Passionate franchisees are fuelling the experience-driven hospitality culture at Quest Apartment Hotels. 

David Ridgeway is the general manager, franchise operations, at the full serviced apartment accommodation network. 

“Quest is a home away from home for many guests. We have a lot of extended visits with corporate guests staying from a week to six months. Our franchisees really get to know those guests and develop a relationship,” David says. “In the business market there is a lot of repeat business.” 

Like any great host, a Quest franchisee can recommend the best cafe for a caffeine hit, the local boutique gin distillery or the most accessible gym. Quest’s brand platform ‘As You Like It’ is a important tool that elevates the personalised service. 

Quest franchisees don’t require a hospitality background to succeed in the business.  

As David explains, the brand has shown it can teach the business fundamentals to novice franchise owners. 

“We have a very good business format franchise model. What’s important to us is, when the franchisee invests it’s how they activate the model in their property. We need a franchisee who is aligned to our values and purpose. 

Quest values and purpose key to franchisee success

“Our purpose is to ‘make a corporate stay effortless’, so franchisees must want to service customers. Our brand belief is that ‘everyone deserves a place to be themselves, and we go further to make the moments matter’ which is how we activate our purpose in each property. 

It’s important franchisees have a commitment to work within the framework of the business format franchise model to maintain the key fundamentals that add so much value to the properties. 

Quest’s recruitment process is transparent and emphasises the need for mutual respect in all relationships with the franchisor, landlord, banker, supplier and guest. 

“Over the last three years, our values (ongoing relationships, understanding, alignment and personal best) were tested very heavily. So we added mutual respect. When things get tense, that can go out the door, when it should be first in any ongoing relationship,” says David.  

“It’s about your personal best – putting energy and action into what you say and do. Franchisees need a high level of personal accountability, discipline and resilience,” he adds. 

Communication is crucial

David says communications and conversations with new and existing franchisees, and corporate staff, regularly and consistently reference the brand values. 

“Everyone in our group understands the brand purpose and vision. It is part of our DNA.” 

The vision is shared not just with the internal stakeholders but landlords, bankers and suppliers too. 

“We have a very clear metric for how we work with franchisees to measure and improve their performance.” 

Quest’s focus on values and purpose is more than a feel-good factor, it drives franchisee success, reiterates David.  

“We have a proven track record based on an increase in business values; a good ROI is a critical component of our model. To achieve this, franchisees have to have a sustainable profitable business, and that requires the right culture and values in place to drive it,” he stresses.  

A disciplined recruitment process

“We have a 35-year-old system that works. What is crucial is that we remain very disciplined in the recruitment process.” 

David says every franchise buying process is the same, whether the buyer is a corporate team member, existing or new franchisee. 

“Ensuring everyone does every step of the process ensures we do the right thing by the people coming through. Ultimately it shows whether they can work through the framework.” 

David says there are plenty of opportunities to purchase existing, and newbuild (greenfield), sites. 

“We have an extremely healthy pipeline, and we are confident for the future. This last financial year has been very good. But as a purpose-led brand we are always striving to do better.” 

He points to the community partnerships that the corporate business and franchisees commit to as part of the brand’s overall values proposition.  

Passion and purpose at Quest

“Franchisees give back consistently to their communities; they support charities and business associations. We do that on a macro scale to ensure we are purpose led as a brand; franchisees do this very well  at a local level.” 

In partnership with the Sony Foundation’s ‘You Can Stay’ program, Quest helps young adults with cancer by subsidising room rates and providing families a free place to stay during hospital treatment. 

“People like working for an organisation that cares about what they do, that tries to make a change, across diversity, community, partnerships. We keep chipping away, adding value by each incremental contribution,” says David. 

Quest is now working closely with Accessible Accommodation on improving access beyond the regulations. 

“We are looking at what we can audit in our buildings, design and features, so we can make more of an impact for this community.  

“It is a good commercial opportunity, however it is about doing the right thing. We have the facilities for it in our properties, and we want to understand that market and their needs, not just make assumptions,” he says. 

Quest’s work on crystallising its values is paying off. The most recent franchisee sentiment survey had the strongest positive response to the question ‘would you recommend Quest?’. 

“Franchisees and our corporate staff are proud of the company. They are willing to talk about it and that’s a good acid test of what people really like and feel,” David points out. 

Quest has also performed well in their recent Best Place to Work survey.  

“Hopefully, it attracts more talented and passionate people to the network. Of course there is a good return on investment, however a Quest franchise is a great way of giving back.”