Franchisee of the Month

By Jill Abrahamsen

Having worked for more than 30 years in the volatile field of advertising and marketing, Kurt Matthews wanted more control over his future while still using the customer service skills he honed throughout his career. At a crossroads, he starting thinking of “Plan B.”

One day, while getting his chimney serviced, Matthews looked up and said to himself, “I can do that.” For a long time, he had thought about starting a business, but wanted something he could learn quickly. “Chimney sweeping looked like a lot of fun,” says Matthews. Having worked with many franchise businesses in his career, Matthews knew that investing in a franchise was a safer investment than starting something on your own. “I immediately wondered if there was a franchised chimney business,” he says.

With a quick Google search, Matthews found Midtown Chimney Sweeps and spoke with founder and CEO Byron Schramm. Matthews scheduled a discovery day and flew out to Denver to meet the corporate team and learn more. Ironically, the day before he flew out, he was laid off from his job in advertising.

“One thing about going after “Plan B” when there’s no more “Plan A,” is

that “Plan B” really has to work.” And it did. Matthews started by following Schramm’s advice: “Be the mayor of your town.” He meant that the best way for Matthews to market the business would be to put himself out there and meet people.

Matthews kicked off the business in 2017 with a huge welcome party and gave discounts on chimney services to family, friends, and neighbors. He also joined the local chamber of commerce and networking groups. He exhibited at local street fairs and events in order to meet people in the community and get his name out there.

“I really pounded the pavement and it more than paid off. In this first year, I’m earning as much or more than I did in advertising and I have control over my destiny,” Matthews says. “My marketing background really helped me promote the business at a local level, and corporate does a tremendous job with SEO (search engine optimization) and marketing on a national level.”

Matthews hosts “lunch and learns” with local Realtors to make them aware of potential chimney hazards and to teach them about fire safety. “I’d like to think I can make a difference and potentially save lives. Getting a chimney inspected is a very important step for potential home buyers and my goal is to make Realtors aware of this,” Matthews adds.

There are no regrets for Matthews, in fact, he wishes he started the business sooner. His advice to potential franchisees is to follow the system. “The franchisor does all the heavy lifting in creating a system that works. It’s there to help franchisees succeed,” Matthews adds. “I’m actually amazed that the process was so easy. It’s really cool how it all just works. The freedom of being your own boss is so liberating. I look back and think ‘what was I so worried about?’”

For more information, visit https://www.midtownsweeps.com