If you had a pound for every time you heard the phrases “in these uncertain times” over the last few months, you could probably quit your job now and enjoy a wealthy retirement.

The fact is, these are uncertain times and even though statistically we have moved out of the recent recession, true stability still seems a long way away.

If you’ve had time to reflect during lockdown, or decided for a career change whilst on furlough, what are your options apart from going back into another type of employment. A bit like a couple deciding to wait “for the right time” to start a family, there is no right time to start your own business, you just need to do the best you can to make the right decisions and limit the risks.

Why not consider starting a business in a sector which is historically resistant to recession and uncertain times. Home care is a great choice but don’t just take our word for it, look out for more information over the coming weeks on how others have made this decision and joined the Radfield Home Care network.

James Beech and his wife Stefania launched Radfield Home Care Stamford, Peterborough & Rutland in October 2019. Two years on, they have embedded themselves within the local community, trading throughout the recession and the difficult financial turmoil Covid-19 presented us all, delivering exceptional care and have just received an overall Outstanding rating for their first CQC inspection!

“I decided to take the redundancy package on offer from my previous role, and then had some time to decide what it was I wanted to do next. I looked into other roles within the same sector that I’d previously worked in but I decided that I was getting towards the tail end of my career, so it was the right time to look at building something for myself.” James Beech, business owner of Radfield Home Care Stamford, Peterborough & Rutland explains

“We had around 6 months of trading before the pandemic took hold and we were growing steadily. We found our growth plateaued slightly as more people were home to look after loved ones but as lockdown eased the demand for our services took off again, people returning to work and needing someone to look after their family members. Nothing else had a significant impact on our business and I would say this is more down to the sector we are in”

Contributing over £17bn to the UK’s economy in 2018 and recruiting over 700,000 people, James and Stefania decided to join nearly 50,000 others and go down the increasingly common franchising route to launch their business.

“I would say that providing care is very rewarding for me, it’s about the difference that you make to people’s lives and it is a genuine difference, we see that day in and day out.

However, it’s not just about the client, it’s about the families, so there’s often that huge sense of relief from family members when we take a big burden off their shoulders when we get involved and we tend to work with the family members as part of our extended team.

We’re a local business providing local jobs for people, giving them other opportunities in their lives as well. I would say all of the people who work with us are doing it because they value the job and the contribution they make, they’re not just doing it for the money, they’re doing it because they love care and they like doing what they do and it’s great to be able to give them that opportunity.”

Locally Owned, Nationally Known

For many, franchising is a fantastic way to start their own business. As well as having a nationally recognised brand and the support and experience of an established franchisor to help guide you to success, franchising also allows you to work within your local community and as an independent business owner.

This combination of being locally owned, but nationally known means you remain a part of your local community but have the backing of a trusted brand to help you develop a successful business and have the best chance of success, especially in uncertain times.

James explains how that support has helped his business – “I think it gives you that additional depth of back up. I suppose in a sense for me with a franchise, although you’ve got your independence you’ve also got that fall back on a depth of expertise that you wouldn’t otherwise have in terms of running your own business.”

“To have created something from scratch and to have had success in doing that is great. I guess the icing on the cake for us was getting our outstanding but we’ve created a business with a good reputation and one that is financially sustainable.”

Start your journey with Radfield Home Care

If you’re eager to start a business in the home care industry, maybe you could follow in the footsteps of James and Stefania and become your own boss supporting your local community with a home care franchise.