. And let’s start from the beginning if we can. And my first question Susan, your journey is a lifelong dancer is incredibly inspiring. What initially drew you to dance at age of six and kept you connected to this art throughout your life?

Susan: Oh, that’s a great question. At the age of six, I started ballet like I think most little girls sometimes do nowadays, and it wasn’t I, I had a very strict teacher who I always kind, I always felt that she was doing the right thing for us as pupils. At the age of 16, she passed away, and then I decided to go on to college and major in dance, which I did.

And I found a college, Stevens College in Columbia, Missouri. And I had the most wonderful experience with that my whole BFA and dance. We learned all the different kinds of dance from Indian to tap to. Anything. And that was really fun. And then it’s, I guess dance has always been in my body for my whole life.

I feel like I, I have to move. I don’t know. And you’ll see me, I gonna try to stay still during this. It is very hard for me. Dance has always been, I’ve always had to keep going because I felt like I had to keep going. Even now there’s been really times I haven’t wanna go to class, but I make myself go and usually when I get there.

Or at the end of the class, I’m always happy I went. So that’s it.

Emily: Probably. It’s a secret of your usefulness. Yeah. Can I say it? I think

Susan: so. I hope so.

Emily: Your career spans dance therapy, actually literature and later in life, retail and fashion business. What motivated you to reinvent yourself across this different fields?

Continually, I think it’s just wanting to

Susan: learn new things. I just I’ve always loved books, I’ve always loved I. Holding a book, being I’ve always loved books. And just to have the idea of being in a bookstore was just pure pleasure for me. And then when I got there, I, they kept promoting me and promoting me, and finally I realized that.

There’s other careers for me too, and so that’s when I started to get into clothing. But it’s the same because it’s retail. You’re still trying to satisfy the customer and being part of that, and that’s the best part for me to be able to give the customer. What makes them happy? What makes them feel good?

Emily: At what age you started your retail career part after 50, when it was,

Susan: actually, it was, I started retail when my youngest was like six, so he’s 50. Yeah. I was in the forties. Yeah.

Emily: So what do you think to what do you attribute your ability to continue dancing five times a week and embarking on your new business adventures as you approach 80?

Where’s the secret here?

Susan: Basically, I think I’m a little crazy. That’s what I tell, but. I love to, to try new things. I love to do new things. Being in Chico’s, I always love their clothes because it was all cotton I, and that has been something I felt. Customers my age, any age prefer cotton many times over a Lycra or something else.

So that was like a first motivation too, to do, to just get away from the Lycra to, to cotton. I forgot what your question was. I’m sorry.

Emily: No it’s okay. It’s okay. And we moving, actually, my question was. The next one, what motivated you to start a company specifically empowering women after over 50?

And how do you see dance and creativity influencing this venture? Because I believe that all your previous experience being in this, in book sales and media escorts that you mentioned to me. Where all steps preparing you and obviously the dancing, all your life, preparing you to launch your business.

And what is the main motivation for this, for your last business?

Susan: My main motivation is to have women feel good about their bodies. And I think when I would go to dance classes when I was. Maybe 10, 15 years ago, even earlier, I found older women just wearing baggy clothes because they wanted to cover up their little stomach or their baggy arms or whatever.

And I always I just would be in class and I’d say, they don’t need to do that. They’re beautiful souls and bodies in there and they don’t need to cover up. So that’s, that was how I started. Now with the dance, I think that’s all internal too. That’s making the body feeling good and I think that’s part of my dance and with the body and wearing clothes so they feel good in them.

I

Emily: don’t know. So it’s good with the fabric, actually good fabric, that good for the body with colors matching that you can show your personality with the design. And in the same time to be fashionable. And I understand you wearing and promoting your own brand today and probably very often, in your words I read it someplace you do.

Into the world of activewear at 78 years young. But you found probably designer because with all this and design, you should have some skills, to, to design. To actually to have a company manage company and company which produce like it’s not just services, but to be, in fashion business, it’s a special skills.

Where did you learn this? I just

Susan: had first of all. I for years were sketching out fun things for people to wear and just my own sketching. And when I started thinking about it, I connected with, I think I connected with a network with a gentleman who had a company before and he was very instrumental and started telling me what I needed to do.

