283: Merging Companies with Therese Villemure and Lindsay Licata

What does it take to merge two pet sitting and dog walking companies? Therese Villemure and Lindsay Licata believe it takes passion and sacrifice. Owners of Suburban Pets, they share their individual journeys into pet care and what prompted them to merge in 2018. From policies to software, there is a lot to consider! Therese and Lindsay give advice for how to make the most out of the relationships in our lives and why you should pick your battles.

Topics on this episode:

• Why merge and not just hire?
• How to know it's a good fit
• Communicating with staff and clients
• Have a good accountant
• Merging software systems

Main take away: Ask why you want to merge. Are you looking for a manager or a partner?

About our guest:

Lindsey

Pet care has been a passion of mine ever since I was a little girl. I always dreamed of one day working alongside the most amazing creatures this world has to offer. I grew up in a household with dogs and cats, rode horses and attended horse summer camps where I was able to learn about the care for many animals. Throughout my life I have taken care of dogs, cats, rabbits, horses, farm animals, reptiles.. you name it! It seemed second nature to me. I have brought years of experience, and knowledge to many of my furry clients.

I attended college for business with no intention of actually becoming a business owner. During my two years of schooling, I gave up my Fridays to volunteer at a horse rescue. Being around animals is what truly made me happy, and giving back to non-profit organizations who helped animals made me even happier. At the age of 23, I decided to take a jump & start my own, certified NYS business. I called it "Lindsays Pet Care Services". In just 2 short years I had a staff of 10-12 & a clientele of over 200! Knowing that in order to grow and obtain a healthy lifestyle, I reached out to Therese and proposed a merge, I'm so glad I did! Here we are today, running the largest dog walking company on Long Island! I am so happy that I followed my dreams and I encourage other young adults to do the same. Therese, our staff and myself are passionate about exceeding your expectations. We know how much your pets mean to you and we promise to give them just as much love, attention and care when they are in our hands."

Therese

I have been an animal lover for as long as I can remember. As a child, I begged for a family dog. Eventually we adopted a miniature poodle who lived to be 16 years old. My life changed, however, when I rescued my first dog as an adult. His name was Caesar. Since then, I have adopted several dogs who I love endlessly.

When I was finishing up my MBA and working in the healthcare field, I had a change of heart. I decided that I wanted, actually NEEDED, to change my career path. Although I liked working in the healthcare field, it was not something about which I was passionate. I began brainstorming ideas and landed on one of the best decisions of my life. I created my own dog walking and pet sitting business. That was in 2011. Since then, Suburban Pets has grown tremendously.

In 2018, the company grew even more when I joined forces with Lindsay Licata, my then-competitor and current partner/friend. The wild ride that we are on has been outrageous, terrific, amazing. It has also been grueling, frustrating and challenging. I would not change one second of this experience for anything in the world. It is a blessing, and one that I hope lasts a lifetime. In my spare time, I love spending time with my husband and our three rescue dogs. I hope one day to add a couple goats to my pack and learn about a new species!

Links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MassapequaDogWalkersSuburbanPets

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suburban_pets/

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Full show notes and transcript

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