From Corporate Burnout to a Pet Business She Loves

When Nina Hardy first looked into franchising, the word left her cold. It sounded corporate and impersonal - the very thing she was trying to escape. What changed her mind was the welcome: an open, transparent approach, honest conversations over coffee, and background checks that ran both ways. She wanted to invest in a brand that was equally careful about who it invested in. That reassurance was the start of everything.

That was back in 2019. Years on, that leap of faith has become We Love Pets Aylesbury - an established, trusted pet care business with a team of its own. If you're reading this and quietly wondering whether you could do the same, Nina's story is worth five minutes of your time.

Why Nina walked away from the 9–5

Nina's old career had drifted a long way from the hands-on work she once enjoyed. The days had become desk-bound, the commute long and expensive, the international travel relentless, and the pressure far heavier than the role deserved. Projects followed her home and cost her sleep; anxiety became a constant background hum.

The idea of running her own business had lingered for years before she finally committed to it. Not because she wanted an easy life - she knew being her own boss would still be demanding - but because she wanted the demanding parts to be hers: manageable, purposeful, and pointed at something she actually cared about.

Sound familiar? For a lot of people who go on to run their own We Love Pets branch, that quiet dissatisfaction is exactly where the story starts.

The doubts, and the support that answered them

Nina was honest about what scared her. The accounts were unfamiliar territory, and so was the idea of being solely responsible for every decision. Money weighed on her too - she'd recently bought a house, and needed to know a new business could realistically cover a mortgage and everything else.

What tipped the balance was discovering she wouldn't be doing any of it alone. The franchise came with finance and business training, an accountant on the head office team to answer her questions whenever they cropped up, and  crucially, a network of existing franchisees she could speak to candidly about what the reality was really like. Reading their success stories and hearing it straight from them turned an intimidating gamble into a considered decision. She just had to be willing to work hard, and that had never frightened her.

This is the part prospects tend to underestimate: you own the business, but you're not on your own.

Where Nina is now: an established branch and a real team

The ambition Nina only dared to hope for has come good. What started as a team of one is now Nina alongside a reliable, professional team who share her standards, caring for pets across Aylesbury and the surrounding villages of Aston Clinton, Broughton, Halton Camp and Weston Turville.

With We Love Pets behind her, Nina has invested in herself every step of the way - completing  dog care qualification, pet first aid training, becoming police-checked and fully insured, and growing the branch into a licensed dog boarder, all with the support and training the franchise provides. The nervous newcomer of 2019 is now a knowledgeable, credible local business owner with a genuine reputation to her name.

From leap of faith to living the life she wanted

Being her own boss was never just about the business. Life has grown fuller since those early days: Nina is now a mum to her young son, and the flexibility and freedom she was chasing have proved every bit as valuable as she'd hoped — letting her build a career she loves around the family she's building at home.

That's what "be your own boss" really means in practice. Not just no ceiling on what you can earn, but the freedom to make decisions you believe in and shape your work around the life you want.

Nina's advice to anyone weighing it up is simple: We Love Pets understands, on a human level, why people want to run their own business. It operates as one big team — you own your branch, but the parts that keep new owners awake at night are shouldered alongside you. If you're considering it, get in touch. You've really got nothing to lose by finding out.