Two for joy

If you think you and your partner make a great team, it’s worth looking into investing in a franchise together, writes Jack Sadler

Going into franchising with your partner could be the foundation for the perfect business double act. Working towards the same goal can provide a harmonious environment, especially as you’re with someone you fundamentally trust.

Cathryn Hayes, franchise director at Revive! Auto Innovations, says: “Franchising is a great route into running your own business and many couples decide that they would like to operate a franchise together.

“As a judge on the bfa HSBC Franchisee of the Year Awards, I’ve seen many successful couples win accolades.

“If you are starting a franchise with your partner, it’s important to get the business basics in place. You will need to agree from the outset who is responsible for different aspects of the business.”

While some may worry about mixing business with home life, playing off each other’s strengths can make the success all the more satisfying, and even bring people closer together. Not only that, you’ll be an attractive prospect to banks, who will likely view the relationship as a sturdy investment.

Franchising, despite its many inherent benefits, still requires commitment and work from the franchisees. But if the effort is there, franchising could open up a much more flexible work-life balance, making life at home more enjoyable too.

A recent study from FreeAgent, the online accounting software company, revealed that at least 1.4 million businesses in the UK are run by couples, with that number set to rise in the coming years.

Ed Molyneux, co-founder of FreeAgent, says: “For those looking to make a change this year, [teaming up with your partner] is a potentially great move for couples to make with their careers, as you’ll be able to coordinate your work around your family commitments, share your passion with your soulmate, and have all of your household and business finances in one tidy place.”

If you’re intrigued by the double whammy of an established brand and reciprocated success, then going into business with your partner could be a match made in heaven.

Here, three couples talk to Jack Sadler and explain why they decided to join forces, combine their skills and start their franchising journey together…

Richard Whitley and Stephen Hall

Richard and Stephen opened their first CeX store in April 2011 and now run the Blackpool, Barrow and Kendal branches

What are the benefits of working with your partner?

Richard: We understand what the stresses of the business can be, and when they are likely to crop up. We can support each other through the harder times and know when it’s time to celebrate.

What prompted your decision to invest in a CeX franchise business together?

Richard: We had both worked for CeX; Steve worked his way up from a small-store manager to an operations manager, while I started out as a part-time sales assistant and moved towards a roaming supervisor.

We had another franchisee talk to us about the prospects of moving forward – he had got an investment from the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) scheme allowing him to open his store (he was also an ex-corporate staff member).

We looked into it, and thought there was a good opportunity there. I was very lucky to get an investment from my family and an EFG loan to help us open.

What strengths do each of you bring to the business?

Richard: Steve’s background in operations, as well as his previous experience with HR teams, has made the transition into our new business much smoother.

His skillset is complementary with my own, which includes problem solving, product familiarity, accounting and the resolution of in-store issues.

Between the two of us I think we have most areas covered. Steve’s strengths are with staffing and store, mine with accounting and the products we buy and sell.

Are there any disadvantages to working with your partner?

Richard: The only thing that comes to mind is the ability to not be at work. Most couples talk about their days when they get home as a way to unwind. It’s very easy for one of us ‘venting’ to turn into a problem solving exercise. There are many ways to get around this, however: simple things such as agreeing to only talk shop in work hours.

What kind of support have you received from the franchisor?

Richard: Help with marketing, staffing, pointers with operations, suggestions of new locations and celebrating our continued success over the years.

How have you found working together?

Richard: Most of the time it’s fantastic; we agree on most of the business bits and how to go forward. When we don’t it’s normally a case of thinking about it a bit more, or finding a different path.

I feel we do different parts of the business; I defer to Steve’s judgment on items he has better knowledge of and vice versa.

Do you take your work home?

Richard: Yes, we both do, but sometimes it’s easier to work away from the CeX franchise stores. If we are in our shops, our staff will come to us before their managers; the ability to work from home can be very helpful sometimes.

Chris and Rachel Spratling

Chris Spratling and his wife Rachel met through work and have been married for 20 years. Chris began his ActionCOACH business in October 2015 in Swindon. Rachel joined ActionCOACH in August 2016, also as a franchise owner

What prompted your decision to invest in an ActionCOACH franchise as a couple?

Chris: Over the last six years I ran a consultancy business working with bluechip media, marketing, manufacturing and distribution businesses, but I also helped a couple of local small businesses and that’s where things began to change for me. I was invited to dinner to say thanks by one of my local clients and I sat next to Simon Buck, an ActionCOACH franchise owner, which is where my journey started.

I was really interested in the way he described what he did as an Action Coach, as it was close to what I had been experiencing with my smaller clients. I arranged to meet with three other Action Coaches to find out more and then went to the ActionCOACH UK support office for a discovery day.

