Running our business on OUR terms
I was in a very difficult time of my life: juggling a job I didn't like, having a disabled daughter that meant having to take time off work (that didn't go down well with my boss) and being a wife and mother. It was all too much, really.
I started to look for a way out and I came across a Time For You flyer through my door that read: "We cleaned 17 homes today and never left our house!". Well, that appealed to me! That was six years ago...
I gave up my job and joined as a business owner. Now, six years on, it's not just me running the business, it's now a proper family run enterprise! My husband, Alasdair, left his IT job in 2016 to join me and we haven't looked back. We love it!
The key benefit of running our Time For You business is being able to run the business on our terms. We run our business from home and we have the business at the size that is right for us as a family. We have achieved the perfect work/life balance and we couldn't be happier!
We go on lots of holidays each year and spend most of the summer away touring around the UK, always with our daughter, as time isn't an issue anymore. We never neglect the business, though. We may be away but we are always available for our clients and cleaners, whether we are in the UK or even abroad! We run the business from wherever we are.
If you are prepared to work hard - and accept there will be some blood, sweat and tears, especially in the first few months - then Time For You will give you something that surely everyone wants: freedom, the perfect work/life balance and not forgetting, a good income.
Samantha Low • Time For You Basingstoke
Growing Dispite Lockdowns
We fell upon Time For You a few years ago. Through my personal experience as a cleaner - and also assisting an incredibly successful franchisee with their area - we felt comfortable and ready for the challenge of owning our own franchise!
The process of purchasing couldn't have been easier, with the full support of Head Office and the former franchisees. We were fortunate enough to purchase an area that was already up and running and successful - this gave us a great starting point!
Times are tough at the moment, with the pandemic and current economic climate, but we are working hard to build foundations on which we can grow and develop once it is safe to do so. We are still taking on new clients and cleaners despite the lockdowns, which is reassuring for the future.
Working alongside raising a family has proved challenging, so I have found a happy balance of both. Whilst the growth of the business may not be as intense as many others, I am able to spend quality time with my daughter while still earning a living. I couldn't be happier with our decision to join the Time For You family, and look forward to many more successful years.
Cat Simpson • Time For You York
Prison officers to business owners
I could see for myself exactly how TFY was changing my dad's life for the better when he became a franchisee after he was made redundant after 25 years working for John Lewis partnership.
My wife and I were both unhappy working for the prison service as the hours were long and we worked different shifts. Our life was all work and very little play. We wanted a family and a normal life too.
We joined Time For You as franchise owners in Luton. Now we have a great life and can spend time with our three young children, we just could not have done this previously.
The support and advice we get from Freddie and ruth and other franchisees have been invaluable.
More recently we bought another area & expanded into Stevange, our business is just great. Please feel free to get in touch if you would like to call me in person.
Chris and Jenny Thompson • Time For You Luton & Stevenage
A Solid Asset
As we worked through our due diligence with this franchise, we became more and more excited at the possibilities it held. It was unique. With hundreds of existing franchisees, it clearly works which means so long as you are a people person, there is little risk.
When I joined Time For You, back in 2002, I had been employed to manage a local charity in Sheffield; my family was growing and I was finding it difficult to manage financially. I would work overtime but my income still wasn't enough to cover the bills and that was a very stressful place to be.
When I began with Time For You, I started part-time and then went full-time after six months. I quickly discovered that the harder I worked the more money I earned. That's a great lesson I learned: my income is directly proportionate to the efforts that I put in. I also quickly realised that I had to be adaptable. The ability to adapt to change, and cope with the unexpected, is a vital part of being a business owner.
This franchise has a very clear fiscal model with an annuity revenue stream, which grows month in, month out. In other words, your clients pay you every quarter by direct debit, which is the Holy Grail for any business! We loved this model! No credit control and no huge backlog of clients not paying their bills!
The whole concept is well thought out.
The support infrastructure for franchisees is also amazing. It was clear that they really care about their franchisees.
It has been the most amazingly experience that we have ever had running a business. The support from the franchisor has been nothing less than spectacular.
I'm now approaching almost 20 years in the business and we have cleaned more than 147,000 properties! I know I have a solid asset to sell should I decide to move on.
2020 was certainly a difficult year. Normally we clean between 150 and 180 houses per week, which I have been happy with. In 2020, for about 7 months, we cleaned zero properties and had zero income. Happily, we're back up to cleaning 40 houses per week and we've used the extra time during the lockdown to re-organise and get everything that was on the back burner sorted. We're doing everything we can to be ready for when things pick up - ready to be ahead of the competition!
