Caroline Gowing is co-founder of Pink Spaghetti, a multi-award-winning franchised network of virtual assistants, supporting SMEs and solopreneurs all over the UK.
Can you tell us a little about your background and your company?
I had a previous career in retail and IT consultancy, starting out on a WH Smith management training scheme in 1989. In 2009, at the age of 38, I launched Pink Spaghetti in my home town of Northwich, Cheshire, with my best friend Vicky Matthews, who I met at baby swimming classes. Initially a personal concierge company, we quickly pivoted to providing virtual support to SMEs and solopreneurs. In 2012, we sold our first franchise. Despite losing my co-founder Vicky to cancer in 2023, I have continued to grow the business we founded together at my kitchen table and we now have 56 franchisees across England and Scotland and have won multiple awards.
What inspired you to start your business?
It was three things really: flexibility, spotting a gap in the market and meeting Vicky. As parents of young children, we were hoping our fledgling business would provide us with a better work life balance than the world of employment was at that time offering. We were looking for flexible working not only for ourselves, but for the people we employed and our future franchisees.
Secondly, we knew there was a real gap in the market for outsourced support, and as the most organised people we knew – with decades of business experience behind us – we knew we were the women to do it!
Lastly, and most importantly, Vicky and I always said that neither of us would have been brave enough to start businesses on our own. Our skill sets and personalities complimented each other perfectly, as well as having very similar attitudes to risk and work life balance. We were a great partnership and neither one of us could have launched Pink Spaghetti without the other. The continuing success of the business is one of Vicky’s many legacies.
How did you create awareness for your brand?
Networking within the local business community has always been huge for us. We are definitely a business built on relationships.
We were early adopters of social media, both in terms of doing our own, and looking after our clients’ accounts. This has helped to drive positive online relationships as well as offline ones.
And our franchisees serve as very important brand advocates all around the country
What strategies helped you secure funding and scale your business?
Vicky and I were in absolute agreement that we wanted to grow slowly, consistently organically, without relying on external funding. And we stuck to our guns and have never borrowed any money.
We realised pretty quickly that we wanted to scale up via franchising and so we right away started documenting everything about how we ran our business, recording evidence of profitability and replicable processes. This eventually became our franchise manual. We franchised within two years, which is pretty fast, but with two very organised and process-driven heads on it, we were able to make it happen.
What have been your biggest successes so far?
I still have to pinch myself when I realise that we have grown an established and reputable, multi-award winning UK-wide franchise.
But for myself and Vicky, it has never been just about revenue. I am super proud of the number of people our business has helped, be they the SMEs who rely upon us, the franchisees who were able to start their own businesses, or the people they employ and can offer flexible work opportunities too.
What challenges have you faced, and how did you overcome them?
Surely the biggest challenge any founder can face is the loss of their co-founder? Realising I was going to have to support our franchisees and continue to grow Pink Spaghetti without Vicky at first felt insurmountable. But I dug deep and discovered I had resilience in bucketloads. It was a bumpy time, but it taught me that amazing things happen when I push myself far out of my comfort zone – and believe me, I had to!
I think it was down to the solid foundations and relationships built by Vicky and I that our business was able to weather this very difficult storm. With strong communication and great people around me, I have adapted to Pink Spaghetti’s ‘new normal’ and the company is in very good shape
What are your plans for the future?
To help our existing franchisees to grow their businesses (many now employ teams of 6+), to sell more franchises, and potentially to expand outside of the UK. We’ve had a feasibility study done and the opportunity for international expansion is looking very positive.
What advice would you give to aspiring female entrepreneurs?
1. Trust your instincts. I’m a massive believer in going with your gut and it’s served me very well
2. Please believe in your abilities. So many women are held back by lack of self-belief. We have a whole training programme for our franchisees about tackling imposter syndrome. Many women forget that starting a business is not day one – they already have years of experience and transferable skills behind them. The slate doesn’t wipe clean when you launch your own venture.
3. Build an amazing support network around you
What are your top three tips for entrepreneurial success?
1. Like they say on Dragons’ Den, know your numbers
2. Learn to delegate. If you don’t, you will be forever restricted by your own limited time and knowledge. Spend your time wisely on what you enjoy and you’re brilliant at.
3. Prioritise and plan. Time is your biggest asset.
Who are five people who inspire you the most, and why?
1. My business coach Rachel Ray from The Chromia Group. Rachel founded ethical franchise network Bright & Beautiful, taking it from a £200 investment to a £5m turnover company employing over 500 people. She is just awesome and I learn every day from her.
2. Productivity guru Brian Tracy is definitely on my list. I love his quote “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning.” It’s a perfect metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day first.
3. I really admire entrepreneur and Dragon Sara Davies for her amazing brain and spirit. On Dragon’s Den, you can see that she always sticks to her values and speaks to people so kindly. Her core niceness is evident in everything she does.
4. Richard Branson. Cheesy I know, but his journey is proof that great leaders don’t do everything themselves—they empower others, focus on what they do best, and build businesses that reflect their values. His approach to delegation, team-building, and resilience is inspiring and are principles that we have tried to apply to Pink Spaghetti.
5. My mum! Sadly no longer with us, she was the most organised person around, and most of the way I live my life now is because of her guidance. From meal planning, home cooked food, arranging and organising – she would be so proud of my freezer labelling! A love of lists runs directly through my family from my mum – I now see many of these traits in my own daughters. Mum even used these organisational skills in her final months, streamlining, producing lists, contacting funeral directors, researching Wake venues and more. Truly inspiring.
What are your favourite inspirational or motivational quotes?
Do what you do best and outsource the rest
Peter Drucker
Behind every successful woman is a tribe of other successful women who have her back
Unknown source
Where can our readers connect with you?
https://www.pink-spaghetti.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/pinkspaghettifranchise
