Franchisees like PCC's Lee Andrews have been riding to the rescue nationwide to help customers whose cars were abandoned and submerged in torrents of water. In fact, at the height of the problem, Lee was so inundated with calls for help that in order to cope with the sheer volume of work he was forced to send out an SOS to his fellow franchisees.

"The damage to some of the cars was considerable," Lee explains. "Cleaning and restoring them to pristine condition sometimes took all day. I was trying to maintain my usual level of service to existing customers, whilst giving urgent attention to distressed people desperate to get their cars back into use. When you first see flood damaged cars, you can't imagine that they could be restored to their original condition, but the PCC product range is truly superb - customers were amazed with the transformation and I have gained tremendous repeat business as a result!"

But what about next summer? Perhaps we'll all be hoping for a drop of rain in the face of a long, hot spell and the dreaded hose pipe ban. How will a valeting business fare then? No problem, say PCC franchisees Alan McNab and Michael Sherry, both of whom are based in Scotland and face a situation where local legislation restricts washing of vehicles on roads and driveways all year round.

In fact, says Alan, restrictions have increased business for PCC as frustrated drivers look for ways to keep their cars clean and maintain the integrity of their paintwork without using water. "PCC's exclusive, market leading product range can produce superb results, wet or dry," he explains. "Although people tend to be sceptical at first, once they see the result of a PCC waterless wash, invariably they are impressed. I myself was unconvinced that you could achieve the same finish with a waterless system. I thought that there must be potential for grit and dust to scratch the paint surface. However, having seen Pro-Dry in action cleaning dirty cars of all types and colour finishes, I must say the finish is always absolutely perfect."

He adds that it's simply a question of gaining customers' confidence by demonstration. "Once they can see for themselves just how good a Pro-Dry valet is, it's a real winner and customers keep coming back!" Lee, Alan and Michael come from completely different backgrounds. Before joining PCC, Lee was a driving instructor, Alan was a company director and Michael worked for a cleaning company. What all had in common was a passion for cars and a determination to escape the pressures of a job they didn't enjoy. Lee was used to being self-employed, but had felt ground down by the long hours and the lack of support when things went wrong. "As a driving instructor I sometimes worked 60 or 70 hours a week, including weekends," he recalls. "I had next to no home life and felt very isolated. After five years I decided that I wanted to continue to work for myself, but in a totally different area. I found PCC and can honestly say that I've never looked back!"

Like the other two, Lee was attracted to the combination of high potential earnings for less hours and could see the possibilities of expanding his PCC business in the future.

Having completed his training course, Lee (pictured left) launched in October 2006 and has built a busy, profitable business. Rain or shine, Lee says his work level is pretty constant. He deliberately targets business customers where he can valet several cars in one place on a regular basis, rather than one-off private individuals - although he does fit such customers around his other commitments. "I'm always busy and sometimes I have more customers than I can fit into a day. Increasingly I'm gaining more high value business, which means top level valets on fewer cars for more profit."

Lee adds that his PCC franchise has transformed his life. He is much fitter physically, happier than he's been in a long time and financially better off too. "I've lost a stone since I started the business," he confesses. "I used to sit in a car for up to 12 hours a day, six days a week. Now I'm out in the fresh air and using muscles I didn't even know I had! At first I was very tired, but now I've got loads of energy and I'm really enjoying my work!" Michael (pictured right) is one of PCC's newer recruits, having launched his new business at the beginning of June. A car enthusiast, he is in his element and confesses that he's loving every minute of his new life as a franchisee. "I've always wanted to work with cars and so when I saw PCC it looked like the perfect opportunity for me," Michael explains.

Michael checked out the potential market for valeting services in his area, concluded that there was little or no real competition and booked himself onto a PCC Discovery Day to find out more. "It was a long journey, but it was worth it. I'd more or less decided in advance that this was what I wanted to do, but once I met the team and saw what a great package it was, I was convinced. There's lots of support and lots of enthusiasm for the business - and I'm really happy to be a part of it!"

PCC General Manager Adrian Stiehl joined Michael out on his territory for a few days to support his start-up. Together they followed up leads generated by the company's Call Centre and provided demonstrations to potential customers. These days, word of mouth recommendations keep him pretty well busy all the time, he says, but Michael is not resting on his laurels and regularly promotes his business to fill as many days as possible with regular customers. "If I'm doing a demonstration for one business on an industrial park, you can guarantee that I'll quickly draw something of a crowd!" Michael reflects. "People notice the van and come across, watch for a few minutes and then ask me for my contact details."

According to Adrian Stiehl, Michael's experience is typical. "The PCC vehicles always act as excellent mobile advertisements for franchisees," he remarks. "They look so professional, reflecting the high standards of the PCC business and reassuring customers that PCC will provide a reliable, top quality service." Unlike Michael, Alan McNab had no idea at all of sector or business type when he decided to become self employed. He'd worked for 35 years in the same industry and spent long hours away from home, so Alan's main criteria had been a total change of career direction and a business that would give him the control and quality of life he felt he'd been missing. "You've got to do something that you love if you're going to be self-employed," he states. "You have to be highly self-motivated and prepared to work hard, but if you choose something that you're going to enjoy doing for every working day, you have a much better chance of making a go of it."

While Alan and Lee are close to completing their first year as PCC franchisees, it's early days for Michael, but he feels that he's definitely made the right decision in choosing a PCC franchise. "So far things are going great," he says. "This is the perfect business for me. My customers are blown away by the fantastic standard of my valets - rain or shine - and that has to be good for me and good for the future of my business!"