From Dollar King to ‘franchise king’
CrestClean’s Royce and Hannah Park are excited to have been awarded ‘Franchisee of the Year – Business to Business’ in the Westpac New Zealand Franchise Awards.
The prestigious award was presented at a gala dinner in Auckland on Saturday 11th November and recognises excellence in growing and running a franchise business.
The accolade comes just five years after they started their CrestClean business — in which time they have grown their business sevenfold to become the largest CrestClean franchise in Hawke’s Bay.
“Royce and Hannah demonstrate that hard work, staff investment, customer connection, community engagement and adhering to the franchisor’s systems is a great formula for achieving goals,” says the event’s judges.
Originally from Korea, Royce moved to Auckland with his parents as a teenager, picking up a cleaning job part-time while still at school. After leaving school, he became a supervisor, overseeing 20 staff and six cleaning contracts.
He and Hannah moved to the Hawke’s Bay when their first child was due, where he initially worked as the manager of Dollar King Napier, before joining CrestClean.
“With a growing young family, Hannah and I wanted to become our own bosses and to take charge of our own destiny. We are proud to say that since then we have grown our business significantly to include eight wonderful staff members, with cleaning contracts throughout the Hawke’s Bay,” says Royce.
“We are grateful and humbled to have achieved our biggest personal goal of purchasing a home for our family of four beautiful young children in 2022. This has been a dream come true for us and has been the most rewarding aspect of investing in our franchise business.”
However, their path to success has not been without its challenges, says Royce.
“The hurdles we faced with the Covid pandemic, and the recent impact of Cyclone Gabrielle had a significant effect on our business.
“But through resilience, determination, and our strong relationship with CrestClean’s Hawkes Bay Regional Master Franchisee Tim O’Leary, and by leveraging our relationships with our loyal customers, we have now managed to regain our lost revenue. We are proud to say that we are now in a stronger position than ever before.”
To support their business growth, Royce and Hannah became accredited employers with Immigration New Zealand, allowing them to bring family and friends from their church in Korea.
They also opened a Korean language school and were part of the regional Korean leadership hub, during Cyclone Gabrielle and the Covid pandemic. Their commitment and dedication were acknowledged by the Korean Embassy, which shipped emergency supplies directly to them for distribution.
“Being part of the CrestClean team fills us with pride and gratitude. We are humbled by the journey we’ve taken, the growth we’ve achieved, and the impact we’ve made. We wholeheartedly believe that by continuing to focus on growing our business we can improve our lives, and create more opportunities to improve the lives of the people around us,” says Royce.
CrestClean Managing Director Grant McLauchlan congratulated Royce and Hannah on their award.
“This is a significant achievement, of which they can be extremely proud. Royce and Hannah exemplify the essence of CrestClean and our franchise system.
“Their success story is underpinned by perseverance and a commitment to their local community, both of which resonate strongly with our company values. We are thrilled for them and look forward to continuing to support them in their business growth and success.”
