1815 Franchise by Katie Porter
Scoop Soldiers, a pet waste removal franchise with 25-plus units and counting, has seen significant growth from within, indicating that the brand’s model is worth reinvesting in. Several Scoop Soldiers owners are multi-unit franchisees that continue to grow their footprint.
“As Scoop Soldiers expands and looks to partner with qualified investors, our existing network of franchisees has been a great candidate pool. There is nobody better to grow with than people who already know and believe in the business,” said Scott Oaks, vice president of franchise development. “It’s a complete validation of the success of the business model, the demand for the services and franchisee satisfaction with the on-going support and the value they are getting.”
Andrew Entwistle and Heather Harrington are a brother-sister business partner duo who have quickly grown to build the franchise system’s largest portfolio. They have successfully run three territories of Scoop Soldiers in the Austin, Texas area, and in August, they acquired three more enhanced territories — corporate locations that were already up and running with successful customer bases.
And the two aren’t stopping there. They are already planning to scale their operations to the San Antonio region, about 75 miles away, because they trust the brand and its ability to expand.
Andrew started out as a scooper and then worked in management for Scoop Soldier’s corporate before becoming an owner.
“When I learned they opened up franchising, I knew it was something I would want to do with my family,” Entwistle said. “I already loved the company, and I knew their business model. I loved the idea of working for myself and having some support from a successful business.”
“I love the company and the business model,” Harrington added. “I love that I get to be in a field that is pet-focused. I’m excited to grow the business, keep hiring more people and provide them with a healthy work environment.”.
John Amaroufi and Ron Battaglia are serial entrepreneurs who run several businesses, and partnered up to become multi-unit Scoop Soldiers franchisees in Texas. The businessmen signed on in late 2019 and have quickly grown their portfolio with Scoop Soldiers to consist of four territories in the Dallas suburbs, serving the cities of Colony, Frisco, McKinney, Melissa, Anna and Princeton.
Amaroufi and Battaglia are now looking closely at cities in Florida, such as Tampa, to open up territories there. The pair have been doing their due diligence, researching the market potential, which Battaglia says is significant.
“There is a population of about three million people in the Tampa metropolitan area, so there is a big need for this kind of service,” he noted. “This industry is still maturing and still has room to grow. Not everyone knows companies like Scoop Soldiers exist, but everyone who hears about it says it’s something they would pay for.”
Becoming multi-unit owners has allowed them to quickly establish a solid foundation for their business, with a large enough team and strong enough processes to manage the system with a hands-off approach.
“Once it starts to grow, there’s a breakthrough because your team develops and you have enough staff to focus on growth rather than production. We got over the hump very quickly, just due to the size of our territories,” Amaroufi explained. “This company focuses on growing the brand and providing us with the tools to do so. We want to be a nationally-known brand, so they are very aligned with supporting the franchisees.”
