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Building The Dream At Chemex Reaching 25 years in business is no small feat for any company, especially one operating in a highly competitive industry which has seen many changes over the last few years. You could be forgiven for looking at the latest fad or explosive new franchise opportunity - starting off with a bang can often mean coming back down to earth with a bump. There are plenty of ‘here today and gone tomorrow’ business ideas but can you really spot a good opportunity when you see one? At Chemex, UK’s leading franchised cleaning and hygiene solutions provider, the medium to long term objective is to help each and every franchisee to grow a valuable business asset. The aim for new franchisees is to help them create a business which they can ultimately sell for a profit when they decide to leave the network. Four years ago, Melvin Lusty who owned the very successful Rainbow International franchise, teamed up with Sean Derrig of Snap-on Inc to spearhead the new era of business builders at Chemex. Two years later the so-called ‘Dream Team’ were joined by Ron Hutton (who worked with Melvin at Rainbow International) as Sales Director, giving Chemex’s Board almost 80 years of combined franchising experience. Ask any Chemex franchisee about their business and they will tell you that Chemex has the potential to be much more than a man-in-a-van operation. There is no such thing as a 'standard' Chemex franchise. Each business brings something different to the company and the clients that they serve. When looking at regional and national accounts, franchisees get support from board level and are encouraged to seek out opportunities that will help their businesses grow. Regional Sales Managers will also coach new and existing franchisees in areas such as sales and marketing, lead generation, customer care and product application. From day one, franchisees are encouraged to think about their exit plan and what they are hoping to gain from investing in a Chemex franchise. Most will realize that the only way to build a saleable asset is to employ staff and invest in premises. The majority of franchisees inherited by Mel, Sean and Ron have taken on board the new direction and even though the transition has been difficult the team are starting to see the fruits of their labor. Last year, at a time where many SMEs were going out of business, Chemex still maintained their stance as industry leaders and stuck by their values by providing good quality cleaning and hygiene solutions to industry. Partnerships formed with Environment Health Officers helped to distinguish Chemex from their many competitors and the launch of innovative products that helped to combat MRSA, Norovirus and H1N1 kept Chemex ahead of the game. Even from overseas in Canada Chemex were seen as a good value investment. In December 2009, Chemex granted a license to well established Canadian company Dimachem Inc which is investing $3m (Canadian) in a new manufacturing facility near Toronto, Ontario. Chemex already has five overseas operations but this is the first partnership formed in North America. Chemex Managing Director, Melvin Lusty, said: “This is an excellent long term deal for the company and provides a tremendous opportunity to establish Chemex products in North America.” The next 25 years will no doubt bring about new challenges and opportunities to the organization and the way that Chemex faces these will help to determine the level of success achieved. If you would like to join the Chemex ‘Dream Team’ in their endeavor of growth, profit and sustainability please contact Ron Hutton on 0121 565 6300. |
There is much talk of doom and gloom in the economy and with money tight you might be more wary about going into business for yourself. However, when is a good time? The fact is that businesses are built in recessions too. 
In this section we include a few testimonials from our franchisees. If you decide to explore the Chemex opportunity in more detail then you could soon be speaking to some of them or experiencing the job first hand with a day out with one of our franchisees. Franchisees not only feel good about becoming respected members of their community, but they also benefit from becoming involved with prospective customers, who in turn may provide referrals.
