Cathy Thorpe joined Nurse Next Door as President in 2014 with the mission of growing the business across both Canada and the US, and achieving a new level of operational excellence. Under her tenure, the company has accelerated its growth and now has over 400 locations globally.
In 2016, Cathy was promoted to President & CEO, with a goal of taking the organization to global heights and expanding its international footprint. Since then, Nurse Next Door has opened master franchises in both England and Australia, and is currently exploring other markets.
An accomplished leader, Cathy brings over two decades of leadership experience in the retail industry to Nurse Next Door. She previously served as President of Please Mum and Director of Canadian Operations for The Gap and The Gap Kids, where she was responsible for 150
stores and 1,000+ employees.
Cathy’s diverse experiences have inspired and enabled her to accelerate growth and disrupt the traditional home care industry model. However, her business goals go beyond market expansion. Through Bold Kindness, her culture and leadership philosophy, she has developed self-led leaders across the brand’s system, resulting in an average NPS score of 78+ among clients and 82+ among caregivers. Through her book, Bold Kindness: A Caring, More Compassionate Way to Lead, Cathy is bringing her Bold Kindness philosophy to other business leaders, and motivating them to disrupt traditional business practices. Cathy is also
the host of How to Care, a podcast/ conversation series on business leadership.
Individual and company awards under Cathy’s leadership include:
– Business in Vancouver, Influential Women in Business Award (2024)
– Business in Vancouver, CEO of the Year Award (2020)
– Entrepreneur Magazine, Franchise 500 (2016, 2019)
– Waterstone, One of Canada’s Most Admired Corporate Cultures (2018)
– Entrepreneur Magazine, Top 50 Franchise System (2018)
– Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year (2016)
– Canadian Business PROFIT 500 Ranking (2018, 2019)
Cathy is an active participant in the business community. Since 2017, Cathy has been an Independent Director on the National Pharmasave Board where she helps monitor Pharmasave’s performance and supports the development of their strategic plan. For the last six years, she has also served on the Board of the Wood Automotive Group, based in Calgary, where she is an active contributor to their strategic plan.
When not at Nurse Next Door, Cathy is spending time with her two children and dog Henry, enjoying Vancouver’s natural beauty, trail running or exploring the world and learning about foreign cultures and languages.