On Thursday October 17 we were thrilled to be named winners of the ‘Customer Service Award’ at the 2024 Geelong Business Excellence Awards!! 😊
Hosted annually, the Geelong Business Excellence Awards (GBEA) are an incredible platform for the Geelong business community – big and small - to celebrate our shared achievements and success that helps drive the prosperity of this beautiful region we call home. The GBEA’s are also an excellent forum for established and emerging businesses and leaders striving for excellence to be recognised, and to connect with one another.
This year was also the first time we’ve entered the GBEA’s, after being on our radar for quite some time. Thank you to our good friend and fellow Lara business owner Jessica Anderson of Crew Faced Makeup Artistry (a previous winner) for inspiring us to finally take the plunge!
Why we entered
Whilst winning the ‘Customer Service Award’ as inaugural entrants is a fantastic result that’s exceeded our expectations, entering was about much more than this admittedly awesome accolade. As our CEO Lauren Hill says “the whole awards program gives (us) the opportunity to have a really good strategic deep dive into the business.
Especially in small business we (often) get carried away with doing the day-to-day and focus on daily tasks”. Entering this awards program “gives us that opportunity to step back and really assess everything we’re doing from the many angles required to be a successful business and just to make sure we are ticking all those boxes”.
Being able to take those few steps back and assess this business we love has given us fresh perspective, and also revealed steps we can take to provide even better service for our beloved clients and their furry friends who keep Elcho Park humming everyday.
“The whole awards program gives (us) the opportunity to have a really good strategic deep dive into the business” – Lauren Hill, CEO
Why we won: Putting pets and people first
There are many reasons we won – but they ultimately come down to two key ingredients: the loyalty of our clients (both human and four-legged) and our incredible team who provide their love and professional care to the pets who stay with us here at Elcho Park Lara. Key features of the Pets Country Club that stood out to judges include:
Daily health assessments for pets in our care.
Suites designed specifically for pets comfort.
Custom-designed activities, tailored to pet’s specific needs: including one-on-one play sessions and therapeutic massages.
Premium quality pet food with no additives or preservatives.
Resort-style luxury accommodation that exceeds industry codes for suite size, ventilation and security.
We also cater to other small domestic animals, such as ferrets, rabbits and birds – a key point of difference.
In the words of Peter Temple from Geelong Galvanizing – one of the judges: “Pets Country Club understand that their customers are both their furry guests and their human friends. They go well beyond the bounds of their industry’s customer service standards to ensure that both pets and people are cared for, happy, calm and content.
With a state-of-the-art water park, luxury retreats, excellent meals, group exercise sessions, health check-ups, one-on-one snuggle time, and relaxing music flowing in the background, who wouldn’t want to be a guest at the Pets Country Club?”
“Pets Country Club understand that their customers are both their furry guests and their human friends” – Peter Temple, Judge
What it means to us
Winning this award is an incredible honour to the entire Pets family – Alan, Yvonne, Lauren and Ashleigh Hill – and our dedicated team of 12 professional pet carers who keep our family-run business ticking along everyday after 28 years in the Pet Care industry.
It affirms many of the things we’re doing right; from the overwhelming number one priority being the happiness and wellbeing of all pets in our care, to our robust hygiene protocols, 24-hour surveillance, daily health assessments and suites designed for comfort and peace of mind of both pet and owner.
As Lauren says:
“Ashleigh and I are physically here in the business day-to-day. We’re here, we greet our clients, we know them really well.
“We’ve seen multi-generational families, whether that’s through their animals or even their kids (who have) grown up and they’ve got their own pets and they’re continuing to come and stay with us, with their own pets, during their holidays.
It’s that personal touch. Knowing every one of those animals really, really, really well. Knowing what they love, knowing what they don’t like, really customising their stays and their care according to the pet’s needs" – Lauren Hill, CEO
Yet it also has us glancing with a confident eye towards the future, taking inspiration from other award-winning businesses across the Geelong region and seeing what we can do to improve the efficiency of our operations and offer our customers and their VIPs (Very Important Pets) and even better experience at the Pets Country Club in years to come!
Keen to find out more about the Pets Country Club at Elcho Park Lara and be part of our story? Contact our friendly team of professional pet carers on (03) 5282 1286!