A Day in the Life of a provender® Franchise Owner- Vol. - 1

provender® not only provides you with your very own vending franchise business, it provides you with the opportunity and flexibility to create the lifestyle that suits you.

Affordable upfront fees, great return on investment, easy to run and grow, no staff management, flexible work hours. Own your own mobile vending franchise business.

Meet Ibrahim Tekeli... A Man of Leisure!

“This gives me the chance to spend time with my 2 kids and wife. I am also now able to play soccer twice a week. This was not possible prior to me joining provender® as the soccer games work on a rotating roster. I joined provender® to ensure that I am able to spend time with my family and friends. All that I had learnt about the company showed me that I could get the life I am looking for.”

Q. How long have you been a provender® Franchise Owner?
A. 3 and half years
  
Q. What appeals to you about this particular vending franchise business?
A. provender® provides me with an extremely secure and helpful support system which makes running my own Franchise Business incredibly easy. With provender® I am now able to plan my work around my personal commitments with my family and friends. This is something that I was never able to do with my previous jobs. provender® showed me that being part of their franchise business programme would give me time for myself and my family. This is very important to me and is the reason I decided to become a Franchise Owner.

Q. What is it like running a mobile franchise business?
A. It’s fun! I really enjoy what I do as a Franchise Owner. It is relatively easy especially with the support provender® provides me. Being part of provender® also allows me to work outdoors. Not being confined to one area or office space is an added bonus. In this line of work we are constantly meeting new people who keep things interesting and lively on a daily basis.

Q. Was there a lot of work initially?
A. Like with any other business, there was more work involved initially while we were setting up my franchise business. I had to work harder when I was learning about the business and I found that the harder I worked the faster I leant about how to run a franchise business successfully. I had to focus on what stock I needed for each machine, but once the machines are setup it is very easy to run. provender® has systems in place that helps keep it simple for Franchise Owners. provender® has been by my side the whole time… to this day.

Q. Has your workload increased or decreased?
A. Thanks to provender® I have been able to increase my workload and still have the time to do all my non work related activities. Increasing my workload means an increase in income. provender® has guided me with making the right choices and finding new business. I truly feel that provender’s® merge with 24 seven has been a very positive influence on both my business and myself as a Franchise Owner.

Q. Is it a difficult business to manage?
A. Not a chance… it’s not hard to manage this business especially because I enjoy what I do. I focus on my customers and their requirements because this business is about fulfilling their needs and placing the right machine in their work environment. provender® manages my business for me with their tracking system which I have remote access too. This allows me to check the status of my machines products when I’m not on site and plan how essential it is to attend to each machine. This helps me determine how busy my day or week will be and I also have the power to plan visits to my machines around my personal commitments.

Q. How do you plan to grow your vending franchise business further?
A. What I have found is that if I continue to service my machines regularly, maintaining provender’s® high standards and making sure that I do not give my customers the opportunity to be disappointed in my services, they will provide me with fresh leads to businesses that they know would benefit from provender’s® vending options. It is part of provender’s® strategy to ensure that my business continues to grow and progress therefore they also find new leads for Franchise Owners like myself. Of course it is up to me to turn these leads into my customers by enticing them. provender® has also made this easier by providing guidelines for Franchise Owners. provender® also has business development managers whose main role is to help Franchise Owners build and grow their business and I aim to continue utilising their services.

Q. Does being in the franchising business offer you flexibility or is that just a myth?
A. Owning a Franchise business with provender® definitely provides you with flexibility. It has changed my lifestyle altogether. I am able to plan my workload so that it is convenient for me and also suits my personal plans. Of course I have to get the work done and make sure that my customers don’t ever suffer but I am still in charge of my own schedule.

Q. Where do you find the time to do non-work related activities? Do you get time?
A. Typically I finish work by 2pm or latest 3pm, unless I started work late. This gives me the chance to spend time with my 2 kids and wife. I am also now able to play soccer twice a week. This was not possible prior to me joining provender® as the soccer games work on a rotating roster. I joined provender® to ensure that I am able to spend time with my family and friends. All that I had learnt about the company showed me that I could get the life I am looking for.

