Investment:£100k+
Franchise Focus
FASTSIGNS franchisee, David Hiney, discusses his fi rst 12 months of operation
INVESTMENT LEVEL: £125,000
hat did you do before you became a FASTSIGNS franchisee?
In October 2015 I David Hiney
had the opportunity to elect for voluntary redundancy, I had been a project manager for over 25 years in information systems and I decided that this was the chance of a lifetime to change the direction of my career. On discovering the FASTSIGNS centre in Bolton was up for sale – and since I’d always wanted to be my own boss one day – I decided to look into the opportunity further and soon realised it was just what I’d been searching for.
Why FASTSIGNS?
I’d looked at other franchise opportunities previously but for a variety of reasons they never seemed quite right, FASTSIGNS on the other hand seemed – and have since proved to be – diff erent. The support and training provided to a new franchisee, by both the UK and US head offi ces was exactly what I needed since I had little to no prior knowledge of the business or sector. A good franchisor provides the support, training and knowledge that a newcomer needs in any business venture and, in my opinion, FASTSIGNS is one of the best at providing all three of these essential skills.
What challenges did you face? The fi rst one was learning the business, I had no experience in signage and although it was a steep learning curve, the training and support I received on the initial two weeks of training made it possible. Second was trying to improve the site – the general facilities had become a little tired over the years. I’ve set about developing the centre to improve the environment for my staff and raise standards generally.
How has your fi rst year been? 2016 has fl own by and so far, so good! Anecdotally, my team have said that they are busier than in previous years and, crucially, we’ve improved our turnover by over 20 per cent as of October 2016. I have concentrated on cultivating our existing business relationships to ensure a good pipeline of continuous work. We have secured some great new customers
72 |
BusinessFranchise.com | February 2017
A very good year W
through referrals and have begun to develop our capacity as a centre by expanding our product range and services as more varied jobs have come our way.
What’s the best client job so far? The most memorable job we worked on was an exhibition stand for CCM Motorcycles; we produced a wrap for their spiral-shaped exhibition stand that showed a timeline of their 45 years in business. The job was last minute and didn’t adhere to normal lead times, we were so proud of the fi nished project and what we had managed to produce.
What’s been your most memorable moment with FASTSIGNS? The very fi rst day opening up and surveying the centre has to be the most memorable, looking at what I had bought and starting to visualise my plans for the centre was very poignant. If I had to do anything diff erently, I would have looked more closely at alternative sources of
fi nance and checked out diff erent available products from various banks.
What are your plans for the centre in 2017?
My plans for 2017 are to develop on this last year by becoming the sign, graphics and visual communication business of choice in North Manchester; I want to create an environment where my team feel empowered, are rewarded well and are happy in their work. If I can achieve this, I’ve made a great leap towards ensuring the work that FASTSIGNS Bolton produces is of the highest standard possible.
Fastsigns
Signage and graphics
www.fastsigns.com john.davies@fastsigns.com 01785 253140
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