19 April 2017
Get to know Jennifer Stewart
Nearly two years ago, Jennifer and her husband Rob Stewart opened their store at Bundall, in the Gold Coast. Relocating both their business and family from Melbourne was no easy feat. There were a number of challenges along the way, but as a family, and with the support of Bedshed, the Stewart family are now thoroughly enjoying the successful operation of their Bundall store.
Here we ask Jennifer a few questions to get to know her and her family better.
What got you into franchising?
My husband had been in the franchising industry for 30 years, so it was always something we were attracted to. However, we were conscious that we didn’t want to just work for a franchise, we wanted to own one.
Why Bedshed?
When we first came across Bedshed, we were blown away by the friendly yet professional nature of the staff. They worked really hard to answer all our questions and give us the initial support and guidance we needed to get going. When we showed the fine print financial detail to our accountant, he told us it was a “no brainer” investment. Since then, we haven’t looked back.
What is the best thing about being a Bedshed franchisee?
I absolutely love the sense of community that comes with being a Bedshed franchisee. With over 30 stores across the country, we’re all in regular contact with each other, constantly sharing tips and tricks. If a store is out of stock with a particular product, we’ll go out of our way to transfer what is needed. This sort of behaviour is always reciprocated.
The sense of community also extends to the Bedshed Central Office. It’s evident that they want nothing but for us to succeed. Bedshed is also fantastic when it comes to recognising and celebrating success – which we love!
And the worst?
For us, it was learning to deal with all the little things that come with running your own business. Prioritising your time isn’t always easy; however I think we’ve come a long way in combatting this challenge.
Bedshed Bundall picked up a few awards at Bedshed’s recent annual awards evening. Can you tell us about that?
Our son Kyle won QLD employee of the year, which is an amazing achievement, especially when you consider he’s only 21 years old! Kyle is incredibly talented; he’s a jack of all trades when it comes to franchising. We were extremely proud to see him take away that award.
My husband Rob and I also picked up QLD franchisee of the year. We’ve consistently worked hard to get to where we are, so it was lovely to be recognised.