Q. Explain how the flexibility offered to you by your franchise business has changed your lifestyle?
A. I go out more now because I am not tired after work all the time like I was with my previous jobs. provender® provides a system with remote access that is linked to all my machines. This allows me to keep track of my machines and know which machines will need my attention urgently; also I know how busy my day will be before hand. I am able to organise my schedule around important family events that I use to miss out on prior to becoming a Franchise Owner.

Q. What are some things you are able to do with your spare time now, that you were not able to do prior to becoming a franchise business owner?
A. I have always loved playing soccer but was not able to do so with my previous jobs due to the fact that the games are on a rotating roster. Now I am able to enjoy soccer with my mates, this also keeps me fit, healthy and alert. The time I spend with my children is good quality because I am not thinking about work and I am able to give them my undivided attention. Time with my family is a very important aspect in my life.

Q. What benefits does a home-based franchise offer you?
A. Running a home-based franchise costs me the bear minimum. I don’t have a lease or rent to pay for. There are not many expenses for the business as opposed to income. My family involvement has increased tremendously and it hasn’t been hard to make that time as I am now my own boss. I enjoy sports and time with my friends which I am now able to make time for regularly instead of putting things off continuously.
  
Q. Is the process of obtaining your vending machine products difficult or time consuming?
A. No… provender’s® tracking system makes it very easy. I am able to see which machines are running out of products and which products I need to order. With provender’s® online purchasing system it is a piece of cake to order products. The system is very user friendly therefore not taking up much of my time.
  
Q. What is your favourite vending machine and why?
A. Bev Max – because it is a big machine and is very reliable. Faults generally do not occur with this machine. It is very user friendly which is essential in order for customers to feel comfortable using it on a regular basis. Plus it is a very eye catching and attractive machine.

Q. What made you choose franchising as a career option?
A. With my past jobs I was not able to spend much time with my family and I definitely was not able to play soccer or see my friends as I was always tired from my long work hours. That is the main reason I looked around for an alternative career option. provender® took over the franchise business that I had joined which gave me all the freedom and flexibility that I was searching for.

Q. Are you happy with your franchise business choice?
A. Yes, I cannot see myself doing anything else. I wouldn’t consider changing my career because I am very content with my lifestyle now, which is a direct reflection of what provender® promised to offer me as a Franchise Owner.

Q. How does the franchise business differ or compare to your past jobs or career paths?
A. I have a lot more time now to give my family the attention they deserve. I can plan my work day around my personal commitments because now I am my own boss. Because I do plan my work well I do not ever work on weekends leaving me time for my family, friends and also me. I have not missed any events or functions important to my kids since I joined provender®.

Q. Tell us who your favourite customer is and why they are your favourite?
A. Bunning’s Sunshine – because they have machines that are great to use and they clear it out fast. I get a lot of sales from them and this is primarily due to my servicing their machines regularly and correctly. The staff members at Bunning’s Sunshine are also always friendly and stop for a chat which makes my job pleasant.

Q. Describe your average weekend since you’ve become a franchise owner?
A. I do not work on weekends at all anymore unless there is a fault with one of my machines which is rare, but I attend to it immediately. I have never in the past had my weekends and nights free for me to be able to choose what I’d like to do. I spend a lot of time with my family and also my friends. Friends that I never was able to see before I am now able to make time for. I enjoy outings with my kids. Also just being able to relax was very rare 3 and half years ago.

Q. Do you feel the need to hire employees to help run your vending franchise business?
A. I currently service 40 machines and do not need any employees to assist me. With the new technology that provender® offers it is so easy to manage the business on my own. My future goals are to keep expanding the business. When I have closer to 100 vending machines I will then hire someone to assist me in order to continue providing first class service to provender’s® customers and maintain my current lifestyle.

Q. Is there any advice you would like to give to potential Franchise Owners?
A. provender® is a very organised and approachable company that have the interests of their Franchise Owners in mind. Be open minded to the strategies and advice provender® offers you. It might look risky to start with or you may not understand it all, but you must trust provender® and remember you are on the same team. Listen to your customers carefully and start planning in your mind what would suit their work environment best before pitching the idea to them. Sometimes you may need to have a big stomach for complaints, think of all the positives and push on. Ultimately if you want to succeed you need to focus, plan and take action… always work with provender®.

Create your own lifestyle like Ibrahim Tekeli. Join Australasia’s No. 1 Vending Franchise.