“I always loved the idea of owning my own business, to see the fruits of my labour and have real control over what I do day-to-day, but I didn’t want to go back to the corporate grind. Now I have the best of both worlds; my hard work benefits me and I’m doing something worthwhile to help those truly in need in the community.”

“I always loved the idea of owning my own business. To see the fruits of my labour and have real control over what I do day-to-day but I didn’t want to go back to the corporate grind. Now I have the best of both worlds; my hard work benefits me and I’m doing something worthwhile to help those truly in need in the community.”

Angela Mewis has been running her Promedica24 franchise in Surrey since January 2016. Despite her franchise being only a few months old, Angela is already a valued member of the Promedica24 network. She has recruited her husband Paul to work with her in the business, and when it comes to her ambitions for the future – the sky’s the limit!

“I’m so passionate about the business. The whole concept is just absolutely spot on. The thought of being old and stuck in an institution is awful. I think what we have here with Promedica24 is going to become the norm in the UK, just like it is in Europe. Forget being forced out of your home and into a residential care home, forget a lifetime of loneliness waiting for a carer to make a quick visit. This is the future, and I’m so proud to be a part of it. I want to become the go-to service for Surrey and I see no reason why we can’t achieve just that.”

Prior to owning her franchise, Angela built a successful career as a chartered surveyor in London. However, when her family came along, Angela’s priorities changed and she realised she wanted to escape the rat-race and pursue a more rewarding career.

“After graduating from university, I started my career as a chartered surveyor, working in London. I left that role to have my first child and ended up having three in rapid succession! I think when you have children, you think about things a little differently and I knew in my heart that I didn’t want to go back to the commute, the office politics and the whole 9-5 grind. I wanted to do something different, so I retrained. I took a psychology degree and became a special educational needs (SEN) teacher. I worked with autistic children and children with learning difficulties and also children who just needed that little extra help in classroom. It was truly rewarding but it didn’t satisfy my ambition professionally.”

Angela had always wanted the chance to pursue a dream of business ownership, but was unsure how to link that with a career that would also be personally rewarding. Her ‘lightbulb’ moment came when husband Paul was hired to work with the Promedica24 brand. He learnt more about the company’s mission for changing the tired, old care system in the UK and the franchise opportunity that ran alongside it.

“It was actually my husband Paul who inspired me initially! He’d done some work for Promedica24 globally and got to know the business really well. He told me all about it and we thought it was such a fantastic opportunity – the company itself, and investing in a franchise. We thought the franchise model was excellent and Promedica24 as a business had real gravitas. Because of the history and the whole company organisation and the concept – we fell in love with it. Why would you want your nearest and dearest taken from their homes in the last few years or months of their lives?”

Founded over a decade ago, Promedica24 is Europe’s largest provider of specialist live-in care. We offer a 24 hour live-in care service as a genuine alternative to residential care homes. Our franchisees operate at the heart of their local communities as ambassadors for care. Their role is to educate and introduce healthcare professionals, and the families of those in need, to the services offered by Promedica24. Franchisees assess, arrange and oversee the client /carer relationship for a truly bespoke solution and exceptional level of care.

After falling in love with the concept, Angela put her business head on and carried out her due diligence checks. Confident that this was an opportunity not to be missed, she signed her franchise agreement in October 2015 and trained just a few months later.

“The training and support has been great, it’s really good. I often refer back to my notes, which shows just how thorough it was. I’ve met up with fellow franchisees and they are all really supportive which is great. It gives us more strength and presence in the market when people realise we have national offices. The head office team are on hand if you need them and we’ve recently had our first group training session of the year.”

When you join the Promedica24 network, you join an expert team with over 20 years’ combined experience in the franchise industry and yet more in the healthcare sector. This includes our founding partner, who remains active within the business. We have a highly skilled workforce of over 5,000 care staff and those within the UK are regulated and monitored by the Care Quality Commission. We are proud members of the British Franchise Association and are passionate about ethical franchising.

Angela agrees that the skills she brings to the business from her previous careers are invaluable and will play an integral part in her success: “My professional career has equipped me with various skills that I do use day-to-day. Organisational and communication skills are particularly relevant to me in Promedica24 because of the personal and emotive nature of the business.”

With husband Paul now working part time in the business to support with administration and operations, Angela is free to put her skills to great use as she educates healthcare professionals and the local community about the services offered by Promedica24 in the area.

The number of older people with care needs is expected to rise by more than 60% in the next 20 years. The demand for live-in care is increasing rapidly.

It’s not all work, work, work. When she’s not busy with the business, Angela still finds time to enjoy her hobbies, which include being a regular member of two local book clubs, socialising with friends and walking her young German shorthaired pointer, Hiccup! Like many business owners, Angela is keen to maintain a work/life balance that means she still gets to enjoy family holidays and making the most of time with her loved ones.

“I’m very busy! There’s always something new to learn and new people to meet! I’m networking with and meeting such a variety of people, no two days are ever the same. In terms of work-life balance, my husband and I have to be careful that we don’t let our every conversation be dominated by the business, but that’s just because we’re both so passionate about it! In fairness, we are very good at keeping family life just that.”

Angela is living proof that the transition from the corporate world to business ownership is not only possible, it’s rewarding and profitable. Thanks to her hard work and determination and the unique structure of the Promedica24 franchise.

Promedica24 identified that the biggest barrier to growth in any UK care company is the availability of quality care staff. Unlike other care franchises, responsibility for delivery of care does not sit with the franchisee, but instead with Promedica24. We find and recruit staff for you and deal with all regulatory guidelines and compliance. This unique approach frees you up to do what you do best; build and run a successful, profitable and rewarding business that really makes a difference to people’s lives.

“It was important for me to make a difference. I could easily have gone back to being a chartered surveyor after having my children, but I just knew that I wanted more. I’m proud of my business, and I love that I can make a profit AND a difference at the same time. Why should you have to choose one or the other?”