Sujata and DJ Bose started their Mail Boxes Etc (MBE) business in June 2021, and last year were thrilled to win the brand’s National Franchise of the Year award.  

As DJ explains, it was a major achievement for business owners who had no previous experience – neither in running a business nor in the print and shipping industry.

“I have been in corporate for 25 years,” says DJ. He worked for multinational companies as a project manager and project director until 2021.

Looking for a career change after a long 25 years in the corporate world, DJ admits it wasn’t easy to see the next step forward.

It was his wife who eventually called time on his inertia, suggesting he start a business, and find one with a corporate vibe.  

An existing business opportunity with a corporate feel

“MBE came up in our search and Sujata could see the potential. She actually drove the whole buying process,” DJ says.

When they learned a franchisee was selling his second business in Brisbane’s West End, the couple snapped up the opportunity to be in charge of their own destiny.

While Sujata is a director of the West End business she continues to work full time on her long-time regular job; DJ is hands-on, managing and working in the business on her behalf.

“We opened in June 2021, with the two staff members in place,” he says. “I knew how to use Photoshop because my hobby is photography – I used to chase the sun every weekend. But I knew nothing about running a business, printing, or shipping.”

Initially DJ relied heavily on the staff for all the processes. Then he decided to apply his project management talents to upskill and become competent at all the technical aspects. 

It was a vital step in gaining confidence in his own skills and in running the business. 

Support, structures and systems are in place

DJ had also sought knowledge and guidance from the corporate team at head office who provided excellent onboarding and continued training.

“Some of the benefits of a franchise are the structure and having guidelines for processes and protocols for all our services,” he says.

And established brand protocols proved handy in the most unexpected way, he reveals.

“As our name suggests we have mail boxes in the business, and we have to follow protocol in setting them up.”

He can contact the franchisor team with any queries about mail, printing, shipping or business processes and get a swift and helpful response, he says.

DJ followed the systems and learned what works for his market.

Investing in marketing to grow the business

“I’m a big believer in marketing – in networking and building trust. I believe that if I’m spending money I should think it’s a reward, so for my business the customer is always right,” he says.

“Every quarter MBE provides a Marketing Action Plan which I tailor to suit my needs.”

He spends more than $3,000 monthly on marketing campaigns, networking events and local community sponsorships such as printing material for a cancer charity.

DJ has even gifted an engaged couple the printing for their wedding after hearing them on the local radio explaining they couldn’t afford all the costs of the big day.

“These are all good initiatives for brand awareness, but I like helping people out as well,” he says.

DJ delivers a lot of the store’s completed jobs so he can meet face-to-face with clients. It’s also an opportunity for cold calling on local businesses. 

Strategic investment adds revenue streams

As he has doubled-down on his business, DJ has made strategic investments in equipment that expanded his services and revenue streams. And the investments have already paid for themselves, he says.

The new services include signage, which was previously outsourced. DJ bought equipment and leased unused space for a workshop to produce wide format printing and laminates. 

“T-shirt printing is not a big ticket item, but we brought this inhouse too. We could print vinyl, so we invested in a heat press. We’ve had help from head office in setting all this up,” DJ explains.

“Keeping up to date with fast-changing technology is hard if you are an independent business owner. It’s the same with quoting for a job. How do you know what’s the right level? The knowledge the franchisor has is so useful, it makes it easy for us to understand the industry standards and what customers expect,” he says. 

Now DJ is looking for a second store, excited about the next stage of the business. 

“I love my job; it’s a lot harder than my corporate job but I haven’t been happier. My office and my workshop is my second home,” he says.

“At MBE I’m doing something from start to finish, I love the creativity, and that freedom to run the business myself. If there’s a problem, I have to solve it. And we will always try and fix a problem. My main guideline is customer satisfaction,” DJ says.