Dublcheck franchisees come from all walks of life, and David Innis, who has spent time as a recruitment consultant, travel rep and insurance salesman, is living proof that a variety of previous employment skills has been more than useful when running his Dublcheck franchise.
“I knew I wanted to do something where I could be independent, as it is what I was used to doing,” says David, who worked abroad as a rep for Thomas Cook in his early twenties and had been out on the road selling insurance for five years before starting his business.
“It was a case of realising that a franchise was a more suitable model to deliver a long-term, independent business for me,” he explains. A background of business studies at college, followed by stints in the travel, recruitment and finance industries, meant that David was well-placed to think about beginning his own business; but looking into the possibility of a franchise offered one extra, obvious advantage.
“Within a franchise you have more support and therefore more confidence in your chosen business,” says David. He and his brother-in-law went to the franchise exhibition at the NEC in March 2013 and shortly afterwards they invested in a Dublcheck franchise, sharing the chosen franchise level of £15,000.
With two years in recruitment, the business development side of the franchise was something David felt instantly at home with, and he now has a team of five cleaners working for him in the busy city of Birmingham, some large contracts in the offing – and a turnover of £50,000.
David’s brother-in-law subsequently sold his share of the business to David – a development that he was not fazed by in the slightest. “I was like a dog with a madly wagging tail, realizing how many opportunities there were out there, and having to curb my enthusiasm!”
David says it took him around nine months to see just how many opportunities there were in the area. “Now I realise that the opportunities are endless. Everyone cleans, everyone needs cleaners.”
That’s not to say that franchisees can always follow up and win new contracts whenever they like. As David is the first to admit, setting up a business that grows surely and steadily entails good business acumen.
David explains: “I’ve got two great new business opportunities coming my way at the moment but I can only say yes to one of them. The focus is to keep building, and not to over-extend.”
David is one franchisee who was clearly thinking ahead when he made the decision two years ago to invest in Dublcheck.
“It was the prospect of a consistent cashflow that clinched it for me,” he reveals. “With many of the other franchises I was looking at you had to go out and look for your next customer very quickly, whereas with Dublcheck, the business is such that you set it up and it practically runs itself. Not having to constantly chase leads was a very attractive prospect.”
For David with his interpersonal skills, obtaining new contracts has never been a problem. But it is probably the most recent change in the way he is going about his business which promises even more lucrative opportunities in the future.
Although there is no need to have premises most franchisees operated from home in order to keep overheads low in the beginning, David has recently invested in a business premises, which will give him frontage on a busy high street.
“It was an old takeaway shop which is now an office and I’ve gone into partnership with a friend and colleague who is offering a removals service from a different part of the premises,” he explains.
“I now have a shop window complete with Dublcheck-approved branded signage which will give me a very obvious presence on the high street. I’ve already had a number of walk-ins and I’m about to enter the area of student lettings so I’m preparing to be particularly busy as landlords always want properties cleaned.”
The support of head office has been a plus during this time, with David saying he appreciated the legal support from the Dublcheck team when dealing with new contracts in particular with the fast-paced world of letting agents.
There only remains one question for the David whose wife Hannah is due to have their first child towards the end of the year.
“Hannah is an incredibly successful recruitment consultant and she would be great for the business,” he laughs. “It would be a dream to have her on board and who knows, maybe this could happen one day.”
