Less than five years ago, Simmi and Praveen Sharma purchased a Snap Print & Design centre in Prahran, Victoria. After gaining wide knowledge of the business they felt confident enough to expand and, last year, set up a mobile centre, Snap Malvern East. In May this year they further expanded by purchasing a second fixed centre franchise, Snap Caulfield. 

The three franchises complement each other perfectly.

“Like any other business owner we aim to reduce risk wherever we can,” Praveen says. “Prahran has a particular business dynamic – we tend to service fewer clients there but they place larger average spend per order.  Caulfield is the opposite, with a larger number of clients with a smaller average spend per order. Now we’re comfortable that we attract a whole spectrum of business rather than being exposed to a particular clientele.”

The mobile business also picks up all of the enquiries generated within the Malvern East territory, which sits between the Prahran and Caulfield centres. Having two centres has allowed Simmi and Praveen to expand their printing capability across both, which means they can offer a wider variety of products and services to clients.

“One of the things that sets Snap apart is personal service,” Praveen says. “People who come to us often need advice or to discuss specific requirements and designs. The mobile franchise allows us to offer that service without the initial and ongoing expenses that come with a fixed store.

“We can generate income from three territories with just two locations, two sales teams and one graphic designer shared across the businesses,” Praveen says. ”It’s an excellent way to capitalise on your assets.”

Successful expansion into multi-site ownership also depends on building the right team.

“Simmi and I have always believed in sharing our gains with our staff and, as a result, we have attracted and retained some excellent people,” Praveen says. “They’re very loyal and committed because they know they’ll be fairly rewarded for the work they do.”

A strategy for growth

This alignment of investments wasn’t random. As soon as the Sharmas started to think about expansion, they spoke to Peter Fiasco, General Manager Franchising at Snap. 

“He worked with us to develop an effective  growth strategy,” Praveen says. “Although we thought we knew what we should aim for, after our first conversation with Peter, we quickly could see it wouldn’t have been the best option for us. Peter worked with us to develop a two year plan that resulted in the set up of our Mobile Franchise with a plan to buying our second centre. It was very reassuring to know we were on the right track – and it reinforced for us that Snap had been the right choice.”

“We encourage all of our franchisees to talk to us about their vision,” Peter says. “When we understand what they want to achieve we can help them put a realistic plan in place to achieve to their goals.”

Training and support

The Sharmas had strong views about the kind of franchise they were looking for from the start. It must operate only during business hours, leaving the weekends free. It must be business to business. And it must provide extensive training and support.

This was particularly important for Simmi – a science graduate who worked as a teacher before leaving her job to raise their two sons. 

“She had never worked in an office of any kind,” Praveen says.

It was also the plan that Simmi would run the business while Praveen remained in his corporate job.

“I help with back-end support, Simmi does the rest,” he says. 

They narrowed the sector to printing and, after thorough research, settled on Snap.

“From the outset we liked the way they responded to our enquiry and their helpful attitude,” Praveen says. “Our due diligence confirmed the financials and we felt comfortable they would be a good fit for our needs.”

Printing also satisfied the Sharmas desire for a sustainable business – though, for a while, there were concerns for the print sector when so much seemed to be moving online.

“It’s true that the industry has changed and it is still evolving, but our technology is also evolving so we can remain relevant in the marketplace,” Peter says. “But print is far from dead. People we talk to are surprised when they find out just how much printed material is still used in businesses. We’re also seeing a return to some print products that people thought had disappeared. For example, printed mailer fliers had seen a large drop in demand with the advent of emails and eDMs. However, with EDM open rates plummeting over the years, we’re seeing a re-emergence of printed fliers as they achieve better cut-through than ever before.”

Find out more 

If you think Snap could be your profitable future, you can read more about the Snap and opportunities at www.mybusiness.snap.com.au or message franchiseenquiries@snap.com.au Peter would be happy to discuss your own strategy for success.