Life can throw up all sorts of challenges, but Adam Kaan’s has been more than a bit tough.
In fact, he branded his own circumstances a “bundle of tragedy”.
The father was hit by a slew of ordeals that took a toll on his mental outlook. The 44-year-old had a fire break out in his house, was stricken by a mystery illness, lost £27,000 and got divorced.
But now, the Oldham native has seen his business take off and his fortunes finally seem to be improving.
His physical training business is now a six-figure company, which he set up following his horrendous experiences.
Mr Kaan was only 15 when he began experiencing strange symptoms, including night sweats and a persistent cough. He was always tired and couldn’t leave his house.
His mum had to become his full-time carer and he could barely even feed or clothe himself. The teenager even considered taking his own life.
Four years later he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, a bacterial infection which impacts the lungs, glands, bones and nervous system. Doctors discovered the condition when doing an MRI scan, realising that he had a rare case of TB in his skull.
He said: “I thought I would be housebound and bedbound forever. My mum was my full-time carer. I couldn’t sleep; I had really bad insomnia.
“It was just awful. It was horrible. I thought, ‘There’s no point me living like this’.”
He eventually overcame the condition, but his luck wasn’t about to change. Whilst living in Oldham with his then-wife and two children, his house was badly damaged in a fire.
The dad lost everything in his home in the fire and did not have insurance. The only blessing was that nobody was in.
If the fire wasn’t enough, Mr Kaan got divorced and became a single dad to his two kids. That was before his business partnership went south, costing him £27,000.
Those fees meant he wasn’t able to restore his home and his family had to live in the attic. He told the Manchester Evening News: “By the time I was 32, I thought this was my lot in life. I thought my life was a bundle of tragedy.”
He added: “I hit rock bottom. I thought, ‘I need to do something.’ Up until this point, I kept blaming everyone else for my circumstances. I needed to change my circumstances; I kept feeling sorry for myself.”
After wave after wave of tragedy, Mr Kaan decided to take the plunge, start his own business and turn his life around.
With five employees, Mr Kaan’s KaanFitness is now worth six figures.
He said: “It’s very successful. I feel accomplished – I’ve made it, I did it. There’s a massive sense of accomplishment. But I’m not one to settle and be satisfied.
“My wife said to me, ‘You’ll never be happy,’ but I told her it’s not about being happy. I’m very happy and content, but I’m still ambitious.
“It’s not about greed or being ungrateful. I still have bigger targets for myself and the business. There’s so much opportunity out there. The world is your oyster.
“I like to constantly keep improving and moving forward – maybe I’ll settle down once I have a few million in the bank.”
