By establishing your business within your community, you are already helping people by responding to a need within their lives. But a franchisee also has the opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives in many other ways. Demonstrating your businesses’ community values and commitment to giving back is a powerful way to show your customers that you are more than just a service provider. At Petpals, franchisees are welcomed into the network because of their determination to do exactly that. Here, Kevin Thackrah, Director, celebrates the latest franchisee to go – or walk – the extra mile and discusses the importance of championing community-minded individuals within the Petpals network.
Sue Vinsome, who launched her Petpals franchise in Chichester alongside her husband Jon this year, has always been passionate about helping her local community and providing Petpals’ award-winning pet-care services to Chichester. This sentiment echoes in her devotion to raising money for a charity that directly affects and supports the people she serves in her local area. A dedication that saw her walk for more than 15 hours over rocky terrain and in some tricky weather conditions. Starting in Eastbourne and ending in Hove, the walk began at 8:30 am and didn’t finish until midnight.
Thanks to a lot of dog walking with Petpals, Sue is used to putting the steps in to help out her local community, but nothing could have prepared her for the 55km long walk she undertook for her chosen charity. With her ‘Unforgettables’, Sue has raised over £50k since participating in various charity walks and events since 2016. This time round, Sue and her team raised funds for The Sussex Snowdrop Trust, a charity providing ‘Nursing Care at Home’ for local children with life-threatening or terminal illnesses. Located in her local Chichester area of West Sussex, the cause is close to her heart. Two of her team members sadly lost children, and the charity supported them and their families, so it felt right for Sue to raise money for a cause that her community really values.
Our network of franchisees prides itself on supporting the areas it serves, and this doesn’t stop at providing quality pet services to its community of furry friends. A growing number of franchisees are placing importance on supporting their communities through fun and charitable events that raise money and awareness for the causes they and their communities care about most. People like Sue make me proud to do what I do as a franchisor and champion our community-focused businesses up and down the country.
A testament to this is David Gray, co-owner of Petpals Darlington, who will be following in Sue’s many, many footsteps. This October, he and his team will be participating in a charity walk of their own to aid suicide prevention, a cause important to him and his local community.
At Petpals, we recruit our franchisees because they exhibit a real passion for helping their community, demonstrated by the inspiring charity work of individuals like Sue and David. Owning a franchise comes with a certain amount of responsibility to the community you serve, whether that’s on your own doorstep or a particular cross-section of an industry or sector. Sue and David do a fantastic job of supporting their local communities and David, who is also our Brand Development Manager, can often be found campaigning for the rights of pets and their owners. They really do practise what they preach.
While much work is needed to become a successful franchisee, the importance of spending time to give back to your local community shouldn’t be overlooked. Whether you donate an hour of your time or 15 hours, when you give back to your community, you gain a deeper connection and a stronger relationship with your customers and prospects. Undoubtedly, the good will it promotes and the money it generates for those in need will not go unnoticed.
