Brett Hannah on Leaving a COO Paycheque for Gutter-Vac at 50

Brett Hannah owns Gutter-Vac Upper North Shore and Northern Beaches in Sydney, having purchased the territory in July 2019. The reason his testimonial carries weight is that Brett came to Gutter-Vac with a long career inside franchising itself — operationally focused, with his last role as a Chief Operating Officer in the franchise sector. That background made his evaluation unusually informed. Brett did extensive due diligence drawing on his familiarity with franchise offerings across the market. What stood out about Gutter-Vac was the integrity of Warren and Anne, the brand's low overheads, the upfront fairness of the financial model, the low entry cost and ongoing fees, and a culture of sharing with franchisees rather than extracting from them. The lifestyle equation closed it. Brett turned 50, looked at decades of working on someone else's payroll, and decided it was time to do it for himself — wishing, like many franchisees do, that he had moved 20 or 30 years earlier. He now works from home, spends meaningfully more time with his children and wife, and loves being on the road instead of chained behind a desk. The financial verdict is striking. Brett says directly that he has never earned more money in his life — including as a franchise-sector executive — than he has running a Gutter-Vac territory. His advice to prospective franchisees is to do thorough due diligence on any business and not assume turnkey simplicity, but he is unambiguous that Gutter-Vac's upfront cost is materially lower and profitability materially higher than other franchises he has been involved in. Watch his full testimonial video.