Countrywide Signs : Martin and Jane Davenport on Building Their Countrywide Signs Territory

This Countrywide Signs video features franchisees Martin and Jane Davenport, who run the Hampshire, Cheshire and Essex territory and started their business in 2001. Their route into the network was unusual. Before joining, Martin worked as the main contractor for a Countrywide Signs franchisee covering north London, supplying staff and carrying out installation work for around five years. That direct experience of the model is what convinced the Davenports to take on their own territory when an opportunity came up close to home — a natural progression rather than a leap into the unknown. Martin explains that being part of a franchise lets him concentrate on his forte, the operational side of the business, while Countrywide handles the financial and marketing support. The main benefit, he says, is not necessarily more free time but more control over it — the flexibility to shuffle his hours, with the backup of a larger company behind him. He sums up a good day simply: sunshine, no breakdowns, no complaints, a nice large contract won, and home at a reasonable hour to spend the evening with family.