Amy Jefferies, Smart ABC, Reigate

"Although the industry is very much male-dominated, Smart ABC has made me feel very welcome"

Smart ABC franchise owners Amy Jefferies and Lukas Skrzypinski are off to a flying start, after securing £6,200 worth of repair work at the launch of their franchise. "We are really excited about our future with Smart ABC," enthuses Amy. "Our aim is to grow the business at a steady pace, while providing a high quality service in order to ensure we build a bank of repeat customers and referrals.

"Before joining the Smart ABC network I worked in the development industry, while my partner Lukas, a qualified coachbuilder, worked as a London bus bodywork repairer. Lukas was keen to become his own boss, and as I was in between jobs we decided to build a business together. Franchising was the sensible route into self-employment as we would have access to ongoing training, support and an established business model.

"We first met SMART (small to medium area repair technique) repair franchise Smart ABC at a franchise exhibition and the team on the Smart ABC stand made a good impression. They were friendly, open and very professional. We did investigate investment opportunities with other SMART repair franchises, however Smart ABC was by far the best in terms of professionalism and cost. We gave the business considerable thought and attended Smart ABC's open day, which really cemented our decision to invest.

"The training and support so far, has been excellent. I had a week's worth of training at the head office in Bromsgrove with Lukas to learn the repair procedure and marketing techniques. However as I will not be involved in carrying out the repairs, Lukas was the one who completed the full training. My role involves marketing and promoting our service and doing the paperwork.

"Although the SMART repair industry is very much a male-dominated industry, Smart ABC has made me feel very welcome and I would recommend them to anybody thinking about becoming their own boss."