Property repairs and maintenance
Age started in business: 17
“I started at Hull Training in August 2015 studying a level-2 NVQ in Maintenance Operations. During my time at college, I learned all the different building trades: plastering, joinery, bricklaying, decorating etc. I thoroughly enjoyed my job and wanted to progress in this profession, wanting to eventually go into property development and lettings. I had many discussions whilst at college regarding wanting to start up our own maintenance company.
“With some support from my family, I started completing small jobs for family and friends, eventually gaining additional work from word of mouth. When the workload started to increase I decided on a company name, R&M Maintenance, to give me a more professional look. I also created a Facebook page, through which I now find and receive regular work. Once work has been completed I post photos of the work carried out, if the customer gives permission, onto the page. This lets prospective customers see my work and gives them access to reviews of my service. I aim to work with our customers to provide an excellent service to suit all budgets. At the start of my business journey I invested in getting business cards, flyers, signs and clothing printed to help us advertise our business.”
“When I began to get a reasonable amount of work as R&M I realised I could make a success of it sooner than I was expecting. I was introduced to Charles and Mike from the John Cracknell Youth Enterprise Bank; they helped me with my business plan and cash flow forecast to apply for the grant and helping me to reach our goals as well as giving me a fantastic mentor Ron Dickinson.”
TOP TIP “Work hard and set realistic and achievable goals. You need to research your potential customers and completion to see how you can make yourselves stand out from the rest. Set up a business plan and cash flow forecast, embrace social media to advertise your company and gain feedback to help you to improve your service.”
