Setting up your own business is nearly always a bit of a gamble. Invariably there will be that element of uncertainty about whether your venture will turn out to be a success. There were no such doubts for Joseph Blowick when the opportunity came along to become Ireland's first franchisee for New Zealand-based pioneering design and build company David Reid Homes. As far as Joseph could see, the usual risks just didn't apply.

"I was so impressed with the company's success and the back up and support it provided for its franchisees that I felt certain it was a venture that could not fail," says Joseph.

"The fact that the company had never had a business failure among its franchisees also convinced me that this was the business opportunity I had been waiting for.

"I had been working in the building trade for the last 20 years and always dreamed of setting up my own business. But becoming a franchisee for David Reid Homes is even better than anything I could have hoped for because, although you are running your own business, you are also part of a team with all the support, training and expertise you could ever need available to you at all times. Meanwhile, the company already had a formula for success in place."

David Reid Homes is an award winning company set up in 1993 and franchising its unique business model since 2000, offering an alternative to mass-produced homes unable to cater for customers' individual needs and lifestyles. The company's philosophy is that operating on a franchise system is a good way of maintaining standards because every franchisee is running his or her own business and is therefore dedicated to the company's success.

For Joe, an Irishman originally from County Mayo, becoming a David Reid franchisee was an opportunity that presented itself completely out of the blue, due to his friendship with the company's Territory Director for Ireland, Kevin Ryan. "When Kevin became involved as Director, he approached me for some advice about various aspects of the building trade," recalls Joseph. "I was so impressed with what he told me about David Reid Homes that when he said he was going to New Zealand and Australia on a fact finding trip I asked if I could go along with him.

"I was totally impressed with what I saw. In all my years in the building trade I had never come across a company that provided such a high quality service with such fantastic back up for both customers and franchisees alike. "Franchisees are given all the support and expertise they could ever need - from computer training to marketing, so you never feel you are on your own. Many smaller companies just wouldn't have the resources to provide this sort of support."

During his trip "down under" Joseph had a chance to see many homes designed and built by the company and was completely taken back by the quality of the finish on all the homes he saw. "Every David Reid home is inspected two weeks after it is finished to check it meets the company's very high standards," says Joseph. "Another inspection is carried out six months later and then again after a year. Customers have that assurance that if there ever turned out to be any problem, it would be put right immediately.

"It is because David Reid Homes is a highly successful company with a turnover in excess of Aus$230 million in its last financial year that it can afford to offer a service of this quality. Many smaller companies just wouldn't have the resources and are always under pressure to cut corners. How David Reid operates is exactly how I would have liked to have done things if I had set up my own company from scratch so I knew it would be an outfit I would enjoy working with."

Joseph is now operating from offices in the centre of Dublin and will work closely with Kevin, as well as builders and architects who will be employed on individual design and build projects.

David Reid Homes was set up by New Zealander David Reid who started off by building his own dream home and turning it into his first show home. Since the company was launched it has won more awards than any other building company in New Zealand. The company branched out into Australia in 2004 and in late 2006 began expanding into the UK and Ireland.

The unique service the company provides customers the chance to have a home designed and built to suit their specific needs. What makes the company different is that it will also project manage everything from finding a building plot to seeing to the finishing touches such as carpets and furnishings. The turn-key service means customers don't have to do a thing until they get the key to the front door.