Pals4Pets is pleased to announce that a new franchisee, Helen Alvarez, will be launching her Pals4Pets franchise business on 1st June. Helen will operate from South-West London and will provide pet care services to existing and new clients in Battersea, Clapham, Wandsworth and Putney.
Below is an interview with Helen regarding her experience so far with Pals4Pets. It should be noted that Helen was aided in her investigation by her partner who is a Vice President of Investment Banking at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. He brought the same level of thoroughness to this investigation as is typical with his normal deals that involve evaluating businesses worth £350+million.
1. Prior to investing in Pals4Pets, what did you do professionally? Provide snapshot for the last 5 – 15 years.
· Following graduation, I took a job working as a geologist (which was my degree subject) for an offshore oil services company which involved me spending 2 week rotations on oil rigs in the North Sea and off the coast of Holland.
· Having quickly realised that working on oil rigs was not the career for me, I have since worked in a range of analytical based jobs at various governmental agencies, including Kent Police, Westminster City Council, the Ministry of Defence and King’s College University.
2. Why did you decide to look at investing/running a franchise business?
· I was looking for a role that was more people oriented.
· I felt that running my own business would be challenging and provide me with an entirely different and highly relevant skill set.
· I was attracted to the fact that the role continuously evolves, from being very hands-on at the beginning to hopefully developing into a more managerial format over time.
· I was attracted to the relative freedom from being self-employed.
· I was particularly attracted to the franchise idea due to the mentoring and pastoral support that is offered, which was very important to me given that I had no previous business experience.
3. Did you look at other franchise opportunities besides Pals4Pets? If yes, what were your top (3 -5) reasons for choosing the Pals4Pets franchise?
· Pals4Pets already had a very strong footprint in London – they understood how the market works in my specific territory which is invaluable given the bespoke nature of London customers versus the rest of the UK.
· They offered a larger territory than their competitors.
· Their training is very hands-on and tailored to the individual franchisee’s needs. Some of the competitors’ training programmes appeared to be more homogenous.
· Pals4Pets has a relatively small number of franchises which enables them to offer me more ongoing support once I am operational than a larger franchise can.
· I was very impressed by the professionalism and experience of the Pals4Pets team.
4. How long did it take you to make a decision with regards to Pals4Pets?
· Very quickly. I only needed four meetings from my first enquiry to making a final decision. The whole process took less than six weeks.
5. Did you have any concerns as you went through the investigation process with Pals4Pets? How were they addressed?
· My two main concerns were whether I could draw a decent wage from the business on an ongoing basis and whether I would actually enjoy the job on a day-to-day basis.
· The Pals4Pets team took me through the business model to give me comfort on how the economics of the franchise work.
· To give me a feel for the job itself, I spent a day work shadowing the London Pals4Pets team which gave me a real insight into what the role entails and an added excitement for taking on the franchise opportunity.
· Finally, I spoke to a number of the other franchisees to get a feel for how they have found the entire experience. I was very encouraged at their universal enthusiasm which reinforced my view that this was the right career move for me.
6. Based on your research, what are your thoughts about the competition in this market?
· Pet care has low barriers to entry and as such is characterised by a large number of one-man operators and a much smaller number of larger, more professional firms including Pals4Pets.
· In order to be able to charge a premium against smaller competitors, clients need to feel that they are getting a better product. Key differentiators that enable you to charge more include reliability, assurance that their pets will be cared for on a one-to-one basis and continuity of care.
7. What are you most looking forward to with running your own Pals4Pets franchise business?
· I like the fact that my hard work manifests itself into growing a business that I myself own, so I am not just making money for myself as the business ticks along, but also creating a business than has substantial value.
· I am looking forward to meeting lots of clients and carers who share my love for animals.
· I am looking forward to having the relative freedom that being your own boss provides, recognising that I will be working a lot harder than I was in my old job!
8. What are your plans to grow and scale the business over the next 6/12/18/24 months?
· I am keen to grow the business at a manageable pace to ensure that I have the appropriate carer network to support what I expect to be strong customer demand.
· There are a number of incumbents in my area so I intend to market my franchise very aggressively to ensure that clients know I am in business and understand what differentiates my business from the competitors.
· If the business grows at the pace I am expecting, I would not rule out purchasing a contiguous franchise area to grow the business further within the next 2-3 years.
9. If you could offer one piece of concrete advice to other people looking at the Pals4Pets franchise, what would it be?
· Make sure that you factor in all the start-up costs before you make the decision to invest. Getting the business into a position where it is generating healthy revenues is likely to take several months so you need to ensure that you can meet all the business start-up costs, plus whatever personal living expenses need funding, in this start-up phase.
10. Where did you get the funding for your franchise business?
· My partner and I combined our savings which enabled us to not have to seek bank funding.
11. Is there anything else you would like to share?
· Although the role involves meeting people and working with animals, the Pals4Pets model is ultimately very business focused and the bulk of your time is spent on the marketing and carer recruitment side of the business. However, this is what makes the business scaleable and if you are self-motivated and enthused about growing a business, then I truly believe this an unique and very exciting opportunity.
NOTE TO EDITORS:
About Pals4Pets Limited:
Pals4Pets is the longest established professional pet care company in the UK, with a complete range of services for dogs, cats and all domestic pets and birds. There is a strong management team working to support the growing network of franchisees, clients and their pets. All sitters and walkers in London and throughout the UK have access to 24-hour support, help and veterinary advice. Please visit our website at http://www.pals4pets.co.uk or contact us on 0208 201 1606 to learn more about the Company.
