Columbus Coffee
HOLE IN ONE for top franchisees

Accepting the trophy for Westpac Supreme Franchisee of the Year at the Auckland Rendezvous Hotel last month, Nigel Heney apologised for the fact that his wife and business partner Carmeena wasn’t there with him. ‘She decided to stay at home because she’s expecting our second child in seven days’ time,’ announced the Ashburton Columbus Coffee franchisee.

It’s typical of the way this couple seize every opportunity that they managed to fit winning the country’s top franchisee award into their already-busy family and business life. Oh, and while Nigel was in Auckland, he managed to take in a round of golf, thrashing Columbus Coffee managing director Graeme Tait at Gulf Harbour. Nigel plays off a 2-handicap; Graeme shame-facedly refuses to disclose his.

Nigel’s golf handicap reflects the approach that has brought the Heneys such success in their business: the couple mix discipline, commitment, practice and enjoyment to achieve outstanding results. Good time management must come into it, too: in the past three years the couple have opened a new business for their employer, got married, had a son, bought out the business, had their second child and won three franchisee awards (see page 48). ‘You could say we have pretty been full-on,’ Nigel laughs.

Nigel is a baker by trade but had always had a vision of opening his own business in the food industry. ‘When local Ashburton businessman Alister Lilley approached us to manage the Columbus Coffee café in a new shopping centre he was developing, both parties had in mind we would buy it one day,’ he explains. ‘The site was basically a car-park when we started, albeit with a lot of foot traffic, so we really did the whole “starting-from-scratch” thing.

‘Columbus helped us to get through it smoothly, though, and their franchise team were 100% supportive. Even though we are some way from the support office, everything is available to us at the click of a mouse (see page xx). The only thing they got wrong was our turnover. Maybe they were being ultra-cautious but we’ve almost doubled the figure they estimated and the system is running really smoothly.’

Good Systems Build Good Businesses

When the opportunity came to buy the café, ‘It was a no-brainer because we were so familiar with the system and it was obvious that the café was such a good fit in the area. Based on the success of the business and the Columbus name, the bank was more than happy to lend us the money,’ Nigel says. It was a wise decision. ‘Many new shops have gone in around us and we became the busiest café in Ashburton. In fact, we’ve had to expand to meet demand.’

Having a great location is no use unless you can maximise its potential, and Nigel puts the success of the Ashburton outlet down to following the proven Columbus Coffee system. ‘If you stick to your systems, then you will have time to spend with your customers listening to what they like and want. I’m always out there chatting to my customers and I’ve found they really appreciate seeing the face of the owner. The other advantage, of course, is that applying the system means you can actually cope with much more business. I now have two full-time chefs and we regularly put through 150 people at lunchtime. That is a real measure of the success of the system, because if people don’t enjoy their coffee or their food they don’t come back. One bad experience is all it takes to send them away, but we have many, many regulars.’

Columbus Coffee has 28 standalone stores around the country with a further 25 open or awaiting conversion in Mitre 10 MEGA outlets. Graeme Tait says they are looking for new franchisees and new sites all the time. ‘The investment required is between $250,000 and $400,000, which is certainly sizeable, but then you are joining a multi-award-winning franchise that produces great results. If you’d like to challenge Nigel as Columbus Coffee’s best café, give us a ring. I just wouldn’t recommend taking him on on the golf course…’

This advertorial is taken from Franchise New Zealand magazine Volume 20 Issue 4 

Contact details for Columbus Coffee

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