A businesswoman has told how she felt her ‘world come crashing down’ when she was diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer while on the cusp of realising her dreams.
Erika Nilsson-Humphrey, 38, who is originally from Sweden and now lives in London, launched her men’s styling service Dappad just three months before she discovered a lump in her breast.
As a fledgling businesswoman and the mother of an eight-month old baby, the diagnosis came at the worst possible time for Erika, who said it was ‘mental’ trying to juggle everything.
But despite having to endure chemotherapy, a lumpectomy, radiotherapy and hormone treatments, Erika refused to give up on her dreams of making a success of her business.
Two years on, and now in remission, her determination has paid off – she now counts celebrities including Ronan Keating and former footballer Ian Wright among her clients, and was even invited to pitch to the panel of TV entrepreneurs on Dragons’ Den.
Speaking exclusively to FEMAIL, Erika revealed how her cancer diagnosis almost led her to give up on her dream, but steely determination helped her battle her way back to health – and turn her business into a success.
Erika Nilsson-Humphrey, 38, who is originally from Sweden and now lives in London, battled breast cancer while trying to set up a successful business (pictured here with her daughter Didi)
After a year and a half spent researching, planning and perfecting her businesss strategy, Erika finally launched Dappad in 2015 – an online personalised styling service for men that invites users to create profiles outlining their tastes – which the team uses to compile a bespoke box of high-quality clothing selected just for them.
Three months after launching her brand, Erika discovered a lump while breastfeeding her baby daughter Didi, now three. She assumed it was nothing to worry about, but made an appointment to see her doctor just in case.
Erika told FEMAIL of her shock diagnosis: ‘I was still breastfeeding at that time [that I found the lump] and I was sure it was some kind of milk duct.
‘So I went to the doctor and I was completely relaxed, no worries at all. Obviously they saw straight away that it was something because it was Grade 3, which is the most aggressive kind of breast cancer, so they instantly saw it on the ultrasound.
The mum-of-one wasn’t worried when she found a lump as she believed it was just a side effect of breast feeding
‘So I came back from that ultrasound and they said ”We’re worried”. I was there alone, I hadn’t brought my husband or anything because I wasn’t worried. It was a bit of a shock.’
Erika endured six months of chemotherapy, a lumpectomy, a month of radiotherapy and hormone treatments, all while balancing raising her baby with running her fledgling business.
The then new mother admits she contemplated giving up on her business idea to concentrate on her health.
Erika was invited to pitch her business on Dragons’ Den back in October of this year
Erika has set up a successful menswear business called Dappad which sends men outfits tailored to their tastes
She said: ‘I was working on the business but obviously my capacity was decreased. I mean… there were many days where I couldn’t really get up from the bed. It was a tough time.
‘Sometimes I wondered if [continuing to work] was the right decision. My oncologist said: ”Oh you should live your live as normally as possible”.
‘So I tried, but it was too tough.’
Erika explained how her cousin came over from Sweden to act as a nanny while she underwent treatment and continued to work on her career.
Erika said: ‘It was obviously a bit mental. We [initially] didn’t have an office so the clothes and everything [for Dappad] were in our house, and then I had the baby.
‘Luckily – I was so grateful – my cousin had just finished university in Sweden, she took six months off and she came to stay with us.
Dappad’s celebrity clients include footballer Ian Wright and singer Ronan Keating
After setting a style profile, Dappad sends their customers high quality clothes
‘She was like our au pair and made sure our life didn’t completely collapse – because my husband works full time, so somebody had to be there [with the baby].’
Erika has been in remission since 2016, and has seen her business grow from strength to strength.
Earlier this year she was invited to pitch her idea to the experts on Dragon’s Den, although she didn’t succeed in persuading them to hand over the £75,000 cash injection she asked for.
She said: ‘I didn’t get funding but it’s been tremendous in terms of marketing and PR. I’ve never seen something like it. I mean October was completely crazy for us, it basically quadrupled our sales.
‘We’ve had 1,500 people more sign up to our site so it’s very, very good.’
Erika said appearing on Dragon’s Den gave her company a huge boost, with 1,500 people signing up after the show aired