Meet our Franchisees – Ben Torkington – North Yorkshire

For the last 6 years, Ben has operated our North Yorkshire franchise. Having purchased this as a mature business, he is happy to have retained the vast majority of customers he inherited from the previous owner. As Ben’s business has grown he now has a mixture of Private and National Account Customers, new private clients often coming through recommendations and referrals, and National Account work as sourced through Stocktake HQ.

Of his experiences with Stocktake UK and his ability to keep clients for the long term, Ben says.

“Regular visits to my clients mean I get a great understanding of their business, fostering excellent working relationships with owners and management alike. This is crucial to being able to both advise objectively and understand the nuances that every business have”

Like all of Stocktake UK’s stocktakers, Ben has spent many years on “the other side of the bar”. Having first started working shifts whilst a student, he then moved into Management after graduation. In all Ben has 15 years of experience working at a number of Leeds’s most popular venues.

When it became time to leave bar work behind, Ben wanted to remain within the Industry but give himself the flexibility and freedom of being his own Boss. Having worked closely with our stocktakers in his previous roles, Ben knew firsthand that a Stocktake UK franchise was the perfect fit for him. He has the following advice for anyone starting out as self-employed.

“Time management when not on site with clients is very important, it is essential to maintaining the healthy balance between work and home. There is always something you can be doing, whether it be accounts or finalizing reports, so having the freedom and flexibility of being your own boss is a big positive”

With an eclectic client base, ranging from family run pubs, through fine dining restaurants to high volume sports bars and Managed Houses, Ben is confident assisting any business in the sector. He takes great pride that his work has helped many businesses thrive through the most difficult of times. Ben is particularly adept at trouble shooting and helping businesses create management plans to improve their profitability.

Ben tells us about a recent experience where he saved a client a very significant amount of money

“Recently a client received a very large delivery of wine, totaling approximately £4,800. Due to an error on the supplier’s part, this was then re-invoiced a second time, and paid for by the client. This mistake would not have been spotted if I hadn’t been auditing their purchases, and would have cost my client an extraordinary amount of money. More than 1 years’ worth of my fees!”

Away from work Ben enjoys most sports, and uses his free time to play golf, follow his favourite NFL team and go to the Gym as much as he can. As a frustrated chef, he will often be found cooking or browsing through recipes, a passion that grew from his work with wine and cocktails as a bartender.

Do – Complement Ben on his great work ethic and ability to use his industry experience to help his clients.

Don’t – Say that Ben looks like a bearded Harry Kane (apparently we’re not the first!).

People like Ben are the future, not just of the stocktaking profession, but also the wider Hospitality Sector. Please get in touch, if you would like to know more about how Ben or our other stocktakers, can help your business. Alternatively, perhaps you think your back ground and experience is similar to Ben’s? If so, you could make a great addition to the Stocktake UK Network. Either way, whether you’re looking for a change of career or someone to take care of your stocktaking, get in touch with our experienced team by using the Enquiry link below.

For more information about Ben, please see his professional profile.

Stocktaker York – Stocktake UK