My job: Life's a bach in this industry

Leslie Preston says you need fortitude to make your business a success. Photo / Graeme Sedal

Name: Leslie Preston
Age: 43
Role/occupation: Founder and general manager
Working hours: Far too many hours. (Need to be able to support the team which works seven days per week, including night times.)
Employer: Bachcare Ltd
Salary: My earned income is a fraction of what I earned in the corporate/consulting world. I would hate to calculate the true hourly rate given the amount of hours I work! And there is a huge opportunity cost, as well.
Qualifications: Bachelor of Arts; Masters of Business Administration, Stanford University

Describe what you do.

I am the general manager of Bachcare Holiday Homes. We manage over 1000 holiday homes.

From the big picture perspective, I look after marketing and strategy and growth of the business. At the next level down, I look after the team that makes it happen. There are six staff in the support office and then we have over 50 holiday managers who live in the holiday communities. If there are problems, we try to resolve them on behalf of the owners and the guests.

We continually look at areas Bachcare can expand into. Lately we have extended to Taupo, Wairarapa and the Kapiti coast; and last year we formed a marketing arrangement with Trade Me.

A lot of time is spent on the road recruiting new holiday managers and making sure operations in the field are working well.

How did Bachcare come about?

Bachcare was founded in 2003 by myself and my mother-in-law who was a full-time resident in Hahei. We had a holiday house there and that's where the idea came from. We were a professional family with two toddlers and maintaining the holiday house meant spending five hours cleaning the day we arrived.

We realised there had to be a way to help people look after their holiday homes and found there was no national multi-location organisation. In this country it's such a major part of our culture to have a second home and, from our research, Kiwis often prefer holiday homes to hotels and motels.

Technology is a key enabler of the business but we are not only internet-based. People can also make bookings with our centralised support office, seven days a week until 11pm. We can help them choose the right holiday home in the right area. We also help owners look after their homes, especially if they live far away, by cleaning the houses, arranging tradespeople and furniture deliveries when needed.

Your work history?

Three years working for KPMG Peat Marwick in New York City in accounting; two years for Boston Consulting Group in Auckland as a strategy consultant; five years at BellSouth and Vodafone in a number of senior management roles in strategy, marketing, customer operations and business development; and 10 years as an independent consultant and entrepreneur.

Why is your job important?

I really enjoy doing what I am doing and don't see my work as a job. I find it extremely rewarding to watch the company develop from just an idea to now being the leading full-service holiday home rental and management company in New Zealand.

It's important to always be growing and learning and challenging myself. That is the excitement of work! I believe in Theodore Roosevelt's quote: "Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat."

Are your clients mainly New Zealanders?

Eighty-five per cent of our guests come from within NZ, the rest are international. The one common characteristic is the love of the Kiwi holiday home.

What skills do you need for your role?

Analytical, financial, human resources, marketing, strategy, operations - really, all key roles wrapped up in one! That is the role of a general manager of a small but growing company.

What are your busiest months?

December and January are insanely busy. While everyone is on holiday, Bachcare has its busiest time. It then gets busy again for the ski season in July.

What is the most unusual request you've had from a client?

To post back to them a very personal item they left behind in the bedroom after their summer holiday.

What are the role's main challenges?

We don't control the product/service we sell, but must rely on the holiday home owners to ensure that facilities are as per the house description. And that market rates are accurate.

Most rewarding part of the job?

Seeing the vision come alive, guests having a great holiday, and thrilled owners.

Worst part of the job?

Running a seven-days-a-week operation; and being in a service industry and the impact on my family. Plus sometimes we get guests who blatantly disregard the terms and conditions.

What is on your agenda for the next 12 months?

More growth as we are expanding into new areas across New Zealand. We want to increase occupancy for our owners and deliver a great holiday experience to our guests.

Advice to someone wanting to do same thing?

Make sure you are committed. You'll need lots of fortitude to make your business a success. You need to be strong-willed, bloody persistent, stay true to your vision, have enough capital for several years until you can achieve profitability, a passion in what you are doing, and a large target market for your products and services. Plus a very understanding partner and family!