The Wall Street Journal: Business is Booming for Senior Care Franchises

One of the hottest trends in franchising these days isn’t sit-down restaurants or real estate. It’s seniors.

Providing home-health aides and other services to older Americans is a fast-growing business, as brands and franchise owners seek to capitalize on an aging U.S. population and low costs of entry.

“There is no way to lose with the demographics we see,” said Claudine Halpern, chief operating officer of My Elder Advocate LLC, a recent entry into franchising. “All of us are planning on living until 100.”

Ms. Halpern and her husband, Jack, decided two years ago to expand his eight-year-old New York City business, which helps senior citizens and their families navigate the world of elder care. The couple have sold two franchises for $39,500 each this year.

The Halperns aren’t alone. Over the past three years alone, the senior home-care sector has grown by 6.6% annually, faster than the overall franchise industry’s 2.6% compound annual growth rate, according to market researcher FRANdata. About half of home-care agencies are now franchises, up from about one-third five years ago, according to Home Care Pulse LLC, a market-research firm.

Cassie has over five years of digital and traditional media experience. She joined NLA after working as a television news producer in both Milwaukee and Chicago, and now specializes in aligning strategies across the board for her clients, ultimately building buzz and telling compelling stories through content marketing, social media, digital campaigns and traditional PR. Cassie has a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast and Electronic Communications from Marquette University.

In her spare time, Cassie enjoys traveling and exploring what new cities have to offer in addition to spending time with her friends and family.