Testimonials

In January of 2001 I purchased the first developed Smith's School of English franchise. The Kawanishi franchise was already a success due to the hard work of the previous owner, David Enright, and he deservedly did very well on the sale. David was of the pioneers of the Smith's franchise system in a time when teachers sold students to each other, usually for the equivalent of one month’s fees. Smith's was the first organization to tell teachers to organize and make those students into a "saleable asset".

From the first moment I looked the Kawanishi area and the school it was my intention to take the school to an even higher level of success so I focused on increasing the number of students. The first task was to take over the student body without losing students and together with Smith's I was able to take over the school without losing any students. Next came the task of growing the school. Using the Smith's system available at the time I subsequently realized a steady monthly increase in new students until my expectations were met. I grew the school by about 50% within a year. For anyone thinking of joining Smith's today remember that I took over the Kawanishi School back in 2001 when Smith's was much smaller, less experienced and more limited in operational strength. Today school owners have a vast array of new and improved tools to help them succeed.

Just a few of these tools include a very attractive company website that supports you getting new students, more advanced curriculum in both size and scope, an abundance of effective promotional materials, well developed teacher training techniques and an ambitious and professionally trained sales staff, all supported by a strong administration team at head office.

There are really no tricks to this business, you will get out of it what you put into it, and Smith's gives you access to everything you need to be a success.

Based on the success of my first school, when the opportunity arose I　bought my second developed Smith's School of English franchise in Takarazuka in July of 2001. Takarazuka is near Kawanishi and can easily be accessed by train so it worked well geographically. I didn't plan to teach at this school so I needed to Smith's to assist in a different capacity.

First, Smith's was flexible and organized the financing of the purchase. Second, I needed teachers trained to do the lessons as I was busy at Kawanishi. Although there were some initial rough spots, Smith's and I worked through them together and Mark Smith was always personally available to me (as is still the case all these years later). As a result, I am proud of where the Takarazuka School is today.

I have a degree in business but I learned a lot more by owning my own Smith's Schools. Now I am working toward solidifying the passive income I can receive from my schools by focusing on supporting the current teachers.

Smith's provided training and visa support for these teachers and I was recently able to return to America for three months while the schools continued to operate smoothly in my absence. The Smith's company founder, Mark Smith has always been straightforward and honest with me and I look forward to continuing my success as an owner of two (maybe more) Smith's Schools of English.

John Begnaud

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