The UK’s biggest home services franchisor, Fantastic Services, has today launched a new grant programme offering up to £1million worth of cash grants to enable 200 people to start their own business within the domestic service industry.
The scheme is open to people living in all areas of the UK, but with more grants expected to be issued in London and the South East, where demand for domestic services has seen a steady increase over the past year and a sharp rise since the easing of lockdown restrictions earlier this month.
Each grant is worth up to £5,000 and will go towards covering initial business start-up costs, in additional to the provision of training through an inhouse programme to help equip and support grant recipients with the skills they need to successfully operate their own franchise.
Co-Founder of Fantastic Services Rune Sovndahl says, “As Covid-19 has changed the business landscape in several industries, the demand for property maintenance has boomed and through our new grant scheme, we are making a vow to support those affected during the pandemic by offering a grant covering most of the expenses for starting a home services business in London and other areas of Britain.”
Fantastic Services, who offer more than ten domestic service franchise options including, Anti-viral sanitisation, cleaning, gardening, handyman, pest control, removals and other property services, have seen a tremendous expansion over the past 12 months, launching new franchises in more than 20 new regions across the whole country in the past year and revenue growth of 7.8 percent, despite the overall global economic downturn.
Anton Skarlatov, Co-Founder and CEO of Fantastic Services says, “Our grant programme is designed to help those who lost their job, self-employed tradespeople, as well as small businesses within the service industry that were negatively impacted by the pandemic.”
Anton continues, “We started Fantastic Services in 2009 with just £6,000 of our own money, and today the business turns over £9.5m employing hundreds of staff across three continents as we continue to be self-financed. We have always reinvested profits back into the business and our new grant programme is designed to help empower more domestic service workers to be their own boss.”
Rune says, “Since the start of the pandemic, we have looked for ways to give back to the community, offering free services to NHS and frontline workers. With the new grant programme, we are able to provide a viable alternative to employment through franchising and help anyone restart their career or business in a high-demand sector.”
Qualifying criteria is in place, with the programme most suitable for tradespeople or technicians with experience in the services sector, or people with significant customer service experience.
Basic requirements for the full grant include:
● Documents – Eligibility to work in the UK and a DBS check.
● Soft skills – Fluency in English. Customer service experience and commitment to being punctual.
● Hard skills – Knowledge of how to use a computer and smartphone.
● Driving licence – At least one member of the team should have a driving licence.
Franchise Marketing Director, Jenny Farenden explains, “A working franchise will allow grant recipients to work on-site at people’s homes or offices to deliver their specialised service, along with the opportunity to build their own team or manage several local teams – in London or other areas in the UK depending on location.”
She continues, “It’s perfect for local service providers or self-employed tradespeople who offer one or a selection of services. Based on experience, grant recipients will be provided with further training and expected to ensure they deliver high-quality services in line with the brand’s standards. Fantastic Services will provide franchisees with a constant customer flow and a 24/7 call centre. They will also receive support with equipment, vehicles, managing and recruiting team members, marketing, technological solutions (apps & CRM system) and more.”
Jenny says, “We have the demand and will be looking to issue grants to qualifying applicants immediately. We have a highly efficient system in place for issuing grants and getting new franchisees up and running, where successful applicants could be servicing their new clients within a week.”
Applications are open from Tuesday April 27th via the Fantatsic Services website.
