Interlink Express Franchise

Simon reaps the benefits from careful franchise research!

14th June 2008

Missing the birth of his son due to work commitments was the catalyst for Simon Hawtrey-Coombs’ mid-life career change. Simon (37) knew the transport industry, he’d been employed on the sales side for 10 years but it was becoming more and more difficult to juggle successfully the demands of work and home. He was living out of a suitcase as he travelled across the UK from Monday to Friday and not enjoying it much. It was time to make a decision to re-dress the work-life balance to be less in favour of the work side.

He is now a successful Interlink Express franchisee with an 8,000 sq. ft. warehouse and storage facility, 11 vehicles and 25 staff and his business is booming; his operation handles around 5,000 packages each week for distribution either in the UK or to one of 220 countries overseas. Interlink Express is the franchised distribution arm of GeoPost UK which in turn is owned by La Poste, the second largest postal group in Europe.

The company has a network of 134 depots in the UK and Ireland and distributes 11 million parcels annually. According to Simon, success as a franchisee depends upon taking on the right franchise. He explains: “Just because you run a franchise outlet, it doesn’t preclude you from going under; you still need to make sure your revenue exceeds your expenditure and to do that, you need to embrace the business you’ve taken on and get close to your customers.”

Researching the market is key to success. Simon dedicated time to reviewing a multitude of franchise opportunities. He went to shows across the UK and talked to people, often asking difficult questions. Eventually, he decided that the knowledge and experience he had accumulated over the previous decade would be a useful springboard and honed in on the transport industry. He considers himself fortunate to operate an Interlink Express franchise – he’s only the third franchisee of the business in East Ringwood, Bournemouth, since its inception 21 years ago.

This low turnover was a selling point, as Simon explains: “The Interlink Express brand is well recognised and respected. Opportunities rarely arise and when they do, it’s a competitive pitch. As a consequence, customers perceive high service levels and a strong brand proposition and quite honestly, the company has the best management team in the parcels industry. Like all franchisees, I sometimes find the red tape frustrating but the advantage of representing an established, valued brand far outweighs the disadvantages.”

The advantage of taking on a brand with a solid track record can reap dividends. In Simon’s case, he has around 1,000 customers on his books and he deals with between 30 and 50 on a daily basis. He prides himself on not having lost a customer on either a price or service issue in the three years he’s been trading. In fact, he recently took one of his most loyal customers out to lunch to celebrate 21 years of consistent trading.

“It’s a great life – I wouldn’t go back to being employed as running the business gives me so much autonomy but if there’s one piece of advice I’d give to anyone looking into buying a franchise then I’d say do your homework well – ask questions of the customers, ensure the management structure is sound, look closely at the premises, the staff and the figures and never ever forget to employ a good accountant.”

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Further Information

Franchise Information

BFA Membership Status
Full

UK Years Established
30 years

Current UK Coverage
100%

Franchisee Support Staff
15

Personal Investment Req.
£75,000

Total Startup Cost
£100,000 approx

'Territory management' business location

Business to business services

Franchisee employs and manages staff

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