Hey, Ritchie here.
Look, I completely understand the concerns you have around freedom and independence as a franchisee. You're dreaming of working with animals, being your own boss, and escaping the daily grind. But then you start looking at franchises and a little voice whispers: "Am I just swapping one boss for another? Will I have any real control?"
It's a legitimate worry, and I want to address it honestly because I was asking myself the exact same questions back in 2018.
Finding the Right Balance
When I was researching franchises, I went deep. I read everything I could find about independent pet care businesses—some were thriving, but many were struggling, drowning in admin, making costly mistakes, and working long weeks just to stay afloat.
Then I looked at various franchise models, and I'll be honest—some felt quite restrictive. I needed to know I'd have genuine autonomy in running my business day-to-day, not just be following rigid procedures with no room to breathe.
I wanted genuine business ownership—the freedom to build something of my own—but I also wanted the security of a proven system behind me. I'm methodical by nature. I didn't want to learn everything the hard way.
That's when I discovered PHG, and I realised something important: you don't have to choose between autonomy and support. You can have both.
What Autonomy Actually Looks Like at PHG
Let me be really clear about what you actually control when you run a PHG franchise, because this matters:
Your Service Mix: You decide which PHG services to focus on based on your passions and local demand. Love dogs? Focus on dog walking and dog sitting. Prefer the quieter company of cats and small animals? Build your business around home visits and small animal boarding. Enjoy the variety? Offer the full suite. It's entirely your call.
When Amber and I started PHG Southampton in 2018, we built our foundation around dog walking, because regular dog walking clients provide predictable, recurring income. There's something deeply satisfying about knowing you've got Monday through to Friday filled with walks before you've even started marketing other services.
Other franchisees have taken completely different approaches, and that's absolutely fine. The point is: you decide what works for your circumstances and your passions.
Your Day-to-Day Operations: How you structure your days, which routes you take, how you organise your schedule—that's all down to you. You're not clocking in and out or reporting your every move. You're running your business.
I'm naturally an early riser, which works brilliantly for the way I've structured my business. I do home cat visits first thing in the morning—checking on cats while their owners are at work, feeding them, giving them attention. Then I move onto dog walking, which typically happens between 10am and 2pm—that's when demand is highest and when most clients need their dogs walked. By 2pm, I'm essentially done for the day, maybe with the odd afternoon cat visit here and there.
Other franchisees structure their days completely differently—some focus solely around dog walking, while others focus primarily on home pet visits and dog sitting. The beauty is that you can offer services in a way that suits your lifestyle and gives you the freedom you're looking for, not the other way around.
Your Customer Relationships: These are your customers. You build the relationships, you deliver the service, you earn their trust and loyalty. PHG provides the credibility and the systems, but the relationships are genuinely yours. That personal connection is what makes this business so rewarding—and it's something nobody can take away from you.
Your Premium Pricing: Being part of an established, trusted franchise means you can charge premium rates from day one. The PHG blueprint enables you to provide a professional, reliable, high-quality pet care service—and customers are willing to pay accordingly.
You set your prices within PHG guidelines, but you're positioning yourself at the premium end of the market. You're not competing with the person down the road charging £8 for a dog walk. You're offering professional pet care backed by proper insurance, training, and a reputable brand—and your pricing reflects that quality.
This isn't about undercutting competitors. It's about commanding the rates your professionalism deserves.
The Freedom of Being Owner-Operated
Here's something I wish someone had told me earlier: not having to manage staff is an absolute gift.
I've watched friends and former colleagues struggle with the realities of managing staff—recruitment, training, absence management, performance issues, holiday requests, and the mountains of admin that come with having staff.
It's exhausting. It's expensive. And it takes you away from doing the work you actually love.
This is what makes PHG special. Our entire blueprint is designed to enable you to run a successful business as a sole trader/owner-operator. The premium pricing we command and the healthy margins you achieve mean you don't need staff to earn an excellent income. You can build a thriving, profitable business where you're the one walking the dogs, visiting the cats, caring for the animals.
You're working for yourself without the hassle of managing other people. That's genuine freedom.
So What's the PHG Framework Actually About?
Now, let me be equally honest about what PHG does require—and more importantly, why these requirements exist.
Safety First: Safety is the number one priority—and always will be. Safety for you and the animals in your care. Prevention is always better than cure, which is why we ensure you're equipped with the knowledge and tools to minimise risk and to avoid problems before they arise.
Professional Standards: When you wear PHG clothing, you're representing a trusted and professional brand. That means an immaculate presentation during customer appointments, keeping your vehicle and equipment clean and maintaining high standards in everything you do. These standards don't restrict you—they elevate your business and give you instant credibility.
Proven Systems: PHG has spent over 13 years refining what works. Your Google Ads campaign is set up professionally. Your website is ready to go. Your branding is established and trusted. The operations manual gives you the complete PHG blueprint—everything you need to run your business effectively from day one. You're starting 10 steps ahead of where you'd be going solo.
The PHG framework isn't about control—it's about giving you everything you need to hit the ground running and the ongoing support to build a profitable, long-term business.
The Real Question: What Kind of Business Owner Are You?
Here's how I think about the autonomy question:
If you want to do absolutely everything your own way, ignore proven best practices, and experiment with unproven methods, then franchising probably isn't for you. And that's fine—some people thrive on total independence and are willing to accept the higher failure rate that comes with it.
But if you want to build a successful pet care business with a proven blueprint behind you, while still having genuine control over your day-to-day operations, your service focus, your customer relationships, and your work-life balance—then PHG gives you exactly that.
You're not an employee. You're not micromanaged. You're a business owner with the backing of franchisors who still work hands-on in the business and truly understand your journey.
So Here's the Truth
Will you have "absolute freedom" to do whatever you want, however you want?
No. And I doubt you would want that anyway—because without any framework or guidance, you'd be starting from scratch and figuring everything out the hard way.
What you will have is genuine autonomy over your business where it matters—your customers, your day-to-day operations, your work-life balance. You'll work hands-on with animals without the staffing headaches. And you'll have the backing of a proven system that's helped franchisees succeed for over a decade.
The bottom line is, you'll be working for yourself, but not by yourself!
If that's the kind of setup you've been looking for, please do get in touch.
📞 023 8225 4562 | 07902 127835
📧 info@petshomesandgardens.co.uk
