Nikesh Kaira

For Right at Home franchisee, Nikesh, he didn’t think life could be any better than it was when he turned 40 at the beginning of 2017. He had a perfect family life, with a wife he adored and three children he loved being around. A beautiful home. And a career which offered him travel experiences he knew others could only dream of. “I managed large global projects, which meant I was often travelling to the States, Singapore, or Kiev, where I could experience new cultures and cuisine from some of the world’s most amazing countries. But,” he says, “something was missing. I felt hollow. I didn’t have a sense of making a difference to anyone’s life. And I was away from my children more than I wanted to be.”

Having worked in some of the fast-paced, high-flying industries, such as corporate banking and media, Nikesh was ready for something more fulfilling. “Where I was in life, my next step didn’t need to be dictated by finances. I could choose something to really allow me to develop personally, whilst engaging with the community I grew up with.”

Already co-owner of a fitness franchise with his wife Kala, Nikesh started to think about what he stood for, now he had turned 40. “We both come from large, close families, so understand the importance of close relationships and the support they provide; especially in life’s later years. Wanting to be involved in the care industry, we’d had our eye on home care for a couple of years, but hadn’t really settled on the right option. Having personally experienced the difference quality care makes to a loved one, finding the right brand was crucial for us. And having the support of the franchise behind us, was as much a part of our decision-making process.”

Connecting with quality
Nikesh researched all his options, and attended the British Franchise Association exhibitions. It was there he met the team from Right at Home. “As I spoke to Right at Home I really felt we connected with their ethos and with what they want to accomplish in the industry. This resonated with what we wanted to do.”

Right at Home offers exceptional home-based care, with the collective desire for clients to retain total control over the assistance they receive, thereby protecting their independence, as they live, supported by Right at Home, in their own home. Offering quality of care is about going the extra mile, as we would for our own families. “They are very authentic,” Nikesh says. “The more I spoke to them, the more I discovered, and the stronger the connection.”

Connecting with support

Right at Home’s RightStart new owner programme, which guides franchisees through every step of starting-up their own business, and many of them credit it with the confidence they had for their business from the outset. “The support from the National Office has been excellent – they really are experts in their field, both individually and as a whole team,” Nikesh agrees. “I joined them for an orientation day in January, and knew I was making the right decision. This is a start-up business and I have been given the confidence to build something successful. The training I received before we opened our doors for business, along with the support I’ve received since opening, has been absolutely instrumental to how my business has been established.”

Life begins at 40!

Two months after turning 40, Nikesh opened Right at Home Barnet and Edgware. “The business is what I hoped for. I have the work-life balance I needed, in order to be able to engage with my three kids. Before I opened my business, I was commuting into the City up to two hours a day, so missed out when they were smaller,” Nikesh enthuses. “Added to this, Kala and I feel blessed to be in a position to provide quality home care in the community where I grew up. When you’re dealing with people, quality is paramount! People deserve the right to high-quality, dignified care and these are people I have been around my whole life.”

This ethos is shared with Right at Home, who were awarded Management Franchise of the Year, 2017, based on the anonymous ratings of their franchise network. “We aim to deliver the same standard of care we would expect to receive ourselves, or for a loved one,” Nikesh affirms.

One year on…
Nikesh has enjoyed a good first year. “There have been challenges, as there are with any new business,” he says. “But being able to work in the care industry is rewarding. I have a real sense we are making a difference to someone’s life by what we offer through Right at Home, because care is at the heart of who we are. We provide reassurance and support to our clients, and their families. But also to our carers. Our carers received a survey recently, and their feedback demonstrated they felt valued and supported. When they enjoy working for Right at Home, our Clients see this too. Fundamentally, we have built a business which revolves around care in all directions.”

The standard Nikesh has built in his Right at Home business speaks for itself in how Clients respond. “Our Clients really value what we offer,” he explains. “Currently, we are rated very highly on the homecare.co.uk website, which correlates with the largely feedback we receive directly.”

But, Nikesh refuses to become complacent after a good first year, “There’s more we can do – and so much more I want to accomplish. In early June, we were involved in the Alzheimer’s’ Show in London, held in association with the Alzheimer’s Society. This is something we can become more involved with, to offer support and help to families of Alzheimer’s patients, as we become more established.”

But the reason behind why Nikesh does what he does? #WhyICare comes down to one thing: “I love hearing about people’s life journey and the older generation have so much more life experience to share! There is no better feeling in the world than making someone’s day.”

To find out more about the industry-recognised quality of the care, as we are the most highly-rated homecare agency on the UK’s leading review site, www.homecare.co.uk, call Kate or Chrissie for a friendly chat on 0151 305 0770 or contact franchising@rightathome.co.uk.