Speedpro prints ticket to success with quality service

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This article was published 18/04/2017 (3210 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Speedpro Canada may not be the most widely known Winnipeg-based national business, but within the franchising industry it’s developing a growing reputation as a top-drawer operation.

For the fifth year in a row, the large-format speciality printer franchise company has received the Franchisees’ Choice award from the Canadian Franchise Association.

The honour is determined by a survey of 60 different franchise platforms where franchisees are asked to assess their franchisor in a number of key areas, including the relationship between the franchisor and franchisee.

Speedpro boasts a leading market share in the sector that includes a growing demand for printed vinyl vehicle wraps that advertise every conceivable type of business, with increasingly complex and detailed graphics featuring stunning colours and customized fit.

Speedpro has been around since 1991, but it was acquired in 2005 by Stuart Burns and the head office was moved to Winnipeg.

A few years after he acquired it, Burns, a former partner in the Winnipeg Dodge dealership, realized that in order to create some separation from the competition, something would have to be done.

“We made the change very deliberately about eight years ago at an industry convention,” Burns said. “It seemed like we were competing with everyone as a commodity, on price. We were fighting it out promising discounts and such. That’s a dirty place to be. I said, ‘let’s clean up and put on some good clothes rather than fighting clothes. Let’s provide the best service anywhere.’ ”

It may still be a commodity — it so happens that there are many operations that can print and install vehicle wraps now — but the attention to customer service allows Speedpro to get out of the cut-rate pricing game as well as to attract the best franchisees.

There were 28 franchises when Burns bought the business and there are now 50, with his modest head office staff looking to add three new franchises per year.

“We turn down far more requests for franchises than we award,” Burns said. “I’ve been doing this for too long to just run off to the bank with somebody’s cheque. My tag line is ‘We are assembling a network of elite performers.’ ”

Rick Henry and his sister have owned a Winnipeg Speedpro franchise for 17 years that’s now located on Scurfield Boulevard. He said the technology has changed so much over the years — large-format colour printers that cost about $500,000 10 years ago now start at $30,000 and do much higher-quality work — but he has remained competitive for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that they get great support from the Speedpro head office.

“Stuart and his team do a great job,” he said. “And like anything else our whole thing is service and quality. We need to warranty the work and service the customer. That is really important in this business because there are so many choices.”

Lorraine McLachlan, CEO of the Canadian Franchise Association, said, “The true strength of a franchise system lies in the mutually rewarding relationship between a franchisor and its franchisees. Being a Franchisees’ Choice designee is an honour and a vote of confidence because the high rankings in franchisee satisfaction come directly from the franchisees themselves.”

For Speedpro, it’s meant being able to grab a leading market share and hold onto it. It also means being able to get its franchisees a preferred lending rate from the big banks in Canada, partially because there has not been a Speedpro insolvency since a six-month-old franchise succumbed to the 2008 recession.

“We built the brand based on exceptional service,” Burns said. “And it’s worked. Our competitors never really followed us. We made the move eight years ago and it has been the best thing for us.”

martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca