Special Feature
Ableworld
James and Leanne Studdart
James and Leanne found themselves at a crossroads after they were both offered redundancy. After looking at their options, they decided to go into business together, and Ableworld offered an attractive package with ongoing support
What strengths do each of you bring to your Ableworld business? James: I tend to go into something straightaway, whereas Leanne is more level-headed and keeps me grounded. Leanne takes care of the running of the shops and I tend to be more hands on with the stairlifts and engineering.
How do you fit work around family life? James: It’s always difficult balancing your work and family life, especially when you are starting your own business, but having Ableworld head office to help is such a benefit. We have recently decided to use their accounting service as it was taking too much of our own time, which means that we can concentrate on other things. You can also have a manager for a week, which allowed us to have a break away from the business to help recharge our batteries.
What did you do before you decided to invest in your Ableworld franchise? James: I was in direct sales for six years and prior to that I was manufacturing medical furniture. Leanne worked for the local college in the hairdressing department and prior to that she ran her own salon for around 10 years.
How have you found working together so far? James: It’s been challenging and we have a rule not to bring anything home with us.
We have found that customers like that we are a couple and they feel that they are part of the journey with us. Leanne often gets comments from customers saying they don’t know how she puts up with me!
What strengths do each of you bring to the business? James: Leanne is more organised and has a lot of empathy with customers due to her previous jobs. However, I tend to be more hands on, whether that is fitting stairlifts or talking directly with the customers about their own needs and how we can help them improve the quality of lives.
Are there any disadvantages to working with your spouse? James: I can’t think of anything really, as we don’t often spend that much time in work together. We both have our own jobs to do within the business so when we do spend time together we have our own stories to tell.
What kind of training and support have you received to help run your franchise? James: We have used a wide range of services that the Ableworld franchise offers. These franchise services include store support, accounting, staff training and engineer support. It has taken the stress off our backs and allowed us focus on other things.
June 2017 |
BusinessFranchise.com | 61
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