And I first got a designer who, and I think it was off of Google or someplace, I just got a design. I mean I interviewed everybody ’cause I am particular about interviewing and. I found this wonderful woman and she and I just collaborated about what I wanted and she drew them up and designed things for me.

And that was, and then I found another wonderful, wo another woman who helped me. She’s been the best help from Florida, who had her, she has her own company, but she connected with me. And she dotted everything I needed to do. She helped me get the clo, all my clothes were made in California and I really wanted them to be in the USA because I thought it was really important.

And she, we went through fabrics, we went through textures, we went through colors, all the things I had no idea to do. And I just learned so much about everything. I still don’t know much about some things, obviously, about the designing, but I know. I know what I want for people to feel like in my clothes, and that’s why I really did a lot of pockets because women want pockets.

Everything I design has pockets, and the material was just easy and nice. Washable and throw in the dryer for a second.

Emily: I don’t know. And at the same time. It’s healthy. It’s healthy cotton fabric. It’s not like synthetic or Lycra. Or Lycra. Just for the style.

Susan: Yes. There’s a little Lycra, just so we have a little stretch in it, but

Emily: it’s not much.

No I really like it. And still I’m thinking, many perceive aging.

The time to slow down, yet you have proven otherwise. How did your perspective on aging shift over the years and how does it guide how you approach life now with all your life and business experience?

Susan: I think you hit the nail on the head because I think what it is all my various careers and.

Ways of looking at things have has really made me want to do this company. It feels like it was always, I always felt like I wanted to do it. I always, and maybe this is what it is. I was meant to do this at this point. That’s what I think.

Emily: I think so, because many people, women and men, they kinda waiting maybe even without recognizing this time of 60, 65 to retire.

And for you and you even written about. F finding lasting energy after 60. So there is something, and by the way, I fully agree with you. I feel that I have more energy now after 60 than I had 20 years ago, but I’m just at the beginning of my journey after 60, and I look at you and I think, oh, I have so many discoveries ahead of me probably.

But. What are your secrets for maintaining energy, joy, and vitality, even in your late seventies? It’s genes. It’s inner power.

Susan: Yeah, genes. My mother was like pretty energetic till she passed away. She was very energetic till she passed away. I think a lot had to do with my children just feeling that, just the feel that I want my kids to know who I am a little bit and just keep that little, no, it keep going.

I just feel like they can, it feels more empowering for me to have my kids feel. That they’re with me and around me. So do

Emily: you live close by?

Susan: I mean with two. One lives close by, but keep in touch with everybody.

Emily: Great. So you find time to everything. Children, grandchildren, you are dancing your business, which sometimes consume, all time from many entrepreneurs.

And you as far as I understand, first time entrepreneur in your seventies. And still learning, which is one of the secret of your youthfulness as I discovered. But what was the biggest challenge when you launched your inner joy activewear company and how you deal with it?

Susan: The biggest handicap for me right away was just the learning curve.

I just immediate because I’ve been in a little bit of clothing business, but I had no idea of anything else. Absolutely no idea. And this was really, in a way, that’s part of why I kept doing it, because I really love learning about things like this. I never knew. I, yeah, I never, I didn’t know anything.

I didn’t know about swatches and colors and just,

Emily: We don’t know about many things, but curiosity, I think it’s a key. This constant curiosity that I share with you, like I am, I’m interested to discover something that I don’t know, but you not just learning, you implementing you doing it because it’s a big bridge between knowledge and actually to see it happening.

Susan: Yeah. Yes. I think it’s

Emily: spirit. I. I don’t know. Okay. We will touch this point as well, but I like even the name of your company, inner Joy Activewear, so it’s coming from inside and glowing outside. I would say yes. It’s what you said. Okay. It’s how I understood. It’s beautifully uplifting the name of the company itself and it’s, very important for the brand and new brand to have this.

Personality, I would say even in a name. Yes.

Susan: It, that was difficult. That was probably one of the hardest things to do, was to find a name of the, for the company.

Emily: So what does this inner joy mean to you personally and how you wave this philosophy in your brand and closing line?

Susan: I’ve had a lot of knocks in my life.

Hard, hard knocks, I think everybody does at some point in their lives. And I’ve been able to find different ways for me to get help in different ways. I’ve,

I think the hard part is just really.

