Tracey Bailey and Mark Bryant's story

What made you want to take on a Your Move Franchise?

I’d just turned 40 and so had Mark and when the opportunity arose, we realised independently of each other we were ready to do something for ourselves rather than working for other people. Having been colleagues for some years, we knew that we’d got the depth, knowledge and experience to make it work.

What was the benefit of taking on an existing branch?

Rather than starting from ground zero, we had the option to buy an existing branch with an existing brand and an existing pipeline so we had an income stream from day one. We both understood how to get a branch into profit and buying a going concern meant we could focus on running it. It was a ready to go package.

Why a partnership?

It made really good sense - if you’re business owners working together then you are in a situation where you have double the expertise, you can support each other and work together. You can have a little bit of time off and leave the business in the knowledge that there’s someone else that cares as much as you and we felt that a partnership made it much stronger.

How has your income developed?

We introduced lettings and although it is very different from sales (and was made easier when we employed someone to focus on property management), there is no doubt that the income stream from lettings is invaluable. Conveyancing is an invaluable income stream too – it’s relatively easy to piggy back on a sale, and good money.

What benefits does Your Move bring?

We love the distinctiveness and strength of the brand. We like the fact that we get off the shelf marketing – we’re not natural marketing people and we like the fact that that side of the business is taken care of. There is a place we can go to get all the materials we need.

We also like the benefits of what Your Move buys us – when you load in the discounts you get for buying, it actually makes more financial sense to launch as a National Franchise brand, than to try and go it alone as a one man band. I know that those significant discounts make a huge difference to the financial viability of taking on a Franchise and it’s a real benefit.

What do you like most about being a Your Move Franchisee?

I would never go back to working for someone else. It’s great to be your own boss; it’s your business, your baby and you care the most; you can sail your own ship – that’s a nice place to be rather than having to answer to someone else.

What skills would you say someone who was thinking about opening a Your Move franchise needs most?

In my heart I would say that having estate agency experience is really important – it’s a unique industry. You need a mixture of sales skills and awareness of all the reasons why somebody should be looking to move home; you need to be able to read that and offer a balance of empathy, support, guidance and control. You need to be able to influence decisions that people make in a positive way. Those are the skills that people need.