{"id":9446,"date":"2021-05-01T09:28:03","date_gmt":"2021-05-01T08:28:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/?p=9446"},"modified":"2021-05-18T09:31:42","modified_gmt":"2021-05-18T08:31:42","slug":"starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/","title":{"rendered":"Starting your pet sitting business &#8211; franchise or go it alone?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_88 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #101010;color:#101010\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #101010;color:#101010\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/#how-my-pet-sitting-business-started\" >How my pet sitting business started<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/#how-my-pet-sitting-business-grew\" >How my pet sitting business grew<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/#where-is-my-pet-sitting-business-now\" >Where is my pet sitting business now?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/#would-i-do-it-all-over-again\" >Would I do it all over again?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/#what-advice-would-i-offer-wannabe-pet-sitting-business-owners\" >What advice would I offer wannabe pet sitting business owners?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/starting-your-pet-sitting-business-franchise-or-go-it-alone\/#last-words\" >Last words<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><p>You\u2019re looking for a change. You have your heart set on running your own business &#8211; a pet sitting business. There are probably a million and one ideas and questions running through your head right now &#8211; and one of them is probably \u201cshould I invest in a pet sitting franchise, or should I start up on my own?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Now, you probably think that &#8211; being a pet sitting business owner who is franchising &#8211; I am going to say franchise all the way\u2026 right? Well, no &#8211; it isn\u2019t for everyone!<\/p>\n<p>What I do want to do in this blog is tell you a little story about how I created my own pet sitting business and the lessons I learned along the way. I\u2019m also going to talk about the opportunities that we, as The Cat Butler, offer individuals interested in starting their own pet care business. As you will see, there are benefits to both approaches &#8211; you just need to decide which is right for you.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"how-my-pet-sitting-business-started\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"how-my-pet-sitting-business-started\"><\/span>How my pet sitting business started<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Coming up with the idea for The Cat Butler pet sitting business was easy in comparison to everything that followed the months after. I\u2019m going to be totally honest with you here\u2026 I didn\u2019t really know where to start!<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019d worked in finance previously, so I had a fairly good idea as to what had to be done on that side. The rest, though &#8211; the name, the logo, the branding, how I was going to find customers, what sort of insurance I needed, the organisations I needed to register my new business with &#8211;\u00a0that was all new for me.<\/p>\n<p>I remember feeling quite overwhelmed at times, and I had a few moments where I thought, \u201chave I done the right thing?\u201d<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"how-my-pet-sitting-business-grew\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"how-my-pet-sitting-business-grew\"><\/span>How my pet sitting business grew<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The Cat Butler did grow, and we started taking on new customers almost instantly. It took a little while, though, before we were recognised as the pet sitting business of choice. I put a lot of hours &#8211; as well as blood, sweat and tears in &#8211; but a lot of this running my own business malarkey was new to me at the time. Although I loved what The Cat Butler was doing and the pet sitting business I was growing; there were some elements of the \u2018job\u2019 that I certainly found less fun.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"where-is-my-pet-sitting-business-now\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"where-is-my-pet-sitting-business-now\"><\/span><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-9447\" title=\"tabby kittens on floral comforter 160755 701x0 is\" src=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is.jpg\" alt=\"tabby kittens on floral comforter 160755 701x0 is\" width=\"701\" height=\"469\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is.jpg 701w, https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is-600x401.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is-696x466.jpg 696w, https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is-628x420.jpg 628w, https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/tabby-kittens-on-floral-comforter-160755.701x0-is-20x13.jpg 20w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 701px) 100vw, 701px\" \/>Where is my pet sitting business now?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Now &#8211; in April 2021 &#8211; The Cat Butler has been trading for six years. We &#8211; yes, it\u2019s \u2018<em>we<\/em>\u2019 now, and not just little old me (though that\u2019s a story for another blog) &#8211; have an enviable reputation in the areas in which we operate, and we are seen as the pet sitting business of choice for thousands of customers.<\/p>\n<p>The Cat Butler is a highly successful and profitable pet sitting business, and it\u2019s going from strength to strength. It\u2019s taken a lot of hard work to get here. I\u2019m lucky that I had a financial security blanket when I started this venture and had the support that meant I didn\u2019t need to worry too much about the pet sitting business\u2019 profitability in the early days &#8211; I\u2019m not sure The Cat Butler would be here today if I hadn\u2019t had that, and I know that not every new business owner would have been so fortunate.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"would-i-do-it-all-over-again\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"would-i-do-it-all-over-again\"><\/span>Would I do it all over again?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Yes. I\u2019m incredibly proud of the pet sitting business that I have built, and it is hard to imagine doing anything else these days. Do I wish, though, that I\u2019d known then some of the things I do now? Yes, yes, and yes again. Absolutely!<\/p>\n<p>I met a lot of other new business owners when I started out. Although their businesses were different, we were all very much in the \u2018newbies club\u2019 together. A lot of them threw in the towel before the first year was out. More again in the years that followed. I guess I never really believed those \u2018only 50% of new businesses survive\u2019 stats before I saw it happening around me.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"what-advice-would-i-offer-wannabe-pet-sitting-business-owners\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"what-advice-would-i-offer-wannabe-pet-sitting-business-owners\"><\/span>What advice would I offer wannabe pet sitting business owners?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Owning your own pet sitting business gives you so much flexibility, and I love that I manage to make a living &#8211; a good one at that &#8211; from doing what I love. If you are thinking of going down this route, do take the time to consider whether investing in a pet sitting franchise may be a better option than starting from scratch and going out on your own. Yes, there will be an investment to make &#8211; and this will perhaps put some people off &#8211; but weigh this up against the payback you will get, the shortcuts to success it will afford you, and the support you\u2019ll receive.<\/p>\n<p>If you are looking at investing in a pet sitting franchise, take the time to really understand the business you\u2019re getting into bed with.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/investing-in-a-cat-sitting-business-why-should-you-choose-the-cat-butler\/\">Is it the right fit for you<\/a>? Can you see yourself working well with the franchisor? Could you build a franchise business that you could be proud of? And would the franchisor be there every step of the way, working with you side-by-side?<\/p>\n<p>You also need to consider whether franchising is right for you. It offers fantastic benefits if you pick the right pet sitting franchise business and follow the blueprint to success that the franchisor provides. There are two things to think about here:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>What does the franchisor\u2019s blueprint for success look like? How comprehensive is it? How flexible? How well has it been tested and proved?<\/li>\n<li>Are you the sort of person who can follow a plan like this? Not everybody is, but being a successful pet sitting franchise owner depends on you being able to do it.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3 id=\"last-words\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"last-words\"><\/span>Last words<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Whichever route you go down, I wish you the very best of luck &#8211; owning a pet sitting business really is a dream come true. I\u2019m always happy to chat and share with you some of the many things that I\u2019ve learned along the way. So, if you\u2019re interested in finding out more about running a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/the-cat-butler\/\">Cat Butler pet sitting business<\/a>, get in touch and let\u2019s build a business that we can both be proud of!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You\u2019re looking for a change. You have your heart set on running your own business &#8211; a pet sitting business. There are probably a million and one ideas and questions running through your head right now &#8211; and one of them is probably \u201cshould I invest in a pet sitting franchise, or should I start [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9448,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1472,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-the-cat-butler","category-pet-franchises"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/cat-butler-news.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9446"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9446\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9448"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}