Posted:09-May-2008
Martin & Co franchise celebrate record-breaking year
Some 185 franchisees and guests of Martin & Co – the UK’s largest and fastest-growing specialists in residential lettings - celebrated a record-breaking year in style last Saturday with a gala dinner and awards ceremony.
If ever proof were needed that lettings prosper when sales are in the doldrums, it was clearly evident in the upbeat tone of the entire event, held at the luxurious Bosworth Hall Hotel in Warwickshire.
Following a bullish introduction by the company’s founder and Chairman, Richard Martin, the audience heard National Operations Director John Coupe hail 2007 as the company’s best-ever year. “Martin & Co was in great shape at the end of 2006, but last year the picture was even rosier,” he told his audience. Revenue grew by an industry-leading 43% during the year, and the total number of lets increased by 42% - a rate of growth that has continued into 2008, he said.
Equally significant, he added, was the fact that 2007 also saw the Martin & Co franchise network grow at an even faster rate than the previous year, with 30 new franchisees opening for business during the year. “Nothing more clearly illustrates the strength of our proposition as a high street lettings specialist – not to mention the robust good health of the private rental sector – than the fact that increasing numbers of successful businesspeople are prepared to invest in a Martin & Co franchise,” he said.
Martin & Co currently has a total of 139 offices across the country, from Truro to Aberdeen, Prime Central London to Belfast and Wales, reinforcing its position as the nation’s No. 1 lettings brand.
Guest speaker at the conference was Kevin Firth, Client Services Director for the Deposit Protection Service (DPS). He reviewed the state of the Government’s deposit protection scheme one year on, and confirmed Martin & Co as the largest single user of the DPS.
The strengthening of the Martin & Co brand was also the subject of a presentation by Managing Director Ian Wilson. He re-stated the company’s aim to be on every major high street in the UK. “We want to help our franchisees build their own property industry empires, our operations team have made over 121 office visits in the first three months of this year alone, franchisee support must be comprehensive and pro-active if it is to underpin the high service standards that we want Martin & Co clients to experience,” he said.
The formal part of proceedings finally reached their climax with the presentation of the 2008 Martin & Co Franchisee of the Year Awards.
The award for the Best 2007 Launch went to Neil and Lisa Williams from Newport, Gwent. They opened their office in April 2007 – and promptly proceeded to break all previous records with well in excess of 200 properties let in the first 7 months.
The Best Mature Franchise Award – for the highest average monthly lets achieved by an office opened before January 2006 - went to the husband and wife team of Kate and Martin Crown in Nottingham.
Husband and wife team Mike and Sue Lambert from the LeedsCity and York offices were named Best Franchise Brand Ambassadors in recognition of their consistent innovative approach to the marketing and promotion of the Martin & Co brand during the year.
Finally, the Franchisee of the Year – awarded for the highest number of new lets - was won by joint franchisees Shaun Cafferty and Mark Bowler, who own and run Martin & Co offices in Crewe and Nantwich.
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