The Christmas Decorators: case study
Louise Walsh, from Birmingham, has always enjoyed the Christmas period, but she had no idea it would change her life until she met The Christmas Decorators. Joining the festive decorating franchise transformed her career as she secured her dream job of decking the halls at Harrods.
Back in April 2014, Louise was looking for a change from her role as a university event manager. She explains: “I’d always dreamed of owning my own business, but the thought of it always seemed quite daunting. It wasn’t until I came across the British Franchise Association that I realised you could join a well-established business and run your own branch as a franchisee. When I saw The Christmas Decorators were looking for franchisees, my heart leapt. Christmas has always been so important to me and the opportunity to turn this passion into a new career was too good to pass up.”
Louise began to research franchising, starting with a visit to The British & International Franchise Exhibition where experts were readily available to offer advice and answer her questions. After finding out everything she needed to know, Louise went along to The Christmas Decorators’ open day and became a franchisee soon after.
Louise has found it really can be Christmas every day – whether that means planning 50ft tree decorating projects for shopping centres or classy interiors for her star-studded client list. In 2016, Louise decorated seven departments in the world-famous Harrods department store.
Her overwhelming enthusiasm is palpable: “I would never have had the chance to work on projects as spectacular as these if I had created a start-up business. Being part of a franchise allows you the space to grow as a business owner and presents you with great opportunities, whilst still offering all the perks of being your own boss. The thing I love most about being a franchisee is the support I get from the franchise itself. I feel like I’m part of something really special and if there are ever any problems I know I will have a full support team behind me to help.
“It’s also a very lucrative career path. We turned over £100,000 last year and we are on course to double that again.”
Venture Marketing Group, which organises four franchise events every year, produces the UK’s only franchise exhibitions which are fully supported by the British Franchise Association (bfa). In addition to The Christmas Decorators, iconic franchise brands included McDonald’s, Millie’s Cookies, Belvoir and Anytime Fitness.
Adrian Goodsell, Franchise Sales Director at Venture Marketing Group, said: “It’s great to hear success stories like Louise’s. Her achievements will be an inspiration to those who want to turn their passion into a business but are unsure where to start. The beauty of franchising is that there is such a variety of sectors, from pet food and mobile phone apps, through to property and fitness – there really is something for everybody. Our exhibitions showcase the best in business, as well as world-class advice available from the exhibitors and authoritative voices within the industry.”
Find out more about upcoming exhibitions here and book your free tickets to follow in Louise’s footsteps.