My children are now grown and have flown the nest and we've had a great time along the way! Time For You has given me the flexibility to travel the world: last year, we had a month in New Zealand and, the year before that, I took my children to walk the Camino to Santiago de Compostela. It was another life changing experience.
We have a better social life and more friends than we have ever had! The financial returns are also amazing with all those wonderful DDs rolling in every month...
Lee Furness • Time For You Sheffield
Be Your Own Boss
I was formerly a policeman and then a teacher. My wife, Joanne, also worked in education as a child safeguarding officer. As parents, we really wanted a greater work/life balance. I liked the idea of working for myself - and the fact that you get a financial reward for the effort you put in. In previous careers, everyone gets the same no matter how hard they work.
I did have some initial concerns: mostly that we would not be good enough. I also worried if we'd be able to get enough clients… I did my research, though. I rang around current franchisees (about 50 of them) and from that I deduced that the model worked consistently. I figured that if I followed the model there was no reason to suggest it wouldn't work for me. I can now confidently say that it does work!
For us, the main benefits are the work/life balance and the financial reward. And being your own boss! We were surprised by the speed in which the business grew: Jo was able to leave work within three months. By then we could cover costs and pay her MORE than her current job.
I would always recommend Time For You. It has literally changed our lives on multiple levels.
Daniel Tidswell • Time For You Preston
It's a Family Affair
Before Time For You, my husband, Ollie, ran his own tree surgery business and I ran my own freelance PA business. We have both always enjoyed the self-employed option but, as we began to think about having children, my PA business did not seem to be flexible enough to imagine balancing both. It was very much 9-5 work, with long periods on the phone.
We chose Time For You because, for two years, I worked as a freelance PA for another Time For You franchisee and saw how flexible and profitable it was. I also really enjoyed the work. It was a no-brainer for us to buy the Exeter franchise as I could really see how it would fit well with having young children.
For us, the main benefit has to be being able to fit work around the children. It's also fantastic to be able to be on a dog walk with the family during the week, standing in the middle of a field, texting cleaners and clients, while enjoying family time! It's great being able to make the business our own, with the support of a larger company.
We're surprised about what has come from the business: the happiness we get from our work, the noticeable difference we see from having some disposable income and the different opportunities that have arisen from it. This is very motivational and satisfying: we really feel we're achieving something.
Dominique & Oliver Bailhache • Time For You Exeter
Pandemic-proof:
Cleaning Is A Safe Business
In 2013, I was a frontline Police Officer. After 15 years of service, and continuous budget cuts resulting in more dangerous working conditions, I felt demotivated. I was working so hard - for little or no recognition. I knew that if I worked as hard for myself, I could be successful.
I looked at a number of franchise opportunities before speaking to Freddie Rayner, Managing Director of Time For You. As soon as we met, I knew it was the right opportunity. Cleaning is never going to go out of fashion!
To start with, my partner and I worked alongside our full time jobs. It was hard work - but nothing good comes easily! Plus we wanted a big business, we didn't want to 'play' at it.
By 2019, we reached the staggering statistic of cleaning more than 1,000 homes every single week, with a large office team taking care of the day-to-day running! We were so proud of this achievement, and felt like 'real business people'!
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, we have lost a number of clients. We are back to around 500 clients and are pushing to get back to 1,000 and beyond. Business is mindset: if you think you can, you will. Having seen many local businesses close during the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, cleaning is one of the safest industries you can be in.
Paul Barrett • Time For You Portsmouth
Needed a change from banking
I was going nowhere with my banking career. I had reached a plateau of my earnings, but was expected to constantly strive to achieve ever increasing sales targets. I felt worn out.
I then read an advert for Time For You in a franchise magazine and it looked really interesting, so I applied for a prospectus.
I liked what I read, but being sceptical I decided to contact some existing franchisees, 27 in fact! All of whom were really happy and positive.
I joined too. Time For You has changed my life for the better. I am now a proud business owner with a great work / life balance. The day to day work is easy to follow and operate. The system really does work. Now I am happy, especially as I have increased.
My previous income by 100% with just a few hours worked. I would recommend this franchise to anyone with a genuine desire for a better to improve their lot in life.
Phile Wright • Time For You Stoke-On-Trent
Banking on new beginnings
Before buying my Time For You franchise, I was a regional manager working for a large UK bank. Following yet another restructure, I decided to take voluntary redundancy.
I was keen to either be my own boss or find another position within the industry.
