Maree Dixon purchased the existing in-toto Kitchens Franchise in Amersham in July 2011. Fast-forward five years and Maree is one of the in-toto Franchise’s biggest success stories, with two thriving in-toto kitchen design studios.
“Knowing the in-toto brand from my previous experience in property development, and respecting the quality of the products as I do, meant that taking the step into the in-toto Franchise network made a lot of sense, as well as being a very exciting move.”
Within two months of taking over the kitchen design studio, Maree had increased sales and had sold the same number of kitchens as the previous owner had done in six months! In Maree’s fourth month as the owner of in-toto Amersham, she was named as the top Franchisee for retail sales in the UK that month, and by the end of her first year, sales were more than 100% up in comparison to 2010. Sales continued to grow year on year and by 2014, the studio’s sales had increased by over 300%!
The team at in-toto Amersham have built a reputation for excellent design and outstanding customer service, which was recognised in 2015 when the in-toto Head Office commissioned a mystery shop exercise to measure the customer experience in each studio within its network of franchisees. Committed to customer service and continuous improvement, in-toto wanted to analyse the sales and support processes, measure the impression of the studio environment, identify opportunities for improvement and highlight areas of excellence, in order to achieve consistent high standards across the network. in-toto Amersham was awarded second place in the mystery shopper exercise, scoring an incredible 100% for Customer Experience.
Passionate about interior design and keeping up-to-date with colour and design trends, Maree recognises that everyone has different tastes and lifestyles, and believes that being able to present her clients with tailored solutions is important to their satisfaction.
With in-toto Amersham proving such a great success for Maree, she decided to open a second, larger in-toto studio in Marlow. A huge asset to Maree’s business, the Marlow showroom has five kitchen displays and allows her clients the opportunity to discover more of the in-toto product first-hand.
“Being part of a Franchise helps so much, especially in the beginning. The support with product training and marketing materials meant I could easily hit the ground running and achieve business growth much quicker. It’s not just a hand-out though – I like to feel involved in the network as a whole, and have contributed to national editorial features with quotes, tips and case studies.”
On several occasions, Maree has been asked by her Franchisor to feature in the national in-toto brochure, with case studies of her customer kitchen designs and expert kitchen advice, and recently at a national trade show, she lead a seminar about planning the perfect kitchen. Maree has also received a lot of positive attention from the national media with both in-toto Amersham and in-toto Marlow being prominently featured in national magazines and one of Maree’s customer kitchens even featured on Sarah Beeny’s Channel 4 show, ‘Double Your House for Half the Money'.
“I feel very proud of each completed kitchen project and get a genuine sense of satisfaction to see the happiness a kitchen brings to its owner. I am always mindful that to each client, a beautiful, practical kitchen has usually been a dream for a long time and it plays a central role in the heart of their home. Getting it right for each client is an aspect of my job which is reward enough to drive me towards doing the same for many more clients as in-toto Amersham and in-toto Marlow continue to thrive in the years to come.”
in-toto is one of the UK’s leading kitchen franchises, established over 35 years ago, allowing it to offer franchisees a wealth of valuable retail and business experience. Its strong brand recognition and excellent high-street reputation for quality and service is what makes in-toto a solid choice for consumers and franchisees alike.