“Things continue to move forward which is all you can ask, but I am fortunate to have such an excellent relationship with Stockcheck.”
“Things continue to move forward which is all you can ask, but I am fortunate to have such an excellent relationship with Stockcheck.”
Tracy Egan – Birmingham & East Midlands Franchisee
Licensed Trade Stocktaking Franchise
My career path and the reasons for taking on a new opportunity.
Tracy, purchased her franchise with us more than 29 years ago, admits business is booming with more than 100 accounts to cover every month.
Born and bred in Solihull but now living in Edgbaston with partner Kevin and daughter Ellie, she originally trained to be a beauty therapist. However, when the owner of the salon bought a bar, Tracy was asked if she would like to run it. She answered in the affirmative. More managerial roles in restaurants and bars followed, before she decided to call time on the unsocial hours and searched for new challenge.
“I had always favored the accounting side of the businesses to front of house side of the licensed trade,” she said. “But I found the stocktaking side of things interesting. I was very aware and controlled a tight ship.
So, Tracy took it upon herself to sit the Institute of Licensed Trade Stock Auditors exams and then looked around for the right opportunity. “When I spotted an advert in the Caterer magazine for a franchise in stocktaking with Stockcheck I look the plunge.”
This was back in 1990….and Tracy has never looked back. Today, Tracy operates with 3 employees and services over 100 monthly clients.
The majority of Tracy’s work is in the Birmingham, Coventry and Leicester areas – 20% involves national accounts brought in by Stockcheck and much of the rest owes a debt to our proactive marketing and referral systems.
“Things continue to move forward which is all you can ask, but I am fortunate to have such an excellent relationship with Stockcheck.”
I had decided that Audit Control was an area I wanted to pursue and wanted to be in charge of my own business, with a flexibility to work around family life. After researching the options, it was clear there were many Stocktakers in the industry. However, having never run a business and knowing little about marketing, I saw the Stockcheck franchise as an opportunity to take advantage of a national brand, along with Stockcheck’s experience and expertise.
In the franchise offering, it was clear that Stockcheck offers vital knowledge in securing new clients along with permanent support and guidance, whilst allowing the Franchisee to maintain an independent status with the emphasis on self management of your own business.
Everyday can be very different but, generally, a Stocktaker’s day starts early in the morning! Our clients can range from a traditional Pub or Social Club through to large Hotels, Cocktail Bars and Restaurants. On entering the venue, the day normally starts with a coffee and a catch up chat with our clients to see how their last month’s trading has been, ascertaining anything that I can specifically assist them with as part of my service.
The venue’s stock would then be counted, during which time guidance would be provided on any operational and standards issues I find that might help the client to improve profitability. This is followed by an audit of the client’s paperwork, processing data relating to purchases and revenue received. Once this task is completed, I pinpoint any losses or gains by comparing the client’s till information with our report.
The stock result is then explained to the client in a short summary meeting at the end of the stock visit – focusing on the Gross Profit of the business, changes in cost prices and operational procedures. Our clients find the service highly valuable to monitor the control of their business and to give immediate advice on how to improve profitability. For many, ours is the only external opinion they will get on their business on a regular basis, before the accountant produces accounts at year end…..this can be a long time ahead!
Operating the Franchise is an enjoyable and challenging experience. Not every day is easy, there can be difficult situations to deal with and early start times, however there are benefits of a Monday-Friday working week, with evenings free. A Franchisee’s diary can be built around their own life working with their own clients to help them build a better business, which is hugely rewarding. Long term relationships are built with our clients, resulting in high retention rate and creating a stable income.
My Stocktaking business growth was achieved on a month by month basis, starting from day 1 with zero clients. After 12 months, I had around 20 regular clients, which roughly covered one venue for each working day during the month. Over time, through the development of skills and time management, this rose to 30 clients by the end of year 2. From there I have maintained a stable client base and retained several clients from the early days of 12 years ago.
I would recommend a franchise to anyone looking to move forward in their career, but maintain a high degree of independence. This industry is largely built around a 24/7 environment and there are very few opportunities to work a ‘9-5’ job: Operating a franchise has given me the best of both worlds, with a strong hand still in the industry that we love but living with a better mix of work and personal time.
Press & Media
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255 words1.3 min readThe Britannia Tap and Grill's triumph as Lancashire Pub of the Year at the National Pub and Bar Awards 2024 is certainly a testament to their dedication and innovation. It's impressive to see them recognised for their efforts, especially in a region known for its rich pub culture.
314 words1.6 min readOn International Women's Day, we celebrate the success of Tracy Egan, our Birmingham based Franchisee. Tracy is an inspiration to all of us at Stockcheck, she is both one of our most knowledgeable stocktakers and also runs one of our busiest Franchisees.
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