PetStay
Designing a Unified Secure Case-Management & Customer Portal System for Franchise and HQ Operations
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Background
PetStay is a well-established home dog boarding franchise network in the UK, operating since 2005. They connect pet owners with trusted carers in local branches, offering personalised boarding without mixing dogs from different households, providing meet-and-greets, and ensuring high standards of safety and animal care. As PetStay grew through its franchise model, complexity increased: head office had to manage multiple branches, each with their own carers, bookings, customer queries, staff, and invoices — all while maintaining consistency, security, and operational visibility.
PetStay needed a digital backbone that could support both franchise-owners (branch managers) and the central organisation. Key areas like booking flow, customer service, invoices, and internal staff and HR functions were managed via a mix of manual systems, spreadsheets, and disconnected tools, leading to inefficiencies, delays, risk of error, and limited transparency for branch owners and HQ alike.
The Need
PetStay’s challenge was to bring all these disparate operations under a single, secure, scalable system. Specific pain points included:
- Branches and headquarters using different tools for booking management, invoicing, and customer service, with duplicated data entry and inconsistent records.
- Difficulty centralising financial reporting: invoices, payments, refunds across branches were hard to reconcile.
- No unified view of staff hours, HR compliance, or monitoring of carers’ performance and credentials.
- Customer expectations rising: they wanted an easier way to see and manage their bookings, view invoices, communicate with PetStay, etc.
- Franchise owners needed control and visibility into their local operations (bookings, staff, revenue), without losing the governance and oversight that HQ required.
- Crucially: data security, role-based access, reliable performance, and audit trails were non-negotiable, given customer data, financial data, and animal welfare responsibilities.
PetStay therefore engaged 6B to design and build a secure case management system (CMS) plus a customer portal, based in PHP, covering bookings, invoicing, HR/staff management, customer service, and more — one system serving both HQ and franchisees, plus customers.
The Solution
6B partnered with PetStay to design and deliver a secure case management software system and customer portal, built in PHP and tailored to the organisation’s franchise model. The system was architected to serve both head office and local franchise owners, providing a centralised foundation that could scale as the network expanded.
The case management system introduced a comprehensive booking engine that allowed branches to manage availability, assign carers, and schedule meet-and-greets seamlessly, with all information feeding into a central dashboard for oversight. Invoicing and payments were fully integrated, with automated invoice generation, refund handling, and revenue reporting at both branch and national level. To further support operations, HR and staff management features were introduced, covering carer credentials, timesheets, holiday tracking, and payroll exports, ensuring greater consistency across the franchise network.
At the same time, 6B developed a customer-facing portal, giving pet owners an intuitive digital experience. Customers can now view upcoming and past bookings, pay invoices securely, update pet details, and communicate directly with their local branch. By providing this level of self-service, the portal reduced pressure on customer service staff while improving transparency and convenience for customers.
The system was developed with strict security measures, including encrypted data storage and transfer, role-based access permissions, and full activity logs for accountability. Delivered through an agile and user-centred approach, the platform was refined through close collaboration with franchise owners, HQ staff, and customers to ensure it addressed real-world needs and workflows.
The Impact
Since its launch, the new system has had a transformative effect on PetStay’s operations. Bookings and invoicing processes that once involved spreadsheets and manual reconciliation are now automated, saving significant administrative time and reducing the risk of error. Franchise owners benefit from live dashboards that provide instant visibility of occupancy rates, financial performance, and staff activity, while head office can monitor operations across the entire network with ease.
For customers, the portal has elevated the experience of working with PetStay. Pet owners can now self-serve for core actions such as checking booking details, paying invoices, and updating pet information, which has led to faster resolution of queries and higher satisfaction levels. This has in turn freed up staff to focus on higher-value tasks and proactive customer engagement.
HR and staff management processes have also been streamlined, giving the organisation greater confidence in compliance and consistency across branches. Carer credentials, availability, and timesheets are managed in one secure place, improving accountability and reducing risk. Financial control has improved as well, with automated invoicing and reporting enabling more accurate forecasting and better cash flow management.
Crucially, the system’s secure architecture and audit trails mean that sensitive customer and financial data is protected to the highest standards, strengthening trust across the network. By unifying operations into one scalable platform, PetStay has not only improved efficiency and reduced risk but also future-proofed its franchise model, positioning the business for continued growth and long-term success.