One of the UK's youngest franchisees is putting veterans in the shade by turning in a handsome net profit in his first year with highly-regarded IT specialist robertson technologies. To celebrate he has just announced yet another new contract win, this time with Elite Appointments, a city centre financial recruitment operation.

David Earley, who is just 24, has seized his chance to make the most of the already established reputation for quality and service of the Scottish-based company, which has extended its computer support operation to win business across the UK. The keen amateur footballer is in charge of the lucrative Glasgow North franchise of robertson technologies and also has free run of the south of the city until a franchisee is appointed to that territory.

David commented: “The business has really hit the ground running which is due, in large part, to the excellent support and systems that robertson technologies puts in place to help its franchisees through the difficult early days.

“The parent company, and founder Hamish Robertson, in particular, were absolutely on the ball in terms of putting me in touch with relevant contacts and creating the infrastructure which has allowed the business to flourish,” he continued.

The franchise was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Glasgow-born David, who was facing an uncertain future after completing his business and management degree at Glasgow Caledonian in 2008 and being thrust into a recession-hit job market.

He said: “The bottom had simply fallen out of the jobs market when I came out of Uni, and everybody was predicting doom and gloom. It was at that point that I decided no one else was going to do it for me, so I had better get going and do it for myself.”

Hamish Robertson explained: “We are looking for people who can manage IT professionals and provide a quality service and David fitted the bill perfectly. This is more a management franchise than an IT franchise and he instinctively understood that.

“Although he is young in years, he has confidence in his own abilities, a personable manner and the backing of a good qualification in management principles and practices.”

David said: “People of my generation have grown up with computers, so they hold no mysteries for us. I understand the technical issues when I send engineers out on a job, but it is as important to manage the contract to the satisfaction of everyone involved.”

David now has a core of three freelance engineers and, over the course of his first year, has built up a portfolio of 15 clients. His business is a mix of ad hoc and recurring business as well as the regular monthly contracts, in which robertson technologies effectively operates as an outsourced IT department for clients.

“Our latest contract win is proof positive that our approach is paying off. I try to stick to office hours, but it is difficult. I always have networking events to attend in the mornings and sometimes late into the evenings as well.

“I want to make time for my football but I think that while I'm building the business I'll have to remain at amateur level rather than progressing to junior level, which demands much more commitment. The business comes first,” he explained.