The Franchisee of the Year – less than two staff award, presented at the MYOB Excellence in Franchising Awards, recognises excellence in business management and franchise citizenship for franchisee owner operators – including partners – with less than two staff. This year it went to Darren Andonovski from Mister Minit.

Judges’ comment: As well as a dedication to best practice business methods and performance, Darren mentors other franchisees in the Mister Minit system and was awarded the Mister Minit Franchisee of the Year Award in 2009. It is a tribute to Darren’s hard work and dedication that he has achieved double digit sales growth this year building on previous trends.
 
Winning this award has been a huge honour and very humbling, given the quality of the other finalists, says Darren Andonovski. We base our business on being customer focused, always striving for customer satisfaction. My wife Rebecca and our team member Kelvin play a huge part in helping to run a successful business and I can not thank them enough, he says.
 
It’s being recognised for all the hard work. I put the award up in the shop straight away and people have commented on it, regular customers are rapt.

I chose the business because I’m a toolmaker by trade and had got sick of being stuck in a factory, I wanted a change. I joined Minit as an employee and then two years later opened a franchise.

It fitted well, the retail aspect, talking to people, and the service side which is very important to me. The best part of being a Minit franchisee, he says, is the support and training and the opportunity that a franchise provides. We pay a fixed franchise fee and the rent, they do all the negotiating, and that helps, it allows us to focus on the business.

Andonovski is two years into his second term and plans not just to renew the agreement again but within 12 months wants to open a second franchise outlet.