After joining Premier as a coach in 1999, the same year Premier was founded, Chris Pipe was offered the opportunity to become a Premier franchisee after just one year. After partnering with Jon Mills, one of Premier’s longest standing business owners, Chris has never looked back. In 2017, his franchise generating over £550,000, an increase of over £75,000 on the previous year…

What made you decide to invest in Premier?

“I started working for Premier as a coach but was soon offered an ownership opportunity.  As you can imagine, at just 21 years old I was anxious about investing but it turned out to be the best decision I ever made, and I’ve never looked back.  I have always had a keen interest in education, teach and sports, and a Premier franchise was the perfect opportunity to turn my passions into business. If I didn’t grab this opportunity with both hands, I would always have been wondering, what if?”

What do you love most about running your own business?

For me, it’s the freedom. I can work when I want and take time off as and when I see fit. However, I can only do this because of the business and processes that I have developed over the years. As I have grown, as has my business, and I now have fantastic people in place to help drive the franchise forward, whether I’m in the office or not.

I also love the fact that I have control over how much money I earn and the impact I have. Naturally, earning an annual wage is important, but I take great pride in work we do with schools and children within our local community. We engage with over 10,000 children a week and have ambitions to take this up to 15,000 in the coming year.

What makes Premier different?

There’s no single element that makes Premier better than our competitors. Personally, I always say that the range of products we can offer schools in unrivalled within our network. Many competitors will only offer sports, where we can go into a school and offer a far superior sports package, with holistic development central to the programme, and provide dance, drama and health & wellbeing provisions too. We have the opportunity to become irreplaceable within schools.

On top of this, the support is brilliant. Whether it’s literature, National campaigns, the community feel with the other franchisees, our bespoke business management system and the reputation of the brand.

What advice would you give to someone considering a Premier franchise?

It can be daunting looking at investing in a franchise, though I promise you it’s the most logical route if you’re looking to create your own financial freedom. Premier will support you and help you develop the business. If you have the drive and determination to succeed, you can earn as much as you want.

I have always had a keen interest in education, teach and sports, and a Premier franchise was the perfect opportunity to turn my passions into business. I love the freedom of being a Premier franchisee. I can work when I want and take time off as and when I see fit. However, I can only do this because of the business and processes that I have developed over the years. As I have grown, as has my business, and I now have fantastic people in place to help drive the franchise forward, whether I’m in the office or not.

I also love the fact that I have control over how much money I earn and the impact I have. Naturally, earning an annual wage is important, but I take great pride in work we do with schools and children within our local community. We engage with over 10,000 children a week and have ambitions to take this up to 15,000 in the coming year.