Since starting in 2009, FirstLight® Home Care has come to represent a new way of helping clients achieve the quality of life they deserve. FirstLight Home Care combines extensive health care and eldercare industry knowledge with a commitment to excellence to create a people-first philosophy. Through this model, FirstLight has been able to develop a “Culture of Care” value system that takes the in-home care segment to new heights, all without the help of private equity ownership.

Co-founder and CEO Jeff Bevis began franchising the company in late 2010. “We started the company because we knew the home care segment lacked a service focus,” he said. “Many competitors in the home care segment weren’t prioritizing client satisfaction or caregiver retention, and we made sure to make those our main focus. Since then, we’ve been very aggressive in our strategic growth, partnering with quality franchisees around the country who understand our mission.”

According to Bevis, FirstLight has been a “pure franchisor” since day one. Instead of starting with a corporate location, Bevis began franchising the company immediately, confident that FirstLight’s offering was a better solution than that of other competitors in the home care space.

“We eat, breathe and sleep franchisees,” said Bevis. “Whether it be through our exceptional support, training, or business model, the franchisee is always our number one focus. We don’t have to worry about splitting our resources on corporate operations and franchising because we are 100% franchisee-owned.”

FirstLight Home Care has stayed true to this franchisee-focused mission by avoiding all private equity ownership, allowing the FirstLight leadership team to prioritize the best moves for its franchisees and development.

This includes a comprehensive training program that prepares and guides new franchise owners every step of the way—from getting their FirstLight operations up and running to sharing best practices for continually providing exceptional in-home care to clients. This support has led to an industry-leading 90% franchisee satisfaction rate, according to a yearly survey done by FirstLight.

“We’ve always taken a hands-on approach to franchisee relationships,” said Bevis. “We have pictures of every franchisee in the office when they come for training. By building that people-centric culture across the employee base, we are able to bring that same compassion to our clients.”

While private equity firms exist to invest in companies and make them more valuable, oftentimes the private equity firm's definition of value can be very different than that of the franchisor. Far too often, private equity firms aim at rapidly growing the business whereas franchisors develop a long-term outlook and concern for creating quality relationships with franchisees, employees and clients.

"By avoiding private equity ownership, it allows us to be a lot more selective in our growth,” said Jamie Davis, Executive Director of Franchise Development. “We take a responsibly cautious approach to expansion, in which we are not beholden to a private equity partner for performance and we can ensure that we are partnering with the right franchisees and caregivers.”

In the home care industry, when a caregiver resigns, the consequences can be difficult for both the franchisee and the client. Franchisees must find and train a new employee and the client must establish a new relationship with a new caregiver, which takes time. FirstLight is able to position franchisees for success by providing each FirstLight Home Care owner with the necessary tools needed to find exceptional caregivers in their area. While the national caregiver turnover average is 82%, FirstLight’s average annual turnover rate is just 16% across its entire network.

“We are constantly developing the tools and resources to focus on rewards, recognition, engagement and retention,” said Davis. “Instead of growing simply for the sake of growing or signing franchises in order to meet the goals of a private equity firm, we sign franchises in order to further the brand’s longevity and create sustainable growth.”

Franchisees who sign on with FirstLight enjoy the benefits of entering one of the fastest-growing industries that offers a strong potential for ROI while making a difference in the community and people’s everyday lives. Those who join FirstLight’s franchise system also join a dedicated team committed to getting each franchisee off to a strong start so they achieve success as quickly as possible.

Moving forward, Bevis is excited to partner with qualified candidates who are passionate about helping those who are aging in their communities and are eager to bring FirstLight’s Culture of Care value system to more people throughout the country. 

“We see it happen all the time—brands grow rapidly just to impress private equity, without implementing practices that will sustain the company in the long run," said Bevis. “At FirstLight Home Care, we are proud to always put the franchisee first.”

For more information on FirstLight Home Care’s franchising opportunities, visit https://www.firstlightfranchise.com/.