Dream Doors received the category winner’s trophy from Express Newspapers’ Classified Advertising Director, Justin Mafham, at a glittering Awards luncheon held at London’s Sheraton Park Lane Hotel.

The Awards, sponsored by Express Newspapers and HSBC Bank, seek out the top performing franchisors in the UK, rewarding individual excellence and highlighting the increasing influence of a market sector now worth £12.4 billion a year. 

This year, entries were accepted across three separate categories – the Express Newspapers Brand Builder of the Year, the HSBC Award for Enterprise and, for overall achievement, bfa Franchisor of the Year, where the theme was ‘now and then, five years on’.

Dream Doors Kitchen makeovers, involve kitchen door and drawer front replacement, are big business, and Dream Doors made it a priority to ensure that their brand continues to represent the UK’s number one franchised kitchen door replacement company.

Consistency is key to effective brand building and last year Dream Doors appointed top design agency Big Fish Creative to design all of its marketing material, including national advertisements, local franchisee ads, shop fronts, corporate literature and exhibition materials and equipment, creating a consistent and instantly recognisable brand image.

By enhancing its brand aesthetics Dream Doors are confident that they and their franchisees have the best materials at their disposal for creating quality leads and better conversions.

Recruiting quality franchisees is crucial in raising brand awareness, as the larger the network, the more Dream Doors showrooms are visible in the market, and the more revenue can be secured for re-investing into all areas of marketing and franchise support.

Dream Doors now have 20 showrooms open across the UK, with seven opened in 2007, transforming the company into a genuine retail-based operation, with a competitive edge over its largely home-based rivals.

With franchisor support, franchisees are committed to ensuring that the Dream Doors brand appears regularly in local exhibitions and regional shows, as well as in shopping centres and garden centres.

Significant investment in brand image, and a more focused approach to brand marketing have helped to drive up group sales by 25 per cent, and allowed the company to develop a closer control over brand exposure and continue to explore new avenues for promoting the Dream Doors brand.      

Justin Mafham said: “There were a number of excellent entries in this year’s Brand Builder category but the judges were most impressed by Dream Doors.

“Their bold vision and the strategic planning that went into building a successful brand make them deserved winners of the ‘Brand Builder of the Year’ title. We congratulate them and look forward to sharing their success story with our readers.”
                               
Director General of the bfa, Brian Smart, added: “Making a business more successful is always a challenge and Dream Doors is an excellent example of the benefits of franchising.

“By utilising tried and tested methods of network management they have been able to effectively create a business that both supports and is supported by the core brand. This is franchising at its best.”
                                                                                                                                                     
HSBC has been supporting the franchise industry for more than 20 years and the bank’s Head of Franchising, Cathryn Hayes, added her congratulations to the Brand Builder winners: “It takes courage as well as exceptional skills to pioneer new ground and Dream Doors have set an example that others are sure to follow.”