Upholstery Repairs

Leather Repairs

Wooden Furniture Repair

Kitchen Refurbishments

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(Article © 2004 The Franchise Magazine)

Work at something you enjoy... and never work a day in your life!

Disillusioned with the life and pensions industry, but enthusiastic about clock repairs, French polishing and general DIY, Geoff Tudor from Shropshire made the huge step of abandoning insurance in favour of becoming a FurniturePro franchisee. Rachel Spaul tells his story.

THE saying goes: 'If you work at something you enjoy, you will never work a day in your life'. That's certainly true for Geoff Tudor who, with the expert support provided by the FurniturePro team, has turned his hobby into an immensely profitable business.

What appeals most to Geoff about FurniturePro isn't its growing reputation within the furniture repair market, nor its favourable business relationship with Guardsman, leading provider of furniture protection plans (which refers furniture repairs to FurniturePro franchisees). 'The fact that it was a new company with only two pilot operations appealed rather than dissuaded me,' Geoff explains. 'I see it as an opportunity to get in on the ground floor. FurniturePro is approachable and offered me four weeks' training, ongoing support and a sizeable territory.'

Geoff completed his first job on his first day of trading in December 2003, which he won as a result of FurniturePro's initial mailshot, and has been inundated with work since. In fact, to accommodate the extra work he has moved his operation from his converted double garage into an industrial unit ahead of schedule, and anticipates taking on his first employee very shortly. 'When I launched the business I expected to receive around 60% of my business from Guardsman - it has turned out to be more like 90%!' he reveals. 'I know that there is also a lot of private work available and a market for commercial repairs such as pub tables, and that's without even exploring office units.'

The majority of Geoff's work is carried out onsite and includes repairing leather, scratches and re-polishing. However, he also makes replacement parts and has discovered a growing market for sofa repairs. 'Customers include anybody and everybody, with modern furniture repairs being particularly popular,' he continues. 'One of my largest jobs has been for a local hostelry where I stripped, stained and revarnished 16 tables.'

Thanks to the initial four week training course at FurniturePro head office, which built on his existing DIY skills, Geoff is able to carry out a variety of repairs on old and new furniture. 'The training was very good and I can't fault the support,' he offers. 'If I encounter a problem I can either phone the training department, take photos and email them to head office for advice or they will make a visit to me, which is brilliant. Taking on the business was a huge step, but I haven't regretted it. FurniturePro have been very supportive and it's great to be able to talk things through with someone else, even if it's just for moral support.'

Geoff currently averages around 48 jobs per month, mainly through providing repairs to Guardsman customers, and took £3,500 in June from this source. 'I'm really enjoying it and I'm very comfortable with how the business is growing.' he continues.

Geoff has so far been working to full capacity and has been so busy that he has not had time to market his services to the general public. To help accommodate the work he is aiming to take on one or two employees, with his wife also coming onboard to takeover the administrative aspects. Geoff's staff will be trained by FurniturePro, which will also provide support in determining staff wage structure, health & safety issues and employer liability.

'With the additional help I will be able to substantially increase my turnover by tapping into both the lucrative domestic market and commercial sector,' Geoff concludes. 'I'm now thoroughly enjoying going to work, whereas before I was looking forward to coming home. I can now complete in an hour and a half jobs that previously took me two or three hours, and I'm due for further training soon to improve my skills even further, which I am really looking forward to. To anyone considering a FurniturePro franchise: it's well worth exploring, and the more you explore the more positive the opportunity it becomes.'

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