Held at the 2007 National Franchise and
Small Business Convention (NFC07), in conjunction with Franchise Appreciation
Week and cooperation with the Franchise Council of Australia (FCA), the awards recognise
innovation and excellence in Australian franchising.

Robertson, who owns and runs Worldwide Online Printing
centres in Spring Hill and Rowes Arcade in Brisbane, was also awarded the QLD/NT State Franchisee of the
Year 2007 last month. "I'm getting my feet back on the ground now, but I really
felt lost for words when my name was called out!" Robertson said about winning
the award.

Since purchasing the Worldwide Spring Hill franchise
in September 2003, with no previous printing experience, Robertson and his team
have increased the annual turnover more than four-fold in four years.

Worldwide Online Printing uses a centralised print
manufacturing process where each of its 79 individual design and print centres
only produces smaller digital print jobs, leaving the large offset and digital
volumes for its specialised print factories.

Robertson says, "Worldwide Online Printing
is a fantastic organisation to be a part of. It's a rising star. This award is
also a testament to the franchisor team, on a state and national level, and the
system itself at Worldwide.

"Worldwide allows
me to have input – they listen," he added later. "The training offerings
are also excellent and getting better all the time. Plus, they invest heavily
in technology and infrastructure, particularly in the production areas of the
business."

One of Robertson's
secrets to success, he maintains, is to focus on creating a strong team
environment and a positive work culture, by investing in, recognising,
rewarding and training team members, while celebrating the team's achievements
as a whole. His approach has resulted in low staff turnover and increased
employee numbers at his centres from three to fourteen.

Thanking his staff members during his speech, he said,
"I pay tribute to my team of outstanding people, many of whom have been with me
from the beginning. Their loyalty, persistence and focus on solutions, and
their refusal to be budged from that focus, has made everything else possible."

Another of his
methods for success is to make sure that the big picture isn't obscured by
details. "I set aside time to work on the businesses without interruptions," he
said. "Getting perspective is very important."

"I think almost all the achievements in my
life have been part of a goal that I have set and then gone about achieving.
The exact timing may have varied but the achievement itself has usually been
something I've been working towards – sometimes for years!"

It's been a busy year for Robertson – he
and his wife Karen had a baby girl in March, just a few months before
purchasing his second Worldwide centre in Rowes Arcade, Brisbane CBD, in July.

Comment below to have your say on this story.

If you have a news story or tip-off, get in touch at editorial@sprinter.com.au.  

Sign up to the Sprinter newsletter