Originally published by Franchise Consultant Magazine

Sharon Hooper’s path toward franchise ownership began with family and hasn’t strayed since. “Our initial interest came through our son, Wes, who was working at a PIRTEK location.

He quickly developed a passion for the work and the business model, and brought the opportunity to my husband, Alan, and me. As we learned more about the company, its service offering and growth potential, we saw a strong fit for our family and a way to build something lasting together.”

She opened her first PIRTEK territory in January 2022 alongside Alan and Wes, and they’ve since expanded to six Atlanta-area territories. PIRTEK provides 24/7/365 hydraulic and industrial hose maintenance and replacement services at its 200- plus on-site mobile and retail locations.

Before joining PIRTEK, Sharon notched more than 20 years in leadership positions handling multimillion-dollar and even billion-dollar contracting, procurement and operations with corporations such as KBR, IAP Worldwide Services, CH2M Hill and Bechtel. “My roles involved leading teams, negotiating complex agreements and overseeing large-scale construction, environmental and operational projects in the U.S. and internationally. I also mentored teams and developed business strategies in high pressure environments, which taught me the value of strong systems and high-performing people. “That background gave me a strong foundation in leadership, problem-solving and customer focused service, which ultimately led me to transition into business ownership.”

Her career experience comes in handy with PIRTEK. Day to day, Sharon monitors schedules, assists her teams and oversees quality control on services. She also performs broader duties such as financial oversight, staffing, team support and development, and planning for growth. “I make sure our people have the tools, training and support they need to succeed.”

By maintaining operational and service excellence traditionally male-dominated field, she has proven herself. “Ultimately it’s about creating a culture of professionalism and accountability, where everyone is focused on doing the job well and serving the customer. Some of our major customers have told us how much they appreciate our management style and performance and that they’d love to see that kind of service everywhere they operate. I’m proud that our team is known for being dependable, solutions oriented and easy to work with.”

Sharon reaps wide ranging satisfaction from entrepreneurship. “What I enjoy most is building something meaningful with my family while creating opportunities for others. It’s very rewarding to see our team grow and succeed, and to know we’re providing a service that truly helps our customers keep their operations running.

I also enjoy the challenges and the growth — no two days are the same, and there’s always an opportunity to improve and expand the business.

NURTURING GROWTH

Sharon continually thinks in terms of growth, nurturing it by expanding her team and continuing to strengthen overall operations. “A big priority for us is developing our people and building the infrastructure needed to support long-term success. As opportunities arise, we’re open to expansion beyond our current footprint, but we’ll always ensure that our existing territories continue to operate at a high level, delivering consistent, quality service. Our goal is to be the employer of choice for top technicians and the first call our customers make when they need help.”

The Hoopers thrive on solving business challenges together. “Owning and growing a business keeps us busy, but being able to do it as a family makes it especially meaningful,” Sharon says. “Alan, Wes and I each bring different strengths to the table, and that balance has been a big part of our success.”

Winning Ways

PIRTEK franchisee Sharon Hooper lists her business challenges and tells how she’s met them.

• Providing constant, peerless service. Hooper built a strong team, invested in training and stayed hyper-focused on fast, reliable customer support, “empowering our technicians to do what’s right for the customer.”

• Growing rapidly. Her solutions are clear communication with everyone; hiring carefully to have the right people in place; and tapping the franchisor’s support of an established business model, excellent training and strong systems. “We’ve leveraged those tools while continuing to build our own internal processes and team to support our growth and create career paths for our staff.”

• Working with family. “We’ve been intentional about defining roles, maintaining open communication, and treating the business with the professionalism and accountability, while still protecting our family relationships.”

• Overall business challenges. “We’ve stayed adaptable, supported each other and always kept the customer as the top priority, and we rely heavily on our team’s ideas and feedback to keep improving,” Hooper says.

• Team at the Core. “From the office to the service trucks, our entire team makes the difference, delivering service our customers count on.”

—Mary Vinnedge