Julie: Sofie took over as franchisee in 2018. She redid the store and made the entrance a bit larger and things were going well for her and her team. In early 2020, she was expecting her second child and planning on taking a more traditional maternity leave this time around. But then a certain little global pandemic came along and intervened.

Sofie: The same day that we got our daughter the Corona hit here, the same weekend it hits here in Sweden. So I was at the hospital and my husband wasn't allowed to be in the hospital.

Julie: Oh, really? OK. OK.

Sofie: No. And he was texting me at, oh, my God, the news is going around and it’s crazy. And it's going so fast.

Julie: It’s crazy.

Sofie: So I was lying there with our second child at the hospital and I was thinking, OK, I need to recalculate my plan and see what's going on and how are we going to solve this problem? And I was talking a lot to my husband and to other people, just to get an insight what's what's happening and what am I supposed to do? Because in the store it was just like the door was closed. There were no people. It was…

Julie:  Yeah, they weren't allowed to be. Were you not allowed in Sweden to be open? You were allowed to be open. But everybody was staying home. Yeah.

Sofie:  We were allowed, but everybody was staying home and was really, really scared and didn't know what to do, so it was panic. And the only thing I was thinking about is that, OK, I need to solve this because I want my team to stay and the business too.

The plan that I had to be home more with our second child, I couldn't use that plan. So I started to work really early, but I worked from home because we didn't know about this “smitte.”

Julie: Yeah, how contagious it was. And of course you didn't want your brand new baby to be exposed.

Sofie:  Yeah, exactly. Exactly. No, no. Exactly. As I stayed at home and worked really close. And we were really successful with the Teams meetings and so on. So it was, it was working and then I had a meeting with my team and I said OK, I don't know where we're going, and I don't know how fast it's going, but one thing I know is that everybody needs to focus on getting the business going and we're going to solve it together.

Julie:  Yeah, so, all of the offers that you had out there, everybody was like, OK, we have to follow up on these. We have to see if people are ready. People were a little nervous about like, do I want someone to come into my home?

Sofie:  Exactly.. And we had new ideas about how we can have the meetings. So it was  for a couple of months that it was really, really hard because we didn't have any customers in the store and we didn't know what to do and it was just.

Julie:  Yeah. And everybody was finding their way. I do think…well, my impression, of course, I was only starting out then, was that Kvik actually acted pretty quick-ly. (laughs)

Sofie: Really, really quickly. And it was we were informed what to do and how we should cut costs in the business and so on just to make it through this. But it was hard because we don't. We didn't know how long will it go. And it was a tough period.

But after a few months it was totally around. Here in Sweden, we had the stores open.

Julie:  Did it tend to be like people would only come in if they had an appointment or did people start dropping by again?

Sofie:  And they started dropping by again, but not that many people as before, but they were absolutely out. And after a few months being home and you're not allowed to travel and so on. We noticed that our customers started coming back and they were really, really on to have more.

Julie:  They wanted a new kitchen. Yeah. When they were sitting at home in their old kitchen.

Sofie: They want to spend their money.

Julie:  So you noticed that within months that that was happening.

Sofie: Yeah, it was probably maybe five months after it hit Sweden. Yeah. So after the summer, it was turning around totally.

Julie: It seems a bit surreal looking back on it now, doesn’t it?

Sweden handled the pandemic a little bit differently than other countries, opening back up and easing restrictions early on. Due to restrictions in other countries, people couldn’t really travel and so they became very focused on home improvements, including new kitchens. That was great for business, but now the pandemic is behind us and life is back to normal.

Julie: What do you see happening now?

Sofie:  Now it's back to normal.

Julie: Pre-Corona normal?

Sofie: Yeah. Yeah. And that's just something that hits us because during Corona, I was hiring 2 new salespeople because we had, yeah. So much to do. People were like, calling and said, OK, I want the kitchen. OK, in what name you have it.

Oh, I haven't drawn up anything up yet. I just. I need a kitchen now, OK.

So It was really, really, really fast orders -  from the quotation till the order, it was a fast time.

Julie:  And now it's more back to normal where people maybe think about it, they get their offer, they ponder it a little bit more. Yeah, but do you feel all the way through all that did you feel like you were supported by Kvik as a company?

Sofie:  We were moving really fast because the order level was from nothing to really, really high. We were talking really, really tight to Kvik and the team in Sweden and how to solve it and how to inform customers and what do we have as a responsibility and so on. So I think it worked well.

Julie: Another service Kvik offers franchisees is our accounting service. This is a dedicated team that handles all your accounting and payroll. Since they handle this for lots of stores, they serve as trusted advisors, letting you know if some of your costs are higher than they should be when compared to others. They have a great overview and knowledge and that gives you time to do what you're best at.

Sofie: I have the accounting service and that's because that's not my kind of thing to do. I'm better at selling and talking to people.

Julie: And designing the kitchens.

Sofie: Yeah. So I think it's important that you put your time on the things that you are good at and I'm feeling really safe that I have the accounting in Denmark because they have all the knowledge from the other stores, so they can see if it's something that's OK, this cost, it doesn't seem as in the other stores. Why is it and so on.

Julie: OK, OK. So they can give you some guidance as well.