Believing in yourself and not trying to change other people in other ways. And that’s a hard one for me. But I think with the company, I’ve tried to really put it on. It’s really what I believed in and really the way I feel women should be treated, and I think that’s what made me continue and keep going with this, with the company at this point.

Emily: I am amazed that you had, between all your experiences, even experience with dance therapy, which you were working with children, I don’t know, children with some problems or just with children, to unleash the internal energy movement, curiosity. I’m just wondering if you can apply dance therapy to yourself when needed.

Susan: Definitely. I think that’s why I go to class five times a week. Just ’cause I, it’s a part of me I think that needs to go. I, yeah, I think that’s it. I just need to

Emily: go, I like it. It’s my, by the way, motto, just go forward. Go forward. Exactly. Exactly. You can stop, you can cry. You can, like I’m saying myself, you can yes, but you fell down.

Stand up and go forward. But speaking about you again ac activewear, usually yes, usually and often catered to younger audience. But your brand prioritize women over 60. I don’t. 60 50. What makes your pieces unique? Even for this category and probably your background in dance influence design, but please maybe open the small secret of uniqueness of the models you create, like fabric, color, style.

Susan: I guess what I did is I took things that, clothes that I have that I wanted to make better, I think. So in other words, I would put on, tights or leggings or something, and then I always thought they don’t need to be this tight on my stomach. Or maybe you and I guess I’ve always thought that, I don’t know how much clothes are designed by women either.

I know a Chicos. There were a woman designer, but I don’t know anymore. I’ve been under there for a while, long time, but again, this is women to speak up to what they want. Lululemon,

I just don’t, I can’t see me parading around with my stomach showing, I.

Emily: They only catering for young, actually, good fitted men and women and it’s really all, others feel like they need to do something, even surgery in order to get to the Lulu Lemon, which is not good for the health of.

People who cannot fit it. And so you found your niche, but niche is really unique and I don’t know how many women already found and I wish more women will find your brand and line and will be happy with it. It’s I believe

Susan: niche. I would love it. I really I believe in my clothes and I really want women to feel good.

The nice part is whoever has bought some of my clothes, they always feel good in it. I, my. My cousin bought three pairs of this one pair of pants because she wants one at home. She wants one in her vacation place and she wants one to travel with. So I love it. It’s just. Easy. Very easy and comfortable to, to do anything with them.

Emily: I agree. And I will look to the prices and styles and I will try to spread over, at least in, in Canada, in my circle. And I believe that many women will find really what they’re missing in current fashion, offers. And we try to be active a lot of things speaking media, speaking about healthy lifestyle.

And we need to move and we need to get the joy from from move and from dancing. And you probably need to, maybe you do already to dance in your clothes and to show this small videos in social media. It’s the best advertisement. Okay. You know about it.

Susan: I will try, but I do, I love it.

And I just want people, women to feel good and feel empowered by their own bodies. It’s important for us.

Emily: It’s important for us. And now I would like to touch a little bit about another part of your rich personality, and can you elaborate on your journey of discovering your abilities as a medium?

Later in life, how it happened in what age?

Susan: About five years ago, I went to Omega, which is the retreat in new, in upper state, New York, and I went with my friend and we went to a weekend with a woman named Suzanne Geman, and she is a very well-known medium and. I really thought this was woo. That’s what everybody calls it.

Woo when somebody talks about crossing over or the other side, or spirits. So then I just got hooked immediately. I all of a sudden realized that I could do this. So I started taking a lot of different courses, most of ’em from England where there’s a lot of people who have been doing spiritualism and mediumship is for years and years.

So I just took courses. I still take a course and I don’t think I’m quite answering your question, but what I, what happened for me was that. All of a sudden I realized that I could bring spirits forward. I could bring people who from the other side or. Some people call it with their shoes on or shoes off.

I don’t know. There’s all sorts of gimmick ways of speaking, but other people from the other side who have passed over, I can bring them forward to somebody.

Emily: So you can speak, if I can ask Visio, like per parents with family members, you.

Susan: No, my family don’t, come around very much, but I go into these groups and there’s just several of us on the screen like a Zoom, and there may be, let’s see, there’s 20 people on the screen, and there was usually a meditation done first, and then everybody just.

It does their thing, whatever it might be. And I’m able to bring a person from the other side to me

Emily: You mean soul of the person? Yes, A spirit of the person.

