Case Study - Robin Latcham

20 year old Robin Latcham is one of the increasing numbers of young people determined not to become victim to the employment market, turning instead to self-employment and in particular, franchising.

Ambitious and hard-working, Robin had already worked his way up to department manager at the garden centre where he worked previously, but despite enjoying his job he was unhappy with the level of pay and couldn’t see a clear route up the career ladder. He decided that the only way to make real money was to work for himself and, as he’d always been passionate about cars, when he started to look round for potential business opportunities Autosheen seemed the perfect choice.

Robin had looked at a couple of other automotive based franchises as well as Autosheen, but found himself most impressed by the Autosheen franchise package. “The open day I attended was very friendly and open, also when I spoke to established Autosheen franchisees I kept getting the same positive story of great support from the franchisor.” he explains.

Since his launch in June this year, Robin has found himself rushed off his feet and says he has been constantly busy.“My work diary has been fully booked almost from the word go,” he confirms. “Autosheen set up a series of meetings with potential customers on my territory, and General Manager Adrian Stiehl came with me over the first few days to support me in making my first few sales. After that, business has continued to roll in as a result of regular leafleting, local advertising and an effective Google adwords campaign, which Autosheen helped me set up.” Robin adds. “Most gratifying of all, repeat business and word of mouth recommendations are on the increase, so already I have several regular contracts with local businesses as well as a large number of private clients, so I’m really happy with the way my business is growing.”

Based in Exeter, Robin is keen to extend his services from the core automotive marketplace and tap into the marine and leisure sector, but says as yet he simply hasn’t had time! “I’ve been really surprised how quickly my business has taken off,” he says. “Autosheen is proving to be everything I’d hoped for and more. For the future, my plans include investing in a second territory and another vehicle, taking on an employee to help me. Obviously it’s early days for me, but it’s clear that there’s potential to build a successful multi-vehicle management franchise over the coming years. I’m delighted that I decided to go into business for myself.”