Ruthie Farrar is used to working in male dominated industries. Before she and her husband became Battery World franchisees in 2009 she was a member of the Royal Australian Air Force.
And while she was glad for the career change, Ruthie admits that her 22 years as a Defence Force member armed her with a number of skills that today help her to operate a successful business.
“I have a lot of qualities that I can use from the Defence Force. Defence military members would make great candidates for franchisees because they love procedures and they love rules and goals and having things to strive for. ItÕs what weÕre used to and the Battery World franchise does that for me,” she says.
RuthieÕs approach to her Ipswich franchise, just like her approach to the Air Force, is very hands-on. “I do everything. I do roadside, I do battery fittings, I do counter work, I do the marketing, I do administration, I do the staffing, the pays, you name it. I basically run the business. My husband looks after the technical side and I do everything else,” she says.
All this hard work has paid off, with Ruthie and her husband Howdie being named the 2010 Franchisee of the Year, just 12 months after their business doors opened for the first time.
Ruthie says Battery World is a great franchise to work for, and even though she might be part of the minority as a female, the company is making moves to remove the stereotype of battery handling being a typically male profession.
“Battery World is changing. It used to be male dominated when it had auto-electricians in it, but now itÕs changing and being made more female friendly,” says Ruthie.
The franchise is not only trying to make itself more appealing to women looking to become franchisees, but also to female customers.
“When ladies come in to get their batteries changed, they sit in the waiting area, thereÕs lots of magazines, itÕs air conditioned, thereÕs water to drink. ItÕs comfortable for them and it wasnÕt like that before.”
She says that while her role as a franchisee is very demanding — she and Howdie work seven days a week and have only taken one weekend off in 17 months — she loves the fact that sheÕs never bored.
“ThereÕs always something happening. ThereÕs always something different. You could be fitting a 4WD battery one minute then youÕre fitting a tiny little coin cell battery into an old ladyÕs watch.”
Not knowing a lot — or anything — about batteries isnÕt an excuse to not become a Battery World franchisee, Ruthie says, because the training provided by the franchise covers it all.
“The training that Battery World provides is brilliant,” she says. “We did a month [long] franchise course then about three months of placement where you go around to different stores and work there to get your confidence up and learn about the batteries, because thatÕs the hardest part, learning the stock, learning about the batteries.”
The best part of being a Battery World franchisee, however, is feeling like youÕre a part of the community, she says. “I love being in the franchise. Ispwich has been a fabulous place to open a franchise … Of course we wouldnÕt have won the Franchisee of the Year award if it wasnÕt for the people, the businesses and the community of Ipswich. We put in the hard yards, and no one can tell me that itÕs not hard work because it damn well is, but we both knew that when we signed on the dotted line.”