“The training was excellent, as it fully prepares coaches for when they return home to launch their businesses”

ActionCOACH franchise partner Kevin Riley is passionate about the success of business owners

In 2017, Kevin Riley stood in front of his loyal employees to tell them they no longer had jobs. After 19 years as Sales Director of a travel company, he discovered a large-scale fraud, which meant operations had to cease immediately. It was this devastating experience that drove Kevin to choose a franchise passionate about the success of business owners.

Despite this knock-back, but also because of the drive as a direct result of it, Kevin has already achieved his year-four minimum monthly income target of £30,000-plus in his seventh month after launching his franchise in May 2019!

Learning experience

Kevin explains: “Through time reflecting on what had happened, I managed to treat those last few shocking days in the travel company as a learning experience, making sure they didn’t completely overshadow the 19 incredible years I’d had. One thing I was absolutely sure of was I didn’t ever want to go through business failure again and I hate to think of others having to go through that either.

“I have to admit, initially I’d lost some of my get up and go. However, in October 2018 I started to get itchy feet and that’s when I began actively looking for my next challenge. As if the stars had aligned, I saw an advertisement on LinkedIn that felt like it was written for me.”

ActionCOACH pioneered the business coaching profession and now has 1,000 franchise partners worldwide, with over 200 in the UK. At the end of 2018 and 2019, ActionCOACH was named the UK’s Best B2B Franchise and for seven years in a row has rated 5-Stars for franchisee satisfaction - only four franchises have achieved this. Kevin wanted in.

After getting through his interview with Ian Christelow, ActionCOACH’s UK co-founder, he rang over 15 existing franchise partners, thinking the advert was too good to be true. By the following week, he’d heard all the assurances he needed to know the opportunity was right for him and he was raring to go for his training at ActionCOACH University.

A new start

“The training was excellent, as it fully prepares coaches for when they return home to launch their businesses,” Kevin says. “One of the main selling points for me was the promise of a strong sense of community and support from ActionCOACH, so to physically experience that myself reassured me again that I’d made the right decision.”

Kevin returned home with all the knowledge he needed to get his business going. Within seven weeks of launching, he had signed up four clients to his coaching sessions and recruited a Business Development Manager and Creative Executive PA. With the ActionCOACH target of hitting a million-pound turnover in 10 years, Kevin was determined to take that one step further.

“I want to break the millionpound mark within three years and create 150 millionaires in 15 years,” he says. “I focused all my efforts on generating leads for the first couple of months to create strong foundations. When establishing my client base, I wasn’t afraid to draw on my past experience and explain that I never wanted it to happen to them. I believe it’s one of the things that sets me apart - I’ve had bad experiences in business, as well as good, and that’s what keeps me grounded.”

The motivation to work with a multitude of companies is what allows Kevin to work with clients that resonate with him personally.

“I’ve promised to work with one low fee paying client and one charity each year, if they’re businesses I really believe in,” he says. “My most recent client I identified for this work was a company producing swimming costumes from plastic bottles. I instantly fell in love with the brand, its ethos and their team. To be able to provide support to small businesses, as well as mid-sized and large businesses, is something that matters to me - I know there’s a family at home feeling the impact of every up and down the business experiences.

“I’m also determined to work with secondary schools in the area. I’ll focus on teaching students about business and encouraging them to be the leaders of tomorrow - it’s important to get young people enthusiastic about their future. Just as I’m developing my ActionCOACH business for my own children, I want to ensure the future will be in safe hands.”

Building a future

Soon to complete his first year with ActionCOACH, Kevin and his team are looking forward to what is to come. With a new fortnightly group coaching programme on the horizon for small business owners, Kevin knows his team will need to expand to meet the demand.

“The developments in early 2020 will bring client income up to £45,000 a month,” he says. “Once we start to push a little further, I’ll need to recruit a business coach to join our team. That will mean we can support more businesses and take the next step towards our goal of creating 150 millionaires within 15 years.”

Although Kevin’s calendar is fully booked, he knows all too well the first year of business is the most important. By putting in the crucial groundwork, the time he gets to spend with his family going forwards will become even more flexible.

“The main reason I work is for my family,” Kevin says. “My wife, Sam, and our two children, Harry and Phoebe, love doing things together. We love going on holiday, exploring different places and keeping active. Whenever we’re away, we’ll walk over 10 miles a day. And we bring the dog too - our cockapoo called Barney.

“We all appreciate that sometimes business comes away with us on holiday - especially in the early days. But the flexibility of coaching means I can do it from anywhere. I’ve coached my clients from the Cayman Islands and New York - I’m determined to deliver for my clients without missing out on family time.

“I never thought I would find something again that would reignite my passion for business. After the travel company closed, I lost sight of what I was looking for - ActionCOACH revealed itself to me when I needed it most.

“The incredible support and expertise that is prevalent in the network is world class. As an ActionCOACH business growth specialist, I’m privileged to be able to offer proven strategies and advice that has a business and life-changing impact on others.”

At a glance ActionCOACH

Established:

1993 in Australia. 2001 in UK

Number of franchised outlets:

240 in UK

Location of units:

UK-wide

Investment range:

£69,000

Minimum required capital:

£20,000

Contact:

If you want to build a business with scalability and longevity, make a difference in your local community and you’re the kind of person who:
A. Loves learning and developing yourself;
B. Has enjoyed success in your career or sport; and
C. Is willing to invest if they see substantial rewards can be made…
Then find out more by watching the overview video at actioncoach.co.uk/overview