Many immigrant entrepreneurs like the tried and tested option of buying into an established franchise business.
Gloria Elayadathusseril and Margaret Jetelina
Alnawaz Ladha: Retire-At-Home Services, Vancouver
 Not all franchises are about food. There are many popular franchise options in service industries, too — everything from postal services, like UPS, to hair salons, like Great Clips. One industry that has been seeing more and more franchise options is health and wellness, particularly for seniors. Alnawaz Ladha, an Ismaili immigrant from Nairobi, Kenya, recognized this growing trend and opened a Retire-At-Home Services franchise in the Vancouver area.
“We assist people in their homes who have difficulties with daily life events, for example, people who are physically challenged or seniors who need some help in their houses,” says Ladha, describing the Retire-At-Home concept. “Today, a lot of people are choosing to live in their own homes [instead of nursing homes]. They have lived in their homes all their lives, seen their families grow up there, created so many memories and don’t choose to leave. All they require is some assistance and support.”
That support could mean anything from a little housework to personal care like help with bathing or grooming, to 24-hour care.
Before Ladha decided to join Retire-At-Home, he was a busy HR and management professional — until an accident changed his life forever. His wife, Nahida, slipped and fell, suffering various injuries. Initially, he was not aware that private care was available, and quickly became frustrated with the caregiver support available to them through the health care system. “We were not receiving consistent care,” he says, explaining that they had to explain their needs over and over again to a parade of different caregivers. Eventually, he left his job to care for his wife full-time, but thought there had to be a better way. That’s when he discovered Retire-At-Home. Ladha liked the concept so much that he decided to become a franchisee.
“All our services at Retire-At-Home are nurse-managed care. We actually go into the houses initially to do an assessment with the client and the family,” he explains. “We sit down with the children, the family and listen to their needs and concerns. We take all that information back and create a comprehensive care plan for them, which incorporates all the information about personal care preferences, prescriptions, allergies, doctor’s wishes, the senior’s likes and dislikes, and what services they would like.” That way, when the caregiver shows up, daily or weekly, she or he knows exactly what that client needs and doesn’t have to depend on the client to tell them what is required for them to do.”
As the executive director, Ladha manages a team of nurses and caregivers who attend to clients throughout the Lower Mainland. He says his business and management skills have been pivotal in managing his business. But, number 1, he says you must have a passion for helping others. As an Ismaili, Ladha comes from a long tradition of community service and he finds he can combine his business skills and charitable efforts in his work with Retire-At-Home. “You have to be compassionate and understand what your clients are going through. You can’t do this for the money; it will never work for you,” he says.
“Once you have that compassionate part, now you also have to manage the system. You’ve got to have some kind of management and HR skills, because you’re also dealing with hiring caregivers. And business development skills to go out there and promote it.”
The fact that Retire-At-Home is an established franchise made the decision to become an entrepreneur all the easier for Ladha. “There’s a ton of things that you need to do when providing home support and it all has to be structured. If you do this on your own, you might think you could hire a couple of caregivers and they’ll go in and that’s that. But we wanted to go with a company that has been doing this for many years, and doing the right thing.”
He says the head company provides franchisees with tons of information. “We didn’t have the technique and experience that they bring to the table, which is why we didn’t start a business on our own,” he says. “They provide the necessary tools we need to be successful in this industry.”
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