Two Men And A Truck Awards Franchise For Ireland, U.k.

(Wednesday, June 21, 2006) - The concept seems simple.

So simple, in fact, that it's the name of the company.

But in Ireland, the concept of hiring movers has yet to really catch on, said Brian Hefferon, an owner of the second international franchise of Delhi Township-based Two Men and a Truck International Inc.

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In fact, nearly three-quarters of people in Ireland bypass professionals and move their own stuff with the help of family and friends.

But with half of all Irish houses built in the last 20 years and a labor force growing by 100,000 immigrants per year, Hefferon believes Irish moving habits are about to change.

'The right time'

"It seems like the right time to go with something like this," said Hefferon, who's spending several weeks in the Lansing area training at Two Men's headquarters. "We've definitely identified the need."

Hefferon will join a network of 180 Two Men franchises in the United States and Canada as a franchisee. His company, NDMG Holdings Ltd., bought the rights to be a "master franchisee" - essentially a satellite office with authority to sell franchises throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland. Hefferon expects to have his first two moving companies running within a month.

Two Men is careful about who it chooses to run its franchises, said Shirley Kefgen, licensing coordinator for the Lansing company.

"We've had a lot of people who have come in and been interested, but they weren't the right fit," she said.

That care has resulted in "very few" failed franchises, Two Men spokeswoman Katie Rexrode said. Only seven franchises have closed in the past three years, and half of those were because owners of multiple locations decided to consolidate operations, she said.

Starting a franchise can be a $100,000 to $400,000 investment, Rexrode said.

Privately owned Two Men had revenue of $181 million in 2005, up nearly 22 percent from about $149 million in 2004, she said.

The company employs about 60 people at its headquarters, which supports franchises with training programs and administration of the company's proprietary software system.

Among its key characteristics for franchisees, Two Men looks for people with experience running a franchise business and who have been successful building up a concept in their geographic areas.

Hefferon's company fits that profile. It already runs a document shredding franchise business, has a document storage operation and has several other business lines.

Hefferon got into the moving business about a year ago, when it bought a small moving company.

Taking on the Two Men name and its support system should be easier and more cost effective than building its own structure, Hefferon said.

"You're buying the solution to all the mistakes that have happened over 20 years," he said. "You can't go out and learn that in a year."

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