Posted:20-March-2019
Revive! Annual Conference Celebrates Bumper Year
Over 150 Revive! franchisees and technicians gathered at the home of England football, St James Park, to attend the company’s 15th annual conference and celebrate a year which saw an almost 50% increase in demand for the UK’s leading network of accredited SMART repairers.
The theme of this year’s conference was ‘Mindset for Growth’. Board directors Mark Llewellyn, Terry Mullen, Cathryn Hayes and Kelly Blackmore-Lee presented the highlights of the year which included a 14% growth in network sales, £1.5m worth of additional work from national account customers, six new franchisees and outstanding customer feedback through Trustpilot. Over 40% of franchisees achieved best ever months during 2018.
Opening the conference managing director Mark Llewellyn said: “What a difference a year makes. This time last year we had snow and cancellations and difficulties at the start of the year due to the Beast from the East. But just a year on we have had a fantastic start to 2019 with work pouring in and the mild weather allowing us to fulfil the work.
“At the same time I can’t believe 15 years has gone by so quickly, but time and evolution are relentless and one of our challenges is to make the most of the time we have. It is no surprise to me that the business is not the same business it was 15 years ago. We have moved from the traditional ‘man in a van’ model to being a network of thriving businesses running multiple vans and employing technicians.
“Well done to those running businesses – you should be rightly proud of yourselves. We are on track to achieve our ambitious goal of reaching a £20m turnover by 2020 and have a very exciting year ahead of us.”
The company now has 60 franchisees, with 181 technicians on the road, all supported by a 50-people strong Rugby based head office team.
Delegates heard from an impressive line-up of speakers drawn from the automotive industry and the field of sport.
David Cresswell, chairman of the ABP Club spoke on the changing face of the bodyshop industry and the increasing role SMART repair has to play in this new environment, whilst Steve Plunkett, Volvo’s body and paint programme development manager spoke about his company’s long heritage of safety. Volvo’s 2020 vision is that nobody shall be seriously injured or killed in a new Volvo and he underlined the importance of choosing the correct repair method in this.
In keeping with the mindset theme, bodyshop and repair industry pioneer Mike Monaghan and former Scottish international rugby player Nick De Luca delivered thought - provoking keynote presentations urging delegates to adopt a positive mental attitude and focus on team attitudes and behaviours rather than just results.
A supplier showcase was held after lunch and a question and answer session with Revive! sponsored BTCC racing driver Andrew Jordan brought the conference to a close. He shared his team’s plans for the 2019/20 season and donated a special BTCC limited edition Scalextric set featuring his Revive! sponsored BMW as a prize for the evening fundraiser which raised £1,200 for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.
Outstanding individual and team achievements were recognised at the post-conference gala dinner and awards ceremony. Mike Haselden from Revive! Chester was named Franchisee of the Year for the second year running in recognition of his exceptional 38% business growth during 2018. Revive! Portsmouth scooped a trio of awards with the team winning the new Customer Service award, owner Steve Thatcher receiving the Players Player award for his contribution to the network and technician Terry Wheatley lifting the trophy for Technician of the Year in the southern region. Chris Wild from Revive! Preston won Technician of the Year for the Northern region and Michal Lepiarz and Irmina Kowalski, owners of Revive! Basingstoke won the Developer Gold award in recognition of the way in which they have developed their business.
Prizes were donated by Revive! suppliers and conference sponsors RWC, Allianz, LJPR, C Track UK Ltd, Mirka, LKQ, Devilbiss, Farecla and Akzo Nobel.
Revive! Auto Innovations is a full member of the British Franchise Association and leads the way in smart repair, with the UK’s largest network of accredited repairers. We are looking for business orientated people to join our existing team of franchisees running highly profitable multi-van businesses operating in the minor vehicle repair sector. Revive! franchise owners provide services on a mobile basis which allows them to keep overheads low, whilst offering a convenient service to customers, who include car dealerships, fleet and lease companies, insurance companies as well as the general public.
Interested and want to know more about Revive! Auto Innovations ?
The Revive! Auto Innovations profile outlines all aspects of their franchise opportunity and allows you to contact them for further information or to ask a question.