Susan: All of it. People do it all different ways and for me it’s just annoying. A couple nights ago, I brought this person forward.

It was a gentleman who was 26 years old. He told me how he passed I, and when they tell me all these things, I just. I write it down, ’cause my head and then af at the end. I’m sorry. So then I will take, say I have somebody. At that point, I will start telling what I found about this, what this person told me evidential, things that this person told me.

Like he was 26 years old, he had black curly hair. And as I speak, somebody will say in the group. Nine times outta 10. It doesn’t always happen, but somebody will say, I know that person. That’s my grandmother, that’s my uncle. And so I’m able to bring PE pass people over to other people

Emily: so you can help other people in a circle to get connected with their family members, but not with yours at this point.

Susan: Mine are hanging out around here. My mother flashes lights occasionally here, so I know they’re around.

Emily: Are you a religious person?

Susan: No religion at all?

Emily: Never. No. Maybe, church or whatever, education at the childhood or, so maybe you’ve had it before, but you didn’t realize it even.

Susan: I think so, but everybody has this skills. We’re all one.

Emily: But some people taking courses or learning, going even to some ashrams, speaking with gurus, trying to develop the skills and they not. So maybe powerful and you get it as a channel, as far as I understand, as a medium.

Exactly.

Susan: It channeling somebody and. I also occasionally channel somebody who’s still alive, which is interesting. It can happen both ways.

Emily: So there is something special in you. Something which first of like this, the joyful spirit and maybe good, power or energy, which is coming from you.

But now do you, are you taking these courses because probably you would like to use this skills in healing, maybe to improve some business personal relationships.

Susan: Probably not business so much as healing. Healing, the course I’m taking right now is called Trans Healing, which is trying to go in a trance, a kind of trance, and being able to project to another person and see what.

What they need healing for.

Emily: And could you apply healing as well? Would you be able just through the energy work? I haven’t gotten there that far. I think so though. But I believe it’ll be your next business reinvention.

Susan: I think so.

Emily: What I like that you’re curious, you are moving, you don’t feel any borders or obstacles to pursue whatever is interesting and important for you at certain moment of life.

Am I correct?

Susan: Yes.

Emily: Yes. Like your family members, I don’t know, husband, like children, did they support you with your new project as they say? I don’t tell ‘

Susan: em

Emily: all. It’s

Susan: very wise.

I don’t, I pick about who I tell this to.

Emily: Okay. I’m sorry, but now we are telling, and many people might tell it but it’s okay because I believe that all what we are learning and now for use is spiritual development. It’s what enrich our life. Yes, it’s. Maybe this next push to, to go forward.

Susan: I never ever thought about this as something I could do, and it’s just, it just feels like

I don’t it, it’s.

I don’t even what the word is, it just seems so outta the box or something. I just think it’s a.

It is amazing that I can do this. I just don’t know. Look you

Emily: pour your heart into celebrating life in motion in different circumstances. Imagine that you are now 30 years old, Susan. How does this 30 years old Susan, describe the person you have become today. Do you remember yourself at 30

Susan: years old

Uhhuh?

Emily: So you learned to be happy. Over the years it’s didn’t come as a, there are some people who are happy by nature and family support them.

Susan: No, it, it was definitely a rough time when I was in my thirties. And that was part, that was when actually I started to work at one of the bookstores because I just, I knew I loved books, but that was all I knew.

So that was but in my thirties I was not I. It was a rough time in my life. Really rough.

Emily: You know what? I like books all my life, but I’ve never had time and opportunity. I change many professions to work actually with books. Now I think maybe, but I need to find the bookstore.

Susan: It would be wonderful.

You love it. You

Emily: would love it, but there is no bookstores now. It’s all almost coming to Amazon, but okay, I will think about it. Thank you for giving me this association. I think it’s a great idea for you because it’s fun. It’s fun, yes. To find the store. It’s not in Canada, but I think about it.

I will think about it because I’m always drawn to the libraries and bookstore. Yes. I know it about me, but I couldn’t implement it in something, but okay. I have a lot of things to do now, but speaking about others, what advice would you give to other women over 60 who are thinking about making a bold life change, but feel hesitant?

Like it’s late. It’s what you would say.

