We catch up with Sean, who joined Snack in the Box in July 2016 and now services the East Anglia area. He has a large customer base of Vending Boxes and a few Vending Machines.
Snack in the Box ask Sean why he looked at SITB in the first place. What makes SITB stand out? We also look into his personal objectives, and what it was like starting his business initially. We also ask him about future plans, and sales targets too.
So, what is it that made you first look at SITB and choose the Franchise initially?
I had gone as far as I could in previous employment and was comfortable but felt like I was in a dead end position. The Head Office team had changed and I was uneasy with their strategy. So I started looking elsewhere for self-employment opportunities.
I came across SITB and met with them. I loved the simplicity of the concept, but still had a lot of doubts and questions. SITB Head Office became increasingly involved and I realised I warmed to the idea. A lot was due to the honesty of those I spoke to. I got straight answers, good and bad.
What were the 3 key personal objectives when buying the franchise?
My 3 incentives were:
· A steady income stream that would reward me better than previous employment
· Costs of the business paid off within 2 ½ years
· More control over my own time and future
With the Launch Programme, did SITB deliver what was promised?
The Launch programme was comprehensive. My initial thoughts were ''do I need that much time and support for such a long period?’’
The answer was that the time flew by, and the advice and support given assisted me to getting to the happy place I am now.
Happy to say that after two months getting to know my round with long days (which I had been warned about), I'm now on target to achieve my initial goals.
Have you needed support and what has your experience been like with the network?
The support teams are excellent. That honest factor I came across during the initial contact period continues. There is no 'blame culture' like in many businesses. The support is very refreshing.
What are the best things about running your SITB business?
As someone who has a box orientated round, I see more customers than someone with a majority of machines. This brings two distinct advantages:
Firstly, everyone seems delighted to see you. The Red Vending Box makes you an instant knight in shining armour in lots of workplaces.
Secondly, I see a huge variation of businesses. From telesales offices to car mechanics, miniature golf course designers to power stations, hairdressers to bus companies, bird of prey centres to supercar garages, and more. The variety of customer is incredible, but then again, everyone loves chocolate.
Are you able to hit your sales targets and what are your plans for the business in the future?
My sales targets are being hit, in fact, I budgeted a bit on the pessimistic side.
I now plan a 10% growth in customer numbers by Christmas. This should help me achieve my business pay off plans 6-12 months earlier than I'd forecast only 3 months ago. I've also invested in additional machines for customers I felt would benefit from them. This will assist me on fuel economies and time.
Despite my plans for growth, I will be earning more this year for doing fewer hours. That is free time I look forward to using.
Longer term, I aim for steady growth in customer numbers. There are so many potential customers out there it's frightening, but in a good way.