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SPECIALFEATURE: BRANDS DIVERSIFYING


then, especially given the synergy between the customer demographics and a shared interest in home improvements generally. Nevertheless, RSG insists that any Granite Transformations garden centre display should be permanently


“Gavin’s case study has encouraged other franchisees to consider manned garden centre sites when expanding their territories”


manned, otherwise potential customer leads would simply drift away.


Marble and magnolia


Granite Transformations diversified through garden centres and peer-to-peer recommendation


well as growing his own business locally. Realising that Granite Transformations’ highly marketable product was only available to retailers through the franchise route, Gavin went ahead and signed up to the first Granite Transformations franchise agreement in the UK and set up combined workshop and showroom premises in Tunbridge Wells, later acquiring a second, neighbouring franchise territory. He has since gone on to introduce satellite merchandising display units in a series of local garden centres. Around the same time, Granite


G 38 | www.franchisornews.co.uk


avin Whittaker is a prime example of a franchise owner contributing to the development of the franchise network as


Transformations’ franchisor RSG was reacting to difficult trading conditions on the high street and introduced a new franchise model based on garden centre concession sites, in order to lower the initial investment and reduce rental and running costs. Granite Transformations is a distinct retail proposition since sales transactions are not typically finalised in the showroom but concluded in the customer’s home, where worktop and replacement door colours are reviewed and initial measurements taken before the contract is signed. So, merchandising displays that enable prospect customers to see and touch the product are essential for initiating the buying process, although these need not necessarily be located in bricks-and-mortar premises. The garden centre concession site model is a viable alternative to high street premises


Gavin had drawn a similar conclusion at his principle garden centre location, Ruxley Manor in Sidcup. The display was manned only three days a week and he noted that, whenever it was staffed, there were considerably more customer leads. Gavin used this information to revise his retail mix and, rather than keep this market intelligence to himself, shared it with fellow franchise owners at a recent UK conference, revealing that garden centre sites now generate more than half of his sales leads. Polhill Garden Centre at Sevenoaks offered Gavin floor space and negotiations led to a carefully-chosen plot, which would be manned seven days a week to match the garden centre opening hours. He invited his principle salesperson from Ruxley Manor, Carol Walker, to switch to Polhill, and the combination of an enterprising franchise owner, an effective salesperson, a quality brand and higher customer footfall proved a winning combination. Gavin now generates around 40 pre-qualified leads each month from this site alone and average contract values have risen to £7,000-plus, as installations increasingly include replacement cabinet doors. Recognising the power of peer-to-peer


recommendation, RSG has used Gavin’s case study to encourage other Granite Transformations franchisees to consider manned garden centre sites when expanding their territories or adding satellite locations, and to highlight to potential franchise investors the merits of this business model as a lower- cost entry point. The franchisor’s independent franchise recruitment consultant, Dugan Aylen, is reporting that the £25,000 concession site franchise package is proving very appealing to would-be franchisees.


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