WOMEN IN FRANCHISING
to have palliative care at home gave her a good end-of-life experience, as far as they go – and particularly when you’re that young”. Her sister sadly died aged just 18. The whole family came to appreciate the value of high-quality homecare and shortly afterwards Hannah's stepfather Simon decided to become a Caremark franchisee. Heartbreakingly, he was diagnosed soon after with motor neurone disease. In this time, Simon turned to Hannah (who, in her own words, was “23 with two babies and not much work experience”) proposing she take over and carry on the business. How she replied is a perfect demonstration of her fearlessness. Hannah recalls: “I just said: ‘Yeah, sure!’ I’ve got a can-do attitude and I love a challenge. Simon saw in me the qualities that a business actually needs, rather than just things on paper.” In that instant, she took on the
Caremark franchisee experience. “We just went for it. I moved into my mum and stepdad’s house to learn everything from him.” Just a few months after Simon’s diagnosis, Hannah undertook Caremark training and starting to run the operation. Simon sadly died several years on in 2015, but the franchise he launched now thrives under Hannah’s leadership. That can-do attitude is matched by Hannah's passion for superb quality care – and business is booming! Given that her introduction
to Caremark was in her own home – Simon was even cared for by his own staff – it’s no surprise that closeness in the team is important to her. “When you come in here, it’s like a family. And however big we get, we try and maintain that.” Aware, too, of her wider family – the
Caremark franchise network – Hannah calls on readily-available support from her peers and from the Caremark Franchise Support Centre – thankfully receiving the perspective of “fresh eyes” when, for example, a team member visited to help assess office premises. Hannah may have left school
early, but has continued to develop her talents in parallel with her business growth. She’s now a yoga teacher and, having left a psychology degree
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“Franchising gives you a solid base to be able to run a business, to test your entreprenuerial spirit”
to join Caremark, is now considering other courses that focus on human behaviour – all the while passing on the benefits of her self-improvement to customers and staff. With her background, she also understands the value of homecare more than most, but concedes with modesty that she's always learning and, in the same spirit, recommends that: “Anybody going into this industry should try and spend time on the frontline – understanding what you’re delivering is key.” Awarded ‘Young Franchisee of the
Year’ an incredible four times, Hannah has become an enthusiastic advocate of the franchise model, noting how the Caremark formula delivers a perfect mix of support from head office plus local- level autonomy that maintains the ‘soul’ of a company, which larger corporates can lack. “It gives you a solid base to be able to run a business, to test all your entrepreneurial ideas and spirit and see if you can do it – but with that safety net of a tried-and-tested model.”
caremarkfranchises.com
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