"I was well aware that the plumbing industry could be rewarding," says franchisee Paul Wormald. "When I started to look for plumbing opportunities in the franchise sector, I spoke to PlumbLocal, looked at the figures and was very impressed with what I saw - I could see a lot of potential."

Having spent most of his career in supermarket store management, when Paul was made redundant he moved on to other things but still had the idea that he would like to work for himself. "A good friend of mine has run his own franchise for a number of years and was always telling me how good it was and that I should look into the possibilities. I thought to myself, if I'm working hard, I might as well be working hard for myself."

In discovering PlumbLocal, Paul was attracted to the scope for development that the business would allow. "The PlumbLocal opportunity can be taken in two directions really," explains Paul. "You start by doing hands-on plumbing work but further down the line you are able to build the business to a level where it becomes more of a managerial role if you so wish. I thought that this was a great opportunity to build a large business."

The fact remained that Paul didn't have a great deal of professional plumbing experience but he says this wasn't a problem due to PlumbLocal's exceptional training programme. "The training was very intensive and was spread over a nine-week period," reveals Paul. "It was so comprehensive that it let me have a good understanding in many of the technical aspects of plumbing and let me gain the qualifications of both City and Guilds 6129 and 6089 - it was brilliant."

With a marketing campaign helping to secure his first customers, Paul launched his business seven months ago. Paul reports that through internet advertising alone he receives calls on a daily basis which he is able to turn into sales. "I've found that more often than not the work comes directly to me. I even benefit from regular referrals. At the end of my first year I'm looking to hit £80,000 turnover, which has really exceeded my expectations."

Befitting from a solid support service, Paul stresses that the most important thing a franchisee can have is determination and the willingness to learn. "You've got to be prepared to put the hard-work in," he states. "You can't be shy of the hands-on approach. However, franchisees are encouraged to grow a multi-van business and, for those with motivation, there is a lot of potential. I am already employing someone and my plans are to employ another two and purchase another van every year - it really is an achievable target."