5 minute read
SECURE FUTURE
Long-term V.I.P. Home Services franchisees put family first
Aidan and Emma Lawrence bought their V.I.P. franchise in 2016, and it’s been so successful that they’ve just renewed their agreement for a further seven years. ‘We can’t say anything negative about the franchise – buying into V.I.P. was quite the best move we could have made.’
The Lawrences had previously lived on the East Cape, but with four daughters they wanted more all-round opportunities for their girls.
‘We were two hours from any named town, and we realised a bigger community would offer them different things as they grew older,’ says Emma.
Aidan takes up the story. ‘We decided to move to Whakatane, and we were open to options. We looked at buying a café, but I’d had a lawnmowing business and we’d heard so much about V.I.P. and the flexibility the franchise offered that we decided to investigate.
‘We very much liked what we found. We talked to Estelle and John Logan, the New Zealand franchisors for V.I.P, and found them entirely open and honest. They gave us the phone numbers of all the other franchisees in the area, and suggested we talk to them. We did that, and felt that we knew exactly what we were getting into.’
Financial benefits
Moving to Whakatane meant getting a mortgage, as Emma explains. ‘We had a small pot of savings with which to buy the business, but because V.I.P. provided a client base from day one as well as a paid training period and an income guarantee, we could secure the loan to buy the house.
‘Any worries evaporated rapidly as the work flooded in. We had a constant stream of leads from the franchise, as well as people approaching us from word-of-mouth and referrals. These days, we are averaging $12,000-$16,000 per month, and our best week ever is $6,500 – not bad!
‘All these enquiries have enabled us to take on more work in other areas near our own and then sell the surplus for new franchisees to handle. In fact, we’ve done that three times so far, and we now have clients ready to go to a new franchisee in Kawerau, too.’
Estelle Logan says that this option to sell work back to the franchise is one of the big advantages of the V.I.P. system. ‘It allows new franchisees to start with ready-made clients and also gives the sellers a nice capital gain. Emma and Aidan have taken full advantage.’
The arrangement applies to both V.I.P’s services: outdoor (lawnmowing, gardening and outside jobs) and indoor (all types of cleaning). ‘In both services, franchisees will always have work,’ says Estelle. ‘The result is that we offer solid business opportunities that you can tailor to your needs and interests.’
Working together
What has made the Lawrences so successful? ‘We are prepared to work, and we like working together,’ says Emma. ‘If there is a key to the business, then I’d suggest consistency. Clients always know when we are coming, and many love to come out for a chat. We are friendly people and we like to create a rapport with our clients. In the early days, we took our girls round with us during school holidays. We loved it, as did many of our clients who spoiled them with lollies.
‘These days, Aidan goes out while I get the school run organised, then I join him. We both work on the tools as required, then I collect the girls for the afternoon. I also do 70 percent of the bookwork. We’ve worked together ever since we met, so it’s an ideal business for us.’
A real blessing
While lawnmowing can be seasonal, Emma and Aidan have found other outside work more than makes up for it. ‘There are always hedges and trees in need of attention,’ Aidan says. ‘V.I.P. allows us to do our own quoting, which isn’t the case with all franchises, and we are not limited to domestic work – we also have contracts with DOC, a school and retirement homes.’
Emma continues, ‘Another big benefit is our family of franchisees. We get together for dinner now and again, and if we have a breakage then we borrow equipment from each other. When Aidan had a health issue, the support from both the franchisor and other franchisees was incredible.
‘Our V.I.P. franchise has more than met our expectations, which is why we’ve renewed it. As well as the financial security and friendships, the greatest benefit is that we’ve never missed a single sports day or prizegiving at school. It’s a real blessing that we’ve not had to sacrifice any of those special moments.’
Flexibility & security
Estelle Logan is proud of what Aidan and Emma have achieved. ‘They have built a highly-successful business while putting their children first. We have franchisees from all walks of life who have done similar things, and enjoyed the flexibility and security that V.I.P. offers.
If you want the same for your family, give me a call – we have growing demand in many areas.’
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V.I.P. Home Services
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P 0800 84 74 96
