Company Overview: This MSPA member company was founded in 1994 and located in Georgetown, Ontario, Canada, which is a suburb of Toronto. It provides “Marketing and sales expertise for senior housing operators” to help nurture those businesses. From the website it seems mystery shopping is one of several services including marketing evaluations, talent acquisition, training and coaching offered to senior housing businesses.
The CEO, Heather Green, heads a team of executives with many years of experience in senior care. Their MSPA listing states they also serve the hotel industry. A client list is located on their website. References to the natural cycle of growth and harvest are liberally sprinkled through the website. For example, the team is listed as “Master Gardeners.” Listings for Heather Green are posted on LinkedIn and other public websites.
How to Sign up & Get Assignments: Unlike most websites this company provides no section for shoppers. After this United States shopper contacted them with an inquiry about shops in my area and how I might sign up, Heather Green replied that there are shops only in Canada at this time and did not provide information about how to apply. The website is in English only and available here, http://www.greenhousemarketing.ca. If you are interested in getting assignments from this company and live in Canada, we recommend contacting them via the information on their website.
What Others Have to Say: No discussion at all is present on the forums except for a recent request for comments that went unanswered. Similarly there is no BBB listing for this company. A Google search presented the company website and some other listings such as on LinkedIn.
Personal Experience: I have not shopped for this company but inquired as to availability of shops in my area. CEO Heather Green responded within hours on a weekend to tell me there were only shops available in Canada at this time. With the lack of information about this company and inability to sign up to view any job board there are questions about how this company operates. Unknown are the website platform used, payment method and schedule, any comments about how much effort the shops take, and if payment is worth the effort.
Conclusion: With the lack of discussion on the forums, this is a company that might be easily overlooked should a solicitation for shops appear in your inbox. However, MSPA membership alone gives it legitimacy and verifies it has been in existence for more than 20 years. From the available data, I believe it is a reasonable to conclude mystery shopping has been a small part of its overall operations. The quick, weekend response to an inquiry about shopping opportunities suggest it is a responsive company. Despite a lack of information about Greenhouse Marketing and Communications, if you shop in Canada and are amenable to doing senior housing shops, I feel this is a company worthy of consideration.