From technician to franchisee: Shiftech Nantes’ first five years in figures and transparency

Julien didn’t just open Shiftech Nantes out of the blue. He started out as a technician at the Paris Est centre, the one Helder manages from Servon in Seine-et-Marne. It was within the company that he developed his understanding of the business: customer relations, the network’s quality standards, and how a centre operates on a day-to-day basis.

The decision to take the plunge and open his own centre gradually took shape. Covid threw a spanner in the works: the opening was postponed several times, discussions with the network dragged on, and responses were slow in coming. This wasn’t specific to Nantes; it was simply the reality of opening a centre during uncertain times. Mathias, who would be one of the team’s key members from the outset, kept in constant contact with him throughout this period.

On 4 April 2022, the centre opened. Julien was then the eighth franchisee in the Shiftech network in France. The workshop is clean, well-organised and compliant with the network’s standards: a Rotronics four-wheel-drive dynamometer, a wind tunnel and a waiting room. The one thing missing at the time of opening is the detailing bay. That would come later.

This journey is central to Shiftech’s culture: the network has franchisees with a variety of backgrounds, but the path of a ‘technician progressing to opening their own centre’ is one of the most natural routes. This is also what happened in Lyon, where a technician gradually

The figures shared in the video are rare in the sector: a total of 6,750 invoices over five years. In the last financial year alone, there were 1,548 customers. And the growth is clearly evident: a turnover increase of €120,000 compared with the previous year, in a year that Julien himself describes as a ‘bad year’ due to a period of enforced absence (unable to work for several months).

What these figures imply is that the centre has never experienced a dip in business since it opened. There has never been a period when the phone stopped ringing or email enquiries dried up. It is Julien himself who puts it bluntly: the good fortune – or lack thereof, depending on your point of view – is that we have always been in a state of constant evolution. The problems we’ve faced have been growing pains, not existential crises.

The workshop has remained just as clean and well-organised as it was on day one. This is a hallmark of Shiftech: the company’s standards apply equally to the upkeep of the premises and to the technical services provided. Five years on, Julien notes that the workshop “has hardly aged at all”.

The range of services has expanded. Detailing units have been added. PPF and RestorFX are now part of the services on offer. The list of vehicles treated has expanded considerably, now including Ferrari 296 Stage 1 models with over 1,000 chevaux. The target for the new 2026–2027 financial year is clearly set: to exceed 1,535 invoices over the year.

Julien doesn’t paint an unqualified success story. Two issues clearly stand out when he is asked about it.

The first: the opening itself. It “was a bit of a mess”, in his own words. Not a disaster, but there’s room for improvement. Looking back, certain construction details and certain choices regarding the build could have been handled differently. A wall misaligned with a beam, an air-conditioning duct splattered with concrete during a site incident. Seemingly minor anecdotes, but ones that illustrate what you learn when managing a construction project for the first time.

The second: managing people. Julien mentions, without going into detail, situations where staff members ran their own side businesses whilst working at Shiftech. A topic that Médéric saves for his secondary channel dedicated to entrepreneurship. What he’s learnt from this: he’d be less likely to give certain types of candidate a chance if he had to start over. Experience changes your perspective. You come to understand behaviours in bosses that you used to find absurd when you were an employee.

What wouldn’t change is the partnership. Julien is a partner in the venture. When a problem arises, a quick call to Médéric or Lucien often provides a solution straight away. It’s not a technical support helpline: it’s a network of people who have been through the same situations, have practical solutions, and don’t leave a franchisee to fend for themselves when faced with a major problem. For someone opening their first centre, this aspect is far from trivial.

Five years, and virtually no staff turnover. This is one of the things Julien highlights with the greatest pride. Geoffrey has been there since the very beginning. Mathias joined in the very first few days, after pestering Julien and Médéric for weeks. Today, Mathias manages reception and the business application developed specifically for Shiftech centres, monitors the centre’s performance indicators, and keeps the branch’s figures consistently in the black.

Julien’s time off due to injury was a test for the team. The result: everyone naturally stepped up to take on more responsibility, handling tasks that weren’t usually their responsibility, and the centre carried on running smoothly. This is what a team with an established work culture and an environment they’ve built together is capable of.

The 2026–2027 financial year begins with a new recruitment target: a PPF/detailing specialist to take over from Julien on these services, which he had been managing himself since his enforced absence. Erwan, who has been an intern for three months, is extending his placement in August. Discussions regarding a work-study scheme are ongoing.

The atmosphere at the centre, as seen from the outside by Médéric who drops by regularly, remains one of the best in the network. This is also why expansion plans are being launched from Nantes: the centre is a solid foundation, not a burden to manage.

The plan is clearly set out in the video. Rennes has been in the pipeline for a while. The power bench and ventilation system, already in place in Nantes to equip the future centre, are ready to be transferred. For the past year, the project had been somewhat on hold. The aim from September 2026 onwards is to pick up the pace again.

Opening a Shiftech centre takes around 12 months from the project’s launch, through construction, to the actual opening. This is a realistic timeframe, one that the network has learnt to fine-tune through its previous openings. This is not a decision that can be made on the spur of the moment, but it is a well-understood, documented and supported process.

Rennes is not a gamble: it is an identified market, a customer base consistent with the Shiftech profile (enthusiasts, owners of premium or sports cars), and an area currently lacking network coverage. For the network, this is exactly the kind of expansion that makes sense.

Julien wasn’t a seasoned entrepreneur when he opened the Nantes branch. He was a technician, passionate about his work, and had the trust of the network. This is one of the typical profiles of a Shiftech franchisee: someone who knows the trade from the inside, who has proven themselves as a practitioner, and who wants to take the next step.

There’s another profile too. Lucien, through his company La Boiserie, joined the venture as an investor and a car enthusiast, rather than as a technician. The network welcomes both.

What both profiles share is access to a tried-and-tested model, standardised equipment, a brand with a 15-year history, and a network of 15 active centres in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Morocco. There’s no need to build a reputation from scratch. There’s no need to find solutions on your own to problems that others have already encountered before you.

 

Five years in Nantes is concrete proof that the model works. The figures are there, the team is there, and so are the expansion plans. If you’re considering opening your own Shiftech centre, the place to start is this page: Join the Shiftech adventure.

 

• The history of Shiftech: from 2008 to the present day, the network’s key milestones
• Shiftech Centre, Nantes: opening hours, services, how to get there