Hot Stuff
With over 2,000 regular customers, Fatih Tek’s Ovenclean business is really cooking

Fatih Tek - known to everyone simply as ‘Tek’ - launched his Ovenclean franchise two years ago. Today he has over 2,000 regular customers, with a second vehicle on the road and an employee to help with the workload. Shortly he plans to recruit another employee as his business continues to expand.

“Despite the current climate and all the surrounding gloom, I have noticed absolutely no impact on my business at all - if anything, I’m busier than ever,” he says.“I have worked very hard to build up my business and I still work hard to make sure my customers continue to enjoy excellent service. Now I’m reaping the rewards from established, loyal customers who book me regularly and recommend me to others.”

POTENTIAL

Turkish by birth,Tek spent his first year in England in employment, but was keen to establish his own business as soon as possible.When he spotted an advertisement for Ovenclean franchisees in the local newspaper, he says he immediately recognised the potential.

“I visited the Ovenclean head office first of all and then spoke to a few franchisees,” he recalls.“I also took a good look at the competition, but it was clear that Ovenclean was streets ahead.

I was impressed, but before I finally decided I undertook a spot of market research to find out what demand there might be for my services.What I found was that everyone wants a clean oven, but nobody likes to actually clean the oven - in short, everyone needs an oven cleaner.”

Once convinced,Tek threw himself into marketing Ovenclean on his territory. He admits that he did a few free demonstration cleans in the early days, but insists it was definitely worth it.

“Nothing comes from nothing in this life,” he says.“To make your business grow you have to be prepared to invest time and effort into it. For me that has meant delivering leaflets and advertising regularly, as well as giving the occasional free demonstration. I don’t need to do ‘freebies’ anymore, but certainly it helped get me started. Once people saw the fantastic results, invariably they became regular customers and were more than happy to recommend me to others.”

PROFESSIONAL

Tek, who is Ovenclean’s current ‘Franchisee of The Month’, attributes the success of his Ovenclean franchise to a combination of an excellent, environmentally-friendly cleaning system and a courteous, professional service.“Ovenclean was the first-ever cleaning franchise and so is the bestknown name,” he points out.“There is a comfort factor in dealing with a trusted company - I have quite a few elderly customers who feel reassured by the size and reputation of the company and the fact that we are fully insured to work in their homes. Of course, it’s also about giving 100 per cent service - we don’t leave a mess in people’s kitchens and we are always polite, considerate and unobtrusive.”

He confirms that there is no typical customer and no typical cleaning job. “Some people just want a regular spruce up, others want a real in-depth clean,”Tek explains.“No matter how dirty the oven is, the Ovenclean system can restore it to spotless condition, looking as good as the day it first came from the shop.”

Despite his evident enjoyment of his business,Tek doesn’t plan to be cleaning ovens for the rest of his working life. He has two vans already and will soon have the second of two oven cleaners working for him.

Ultimately, his aim is to build a strong team of mobile oven cleaning specialists, which he will manage. “Ovenclean really lends itself to being a management franchise, if that’s the way you want to take it,” Tek concludes.

“It’s a brilliant opportunity and if you do things properly - the Ovenclean way - you can certainly build a great business and make serious money.”

For more information call Ben Page on 0800 988 5434, email info@ovenclean.com or visit www.ovenclean.co.uk FREE INFO NO: 4404