Franchise Update Magazine Issue III, 2013 | Page 44

Grow Market Lead

By Eddy Goldberg

WHAT’S YOUR

DEVELOPMENT
CONNECTION?
Transparency and openness rule at

W

Griswold Home Care

hen Jean Griswold company in the world, and 2) to be the
opened her first non- best business opportunity for franchisees
medical home care available anywhere,” says Mike Magid,
facility in 1982, she vice president of franchise development.
set the tone for how the company opFollowing the tradition laid down
erates today.
by Griswold, the brand is looking for
Griswold, by all accounts, was an ex- something special in its applicants.
traordinary woman: high school guidance “Every person we bring in wants more
counselor, geriatric counselor, married to from life than just creating profits in a
an ordained minister, wheelchair-bound business. We need to see that in them,”
with multiple sclerosis, and inspired to he says. “We like to say our franchisees
start a home care business after an el- are not just looking to feed their pockderly member of her husband’s church ets, but to feed their souls. That’s the
passed away from malnutrition and culture we live.”
dehydration after a period of neglect.
Shortly after that, Griswold opened The process
a small home care business. Operating The company’s franchise award process
out of her own home, her mission was consists of six steps, carefully honed
to help people in need by providing over the decades to preserve the valextraordinary care at affordable rates. ues of the founder. Applicants receive
She aimed to keep her expenses as low a summary description of those steps
as possible and pass on the
when they request a franchise
savings to clients—and attract
kit from the company’s redethe best caregivers by offering
signed franchise development
higher wages and screening
website, which went live in
them carefully before matchearly June.
ing them with clients.
In fact, the first six months
Two years later, in 1984,
of 20 L