Our 14th Annual Conference Highlights
Standing Out: Separating ourselves from the 99%
As you can see from the video above, the day was action-packed with lots of information, but there was also plenty of time to socialise and network, which is always a key highlight.
Some key information taken away from the day include:
Discussion and celebration around the great successes with our key growth metrics compared to 2023
Our refined franchise model
Our new 'Strategy on a Page' outlining our vision for the brand for the next two years
Key National Accounts ‘Wins’ and Future opportunities
Marketing wins including our digital cost per lead reducing by 40% (more leads for less!)
Our new Managed Digital Marketing Program (where we manage most of our franchisee’s local marketing for them)
Some new brand slogans to reinforce our brand manifesto were created by franchisees during our brand workshop, with the winner receiving a fun prize—a giant teddy bear!
Latest technical advancements, new equipment introductions and initiatives. (included in presentations, videos, Q&A sessions and group discussions)
Sales takeaways were delivered by our guest speaker, Andy, who gave an engaging talk on sales strategies.
Some of The Hub Support Team ahead of the evening Dinner at our 14th Annual Conference
It was the first conference for a number of our latest franchisees: Neil at The Wheel Specialist Oxford, Zak and Waseem at St. Albans, and Richard at Glasgow North.
When reflecting on the experience, Waseem shared his insights on this year's Annual Conference:
Offering firsthand insights into our 14th Annual Conference, our Managing Director, Jack Murphy, shared:
Just over a week ago, we held our 14th Annual Franchisee Conference at Nuthurst Grange near Solihull. This year's theme was “Standing Out” and how we as a network can ensure that The Wheel Specialist brand continues to build on “being better than best.”
It was fantastic to welcome representatives from every single one of our 23-strong network, welcome some new faces to the fold, and spend some time with our fantastic existing network, some of whom have been with us since the very beginning back in 2007.
We covered a huge amount of ground throughout the day; launching our business strategy to the network that will guide and inform our key decisions over the next 3-5 years while also providing a road map to how we can grow our network to be 35 sites strong by the end of 2025, cementing our position as the UK's largest wheel repair network. In addition, we also had the chance to share our new brand positioning and articulation with the wider network: “Your wheels, our passion” and what that really means to our customers and how The Wheel Specialist network can effectively deliver on that.
Having Andy Preston as our guest speaker was fantastic, his messaging around delivering effective selling through focusing on those memorable details and moments of truth was in lockstep with our overall strategic approach. What’s more, his insights really helped bring to life what every single member of our network can do to support our brand’s ability to deliver on being “better than best”. There was some simple and actionable advice for everyone to take away and build on.
Our conference is all about supporting our network, and as well as this, it's The Wheel Specialist’s central team’s chance to say a massive “thank you” to our 23 sites for all their hard work and dedication. So, from everyone at The Hub, thank you once again to each and every one of our network & congratulations to all nominees & those who went on to collect one of our 14 different awards, including our overall Franchise of the Year winner: Eddie Mcvey & Caroline McVey from our Ribble Valley and Blackpool sites.
Our Technical Director, Andy Thompson, also picked up a surprise special award, presented personally by the company CEO Ginny Murphy, who had also written a dedicated speech to Andy's commitment to the brand and network. For once, even Andy was speechless, and it was his reaction to the standing ovation he received from everyone present that was, in many ways, the moment of the day. It captured the essence of what The Wheel Specialist is all about - dedication, cooperation, community, and above all – passion!
For the first time ever, we were also delighted to award a special, first-of-its-kind “Club” badge to our Newcastle branch, celebrating their massive achievements in 2023. This recognition was particularly significant as it highlighted the unprecedented heights of success that the franchise had reached. We had to create new 'club badges' to commemorate their outstanding performance. We’re looking forward to celebrating other franchisees' achievements for 2024, and by the looks of it, with the start of the year the network has had, we will be doing so soon.
My final two thanks are reserved for our all-important team at head office and our amazing sponsors – Adrian Lamb & Lucy Lamb at All Equipment Finance Ltd , RS Pro Finishes & Gallagher Insurance, who generously support our conference but who also work in partnership with The Wheel Specialist on the other 364 days of the year to ensure we can continue to deliver for our customers.
We’ll be sharing the content of the day soon, capturing some of the highlights from the day itself along with some of the fun that we also had on Saturday night. There may have been some slightly sore heads on Sunday morning but I’m sure everyone will agree that it was worth it!”
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