Suzanne Fowler didn’t enter franchising on a whim. By the time she had launched a DoodyCalls franchise in Westfield, Indiana, Fowler had already walked away from a corporate role to build her own personal training business. At the same time, the community around her was changing quickly. Once a small town, Westfield had become one of the fastest-growing communities in the country, with new housing developments rising in every direction.
That convergence of timing and place helped clarify Fowler’s decision. Rather than dealing with the level of difficulty involved in starting another business from scratch, she opted for a franchise model that offered structure, support, and room to scale within her growing home market.
Today, Fowler stands as the first DoodyCalls franchisee in the state of Indiana, operating in a region where expanding neighborhoods, dog parks, and planned communities are driving steady demand for the mobile pet waste removal services provided by DoodyCalls.
1851 Franchise sat down with Suzanne Fowler to discuss her franchising pivot, plan for scaling her business in 2026 and the explosive suburban growth that makes it possible. Here’s what she had to say:
1851 Franchise: Can you frame your personal story for us? What’s your franchising journey?
Suzanne Fowler: Two years ago, I walked away from my corporate job and opened my own personal training business. I moved into a 55-and-over neighborhood and, as luck would have it, that community needs help with balance, strength and all of those things.
I’ve been in different aspects of health care and fitness for pretty much my entire career. My husband was in construction, and it was literally killing him health-wise. Then, someone from DoodyCalls reached out to us on LinkedIn about a franchise based on my background because I’ve started other companies and worked in some startups.
Before we decided to do Everybody Fit, my personal training business, we looked at some franchises. My husband was the one who actually saw the value in DoodyCalls because of where we are. I was a little slower on the uptake.
About a year later, we decided to move forward. He wanted out of construction, so I called to see if DoodyCalls was still available. And it was. And away we went.
1851: Do you work in the business together?
Fowler: Yes. He’s out in the field doing the scooping. I’m doing more of the administrative work.
1851: What did you do before franchising and how did you decide franchising made sense for you?
Fowler: We decided it made sense because I didn’t want to start another business from scratch. I had just gotten my own business up and going and wanted structure.
We’re growing fairly well, and we’re excited to be going into our busy time of year.
That’s still a growth opportunity for us, and we’ll probably be hiring in the first quarter.
1851: What made you pick DoodyCalls?
Fowler: I liked the fact that it was under the Authority Brands umbrella. I figured they’d be able to help us get it up and running. Everyone we talked to at DoodyCalls, we really enjoyed. It just seemed like a good fit for us.
1851: What was your perception of franchising before becoming a franchisee and what do you want people to know now that you’re in it?
Fowler: I liked that a lot of what we needed to get started was already done for us. It just made a lot of sense.
One of the first people I talked to after we got involved was a local business owner here. She called me and was upset about the idea of franchising. She said she’d built her business herself and was building it for her kid. She said that she didn’t know why anyone would franchise. Well, I told her what I’ve told you: We wanted the structure. We just didn’t want to start from scratch again.
Having just gone through setting up my own website and everything else involved with starting a new business from scratch, I didn’t want to do it again.
1851: What are you hoping to achieve with the DoodyCalls business? Is there a plan for growth looking ahead?
Fowler: One of the things we want to do is provide opportunities for people in these communities — veterans or maybe individuals on the autism spectrum — to have a job where they can be independent. We have another territory we’re interested in, and we want to build it up.
But I want to give back in that way. I’m hoping to get several employees and a few more trucks. I have a lot of management experience and, with the growth in this area and being the first DoodyCalls franchisee in Indiana, I’m hoping to grow fast. This will probably be our retirement. My husband’s younger than I am, so I’m a little closer to wanting to retire than he is.
But it’s been fun. With my husband having been in construction, he knows a lot of the builders in this area. The communities they’re putting in now are requiring pet waste stations and dog parks, so we’re right in the middle of that. We’re building something together. And we have ideas about how to give back to the community. Westfield, Indiana, was a really small town when we moved here. The growth has just been amazing.
1851: What advice do you have for people who might be thinking about becoming franchise owners?
Fowler: Make sure you have the resources to adjust and grow. You really need to make sure you can give the business time to grow and adapt. We asked a lot of questions and thought about it long and hard before doing it. We had several meetings with the recruiters, and we’ve learned a lot, but it’s been nothing but a positive experience.
With my husband’s construction experience and my background running my own business, I feel like we’re on a good path.
About DoodyCalls:
DoodyCalls was founded in 2000 by Jacob and Susan D'Aniello in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. In 2004, the company began franchising its pet waste removal business nationwide and established corporate headquarters in Charlottesville, Virginia. DoodyCalls provides service to 26 states and the District of Columbia with dog waste pickup with consumer and industrial services. For more information about DoodyCalls, visit www.doodycalls.com.