I had a large degree of cynicism about franchises before I met Simon Buck, but the sense of community at ActionCOACH is phenomenal and I continue to be blown away. I was convinced this was where I wanted my career to go and I entered due diligence at the end of the discovery day and went on training five weeks later.

Rachel: Even while Chris was doing his due diligence, before he joined ActionCOACH, I could see how becoming an Action Coach myself would be ideal for me, too.

We discussed it and thought it could be something I moved towards in a couple of years. I could stay in corporate life for our financial security while Chris was building up his ActionCOACH business. But as we worked on our vision for the future, I realised that my lack of free time meant only Chris could work towards our vision.

So, we decided to go for it as a team and I joined ActionCOACH too.

How do you fit work around family life?

Rachel: We work from a home office and can schedule our one-to-one coaching sessions around family commitments. I’ve had much more time at home with the family and I get to walk the dogs in the morning instead of rushing out of the house.

How have you found working together so far?

Chris: Rachel left her job at the end of May 2016 and spent June working alongside me to experience everything ActionCOACH had to offer before she began the initial training. That was the first time we’d worked together since we met!

Now, we see ourselves doubling the size of the business year on year for the next three years and have plans to collaborate with nearby Action Coaches to run our 90-day GrowthCLUBs and 6-Step seminars. We’ll be great at keeping each other accountable and have certain strengths that we can play to.

What kind of support have you received from the franchisor?

Rachel: There’s such a wealth of information, tools, support and techniques that I can’t possibly fail. Having worked as an executive coach on my own, I can’t believe how different it is as an Action Coach. There’s a network of hugely creative and supportive people to work alongside.

Chris: Each new franchise owner is given free one-to-one coaching from a Coaches’ Coach until they reach a good level of client income. I was assigned to Ellis Bardsley and he helped me make that transition from consultant to coach. He helped me understand the key to success was being authentic. I realised that I led with logic in my consultant role and that still works for me as an Action Coach.

While I love the tangible results that the logical progression of working through issues with a business owner brings, it’s also really important to bring with that an emotional connection – owning a business is often fraught with emotion and helping my clients harness that is key.

Do you take your work home?

Chris: Yes, we do in a way, as we use our coaching skills with our two daughters who compete in equestrian sports. We help them with mindset and goal setting, and they’ve embraced the benefits.

Francis and Emma Buchanan

Francis and Emma Buchanan, from Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, are married with two children and took up a HomeXperts franchise in December 2016

What did you do prior to franchising?

Francis: I worked in the logistics industry for 21 years, working my way up to the regional manager.

Emma: After leaving university I spent a number of years working in financial services. I then worked part time in the evenings for a bookmakers, this allowed me to look after the children during the day.

What prompted your decision to invest in a HomeXperts franchise together?

Emma: Over the last year or so I was starting to look at finding a job that would fit around school hours, but they are really hard to find.

Francis came to a crossroads in his career and was looking for a new challenge. He decided he did not want his career to continue in the logistics industry and wanted a complete change to gain an improved work-life balance.

As Francis had experience recruiting and managing franchises in his previous role he had an understanding of what the essentials were to look for in a franchise. Our daughters are both at school now so we both felt this was the ideal time to take on a franchise.

The franchise that had all the essential ingredients to be a success was HomeXperts and, after meeting Mike and Sussanne, we both felt investing in the franchise was the right thing to do.

It came as a shock to all our friends and family but we have not looked back and certainly don’t regret the decision to sign up.

What strengths do each of you bring to the business?

Francis: I have taken on the networking side of the business and gaining business, while Emma looks after the financial side of the business, sales progression and communicating with the customers.

How have you found working together so far?

Francis: Obviously, there are some days where we have our disputes, but you need to get over it quickly if you want to achieve your goals.

What are the benefits of working with your partner?

Francis: We enjoy spending more time together and we know each other’s strengths and weakness.

How do you fit work around family life?

Emma: We are still working on this one! Previously, it was the norm for Francis to leave the house on a Monday morning and he was often uncertain if he would be home that night or what day he would return. So it’s still a novelty at the moment that we are all together each night. But, as the business continues to grow, we are already looking at childcare options for the future that still provides the family life.

Are there any disadvantages to working with your spouse?

Emma: Of course, there are disadvantages, but the advantages outweigh them. I know how he works and, most of the time, know what he is thinking. One of the biggest disadvantages is interacting with other people apart from each other, but we have discussed this and have put plans in for the future.

What kind of support have you received from the franchisor?

Francis: We have found the training and induction to be excellent, the Kick Start programme has been superb and has kept our franchise on track.

Do you take your work home?

Emma: We work at home at present. We are in the process of organising an office to rent which will provide the interaction with others, a great networking opportunity and finally we will be able to leave work at work.

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.