Name: Maria Hepburn & Carli Horsburgh
Company Name: Hepburn & Horsburgh Ltd
Became franchisee: 2005
Number of outlets: 2
Cramlington (September 2005)
Newcastl. (April 2006)
Developmet Plans: To open a further BB’s each year .
Number of Employees: approximately 19, mainly full-time.
Serving: on average 4000 customers a week.
background
Both Maria and Carli were BB’s employees who saw the opportunity to run their own business when BB’s began to expand its franchise base.
Carli started work with BB’s as a student, studying Physiology, and working at the Cramlington store on weekends. When she graduated, she went to manage the Sunderland store on a full time basis and from running that, became more involved with BB’s store opening and training programme, finally becoming the company Training Manager.
Maria progressed from a store manager role at BB’s in Newcastle to become the BB’s Area Manager for the North of England. It was in Newcastle that the partners met and became friends.
They decided they wanted to run a catering business together and in 2005 bought the franchise for Cramlington. Initially, Carli stayed with BB’s to ensure the partnership had a firm financial footing, and one regular income, leaving when the pair acquired the franchise for Newcastle in April 2006.
The second franchise was acquired from profits made with the first, so the ladies did not have to make another significant investment. “We will always reinvest in the business,” said Maria “to keep up the growth momentum.&rdquo. Currently a major refurbishment of the Newcastle café is planned, to make the layout more efficient and create a larger seating area.
why choose BB's?
Carli and Maria did look at other options before deciding to take on their first BB’s franchise. They looked at other franchises and also the possibility of creating their own café.
“We knew BB’s inside out,” said Carli “so it was more logical and less of risk to go that way. We liked the products and believed in the brand and we’d seen the phenomenal growth of the company – and wanted part of that!”
motivation
“We’re 100% committed to what we’re doing – we wouldn’t have gone in if we weren’t totally confident,” said Maria. “We’ve always enjoyed working at BB’s and we love making coffee. We’re both passionate about how things look and giving the customers a great experience.”
running the business
Currently, Carli runs Newcastle and Maria runs Cramlington, but the two make the most of their complementary skills. Carli concentrates on product, training and admin, while Maria is more customer-focussed, ensuring that staff deliver a great brand experience.
The two stores are quite different – Cramlington is in a small village 10 miles from Newcastle and BB’s is very popular with local residents, who are very loyal customers. Customers expect their retailers to demonstrate a commitment to the community and be a part of it.
The Newcastle café is part of a big metropolitan shopping centre so has a higher proportion of customers who are visiting for the first time or only rarely. It also has a high level of competition from other cafés and chains.
Most of the staff have been with BB’s for some time and they are kept motivated by a newly introduced bonus scheme, which is based on sales targets.
With the ex-BB’s trainer on hand, staff get exemplary training and are never left on their own until they are totally confident with their tasks. All staff are trained in all the jobs as Carli and Maria believes that job rotation prevents them from getting bored. They also move their staff between the two cafés so that they can experience how another store works.
“We also involve them in what we are doing and ask them their opinion,” said Carli. “It’s important they feel part of the business.”
Both Maria and Carli are very hands on and they envisage it staying that way for a while, although eventually as their portfolio expands they will put managers into the existing businesses.
challenges
Newcastle is a more challenging café as there is a lot of competition from other operators and other shopping centres. The business needs to build stronger customer loyalty and the team are developing their loyalty card business well and investigating offering an outside catering facility for businesses.
key business philosophies
- Commitment: you must love what you are doing and put in 100% effort.
- Customer focus: solve any customer complaints quickly and generously.
- Staff motivation: work alongside them and involve them in the business.
- Be prepared for hard work and work in the store particularly in the early days to make sure your operations are right and you are building customer loyalty.
- Feedback: ask customers for their opinions.
- Take advice where necessary.
summary
Carli and Maria have a strong friendship and even stronger business relationship. They have the same goals and ambitions – to become major BB’s franchisees and run efficient, customer friendly operations.
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