How to Find the Perfect Business Coach: The Success Of Puddle Ducks

Discover How Sarah Austin Transformed Her Business with the Right Coaching Support and Boosted Her Puddle Ducks Franchise in Bristol and Bath

Business coaching journeys don’t tend to start at the hairdressers, but for Puddle Ducks franchisee, Sarah Austin, a trip to her local salon was just the ticket to find a coach that would work for her and her business.

Sarah is a big believer in finding the right coach for you. When ActionCOACH Gary Keating came on board to aid with her Puddle Ducks franchise in Bristol and Bath, Sarah knew it was the perfect match. 

A cut above the rest

“I always go to NOCO hair salon, which is another client of Gary’s. Noel and I would always start chatting about our businesses, what was going right, what wasn’t working, and he would always recommend for me to speak to Gary. I kept delaying and delaying until one day I decided to go for it and, well, the rest is history!”

Sarah’s business, a Puddle Ducks franchise for Bristol and Bath, provides high-quality swimming lessons for babies, toddlers and school-aged children in the area. “I’ve always loved what Puddle Ducks offers, and it has been such a rewarding journey for me since I launched the franchise in September 2008.

“However, COVID came around and I was feeling a little flat about the business. I’d put in an enormous amount of work throughout COVID and I felt so proud to have got through that really challenging time. After 14 years of running my business, combined with being exhausted from the COVID challenges, I felt a bit lost. I really needed some guidance to help me plan for the team, our customers and my future.”

Noel’s recommendation of coaching with Gary was also backed up by Sarah’s husband who had also benefited from his coaching. “When I reached out to Gary, we were in contact for over a year before I finally agreed to sign up to a one-to-one session. I had the opportunity to utilise business coaching before, but it just hadn’t quite clicked. As soon as I started working with Gary, I knew he was the right coach for me and my business.”

Recruiting right

Starting coaching in the summer of 2022, Gary knew how to strike the right chords to get Sarah motivated as the effects of the pandemic on business dissipated. “The first thing Gary worked on with me was my confidence and self-belief. He told me I had such a great business - we were doing so much for so many and I should be proud of that. Instilling more confidence in me was a massive step to re-energise my work so we could move on to improving other areas of the business. 

“We talked about the recruiting challenges I faced because of the pandemic. I wasn’t hiring anyone off the street, but something was missing and many of our new recruits weren’t hitting the mark,” explained Sarah. “Gary made me stop, take a step back, take a breath and evaluate my recruitment strategy. Who did I want to recruit, what did they look like, what were their values and so on. What he made me consider was recruiting people who aligned with the business’ vision.

“Straight off the bat, I could see the improvements. Knowing I had a coach I could trust was a big help. When we were talking about developing my leadership skills, I had full faith Gary knew what would work for me, so it was easier for me to take his advice on board. And obviously seeing it work right away was an added bonus!”

Finding your financial feet

Emphasising knowing her numbers, Sarah is now a lot more confident in her abilities as a business owner. “Understanding the figures provides me with a firm groundwork when I’m making decisions. Having faith in myself has been one of the noticeable changes since working with Gary.

“We’ve seen our turnover increase; our gross profit and net profit have both gone up too.  Since 2022, we’ve gone from 30 members of staff to 43. With our change in recruitment strategy, we’ve got a bigger team but we’re also all pulling in the same direction. I love the atmosphere we’ve create.”

Over 18 months on, Sarah has now offered Gary’s coaching to her management team. “There is one member of our team who started working with Gary and the difference now is amazing! They were super talented, hard-working and a great asset to the business but maybe a little shy. After a few sessions with Gary, you could really see a change in self-belief and now they’re flourishing.”

Stretching her horizons

Setting her sights on the future, Sarah is focused on delegating more tasks to her team so over 15 years on from launching her Puddle Ducks franchise, she can get something back from the business. “I’m 50 now so I want to have some more time to do what I want to do! We’ve set the target of a gross profit of 50% and a net profit of 25%. Over lockdown I trained to be a yoga teacher, so I’d love to travel around the world teaching while still taking a salary from the business. A bit further down the line, I’ve got the goal to sell the business for over £1 million.

“I can tell having those targets and knowing what I want to achieve is a product of Gary’s coaching. Would I recommend getting an Action Coach? Absolutely, 100%.” But for Sarah, the relationship with your coach is the key element to success. “Being on the same page with your coach is an absolute must. 

“You need to be patient and be prepared to do the work. It’ll be so much more beneficial to you and your business. The systems and processes they give you really work, and the improvements will follow from there. Be ready to be accountable for your actions, put the work in and don’t make excuses and your coach will help you go places.”

The coach’s perspective

Gary Keating launched his ActionCOACH business in February 2016 and has helped businesses like Sarah’s in Bristol and the southwest ever since. “I knew from when I met Sarah I wanted to coach her. Her business has the power to change so many lives by teaching such a valuable skill. She just needed the belief and confidence to build a really successful business. 

“Sarah is a brilliant coachee. She always does the work and it’s paid off. All their numbers are up and the business has grown significantly since August 2022. It’s been such a pleasure working together. I’m looking forward to helping Sarah shift her work-life balance to have more time for herself by working on the business rather than in it.”

Find out how a coach can help your business by speaking to one of our advisors. Alternatively, visit our learning centre for free business resources.