Tim Hoerrner has started a home healthcare franchise with nurse Jenna Fink as his clinical director and administrator. Photos by Brandy Brubaker.
A Canadian franchise has arrived in Richmond to lend a hand to aging clients.
Local businessman Tim Hoerrner is opening a franchise of Vancouver-based Nurse Next Door at 2214 Westwood Ave. in Henrico. Hoerrner’s is the company’s first franchise in Virginia.
Founded in 2001, Nurse Next Door offers various levels of in-home care through its more than 80 franchises throughout North America. The company assigns employees to assist clients, from once-a-week errands and housekeeping to round-the-clock nursing care.
Hoerrner, who has a background in corporate marketing and has worked for Circuit City and L.L. Bean, said he didn’t set out to get into the home care business.
He said his experience as a longtime volunteer with Comfort Zone Camp, a nonprofit that helps grieving children, changed his focus.
“I came to the point where I decided, although I was good at what I was doing, I wanted to own my own business and help people,” Hoerrner, 47, said.
An acquaintance connected him to Nurse Next Door.
Nurse Next Door offers three levels of care, from help with errands and companionship to live-in help.
Hoerrner’s service area includes Richmond and Midlothian, as well as western Henrico County and portions of Ashland, Goochland County and Powhatan County, the company said. The next closest Nurse Next Door franchise is in Delaware.
According to Nurse Next Door, the company’s initial franchise fee is $42,000. It estimates that startup costs could range from $134,600 to $180,400. The price includes accounting and branding costs and the rental of a Nurse Next Door logo car.
Hoerrner declined to say how much he’s invested in the franchise but said he’s financing it through personal funds and a home equity loan through First Capital Bank. He said he pays an ongoing fee for access to Nurse Next Door’s 24-hour customer care center that coordinates schedules and does client intakes.
“I’m not a risk taker,” he said. “When I decided to do this, I spent a lot of time understanding home care, understanding Richmond, and understanding the market to make sure I could open a business that was different than what was out there and offer competitive services and competitive prices.”
More than 300 candidates have applied for jobs with Hoerrner’s franchise, and he said he’s hired about 10 so far. Caregivers are considered casual employees and are paid according to their level of experience and the number of hours they work.
He hired registered nurse Jenna Fink as clinical director and administrator.
Hoerrner sets his own rates and does not share profits with Nurse Next Door.
A four-hour, once-a-week companion visit, the most basic level of care, would start out at a rate of $80 to $100 a week, he said.
Hoerrner said there are dozens of other home care companies in the Richmond area that he’ll compete with but thinks Nurse Next Door will stand out because of its personalized care.
“It’s knowing the favorite sweater a client likes to wear when they go out for a walk or knowing what their favorite meal is,” he said.
Tim Hoerrner has started a home healthcare franchise with nurse Jenna Fink as his clinical director and administrator. Photos by Brandy Brubaker.
A Canadian franchise has arrived in Richmond to lend a hand to aging clients.
Local businessman Tim Hoerrner is opening a franchise of Vancouver-based Nurse Next Door at 2214 Westwood Ave. in Henrico. Hoerrner’s is the company’s first franchise in Virginia.
Founded in 2001, Nurse Next Door offers various levels of in-home care through its more than 80 franchises throughout North America. The company assigns employees to assist clients, from once-a-week errands and housekeeping to round-the-clock nursing care.
Hoerrner, who has a background in corporate marketing and has worked for Circuit City and L.L. Bean, said he didn’t set out to get into the home care business.
He said his experience as a longtime volunteer with Comfort Zone Camp, a nonprofit that helps grieving children, changed his focus.
“I came to the point where I decided, although I was good at what I was doing, I wanted to own my own business and help people,” Hoerrner, 47, said.
An acquaintance connected him to Nurse Next Door.
Nurse Next Door offers three levels of care, from help with errands and companionship to live-in help.
Hoerrner’s service area includes Richmond and Midlothian, as well as western Henrico County and portions of Ashland, Goochland County and Powhatan County, the company said. The next closest Nurse Next Door franchise is in Delaware.
According to Nurse Next Door, the company’s initial franchise fee is $42,000. It estimates that startup costs could range from $134,600 to $180,400. The price includes accounting and branding costs and the rental of a Nurse Next Door logo car.
Hoerrner declined to say how much he’s invested in the franchise but said he’s financing it through personal funds and a home equity loan through First Capital Bank. He said he pays an ongoing fee for access to Nurse Next Door’s 24-hour customer care center that coordinates schedules and does client intakes.
“I’m not a risk taker,” he said. “When I decided to do this, I spent a lot of time understanding home care, understanding Richmond, and understanding the market to make sure I could open a business that was different than what was out there and offer competitive services and competitive prices.”
More than 300 candidates have applied for jobs with Hoerrner’s franchise, and he said he’s hired about 10 so far. Caregivers are considered casual employees and are paid according to their level of experience and the number of hours they work.
He hired registered nurse Jenna Fink as clinical director and administrator.
Hoerrner sets his own rates and does not share profits with Nurse Next Door.
A four-hour, once-a-week companion visit, the most basic level of care, would start out at a rate of $80 to $100 a week, he said.
Hoerrner said there are dozens of other home care companies in the Richmond area that he’ll compete with but thinks Nurse Next Door will stand out because of its personalized care.
“It’s knowing the favorite sweater a client likes to wear when they go out for a walk or knowing what their favorite meal is,” he said.
Sounds like a unique way to franchise, but different is usually the way to go when staking out new areas of business. Hope to hear good things about Nurse Next Door in the near future!