After attending interviews and looking into business opportunities, I found the Time For You franchise advert.
I called Freddie Rayner (Managing Director, Time For You) for a chat and have never looked back!
When you're looking at a business opportunity, there are many areas to consider: will it work, will the returns be enough to live on, will I find the people I need to help run the business, etc?
Luckily I had found a very established and long standing business, where consistent reasonable effort provides excellent returns.
It's a great benefit that you are your own boss and you can work flexibly and remotely.
You are helping people and, in some cases, this help and support is absolutely essential.
We have a great support network and can easily liaise via technology with other franchisees. Oh, and did I say, the income is great! :)
It's surprising how lovely people can be and how unreasonable people can be! It's just part of being in business and it certainly keeps it entertaining, as you do get to meet and work with such a huge variety of people.
Justin Knight • Time For You Bristol
It is without a doubt the best business decision we have ever made
We are Ralph and Hazel Watson. We have been self-employed for the past 20 years. Our first successful venture was a carpet and upholstery business which we built up over 10 years.
Although it gave us a relatively good lifestyle, it was very much hands on physical work and consumed a lot of our time.
As time went on, we started to look at other business models namely the domestic cleaning sector as a lot of our repeat clients from our carpet cleaning business started to ask us if we knew anyone who provided such a service.
We looked in to several franchises and Time for You being one of them. After meeting 3 different Franchisors it was a no brainer to go with Freddie and Ruth @ Time for You. The package they offer and the business model was exactly what we were looking for. It was head and shoulders above the other options.
We started our training in January 2005 and buy the end of that month we got our first client by doing exactly what we had been trained to do.
Our main focus for marketing was leafleting as online and social media marketing was virtually non-existent. The clients came in as predicted and within 18 months we hit our first milestone of 100 clients at this point we decided to sell our carpet cleaning company and give our full focus on Time for You.
We had 2 young children and Time For You gave us more free time to spend with our kids and take them to and from school and never miss a special occasion.
Since 2010 - 2020 we grew our business to 570 clients which grossed us roughly £140,000 per annum. As you can imagine it has given us a tremendous lifestyle allowing us to enjoy great holidays and special times with family and friends. This all being done with myself and Hazel from home with no additional staff.
The resilience of Time for You has proven itself over the 15 years we have owned the Fife franchise. Coming through the housing crash in 2008 and now during a global pandemic.
We could not have done this without it being such an excellent business model and help from head office and team.
It is without a doubt the best business decision we have ever made and would recommend the franchise to anyone.
Ralph and Hazel Watson • Time For You Fife
Life After Redundancy
Before Time For You, I worked for the John Lewis Partnership for 30 years, from the age of 16, originally part-time whilst still at school. In 2010, during a department restructure, I was offered voluntary redundancy. After some serious consideration, I decided to accept the redundancy and look for a new way to make an income. My main reason for looking for something else was to try and improve my work/life balance with an income that could offer me flexibility.
I spent a lot of time looking at different types of franchises, in different industries. I decided on Time for You and, after trading for one year, our income was good enough for my wife to give up her job and join me to run the growing franchise.
For me, the main benefit of Time For You is having your own business to run, with the support of Head Office if you need it - but without interference, if you don't want it.
Being able to work from home is also a great advantage, especially when you have school-aged children at home. As long as we have a mobile phone and an internet connection, we can work from anywhere! This has allowed us to increase the number of holidays we have taken, even if some of these have been working holidays.
I would never recommend something to a friend if I wasn't 100% confident it would work for them - to the extent that one of my sons has been a Time For You franchisee for the past five years. I would not risk that if I didn't believe in the franchise!
Ian & Amanda Thompson • Time For You Amersham
Never Miss Out On Quality Time Again!
My nephew (Shahid) and I joined Time For You back in 2015. As clichéd as it may sound, we were looking for a better work/life balance! I was working full-time as a teacher and most of my time was being taken up marking and lesson planning.
My commute, of a daily two hour return trip, meant I was leaving home early in the morning and returning very late in the evening. I only just about had time to put my children to bed; I was missing out on quality time with them.
I was introduced to Time For You and the idea of being able to work from home, and having the flexibility to work and manage my time around my family, was an opportunity too good to be missed. The income we could potentially earn was also great.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we were on target to reach 200 clients. I am confident to say that once things start to improve we will reach our goal. We are very proud of belonging to the Time For You family and being business owners.
Joining Time For You was certainly one of the best decisions I have ever made!
Assam Saddiq • Time For You Lincolnshire
