Paving the way for success

After launching and developing Scenic Blue into a national company she then negotiated a hugely successful multi-million pound sale to Marshalls. Judy Behl has now gone on to play a fundamental role, not only in the growth of the now re-branded Marshalls Gardens and Driveways, but within Marshalls as a whole. Editor Vicki Cunningham speaks to her about the challenges she has faced along the way.

After leaving her role as Group Secretary for the National Farmers Union in 1994, Judy continued to work on developing her business, The Landscape Company, until it launched in February 1998. The company changed its name in 2000 to Scenic Blue and went on to consolidate its position as the UK’s only landscape gardening franchise. By February 2007 Scenic Blue had 38 franchise territories and Judy had negotiated a hugely successful sale with Marshalls Plc, the UK’s leading landscape transformation company. I wanted to speak to Judy about her new role as Group Franchise Director and the recent decision to re-brand Scenic Blue as Marshalls Gardens & Driveways as well as her thoughts about ethical franchising and women in business.

How did Scenic Blue begin?

It became obvious to me that people were taking a much keener interest in their gardens and although there were around 50,000 people that call themselves landscapers in the UK, there was no one national business. Some people spend up to £100,000 on their landscaping projects and they want to know there is a cohesive brand behind that and not just a one-man band. When I started the business it was always with the intention of franchising it – it was always the plan to grow Scenic Blue into a business with national coverage.


What was the hardest challenge you faced during the launch of Scenic Blue?

Having two small babies at the same time was pretty challenging! Other than that I think it was always about the cash, which is obviously essential to keep a business going. I regularly get involved in mentoring people starting their own business and they often get so caught up in their great idea they forget that if you run out of cash you’re finished! We managed to get a business angel and a corporate investor; and then Melvin Lusty came on board as company chairman prior to the acquisition.

What steps preceding the acquisition did you take to attract Marshalls as an investor?

We had already attracted a corporate investor that took a 5% stake – a 6-figure sum, which was a competitor of Marshalls…so that was an interesting one! It meant Marshalls were curious as to why their competitors were interested in us. So it was helpful in attracting the investment from Marshalls in the first place, but when it actually came down to the final sale it made it very difficult. During the sale the minority investor wanted to make it very difficult for the buyers so it took a lot of careful negotiation. It was a chicken and egg situation, but ultimately having two buyers puts you, as a seller, in a very strong position.

What is your role within Marshalls since the acquisition?

Marshalls is a £360 million plc and this is their first foray into franchising so I have been appointed as the Group Franchise Director. Part of my job is to always be on the look out for potential opportunities. Marshalls is a very acquisitive business and the absolute focus is always to grow.

Has the acquisition freed up any of your time?

Oh no, quite the opposite! I now get very involved in corporate meetings and I’m also on a high-level strategy team where we look at how the concept is going to fit into the existing Marshalls business. But I have a very good franchise support team, which is part of what Marshalls purchased. It’s not just me – it’s the whole business. During the sale process we were able to demonstrate that if I were to go under a bus tomorrow the business would still be in a very healthy position.

You have recently re-branded to Marshalls Gardens and Driveways; will you be sad to lose the name of the company you started nearly 10 years ago?

I think not – any emotion came with a very large cheque! That was last December and that’s how you have to look at it. If it had been the right decision to keep the brand name then that would have been great, but Marshalls has a well-known brand and a 100 year heritage that is well respected. It was absolutely the right decision financially and has been very well received by our existing franchisees.

Have you encountered any difficulties working within a Plc?

It is a big challenge for me. I am absolutely an entrepreneur, I make no bones about it, and entrepreneurs come in a very set format. We are very driven and used to being very independent and making a lot of decisions. But I have set myself the personal challenge of fitting in within the corporate environment as an entrepreneur. I want to see the project through – from launch to a large multi-million pound national business.

What are the plans for Marshalls Gardens & Driveways for 2008?

Marshalls has been building gardens and driveways for a number of years through itsexisting business, so now it is a question of putting two and two together and making more than four! We plan to roll Marshalls Gardens & Driveways out nationally very quickly.
I am also keen for the re-branded company to have the same energetic personality that Scenic Blue has always had and this is always a big consideration when recruiting franchisees.

You are currently a board member of the bfa, what does your role entail?

Board members are there to make the bfa responsible to its membership and to look at how the services of the bfa can be offered in a practical and forward thinking way.

What else do you think can be done to promote ethical franchising in the UK?

The bfa has to be at the forefront of educating people. We need to be working more closely with the Government, especially at a local level with organisations like Business Link. 95% of new businesses are no longer trading within five years and with over 160,000 new businesses starting each year, that is a staggering figure. Wherever advisors are involved in counselling others on whether to set up in business, we as an industry should be talking to these advisors so franchising is suggested as an option from the very beginning.

We also need to be looking at where we can get better quality franchisee prospects. As an industry we are fairly focused on targeting a small group of people. When franchisors say “I can’t find franchisees” it’s probably because they are only prepared to accept people from a very narrow demographic. Take women for example, I think the figure is something like only 7% of franchisees are women – there is a massive pool of potential franchisees that we are not recruiting from.

You have become a very high-profile woman in the franchising community; have you met any specific challenges along the way?

Nothing that cannot be overcome. I have grown this business at the same time as being a mum. I think one of the biggest challenges to over come is the restrictions women put on themselves. That said, I get frustrated when women come to me and say they want to be a franchisee but only want to work part-time and I always say; “that will never work, you can’t have everything!”

If you want to be a franchisee you have to work full-time hours but it does give you the flexibility to fit those hours around other commitments, for example your children. I will often spend time with my children and then catch up with emails or phone calls in the evenings or at a time that is more convenient to me.


What advice would you give to people thinking of starting their own business or buying a franchise?

You need a very detailed business plan. Every business will need a very detailed five-year business plan. You need three versions: a disaster version - if everything goes wrong can I survive? Then you need an average result version, and also a dynamic one so you can see the results you can potentially achieve. This way you will have a real feel for your business and you will know what the parameters of the business are.

I’ve had an interesting roller-coaster ride. I’ve experienced all three scenarios in my business, from disaster to a seven-figure sum pay-off. No franchisee or anyone starting out can say I don’t know what I’m talking about because I’ve been through it all. I’m in the dynamic stage right now so I’m really enjoying that!

It is clear that Judy is now reaping the rewards of her success and rightly so. It would so easy to say that Judy has been lucky over the last 10 years, but surely the phrase ‘the harder you work the luckier you get’ could not be truer than in this case. Not only is Judy an extremely successful and ambitious businesswoman she is also willing to dedicate a lot of her time to the franchise industry and to others hoping to start their own business, which is genuinely admirable. I, along with many others in the industry I’m sure, will be taking a keen interest to see what the future holds for Marshalls Gardens & Driveways, and it’s dynamic plans for rapid national growth.