Another Award for Muffin Break ‘Power Couple’ Gayle and Des Purdue!
We’re delighted to share that our franchisees Gayle and Des Purdue have won the Multi-Unit Franchisee of the Year Award, part of the 2022 QLD/NT Franchise Council Australia (FCA) Regional Excellence in Franchising Awards! This also puts them in the running for the National award later this year.
At Muffin Break, we believe that the ‘Good Goes In’ and this couldn’t be more true of the approach that Gayle and Des have taken to their franchises in the Northern Territory. They began their Muffin Break journey in 2017 with one store at Coolalinga and expanded to a second store at Gateway Palmerston in 2021. At every step of the journey, the couple have concentrated on the good they can bring to the community.
Family values are also at the core of their business. The couple’s daughter works with them, plus they employ an additional 12 staff.
“Our ‘why’ is to provide opportunities for our daughter Olivia and ensure our family’s long-term financial and community goals,” says Gayle. “We always want to be somewhere that our family, staff and customers can come to feel supported and welcomed.”
The Journey to a Thriving Franchise Model
Gayle and Des lead by example, taking a proactive approach to business and working alongside their talented team everyday. Gayle works within the businesses 5 days a week, although each store now has a manager for daily direction.
As with many Muffin Break franchisees, Gayle and Des were new to hospitality when they bought into Muffin Break.
Gayle comes from an educational background and has won distinguished awards including NT Teacher of the Year, Microsoft Teacher of the Year and Victoria Runner Up Teacher of the Year. Des works within the businesses on his weeks away from his role in the mining industry in Emergency Services and volunteers with local emergency services.
Clearly this is a couple with a commitment to hard work, an aptitude for adaptation and a commitment to community, which has taken them a long way in a short time.
Muffin Break also provides extensive training and support to all of our franchisees, which includes ongoing consultation and business advice.
Clocking Up the Milestones Quickly
Within a month of opening their first store in Coolalinga, Gayle and Des had achieved 1000 loyalty members. In May 2019, they received the Muffin Break National Marketing Award and they were elected to our Marketing Executive Committee in 2020.
Other awards include Muffin Break Recognition for COVID19 Innovation and the Franchise Council Award for Single Unit Franchisee of the Year in 2021.
Gayle says that transitioning to a multi-site franchise has allowed them to take a holistic view of the business, and evolve in the way they plan and achieve their goals.
“We were previously heavily involved in the internal operations of the stores. Now, having a management structure in place, we are far better placed to plan and review regularly.”
Gayle and Des review financial indicators monthly with their accountant and also one of our Foodco consultants, in areas such as cost of goods, labour, sales and category analysis.
“We have grown our key categories by 3% and sit well above state average in sales volume,” says Gayle.
Support Systems are the Key to Success!
Gayle emphasises how important their sounding boards are in their success, including the Foodco support system.
“We have monthly reviews with our state consultant who assesses key top/bottom-line sales and provides us with sales building strategies around opportunities.”
“Having a strong relationship with our state and the wider Muffin Break team has allowed us to continue our expansion whilst making the most of their business knowledge.”
We’re so proud of Gayle and Des’ achievements. We love supporting our Muffin Break franchisees with experienced advice, gleaned over three decades of franchising around Australia. When you join Foodco, you truly do become part of a family.
If you’d like to know more about what it takes to own a Muffin Break, get in touch today.