Susan: Support tons and tons of support from anybody you can get support from. And it might not be not, might not be family, it might not, it might be just have a support system. That believes in you.

Emily: That’s why I have this podcast. No, I, it’s how I understand that I can support people who are really on the brink of changes, but don’t know how to do, and they don’t have support, maybe not enough ideas, what to do next.

After 50, after 60, and somehow, I naively probably believe that stories of others who did it and succeeded or tried different things in life. It’s a secret of personal development and reinvention.

Susan: Keep learning too. That’s that’s find something that you love. But You don’t anything about it. That’s what I did.

I love clothing. I. Retail, but I knew nothing really about how to promote a company at all. I didn’t know how to do it at

Emily: all. Okay. So what is the next for you and inner joy, active wear? Do you have any dreams, ideas, goals that you still need to pursue that would keep, an eye out for. Achieving something.

Susan: My next goal is to have a big company buy me out.

Emily: Okay. It’s very smart. And

Susan: how, little, they need every company. When I did my research before I even started this, nobody sells women’s clothes. In cotton and for older women styled in design,

Emily: do you need to grow to the certain level? Sales and branches in order to be bought by, but I think it’s very realistic because we.

In many countries we are living longer and there are many dance clubs, gym clubs that actually targeting women after 50, 60, 70. And maybe it’s way to connect with this women fitness clubs and communities and retreat. So you think about it, it’s next on your, in, in, in personal life, if I can ask.

But you have now this healing opportunities or your spiritual work, it’s what you

Susan: planning as a next. I think the best times are just hugging my animal and that’s it. That’s what I like. My dog. I’m just saying there are times when you just feel the world is coming too close and you need to,

you need to feel some warmth and caring and compassion and I think just hugging your dog is the best thing in the world.

Oh yes, those two. I have those too.

Oh, she’s a mut. She’s just a mutt. She’s a rescue and she’s just the sweetest dog and she knows when I’m upset and she knows she’s spiritually. I think there’s a lot there. Yeah. Which is another whole area I’m interested in.

Emily: Absolutely. And I believe there are some companies who are working on AI who would help elderly people and who women, to, to accompany them and to provide.

I don’t put conversation if needed. I maybe I’m old, but I more prefer some, animal or personal touch rather than ai. And I think

Susan: there are very few ways to get unconditional love, and I think that’s from the aunt, that’s from your dog, the unconditional love that you want.

Emily: So what other advice would you give someone looking to embrace joy, creativity as they age.

Susan: Find out what do you love the most, and just try to embed it into your heart and see what it brings you.

Emily: You think from this we can develop creativity and

even without support, as you mentioned, we need support of I know family members.

Susan: I do. I do. But once you, yeah, once you what you want, maybe you hit. The world is wide open. You can get support on the internet if you need to from people. You can get support from anybody, but I think you just find out what you, what makes you feel good.

That’s it. What makes you actually feel good to be alive and to be here.

Emily: You lucky you found it to being six years old with the dance. I am lucky.

Susan: I am lucky. I feel very lucky. I feel very fortunate. What. To be almost 80 and to feel okay, to feel I still have things to do.

Emily: It just more than okay, you creating, you inventing new lines fashion, new approach to life may be.

Spiritual work and healing of people who would be otherwise, lonely and desperate. I feel I see a lot of potential coming from you, and I will try to follow you and please tell us where people can find more about you. Rather than website, I will include the website on description, but are you on some other social media platform?

And

Susan: we just got onto Amazon, we’re gonna be Mark, we’re gonna be marketing on Amazon now, which has been very exciting to do that. We’re on all the social medias, the Instagram and Facebook and LinkedIn.

Emily: So you have a lot of you, a lot of plans and opportunities and I sincerely wish you the best wish.

Inner joy activewear for more women to, to learn to know about it and to be healthy and to make joy of life your everyday activity while you dancing, while you managing your company, or when you dreaming about maybe next project. And to be happy every day.

Susan: Thank you. This you’re really wonderful and very inspiring for me too, so I appreciate it.

Emily: Thank you. And I get big compliment. Thank you. And I’m very happy that I had this opportunity to meet and speak with you. And I believe in you.

Susan: Thank you. And let’s not lose connection.

Emily: Absolutely. Absolutely. I wanna see if you go to the bookstore. Okay. And for all, who is listening to us? I can tell you that my name is Emily Braun.