DoodyCalls
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Based in one of Indiana’s fastest-growing cities, Fowler explains why the brand fit her goals, why the timing aligned and how market growth shaped her franchising pivot.
Suzanne Fowler didn’t enter franchising on a whim. By the time she had launched a DoodyCalls franchise in Westfield, Indiana, Fowler had already walked away from a corporate role to build her own personal training business. At the same time, the community around her was changing quickly. Once a small town, Westfield had become one of the fastest-growing communities in the country, with new housing developments rising in every direction.
That convergence of timing and place helped clarify Fowler’s decision. Rather than dealing with the level of difficulty involved in starting another business from scratch, she opted for a franchise model that offered structure, support, and room to scale within her growing home market.
Today, Fowler stands as the first DoodyCalls franchisee in the state of Indiana, operating in a region where expanding neighborhoods, dog parks, and planned communities are driving steady demand for the mobile pet waste removal services provided by DoodyCalls.
1851 Franchise sat down with Suzanne Fowler to discuss her franchising pivot, plan for scaling her business in 2026 and the explosive suburban growth that makes it possible. Here’s what she had to say:
1851 Franchise: Can you frame your personal story for us? What’s your franchising journey?
Suzanne Fowler: Two years ago, I walked away from my corporate job and opened my own personal training business. I moved into a 55-and-over neighborhood and, as luck would have it, that community needs help with balance, strength and all of those things.
I’ve been in different aspects of health care and fitness for pretty much my entire career. My husband was in construction, and it was literally killing him health-wise. Then, someone from DoodyCalls reached out to us on LinkedIn about a franchise based on my background because I’ve started other companies and worked in some startups.
Before we decided to do Everybody Fit, my personal training business, we looked at some franchises. My husband was the one who actually saw the value in DoodyCalls because of where we are. I was a little slower on the uptake.
About a year later, we decided to move forward. He wanted out of construction, so I called to see if DoodyCalls was still available. And it was. And away we went.
1851: Do you work in the business together?
Fowler: Yes. He’s out in the field doing the scooping. I’m doing more of the administrative work.
1851: What did you do before franchising and how did you decide franchising made sense for you?
Fowler: We decided it made sense because I didn’t want to start another business from scratch. I had just gotten my own business up and going and wanted structure.
We’re growing fairly well, and we’re excited to be going into our busy time of year.
That’s still a growth opportunity for us, and we’ll probably be hiring in the first quarter.
1851: What made you pick DoodyCalls?
Fowler: I liked the fact that it was under the Authority Brands umbrella. I figured they’d be able to help us get it up and running. Everyone we talked to at DoodyCalls, we really enjoyed. It just seemed like a good fit for us.
1851: What was your perception of franchising before becoming a franchisee and what do you want people to know now that you’re in it?
Fowler: I liked that a lot of what we needed to get started was already done for us. It just made a lot of sense.
One of the first people I talked to after we got involved was a local business owner here. She called me and was upset about the idea of franchising. She said she’d built her business herself and was building it for her kid. She said that she didn’t know why anyone would franchise. Well, I told her what I’ve told you: We wanted the structure. We just didn’t want to start from scratch again.
Having just gone through setting up my own website and everything else involved with starting a new business from scratch, I didn’t want to do it again.
1851: What are you hoping to achieve with the DoodyCalls business? Is there a plan for growth looking ahead?
Fowler: One of the things we want to do is provide opportunities for people in these communities — veterans or maybe individuals on the autism spectrum — to have a job where they can be independent. We have another territory we’re interested in, and we want to build it up.
But I want to give back in that way. I’m hoping to get several employees and a few more trucks. I have a lot of management experience and, with the growth in this area and being the first DoodyCalls franchisee in Indiana, I’m hoping to grow fast. This will probably be our retirement. My husband’s younger than I am, so I’m a little closer to wanting to retire than he is.
But it’s been fun. With my husband having been in construction, he knows a lot of the builders in this area. The communities they’re putting in now are requiring pet waste stations and dog parks, so we’re right in the middle of that. We’re building something together. And we have ideas about how to give back to the community. Westfield, Indiana, was a really small town when we moved here. The growth has just been amazing.
1851: What advice do you have for people who might be thinking about becoming franchise owners?
Fowler: Make sure you have the resources to adjust and grow. You really need to make sure you can give the business time to grow and adapt. We asked a lot of questions and thought about it long and hard before doing it. We had several meetings with the recruiters, and we’ve learned a lot, but it’s been nothing but a positive experience.
With my husband’s construction experience and my background running my own business, I feel like we’re on a good path.
About DoodyCalls:
DoodyCalls was founded in 2000 by Jacob and Susan D'Aniello in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. In 2004, the company began franchising its pet waste removal business nationwide and established corporate headquarters in Charlottesville, Virginia. DoodyCalls provides service to 26 states and the District of Columbia with dog waste pickup with consumer and industrial services. For more information about DoodyCalls, visit www.doodycalls.com.
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