Inside Story
…on Greensleeves. Franchise director David Truby on the hands-on business that takes you into the great outdoors
What does becoming a Greensleeves franchisee entail? Once a prospective franchisee has made the decision to join our network, the process is fairly straightforward from there – well, we have done it more than 100 times before! The decision is made, the agreements are signed, and the money is paid in full! Yes, I’m afraid we can’t make any progress until we have cleared the funds. From that point forward it’s a question of agreeing training dates, booking marketing campaigns and organising a vehicle and equipment. Over the years we have managed to build up a good relationship with some key suppliers, so the process is quite painless for us and a lot easier than for somebody doing it by themselves. There are a couple of things that can take time, mainly sourcing a suitable van and scheduling marketing activity, so the earlier we know somebody is planning to join us, the better. Although we have started many successful franchises throughout the years, the best time to start a lawn care business is in spring. This is because the weather is improving, and lawns are generally in a terrible state following winter, so our service is in high demand. When choosing a lawn care franchise, the new franchisee should be mindful that it is a very hands- on job and involves a reasonable amount of physical exertion to carry out the lawn treatments in varying weather conditions.
David Truby The lowdown...
year. We provide a simple but very effective and reasonably priced service, as we are regularly asked “Is that all it costs?”. The business began offering regular
Tell us a little about the service Greensleeves offers and the history of the business The service that Greensleeves Lawn Care offers is a very simple and straightforward one. In a nutshell, we provide a domestic lawn maintenance service. We offer everything except lawn-mowing, as we find most of our customers prefer to do it themselves. We use professional products sourced and manufactured to our own unique specifications to feed the lawn as well as to control weeds and moss. We have a range of mechanical services such as scarification and hollow tine aeration, both essential parts of an annual maintenance programme, as well as numerous specialised treatments to deal with some of the ailments that may affect a lawn during any given time of the
garden maintenance in Yorkshire in 1998, but quickly developed a strong and loyal customer base whose main interest was their lawns. The service was developed and perfected into a model that could be franchised. The first franchise was awarded in the year 2000, with more added in the following years. In 2008, a management buyout took place after which the business really started to take off. Since then, Greensleeves has steadily grown to its current network of 88 franchised territories across the UK. There are still plenty of opportunities to invest in with this exciting and dynamic business as there are still many territories available all over the country.
What are you looking for in a franchisee? Do you need to have previous experience?
Over the years we have found that no two franchisees are the same; they all have varied skillsets and bring different things to the network. It is important to us that anybody joining our network shares our values. First and foremost, they need to have an understanding of customer service and how that impacts the future success and sustainability of a small business. We need them to want to be the best they can be and make their business the best lawn care service provider in their own local territory, aligning with our ambitions to be, not the necessarily the biggest but certainly the best on a national scale. We need them to understand that our business model is one that is hugely successful and in high demand by the general public. Anybody joining our business needs to have an ambition to grow a multi-van business and employ a team of well-trained lawn technicians. It is not necessary for them to have a lawn care background, but a love of working outdoors and an interest in gardening is certainly a bonus as it will give them an empathy with their customers. We are able to provide lawn care training and give somebody the knowledge that will help them deliver our service very quickly.
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BusinessFranchise.com | April 2018
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