THE OWNER of a Chester cleaning business has won a major national awards after adapting his services in the midst of the pandemic.

Silviu Bompa almost gave up on Bright & Beautiful Chester after 18 months, but his determination and resourcefulness have seen the business go on to turn over half a million pounds a year, through the introduction of a professional ironing and laundry service. It has now also won him a Great British Franchisee Award.

Silviu said: "Once we were allowed to trade again after the initial lockdown, we were only working at about 30% of our capacity.

"We were unsure when, or even if, the remaining 70% of our regular business would ever return, so we had to find new work quickly to keep us afloat.

"We did a lot of marketing, and it gave us an opportunity to look for different ways to up our revenue.

"That’s when we decided to launch our professional ironing and laundry service.

"It meant we had to change office layouts and redesign the space to install the commercial machines we needed for the new services, but they generated a new revenue stream which continues to grow today."

He also acquired branded company vehicles for all five of his cleaning teams which helped with visibility and brought him a lot of new business.

Supported by Lloyds Bank, BDO, AMO Consulting and Chantry Group, the Great British Franchise Award from whichfranchise.com is considered the most prestigious for franchise businesses.

Silviu gives back to the network by sharing his experiences, and believes that’s one of the reasons he was chosen as Bright & Beautiful’s own franchisee of the year.

"I was not always so positive," he admits. "After 18 months, I almost gave up - and I told the network that in the hope it will help others see what can be achieved through resilience."