I’m host of H of reinvention, and today this inspiring conversation was with Susan. Mary. Thank you very much, Susan.

Susan: Thank you. Thank you.

Emily: Thank you for joining us on H of Reinvention, where we explore the beauty of movement, creativity. Reinvention as Susan Mary reminds us, embracing joy and empowering yourself to live your fullest.

Most authentic life is never too late. She’s soon to be 80 full of dreams and plans. If you have been inspired by Susan’s story, from her career in dance to launching inner joy, active wear, and tapping into her spiritual gifts, don’t forget to subscribe and share this episode with others seeking motivation and purpose.

Remember, move with intention. Live with creativity and age with empowerment. Until next time, keep dancing your way through life.

Susan Merry

Founder of Inner Joy Activewear

Susan Merry is a vibrant 78-year-old entrepreneur and founder of Inner Joy Activewear, a brand celebrating bold style, comfort, and joyful movement for women of all ages. Blending function with flair, Susan designs activewear that empowers women to embrace life in motion. A proud advocate for senior entrepreneurship, she proves it’s never too late to launch something meaningful—and fabulous.

As we navigate the ever-evolving journey of life, redefining freedom, lifestyle, and purpose becomes especially meaningful during our midlife years. This “Age of Reinvention” episode celebrates creativity, empowerment, and reinvention for those aged 50 and beyond. Our guest, Susan Merry, exemplifies how age can catalyze joy, self-expression, and personal growth.

Meet Susan Merry

Susan Merry’s life embodies the essence of movement and transformation. A lifelong dancer, entrepreneur, mother, grandmother, and spiritual healer, Susan’s journey is one of growth and exploration. Starting her dance journey at six and launching the Inner Joy activewear company at 76, she illustrates how passion and resilience can manifest at any stage of life.

The Dance of Life

Dance has been the rhythmic heartbeat of Susan’s life. From her early ballet lessons to her dance major at Stevens College, Susan’s movements have always represented more than just steps; they’ve been expressions of her soul. Even when faced with challenges, attending dance classes remains her source of joy and vitality.

Susan’s connection to dance is deeply intertwined with her view on self-expression and body confidence. She envisions a world where women embrace their natural beauty and wear clothes that empower them, a vision that led to the creation of Inner Joy activewear.

Constant Reinvention

Susan’s career is a tapestry woven with threads of dance therapy, literature, retail, and fashion business. Her motivation for reinvention stems from a love of learning and an innate curiosity. She transitioned from bookselling to clothing, driven by a desire to enhance customer satisfaction and make women feel confident in their skin.

Susan started her retail journey in her forties, proving that it’s never too late to embark on new adventures. Her ability to dance five times a week and launch new business ventures at nearly 80 is a testament to her determination and zest for life.

Inner Joy Activewear: Empowering Women Over 50

The foundation of Susan’s latest enterprise, Inner Joy Activewear, is to empower women aged 50 and over. Growing tired of seeing older women covered up in baggy clothes, Susan designed a line that celebrates comfort and confidence. Her activewear incorporates her deep understanding of fabrics and styles that flatter mature bodies without compromising style or functionality.

Susan’s workshops on mediumship and healing further reflect her commitment to personal growth and helping others. Having discovered her gifts later in life, she highlights the universal potential for everyone to tap into inner resources and spiritual connections.

Embracing Age and Empowerment

Susan’s perspective on aging challenges the norm that slowing down is necessary. Her spiritual journey, retail venture, and dance classes communicate a powerful message of finding purpose and inner joy at any age. She continues to inspire us to seek what makes our hearts sing, regardless of societal expectations.

Finding Joy and Creativity

For those contemplating a bold change after 60, Susan advises surrounding oneself with a strong support system. Finding what we love and immersing ourselves in learning can unleash creativity and joy, allowing us to embrace life with renewed vigor.

As Susan Merry’s story beautifully illustrates, age is a gateway to fresh opportunities for joy, creativity, and empowerment. Her tale of resilience and reinvention proves that we can all dance into new phases of life, no matter the number of candles on the cake. If you’ve found inspiration in Susan’s journey, share it with others and continue dancing your way through life with intention and creativity. Let Susan’s passion ignite your own path toward empowerment and self-expression.