By Jason Treadwell, Newton Fallowell
My journey
I have three branches with Newton Fallowell. I opened my first branch in Stamford five and a half years ago. It was a cold start office. I then opened the Oakham office two years ago (another cold start) and last year I took on the Bourne office.
My journey with Newton Fallowell is quite different to other franchisees. I joined Newton Fallowell as a Sales Negotiator at the Grantham head office. I worked through the ranks – Office Valuer and then Office Manager. I left for another job role, but a couple of years later Mark Newton called with an opportunity. I knew the head office team were very capable and I had a lot of respect for them.
What drew me to the Newton Fallowell brand
The personal connections drew me in more than anything, along with the family values which is our motto. It is all about family matters and what makes a business work.
Mark Newton is a bit of a father figure to me, in truth, because he’s always there to support me. I get on exceptionally well with him personally and always have done, we seem to be from the same mould – our values are the same, our perception of the market is the same.
That’s what I’ve instilled into my offices and into my teams – and we are a little family, we aren’t a corporate company. We are as independent as we wish to be, and every single office I’ve got is an independent family-run business, not just a franchise.
The brand is made by the people inside it, not by the brand itself, and that’s what I think we have – I’m very proud of the Newton Fallowell brand.
Why I chose to franchise
The Newton Fallowell franchise route is about finding people who are good at what they do, have a passion for property and want the support from a team of trained experts.
The Newton Fallowell team is able to guide us down legal routes and provide all the support that a corporate company could offer while giving us the freedom to do what we wish to when delivering services to our customers.
Some of my earliest memories as a franchisee
The Stamford office was personally hand-painted by me – inside and out! I remember parking my car outside the front of the office, putting a washing line around my car with two chairs from my dining room and sticking pieces of paper on them with ‘wet paint’ so people didn’t come over and touch the building whilst I was painting it in my scruffs!
It takes hard work, but you can be successful from the outset
I feel very honoured to be where I am. Our Chief Executive Officer, Financial Director and the Managing Directors say to me: ‘Jason, you’ve done this’. The month we exchanged in excess of £100,000 was a very memorable moment. But having said that, to sell a house for £1.2 million was exceptionally memorable as well, there’s lots of different memorable things that happen it’s just about continuing to create those moments and staying positive and positive things will continue to happen.
Advice I would give to a prospective franchisee
To any new person looking to get into a franchise, there is no better franchise opportunity than with Newton Fallowell. The support of head office allows you to do the day-to-day running of your estate agency. You don’t have to worry about legal support because they provide it for you, and they will keep you on your toes to make sure you are compliant!
Your fellow franchisees are your allies
Any new franchisee will get support they need not just from head office, but from their fellow franchisees. I think all of our Newton Fallowell franchisees are keen to keep on-board are those family values, and the sales, support and interaction between branches.
My proudest moment
What I’m most proud of is Robert Newton, Mark Newton’s youngest son. Robert joined me in the Stamford office as a Trainee Negotiator, having never really sold a house before. He went through my office and helped me grow that business, eventually assisting me in the running of it. To know that the opportunities I’d been given by the Newton Fallowell group have been passed down to other members of staff that I’ve had as well.
If I was to describe being a franchisee in three words…
Rewarding, satisfying and never-ending.
If you are interested in finding out what it’s like to be a Newton Fallowell franchisee then see our interview with Richard Morris or read about the franchise growth success story of Ben Oglesbee and Matt Holland.
