Bright and Beautiful
21 November 2023
Sector: Housekeeping Services
Location: Derby
Established in 2018 by Toni Hibbert, Bright and Beautiful provides premium housekeeping services to domestic customers across the Derby area.
This covers a variety of services including cleaning, ironing, laundry and more. Having had previous experience in natural products, running a sales team and then progressing to sales director in a previous career, Toni then established Bright and Beautiful. The company employs a team of 20 experienced staff who are all DBS checked, fully trained in care, attention to detail and being security conscious to respect the properties they manage. The company prides itself on the use of only eco-friendly products.
Challenges faced
The business has experienced impressive year-on-year growth of over 20%. Furthermore, Toni has extended the service to include laundry and ironing services, effectively seeking to offer a full package for her premium customers. Toni would like to take this to another level by offering a subscription-based laundry service. Having tested the market with short-stay properties, she feels that there is potential to expand this market in line with the increase in Air BnB offerings. Managing the finances of a growing business remains a challenge and this is an area which guidance has been sought from the Accelerator project.
Solution and Impact
Bright and Beautiful has accessed the one-to-one support from the Business Adviser team to help manage financial forecasts which will help to maintain the impressive growth seen to date. Looking forward, Toni is keen to upskill her team to take on more customer interaction and sales roles and she is in the process of arranging telesales training for key members of the team, via a growth voucher through the Accelerator project. Toni has developed a strong team to support her and as she focuses on managing the business, as such, she has been introduced to the Help to Grow Management programme to support her own management development. This has been facilitated through the Accelerator project.
The impact of the support to date has helped to ensure that the business reaches its growth trajectory, as well as aiding Toni’s financial management skills. The training for the team will directly support the move into newer markets such as short-stay properties, which will contribute to additional sales and income generation. Investing in staff is a key part of Toni’s plans and many of her team have been with her from the start, which demonstrates how well they feel valued.
“The move to becoming a business owner was an exciting challenge for me, and five years on I have learnt so much. The advice and support from the business advisor team has been invaluable. I have a clear vision of financial forecasting and all-important numbers for 2024. I am so proud of my team and achieving my goal of providing ethical employment, building a valued business and putting Bright and Beautiful on the map in Derby!”
-Toni Hibbert, Director
