'I had too many qualifications and no work experience. As a result, I found it difficult to find the right role. I decided to start my own business and franchising looked promising.'
Through his research Latif discovered that the UK greeting card industry is the second largest in the world after the USA. The next step was to research card companies. 'I was immediately attracted to Card Connection because they seemed the most credible,' explains Latif. 'As well as being full members of the British Franchise Association I was able to talk to existing franchisees to get a real feel for the business and the way it worked.'
That was two years ago. Since start up, Latif has already made a big impact on the success of the territory. 'The first year was a steep learning curve,' he explains. 'I worked on my own getting to know the business. Now, I employ someone to help me pack boxes of greeting cards and my wife helps out with the paper work when she has time off from the children.'
In the past year Latif increased the turnover of his territory by 22 per cent compared with its previous owner. He concludes: 'It's been hard work but is certainly paying off.'