Eleven years ago I was a diesel fitter. I had got to the stage where I had done everything I wanted to do in the trade and I was looking for something new without really knowing what.
I knew about Snap-on as I was a customer of the local Snap-on franchise partner. Using the tools, I knew that they were the best on the planet. I also loved the Snap-on truck, it was like a store on wheels and just like a big boys toy shop! Every mechanic’s dream is to own Snap-on tools.
One day the Snap-on truck rolled into the Rockhampton workshop where I was working.
I told him that I would love to be a Snap-on franchisee and asked him how I would go about it.
A month or two later he came back and asked me if I was serious, and I told him ‘you bet I‘m serious’.
Some 12 months passed, as there was a lot to weigh up. It is a daunting prospect starting your own business after working for someone else.
But that is where Snap-on’s history and reputation really came into it. I really started to appreciate what Snap-on’s 85 years of history and experience really meant to someone like me starting in business for the first time.
While I knew nothing about being in business, Snap-on helped through each step. From learning how to drive a Snap-on truck to how to put a business plan together and then approach the bank.
Snap-on took me from being a toddler to a sprinter!
When we have had challenges, Snap-on has been there to back us up. We run the show and we do the day to day things but when we need to, we put our hand up and get the help we need.
Snap-on has excellent support staff with a lot of experience. Having good people behind us is the best part of being in business.
Now, eleven years later, I can say that it has been a helluva ride. When we first started, I had one van in my geographic territory and I was working really crazy hours building my business.
Today we have four vans operating, two office staff and we are still growing. I don’t do those crazy hours anymore, but we still typically put in 9 hour days. I see other businesses, other franchises, but then I really like owning my retail spaces and not having commercial leases in shopping centres.
I also like going to see my customers rather than waiting for them to come to see me. I thought I used to earn pretty good money when I was a diesel fitter, but even in my wildest dreams I never thought I would have anything like the business I now have.
I pay my guys who work for me more than I used to earn in my diesel job. I am proud to be a
Snap-on franchisee and I am proud of what I have achieved in the last eleven years and that is not just financially. There is nothing more rewarding than seeing my staff also succeed.
I would offer a simple piece of advice to anyone looking at joining the Snap-on team of franchisees.
Weigh up your options, make sure it is what you want to do and then get into it. Be passionate, get excited and go for it! Passionate and excited is what you need to be. Love what you do!
Read more about buying a franchise and running a franchise.
27-Nov-2006