Abi Purser, founder of Longcroft Luxury Cat Hotels Limited, explains why the business should win the home business category of the Guardian Small Business Showcase competition.
Recognising the need for better cat care in the UK, I opened the first Longcroft Luxury Cat Hotel in 2010 in the garden of my family home. Five years later my business has grown into a successful franchise model with 10 hotels across the UK. Interest from cat loving businesspeople who want to join the successful brand is at an all-time high.
I have created a unique business and pioneered a multitude of innovations, from the bespoke wrought iron (cat) beds to the fact that the cats dine from porcelain plates and send postcards to their owners. In doing so, I’ve created a best in class VIP service for feline guests. My ideas are not merely innovative, but rooted in decades of experience in animal welfare, ensuring that cats are happy, relaxed and cared for in the best way possible during their stay.
The main ground-breaking event was proving that small boutique catteries, such as Longcroft, can be sited in residential environments with educated tailoring of planning applications coupled with advice from planning consultants. Longcroft’s meticulous approach to build quality, material and cleanliness has enabled this to be accepted into local authorities.
In turn this has widened the franchisee pool 100-fold as stereotypically catteries are known for being sited on smallholdings limiting the number of franchisees able to take a hotel into consideration. The business model offers an income of £45,000 - £55,000 with profit margins of around 90%.
All entries which meet the competition criteria are published and our judging panel select a shortlist of the top three for each category. Winners are announced at an awards ceremony in summer 2016.
