Robert Young brought Jim's Building Maintenance and Jim's Handyman to New Zealand five years ago. According to Google Analytics, his network is now the market leader in NZ, with teams in Wellington and Christchurch booked months out while independent builders are calling him asking for work.

This episode of the Jim's podcast is for any qualified builder or seriously handy tradie in New Zealand who is sick of the boss, sick of the 7am starts, and worried about where their income is going to come from in the next 10 years.

Robert lays out why property maintenance has held up through five recessions, why owning a customer base of 1,000 people is the only real protection against AI disruption, and why the customer wants to pay the person actually swinging the hammer.

Robert also unpacks how the Jim's flat-fee model works, why a $100k revenue franchisee and a $1m revenue franchisee pay the exact same fees, and how percentage-based franchise models quietly turn franchisees into subcontractors.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN

Why Jim's NZ teams are booked months out in a recession
The difference between Jim's flat-fee model and percentage-based franchises
How lead fees actually work and why the max in NZ is $35
Why some franchisees stop taking leads after 18 months
How territory and customer ownership work inside Jim's
What pay-for-work guarantee actually covers and why it is rarely claimed
Why independent builders charging $35 an hour cannot survive long term

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 The income protection problem facing every tradie
0:23 Meet Robert Young, Jim's Building Maintenance NZ
1:02 Why property maintenance is recession proof
2:30 Owning 1,000 customers is the only real protection
4:00 What happens when the NZ housing market recovers
6:17 Who can actually join Jim's Building Maintenance
9:31 Flat fees versus percentage of revenue explained
13:30 How lead fees work in the Jim's system
18:28 Why Jim's leads are different from Builderscrack
22:13 The 85% rule on lead fees
23:24 Talking to existing franchisees with no restrictions
31:00 How territory works inside Jim's NZ
36:46 The pay-for-work guarantee explained
42:13 What franchisees do to build their business from day one
44:00 Why Robert's franchisees charge twice as much as independents

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Jim’s Group is Australia and New Zealand’s largest home services brand with over 580 divisions. Our franchisees complete 5 million+ jobs every year.

Here’s what you’ll find here:

Straight advice from Jim Penman on business and franchising

Franchisee success stories and behind-the-scenes insight

Practical how-to guides for home and business services

We’re also recruiting. In 2024 alone, 245,000+ leads went un-serviced. If you want guaranteed work, full training, and the backing of Jim’s, we’d love to hear from you.

Start here
📌 Get a quote: https://jims.net/services

📌 Own a franchise: https://jims.net/own-a-franchise

📞 AUS: 131 546 | NZ: 0800 454 654

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