An award-winning pet taxi service is looking to develop across the UK following its home-grown success.
The Pets 2 Places pet taxi service was established by Claire Harris in 2014, following a personal tragedy that forced her to rethink her life goals.
Building the business up slowly in Milton Keynes, she soon discovered a huge demand for services to transport people and their pets around the city. The service supports many people who are unable to drive and has even been contacted by the community policing team for help.
She said: “Initially I set up the business to help transport pets for vet appointments as I knew so many people struggled in this area.
“As I saw more clients and we discussed their needs, it was clear that the service needed to expand to include the groomers, visits to friends with the dog and even on holiday! It was also the customers that gave me the idea to franchise, as they had friends in other areas that could benefit so much from this service but there was just nothing available.”
Last year Pets 2 Places won Best Pet Business at the Animal Star Awards in recognition of the service it offers to the community. Claire was also one of the f-entrepreneur top 100 in 2019 and won Industry Leader at the Women Leaders Award.
She adds that there are a lot of laws, codes of conduct and training regulations to abide by, but the satisfaction and personal rewards of running a pet taxi service are tremendous.
“On a daily basis I have customers tell me what a godsend the service is, and asking where they would be without me. Knowing the difference we make to the lives of our customers is so humbling, and of course getting to work with animals every day is incredible,” said Claire.
