Khushali Shah, Founder of Canopy Families
Names: Khushali Shah
Founder: Canopy Families
What's your elevator pitch?
Canopy Families provides flexible household support to busy clients.
What's your story?
After a career in public service, I was ready to have the freedom to be more innovative in solving problems. After working with and investing in a number of female and/or minority-owned startups I decided to take the plunge and start my own company. I kept hearing friends complain about how hard it was to keep up with the house with two full-time working parents and the same theme was running through all the posts in the mom groups. I thought that I could solve this problem by starting a company that could match busy families with experienced household support. This would allow families to get the hours they needed (which was not generally full-time) and still allow the employees to get the hours they needed (by working with multiple clients per week). I also know that domestic workers often do not get the benefits that the rest of us get and made it a priority to have employees that are paid above board—which means they will get Social Security and Medicare benefits one day—and also receive sick leave and holiday pay. We also offer health insurance. The reason I got into public service was to make the world a better place and to help people. I get to keep doing this now, just in a different way. Our clients are so thankful to have the help and get some time back in their lives and our employees appreciate that we have their back.
What does BEING a FoundHer mean to you?
Being a FoundHer, to me, means working to make the world better but in a caring and sustainable way. We can break down barriers and disrupt industries but we also care about the people that are impacted. More often than not, FoundHers are solving problems in spaces that impact women more, spaces that men don't pursue because it doesn't seem groundbreaking enough. YET it is the most groundbreaking work because it is helping to change the dynamics of our society.
How do you support other female founders and women in business?
I have been an investor (and worked) in female-founded businesses not only because I believe in what they are doing but because I also know how hard it can be for women to raise money and to get a seat at the table. As a founder myself, I am partnering with other women-owned local businesses so that we can support each other. I am also a member of organizations that support female entrepreneurs.
Let’s talk social media—who handles it for your company and what is the secret to making it successful? What is the biggest challenge?
I handle it along with a team member. I am not sure we are yet successful and I think part of that is that—like everything else we do—we need to be more strategic. We are in the process of doing that now; being authentic to our values and brand and showcasing what we are doing. We don’t want to just promote our services but be seen as a place to get information that can be helpful to our followers; clients or not.
How did you land your first client?
I landed my first client through my network. As much as I do not like "selling," you need to share with everyone you can and then ask them to share as well. My first clients were friends or friends of friends and trusted me to follow through on our promises. Their support and confidence in the company gave us a great start!
What is something you do differently from the industry standard?
The industry standard for people seeking household help currently consists of two options: 1) Call a household staffing company, pay a large finder's fee and have them find, vet and send you candidates. You interview and hire them and the company's work is done. You then also handle payroll, sick days/holidays/vacation, etc. Generally this works if you want a full-time employee. 2) If you are just seeking part-time help, you find people on local listserves, Facebook groups or care.com and you have to interview and vet them. More often than not, the hours may not work and you end up having the support for a short period of time, leading you to do this all over again. Our model is that we interview, vet and hire the employee and then match them with a client for however many hours they need. The employee takes on however many clients needed to fulfill their hours and the client gets the hours they need. We handle payroll, insurance, etc. and all the client has to do is pay our invoice. If their normal employee is sick, we can offer another employee to help out. If they don't end up gelling with the employee we have other employees we can send to them.
What are three actionable tips you would give with other women who want to start a business or are just getting started?
1) Have conversations about your idea with friends, family, others in your network that you trust. They will have invaluable insights that will help you refine your thinking before you get started.
2) Don't be afraid to change course. It will not all go as you had planned and that is ok. Take stock and make course corrections. Failure is a chance to learn. Early failure is easier to overcome.
3) Network with other entrepreneurs. It is a lonely space sometimes but there are lots of people in your shoes.
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