Special Feature
The New Driveway Company Lee Simpson
Lee and his stepdaughter Abby Corrigan currently own a successful building company and will be running The New Driveway Company Wycombe together alongside the existing business.
homes and businesses across our territory. Aside from being a useful addition to my existing company, I could also see that The New Driveway Company, Wycombe, has the ability to grow into a large, successful business in its own right. It’s exciting to have a new franchise to build: developing new markets, meeting new clients and seeing our work on show outside houses and businesses for years to come. Finally, I have known the franchisor
Darren Field for over 10 years, so making the decision to buy the franchise was easy. He is a solid businessman with a great deal of experience in the sector. The New Driveway Company is going to be a great success and I’m delighted to be one of the first franchisees.
Why did you choose a hands-on franchise?
I have been a hands-on worker all my working life. I started in the building trade when I was a young lad and have enjoyed building up my business over the last 20 years.
I currently own a building and construction company, and the franchise will be a great addition to the group. Abby and I work with insurance companies, fixing domestic and corporate buildings insurance claims. Now, with the new business, we can complete driveway and exterior hard landscaping claims, plus provide first class professional driveways to
How did you find the training for your new vocation?
Abby and I both attended the intensive five-day training course in Oxford and found it extremely useful. Although we run a company already, running a franchise is different. We understand that we need to stick to the model, respect the brand and work with the rest of the network. We learnt some very interesting things and shared a few tips with the other franchisees, too.
One of the most powerful things about being in a franchise is the other franchisees; we are all in the same business, facing the same issues, but we aren’t in competition with each other,
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BusinessFranchise.com | September 2016
so we can share best practice and turn to each other for advice. If only I had the support when I started building my own business 20 years ago!
What advice would you have for someone looking to buy a hands-on franchise? Firstly, make sure you can cope with being outside in all weathers, or that you are in a position to hire other people to do it for you! If the British weather is too much for you, choose an ‘indoors’ franchise instead. Having said that, if, like me, you love being outside, working with your hands, watching the seasons change, and creating something lasting and permanent, then a hands-on franchise could be great for you. Do your research and make sure you use a specialist franchise solicitor to look over the franchise agreement. It is important that your solicitor is familiar with franchising or they just won’t have the experience to advise you properly. It’s like anything – always use the right tools for the job.
What are your plans for the future? To continue to grow The New Driveway Company, Wycombe, into the best-known driveway and hard landscaping installation company in the local area. I want it to build a fantastic reputation, offering a sought- after service, and for The New Driveway Company to become a byword for quality and professionalism.
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