No dragons for David

David McNeil always wanted to have his own business, especially as he had dreamed of getting away from corporate politics and spending more time with his family. His last job meant he was working in East Anglia whilst living in the Midlands ñ a round trip of around 250 miles!

However, David never felt he was the right candidate to impress business angels like Peter Jones or Theo Paphitis of TV's "Dragons Den". "I couldn't seem to dream up a unique or creative enough idea for my own business," admits David, "and in order to succeed you need a proposition that stands out from the rest of the market".

So, how did this man make the leap from a dream to owning a business that turned over £500,000 in its first year of trading?

A traditional start

David McNeil's career began in a conventional way and you might have expected him to spend his working life as a high-flying corporate executive. He graduated from university with an engineering degree and joined multi-national company Unilever, working on the manufacturing side of detergent and cleaning products subsidiary Lever Bros.

David went through Unilever's extensive graduate training programme and, with 10 years experience under his belt, felt well equipped for his next move, a general management position with top potato crisp manufacturer, Golden Wonder. After 5 years dealing with veg, David made the shift to meat and took on a role as Managing Director of one of the Grampian Foods' companies turning over £100m. Here, he was responsible for producing fresh and cooked pork products, such as chops and ham, which were mainly sold to Sainsburys.

Being his own boss

David had always wanted to be his own boss and had dreams of managing his lifestyle so he could spend more time working from home and be around his young family. When he was commuting between Leicestershire and Suffolk, his wife, Sonia, and their 5 year old twins hardly saw him. A subsequent addition to the family in 2005 gave him added impetus to make a change.

David decided to explore the franchise route to being a business owner. This suited his need for a ready-made business proposition, but he wanted to make sure he chose the right franchise - one which gave him the opportunity for serious growth. So keen was David to make sure that he invested in the right route that he spent four years researching franchises. He attended the Franchise Show and investigated a number of possibilities, none of which seemed to offer the right mix for him.

"Many franchises are limited in terms of how you can grow the business and that doesn't suit my aspirations," states David. Finally, he discovered Jani-King and knew he had found the right opportunity. David describes Jani-King as "not the most glamorous business, but it definitely has the potential for growth." He adds, "Everywhere needs cleaning!"

A team effort

David and wife Sonia bought their Jani-King East Midlands area franchise in October 2005 and started trading six months later. David couldn't afford to quit his Grampian job until the business was turning over enough to pay the bills. So, in a real team effort, Sonia ran the business initially and went through the Jani-King training programme, building up the administrative systems and doing some of the initial cleaning work herself.

In July 2006, the McNeils felt the business had taken off to the extent that David could come on board full time and he finally took the plunge, becoming his own boss at last! This meant Sonia was able to move back into a more family-orientated role, although she still uses her initial training and experience to support David in the business when necessary.

Reaching £500,000 in year one

Through taking the Jani-King franchise route, David McNeil was able to start his own business and reach an impressive first year turnover of £500,000. David did not need his own business idea, processes or basic systems, because that is part of the deal for Jani-King franchisees.

Being a franchise owner, particularly in the early stages, is very hard work. In the first 12-18 months there is more effort than reward. However, David says: "Jani-King are very honest about what to expect in each stage of the business as it develops and I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel."

In fact, things have gone pretty well for David and Sonia and the business has grown in line with their hopes and expectations: turnover is now £600,000 on an annualised basis with a good profit margin; they have over 100 employees (with 3 of these forming the management team, the rest being cleaning staff) and they have 54 clients, often national brand names, with the five biggest (Next, H&M, Superdrug, Odeon and Tenpin Bowling) accounting for 70% of turnover. Jani-King's national sales force has been instrumental in acquiring national account brand names on David's behalf.

What you need to succeed

Whilst David doesn't think any individual part of the business is very difficult, the hard part is juggling everything. For example, he has to manage sales, be his own personnel director and organise payroll. "You need a cross-section of skills to be successful," says David. "For example, you need good people skills to get staff to do an excellent job for clients whilst managing them at a distance." David's home is in the middle of Jani-King's East Midlands territory which measures 60 miles in diameter and he explains, "Because most of the work is done early in the morning, I can't personally be with more than two clients in any one day, so it's impossible to oversee everything. Fortunately, my years in the corporate world taught me how to manage people."

In order to control everything that's going on in the business you need strong processes and the Jani-King systems provided by Head Office provide a fine framework for this. David has moulded them to suit his business, or, as he describes it, "put flesh on the bones and turned the theory into practice". David believes you can't just assume a standard system will work for every business and it is up to the individual entrepreneur to make sure the basic system is appropriately tailored.

David believes his previous experience in the corporate world has helped him succeed in his Jani-King franchise. Although he is now more hands-on across a broader range of tasks than before, at least he is equipped with an understanding of areas such as HR and payroll, even if he didn't previously have to execute them himself.

Ups and downs

David and Sonia's business has had its ups and downs. During the first year, it was a slower start than anticipated. David explains, "Sometimes there's no growth and sometimes too much all at once". On the upside, he has experienced strong growth as a whole and enjoys the freedom to set his own stamp and style on things.

Although David wanted lifestyle changes to come as a result of being his own boss, he has found these have only happened in part. He has been able to spend more time working from home and therefore sees more of his young family. However, David admits "The downside is that you are never not at work - it's 24/7. You have to respond if no one else is able to do so. However, this is part of the start-up effort in any business and at least I have the freedom to set my own agenda which I wouldn't have in a corporate environment. And I don't miss the politics either!"

Being his own "Apprentice"

During his time manufacturing cleaning products at Lever Bros, it never occurred to David that one day he might be putting such products to use in his own business! "I never planned to be in this sector", he explains, "but it offers such good growth opportunities that it is ideal for meeting my goals."

Although Jani-King warned David he would need to be very hands on in the early days, he has still done more cleaning than he expected. "I just had to roll up my sleeves and get on with it" he says with a rueful smile. "Anyway, if you're running your own business, it's important to learn how to do things. Otherwise, how can you manage the people who are doing it?" In David's case it sounds like a cross between "The Apprentice" and "Back to the Floor".

The sky's the limit!

David McNeil's Jani-King franchise hasn't yet grown to the size of his former employer Unilever, but he's certainly aiming high! "I don't see why I should put a limit on my growth expectations for the business", states David.

In future, he will be aiming to double his turnover every year, building on the £500,000 level reached in his first year. David intends to build a larger management team when the size of the business makes this viable. "Then I will be able to delegate more and spend time on the golf course!" he laughs.