3rd August 2023
He won the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) award for the Northern Ireland region, for his fresh approach to the conventional repair process and increasing the turnover of Revive! Belfast by 140% in 2022.
After years of travelling round the world, putting in long hours and not spending enough time with his family, Mark decided the time was right to start his own business. He chose Revive! after carefully researching available options and launched Revive! Belfast in May 2021.
He started with two vans and two technicians and has now added another van and specialist wheel technician to the team. Sales are increasing month by month as Revive!’s reputation for top quality work and high levels of customer service grows. For Mark, the key to his success is his team of technicians, all sharing his vision of growing the business.
“It’s down to finding the right set of people and having the kind of relationship with my team that I have never had before. It’s nice to know that they know they’re part of the bigger picture, that the plan is to grow and develop and spread out from the surrounding area across a wider radius of Belfast,” he said.
Meticulous diary management and job scheduling is paramount to ensure the maximum amount of work can be completed each day with minimum travel time. Said Mark: “When I’m booking in the jobs I look at where the postcodes are. I’ve become a bit of a postcode genius – I just know off the top of my head what area they’re in! I manage the technicians’ diaries to make sure they’re within a certain postcode on a certain day to keep the commuting time down and maximise the sales for them.”
Revive!’s bespoke management system includes a cancellation feature, which automatically adds jobs on the waiting list into the schedule should a booking be cancelled. Said Mark: “It’s really useful. Now we’re so busy, if a customer rings up and wants a job done yesterday, we can put them on the list and if a job gets cancelled the software brings up the cancellation list and we can call the customer to get them booked in quicker.”
At start up, one of Mark’s biggest challenges was raising awareness of the Revive! brand and mobile repair, both of which were completely new to Northern Ireland. As well as the mobile repair vans, his own vehicle also sports full Revive! branding, which all helps with brand awareness, he has an active social media profile, and his long list of happy customers delivers a high volume of word-of-mouth recommendations. Winning the award also gave a big boost to the business.
Explained Mark: “When the press article about our award went online, the phone started ringing and by the end of that week it was chaotic. I was working up until midnight most nights responding back to people. It definitely helped brand recognition but there’s still more work to do.”
So, what does the future hold for Mark and his team at Revive! Belfast? “This year I am focusing on developing the team that I have, ensuring they are 100% happy and can see the long-term goals within the business. Then, towards the end of this year, beginning of next, we’ll look at further expansion – but always ensuring that happy customers are at the heart of everything we do!.”
13th November 2023
This represents a 29 per cent increase on 2022 results and continues an extraordinary year for the UK’s largest SMART Repair Business.
16th October 2023
Revive! Auto Innovations has been named as one of the top three franchises in the whole of Europe.
11th September 2023
The UK’s leading smart repair network has been put forward by the BFA for the 2023 European Franchise Awards later this month.
21st August 2023
“The corporate world wasn’t as stable as I first thought”: career change pays off for Watford vehicle repair business owner
27th July 2023
A Cambridge-based vehicle repair franchise, headed up by three car enthusiast friends, has been lauded as one of the best small businesses in Cambridgeshire.
27th June 2023
Revive! Gloucester, has won the Consumer Services Start-Up of the Year award at the South-West Start-Up Business Awards
13th June 2023
Ricky Taylor and Warren Brown bring over 60 years of combined experience to the UK’s leading smart repairer, as Revive! targets £40M turnover by 2028.
1st June 2023
Revive! franchises, Northampton and Gloucester, have been shortlisted for coveted regional business awards.
30th March 2023
Richard Graves is joining the senior leadership team at Revive! after a heralded career at Gefco, SMH and Cazoo.
28th March 2023
Revive! Northern Ireland, led by owner Mark Progner, has been recognised by a prestigious awarding body.
16th March 2023
Delegates at the recent 19th annual Revive! conference heard that the UK’s leading SMART repair network has achieved its best ever year.
21st February 2023
Revive! Auto Innovations Aberdeen has been shortlisted for Start-Up Business of the Year at the Scotland FSB Small Business Awards.
7th February 2023
Revive! has set its sights on another record-breaking year after scooping a host of industry accolades in the last twelve months for the firm’s ‘SMART’ approach to vehicle repair franchising.
7th February 2023
A former salesman’s vehicle repair business, Revive! Auto Innovations Portsmouth, has been recognised by a prestigious awarding body.
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