Cathy Madden - Cathy's Canine Capers

Loan recipient, Enterprising Minds 

For some, meeting with someone who is a lively as a puppy, enthusiastic, full of ideas and itching to work, but with little idea as to how the business was going to get started would be a nightmare, but when the Enterprising Minds team met Cathy in April 2008 they knew there was a great business opportunity here.

Cathy had run a very successful dog training business which had involved TV work, training the trainers and running owner trainer classes in the 1990s, but due to bad health she had to cease trading.

Cathy initially met with Elaine and Steve to discuss her previous business, where it went wrong and importantly the fact that she was ready both mentally and physically to try again.  Cathy’s enthusiasm to restart her business was electrifying and over the next few months she worked ‘like a Trojan’ putting together her business plan, getting all of the research to prove a gap in the market, cashflow, survival budget, advertising within her catchment area and even engaging some clients and renewing old friendships within the business. She also re-established membership with the Kennel Club Association.  Cathy decided that her business would not only focus on training dogs and their owners but that there was also a market for dog walking. 

To cover the dog walking aspect she would need a car to collect the dogs and transport them to one of the many commons in her area but nobody would lend her the money as she had no income.

With the extensive business plan and research that Cathy had put together, the Fredericks Foundation panel were very impressed with Cathy her knowledge and enthusiasm. A loan was granted and she was able to purchase a vehicle enabling her to include dog walking in her business.

Cathy’s Canine Capers opened its doors to new clients in January 2009 and to quote Cathy ‘I feel better than I have for years and I could not have done this without the support of Enterprising Minds’.