Sofie: So it's a really good thing to have so you can concentrate on the things you need to do in the store, because there is lots of things when you're a franchisee. You're not just selling kitchens, you have your team, you need to motivate and…

Julie: Yeah, and make sure that you're hiring the right people. I mean also finding the right people. Yeah, I know that that's a challenge, that some of the others talked about is how to approach things like finding the right employees.

Sofie: You don't necessarily need a background in designing kitchens. For me it's more about the personality and it's really, really important that it's going to fit in the team you have. So you don't have another person that's taking the energy from the team. And we have routines that we have worked on for 18 years, to really deliver plus one in service to our customers. So we have a good platform to stand on and how to design a kitchen you can learn on the way.

Danish design is a big part of the appeal

Julie: But let’s shift gears a little bit. Someone who is considering opening their own business through franchising has a huge variety of options to choose from. That’s why we always think it’s interesting to ask our own franchisees not only why they chose Kvik in the first place, but like Sofie, what has made her stay with Kvik all this time?

Sofie: Why Kvik? I think the first thing is that I really, really love Danish design. The Danish people is wow!  They are so good at it.

Julie: What's the difference with Swedish design?

Sofie: Is there a Swedish design? OK, maybe a Scandinavian design? It's light and it's nature material and so on, but the Danish design there is something else. it's craftsmanship. It's simple. So I don't think you can compare the Swedish design and Danish design because it's like the Premier League and the really, really bad league, yeah.

Julie:  Is that right? (laughs)

Sofie: It's hard to put words on, but Kvik for me is a brand that's working fast forward.  In my 18 years, just like a few weeks, I think before I started, we were drawing kitchens by hand on  paper, so that’s how fast it’s been working forward with all of the digitisation and so on.

I think that's one part - from the start I have felt that it's somewhere you can grow as a person, and because you're learning a lot. In my journey in Kvik, I've started as a salesperson, then store manager and now franchisee, so as long as I see a time that I can develop.

Julie: Yeah, you'll continue. Have you recently renewed? Isn't it every five years when you're a franchisee, you renew? So you renewed like a year ago or not yet you're up for renewing?

Sofie: No, actually no. I'm up for renewal.

Julie: Will you renew?

Sofie: I'm not quitting. No, I did a total rebuild just one year after taking over. We were actually moving the entrance and getting the store bigger. So it was a new ceiling, new floor, new lightning, new walls, everything.

Advice for potential franchisees

Julie: Sofie’s entire career has been with Kvik, from starting off as a kitchen designer, then falling in love with her job and staying instead of applying again to school, then eventually becoming the franchisee herself after working for three others along the way.  So, we had to round off our conversation by asking her what advice she would give to someone considering a Kvik franchise.

Sofie: My advice is that even though you have known brand in Sweden, you need to know that it's hardworking. You need to know how to motivate your team and you need to work really, really close in the store. It's not just buying a store and they think it's working by itself. You need to be in the store. You have to be involved. And you have to be involved in the different things that as the selling kitchen by yourself so you know now how to do and you also need to know how it works in the warehouse. It's a lot of information to get to know in the beginning, but there is education and there is people that know how to do. But it's hard working from day one. It's really fun. It's really, really fun, but it's hard working to get the business going and to have the right team and to deliver sales and plus one in service.

Julie: What kind of qualities do you think that a person should have to get into a franchise?

Sofie: Like fast thinking and decision people, you need to make fast decisions and move forward.

Julie: You need to be persistent. Have a lot of energy, no doubt.

Sofie: Exactly, exactly. A lot of energy. Persistent. And you need to have your network. Also you need to have a network in the local area so you have the right people for carpenters and get to know the customers in the area.

Julie:  Would you consider having another store?

Sofie: As my life is now I would say no.

Because I think I need to have some energy left for my family and my husband is working really, really hard also. So now it's perfect. But you never know in the future.

Julie:  And that was it for Sofie and the story of Kvik Helsingborg. Our franchisees come from a variety of backgrounds, but they have one thing in common - they want to be in business for themselves with a strong and supportive brand behind them.

We are looking for franchisees to open new Kvik stores, as well as take over existing stores. We prefer that you have a retail background and leadership experience. You will be leading a team that sells and installs beautiful Danish design kitchens, helping people achieve their dreams for the most important room in their homes. It’s nice if you have experience from the kitchen industry, but if you don’t, we can teach you that. We are also looking for that certain something - what gen Zs call “rizz” - for charisma. That’s a little harder to define, but as you could hear, Sofie definitely has it.

If you think you just might have what it takes, check out our website - www.kvik.com. We just might be looking to open a store in your area. Get in touch, we’d love to talk about the possibilities.

Thank you for listening.

This episode of The Sociable Kitchen® was produced by me, Julie Broberg, and sound engineer Magnus Vad.

A big thank you to Sofie Klitte for sitting down with us at Kvik Helsingborg and for pointing us to the amazing candy store across the street. And a special thanks to her team for letting us invade the store on two separate occasions and helping us keep our ducks in a row. 🦆

We recorded the interview with help from producer Richard Lightbody.

The Sociable Kitchen® is produced at Feedback Studio in the charming old meatpacking district near the harbour in Aarhus.