We have three difference price levels so that you can benefit from self-employment as a Stopcocks Woman Plumber/heating engineer whatever your current financial position go here for a service breakdown/price comparison.
Rest assured that whichever level you choose when you join the Stopcocks Business Incubator we’re fully committed to supporting you to build a successful Stopcocks business for at least five years – it’s widely recognised that it takes a minimum of five years to build a secure and successful business.
We want you to stay so we make sure the support you get is second to none. When we invite you to renew the cost of the paperwork is required, but the Franchise fee is only payable once. Running a business can be hazardous if you’re not fully aware of all your legal requirements, we make sure you have all the information you need to comply with laws and rules as they change.
Here’s an outline of how we get you started and the ongoing support available to you in your Stopcocks Business.
Everything below is provided within our top level plan and our lowest priced option will give you the minimum you’ll need to get going, most people go for the middle range plan.
The Money
First of all, before you join we may refer you to an independent company to help you work out your finances and should you need help, give you support and guidance to get a business loan – they boast a very high success rate. We work closely with Outset Finance who are one of a small group of loan providers who are part of the government backed Start-Up Loans scheme to provide low interest loans to people starting businesses. We recommend you use Outset Finance rather than your local Start Up Loan provider because they’re national and already understand how Stopcocks works, making the process simpler https://www.outsetfinance.com we can also provide you with a phone number to speak to someone directly.
Training and Support:
- Practical training ‘Plumbing the Stopcocks Way’ – including diagnosis and understanding systems – usually delivered as you require it
- Business support – including business planning (sometimes this is provided by an independent company), setting and reaching your own targets, use of our unique online system
- Pricing support**
- 1 year’s free business/financial advice by using Cresswells, Stopcocks Women Plumbers’ suggested accountancy firm
- Through our partners Polypipe – BPEC accredited training – Installation of Warm Water Underfloor Heating and membership of Polypipe Registered Installer Network to add a new and profitable service to your business
- Technical support – 8am-8pm telephone helpline, by arrangement one-to-one on site mentoring. Our technical mentoring is highly praised by everyone who’s used it, it’s unique and available to all our plumbers no matter how experienced you are; We operate a technical helpline you can call as often as you need to and receive friendly support, from step by step instructions using WhatsApp or just to decide which is the most suitable solution for each customer’s unique situation. For more complex jobs we provide one-to-one mentoring on site; we’ll teach and work alongside you, making certain you learn and benefit from a satisfied customer who’ll refer you to their friends – this is the service all our plumbers appreciate the most. This can also help you gain your NVQ 2 should you require it
- Set-up, ongoing and annual review of business plan, target setting and problem solving
Administration and Community:
- A friendly human being to answer your phone and emails (even when you’re away on holiday) and keep customers happy so you can get on with the plumbing – customers tell us that speaking to a human being makes a huge difference and encourages them to choose Stopcocks Women Plumbers, while research shows it increases the likelyhood customers will choose you
- A Stopcocks email address and branded signature on your emails – this lets your prospective customers know you are part of a professional company with high standards – encouraging them to choose you
- Software license for Stopcocks state-of-the-art booking, invoicing, communication with customers system ‘GoPlumb’. This saves you time and admin effort
- Our great online system makes it really easy to keep on top of your business cashflow. You can see at a glance what you’ve earned and everything is presented in downloadable spreadsheets making filling out your tax return super-simple
- ‘On the move’ access to booking, invoice creation and payment processing
- Ongoing administrative support and community – annual conference, private Stopcocks online forum, reviews, assessments, IT help
Territory and Marketing
- Local territory – unlike other franchises you’re free to work collaboratively with neighbouring Stopcocks plumberss rather than compete with them
- Renewable five year term
- Stopcocks prominent and fully mobile accessible website attracts customers around the UK. In most areas of UK the Stopcocks website comes up at the top of Google in any search for Women Plumbers. When you join us we will apply our search engine techniques to make certain the Stopcocks website comes to the top in local searches for plumbers, making you easy to find
- Branded clothing
- 500 personalised business cards
- Branded stationery
- Vehicle signage
- Social media marketing
Full Business Launch to get you noticed in your territory
- Looking into your territory, how to focus your marketing where it will count most
- Press releases for the launch and moving forward
- Local radio interviews and training for your radio appearance (you won’t be forced to do this, but it’s much easier than you’d imagine)
- Full day launch event, local media and dignitaries invited. Get noticed and build your customer base
- First 6 months local advertising
Vehicle & Tools
- Within our top package we include the deposit and your personal lease agreement for your own liveried VW (wherever possible) van
- Toolkit of the most essential plumbing tools
Legal requirements
- We make sure you always have what you need to be legal and fulfil all ‘compliance’ requirements
- We will require you to give us copies of your training certificates and insurance documents (yearly)
For our at a glance price comparison chart go here.
*Outset Finance provide small loans at low interest rates.
**Linda Babcock, a professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon University and the author of Women Don’t Ask, has found, in studies of business-school students, that men initiate salary negotiations four times as often as women do, and that when women do negotiate, they ask for 30 percent less money than men do. At Manchester Business School, professor Marilyn Davidson has seen the same phenomenon, and believes that it comes from a lack of confidence. Each year she asks her students what they expect to earn, and what they deserve to earn, five years after graduation. On average, the men think they deserve £60,000 a year and the women £48,000—or around 20 percent less. Our help with pricing means you won’t undersell yourself.
