GOLD COAST CLEANING ENTREPRENEUR TAKES REINS OF NATIONAL FRANCHISE
Announcement posted by Wings Public Relations Pty Ltd 31 Mar 2017
Mike Dowling has been in the cleaning business for almost three decades and has now taken on his biggest challenge to date – making his recently acquired franchise organisation James’ Home Services number one.
Dowling, who founded Just 1 Call, known for cleaning and polishing major supermarkets including Australia’s blue-chip premium retailers, decided to expand his business interests in late 2015 when approached to take over James’.
“The previous owner did have some issues and they have been well publicised but we have moved on from there,” said Dowling, who calls the Gold Coast home.
“When I looked at James’ Home Services, I could see the business model itself was sound. I also knew that if I worked on the infrastructure and management processes, I could really turn things around – and I have!”
In fact, it took Dowling and his team six months to convince the Franchise Council of Australia to accept James’ Home Services back into the fold.
“Let’s be honest. If I hadn’t come in with the right team behind me, the entire company would have collapsed,” he said.
“At the time there were 114 franchisees and I felt I needed to save their livelihoods and their families’ livelihood. By reinvesting in the business, I know I have helped those people. They are thriving and I know this because I hear about the success stories every day.”
Since taking over the company, five regional franchisors and 47 individual franchisees have joined James’ Home Services, but the team still can’t meet the high demand.
“The issue we have is that we need more franchisees around the country to meet the needs of the community. At the moment, almost half of our customer enquiries go ‘unserviceable’, meaning we just don’t have franchisees in the local area able to undertake the work being asked of us. I need people around me to drive the business with me to make it number one in the nation.”
Going forward, Dowling has plans to further expand James’ Home Services.
“We have already added two services to our offering – pool and spa care and test and tag safety services. We are now looking to establish a commercial arm to service Australia’s larger companies. I want us to be recognised as pioneers and innovators of the industry. We are constantly pumping time and money into ensuring we have state of the art infrastructure to support our franchisees.”
Dowling is also a dedicated philanthropist, husband and father.
“I love to give back to the community and this job is giving me that opportunity,” said Dowling, who has donated more than $200,000 to charity in recent times. We all know that there is a gap between what the government can provide and what is actually needed. I like the way giving makes me feel. My wife feels the same and we know our children are watching and learning. As they get older, we hope they will follow my lead in helping others whenever they can.”
MEDIA NOTE: For further information or to interview Mr Dowling, please contact Wings Public Relations Director Deanna Nott on 0422 504 540.