Testimonials

With a young family, two children and careers in hospitality, Lee and Sheree Bennett found the idea of creating their wealth themselves exceptionally attractive. However, at age 24 and 25, they found the prospect of doing it entirely on their own more than a little scary.

The Bennett’s initial venture was so successful they quickly expanded, and are now successful franchisees at both Quest Maitland and Quest Dubbo; properties that lie approximately four hours apart in regional NSW.

“We invested in a second Quest business because we wanted to grow. It made sense, after the enjoyment we had from our first one, as it was a strong business. There was also further potential to grow our wealth while having a very good lifestyle that allowed us to bring up a young family.”

“It is a lot easier to connect with the community in regional areas. In the bigger cities it is harder to get yourself out there, when you are competing with the big brands.”

Quest was one of the first accommodation providers to move into the area, and the Bennett’s predict that Dubbo is yet to hit its peak.

“There is a lot of industry setting up here, and with significant investment in health, Dubbo is moving towards becoming the regional hub of western NSW. It is an area that is continuing to show a lot of potential for continued growth.”

“In regional locations it is about making yourself known about town and developing the relationships – particularly so in a place like Dubbo, which is essentially its own city. In regional areas there is a real pride in the people that live there and a sense of community – something you don’t get in cities like Sydney.”

After 20 years in the corporate world, Brendan Mulqueen left a senior management role with BHP to pursue a new career in a very different direction alongside his wife Jennifer. The couple are now 18 months into their franchise partnership at Quest Jolimont.

“We invested in a second Quest business because we wanted to grow. It made sense, after the enjoyment we had from our first one, as it was a strong business. There was also further potential to grow our wealth while having a very good lifestyle that allowed us to bring up a young family.”

“Based in Europe, we had seen the success of the boutique hotel model, but our analysis and research on the ground in Australia had us feeling that our skill set and knowledge was too limited to pull such a venture off successfully.”

“For me there were four key success areas – knowledge, experience, capital and commitment. I wasn’t ready to go from a large corporate into a small business out on my own in the market, the franchise model provided the framework for us to make the transition successfully.

“We stumbled across Quest through word of mouth, and when we did, it really made sense to us. There was the brand, the established market presence, systems, procedures and comprehensive business support. What I saw was that I was essentially buying into a medium sized corporate.”

“It is a really interesting business model. It is a franchise, with landlords, head office and, of course, customers. My background was managing stakeholders and effective communications, that skill set has been incredibly relevant in this environment.”

“Under the Quest franchise model, we have been given the support where we have needed it. We had the capital and the commitment, and Quest were able to help us with the knowledge and the experience that has helped us grow the business.”

“Franchisees get to shape the direction of their business while operating under a framework and structure. We started with a smaller property to whet our appetite and build our skill set. The structure means that there are opportunities to expand.

“It can be easy to judge the move as a seachange, but it isn’t, the reality is you need to put in, you need to want to work hard and achieve, but that is how you see the results.“

During her eigth years working with Quest, Jodie Milne has moved around a lot, and taken on just about every role available within the accommodation group.

After beginning her career as a receptionist at Quest Darwin, Milne quickly proved herself and took on a role in sales. Soonafter, she moved to Quest Sanctuary Lakes in Victoria as the Property Manager, before finally making the move to franchisee – back in Darwin, in the NT suburb of Palmerston.

“Essentially, I have gone from the back of house to the front, gaining enormous amounts of experience along the way.”

Darwin’s positioning as the gas production capital of the southern hemisphere means the region attracts significant demand for business traveller accommodation. Milne and Watson made the decision to take the plunge.

“We sold everything we owned and drove up from Victoria in a ute with a trailer containing all our possessions. We really started from scratch.”

Milne says the key to being successful in a small town like Darwin is to ensure the community accepts you.

“It was hard yakka, we had to build a strong network by getting involved with the community. In the early days I would have eight meetings every day.”

“You have to know everybody – from the Council to someone who knows the hairdresser, to getting involved with the local football and netball teams and the scouts.”

“It is both rewarding and exciting, when you get recognized in the street, when people say ‘thank you’. The most common thing I get is - you’re the Quest lady. Community spirit is a huge thing.”

Milne says the strength of the Quest brand as well as access to the wider Quest network was a large part of the appeal of investing in the franchise.

“Being able to bounce off other franchisees and the Corporate Office, to talk about initiatives other franchisees are putting in place, and the way they are approaching different challenges is so important. Rather than standing on your own you can be supported by the collective knowledge and experience of all those associated with the brand.”

“The Quest structure and format has been great. The company’s systematic approach to running a business is so important for when you need someone to step in or you want to expand. It’s very analytical with a checklist for everything.”

“Someone is always able to help you with an answer, and if you can’t get it straight away, Quest is great in helping find the right person who can.”

Buying a franchise was never Catherine Mapperson’s goal. But after working as a Quest employee for a number of years, she felt confident enough in the structure and support the company offered to franchisees to invest in her own Quest business.

Sixteen years later, Mapperson relishes her position as a franchisee for two Quest properties.

“My involvement as a franchisee has been fantastic. While I never had a lifelong dream of working in hospitality, or owning my own business, the nature of Quest as a fast growing company, means opportunities really do come up regularly.”

She says the prestige from being associated with a large, established company, with common network standards, is of great benefit.

“The relationship with Quest Corporate Office is really important as it can be very difficult to get your foot in the door with major accounts. Having access to the National Account Managers can help with that.”

“From a franchisee perspective it really helps as we have access to information about the future expectations of Quest’s corporate clients – some of Australia’s biggest businesses, without having to go to them directly.”

Mapperson says the existence of national accounts is of great benefit – particularly at times when major clients move in or out of the area.

“The Quest Corporate Office assists by getting in contact with potential accounts that are moving into the area. This is where you can really rely on the network to help facilitate accessing and building the relationship with new companies.”

“What has been particularly terrific with the business model that Quest has in place is that you don’t need to be an expert in everything. If you need assistance or mentoring, you can tap into the Quest knowledge base – you don’t risk being out on your own.”

“And of course, it is not just the support from the Corporate Office, but also from other franchisees who spur you on and give you new ideas on ways to continually improve.