A look back at how EasyFrame made it, without cutting any corners
By Paul Dunwell, writing for EasyFrame
© Copyright EasyFrame 2021
What this article is about
It is a measure of the pace at which the Zanna brothers work, especially during a pandemic that has pushed up revenue and advanced internet sales by 20 years, that it took months to find an hour when I could get them together to set down how Easyframe got to where it is. Even then they didn't feel comfortable sitting down. So we didn't.
The brothers are like peas in a pod. They share DNA, a sense of purpose and a love of a business for which they take turns to roll up their sleeves, like a wrestling tag team. Their affection and respect for each other were clear from the way they shared their memories.
What emerged was a heart-warming tale of an extended family that did not enjoy overnight success but slogged together for the best part of 40 years, and is in one sense only just beginning to go places.
Humble beginnings
The story starts in 1984, when Rob and Nick's parents ran a grocery and bakery in Clapham, outside Bedford. They rented some workshop space to the lads' aunt and uncle, who made frames for their business, 'Houseproud', in Bedford's old 'Boulevard' shopping area. It went so well that Rob and Nick's parents closed the grocery and bakery, joined 'Houseproud' and ran a unit on the Cambridge Road Industrial Estate in Bedford.
Finding the way forward
In 1988 the Zannas opened a picture framing gallery in Rushden High Street and started framing in the garage at home. Thirty-three years later the same premises is still a picture-framing gallery, run by an original member of the team.
More shops
When Nick was out of work in 1992, his dad asked him to take on a new shop in Kettering. The next year the workshop moved to Murdoch Road. In 1998 Rob joined, as the family opened in Luton's Arndale Centre. They started upstairs and moved downstairs before quitting altogether, feeling the footfall didn't justify the rent. They briefly tried Wellingborough, which was apparently forgettable, before moving to the centre of Hitchin, where rents were more competitive and customers spent a little more freely. In 1999 they had a 'new workshop' built in Dane Lane, Wilstead, though they ruefully admit that, compared with today's premises, it was a bit of a shed.
The start of a long association with 'Only Fools and Horses'
In 2004 the lads enlisted friends from the cast of 'Only Fools and Horses': Boycie, played by John Challis, and his wife Marlene, played by Sue Holderness. The pair spent a day in the Luton shop meeting customers, signing autographs and publicising the business. On being paid, Sue Holderness promptly went on a shopping spree in New Look, directly opposite, and bought some beautiful high-heeled shoes.
That was the beginning of Rob and Nick's long association with the show's fan club. On 29th February last year the club held its first event attended by David Jason. He said in a BBC Radio 2 interview, which I heard myself, that he was delighted by his reception, enjoyed it so much that he realised he'd been missing out, and will definitely go to more.
A new name and an online presence
The business opened in Hitchin in 2006, ran two shops for a while, then closed in Luton. It also changed its name from 'Gallery Gifts' to 'Zanart', because the family had not sold gifts for some time. The new name came from a public competition.
Kettering was busy but Hitchin wasn't, which left Rob twiddling his thumbs. So he got a second-hand 'Tiny' laptop and a copy of 'HTML for Dummies' and taught himself to build a website between customers, having realised that the future lay in selling online. In around 2007 there were apparently only two or three online framers. By 2008 Zanart was online.
Over the next few years sales took off. It took a lot of investment, in cash and time, but it paid. Before long most sales were online. Seeing that, and that the business was in safe hands and heading in a direction where they had no experience, mum and dad decided it was time to hand on the baton, and bowed out.
The current premises
Rob and Nick closed the Hitchin shop. Nick ran the still-successful Kettering store while Rob concentrated on internet sales. In 2014 they moved into a new unit, where they are now. They have outgrown it but have no plans to move. The move let their parents sell the old workshop as a site with planning permission for housing.
Considerable investment in machinery and good staff followed. In 2017 the www.easyframe.co.uk domain name finally became available, after many years of waiting, and EzeFrame became EasyFrame.
In 2019 Rob and Nick took the momentous decision to sell Zanart in Kettering. It needed two staff, and an extra tier of management made it a poor investment when they would do better to focus elsewhere. The staff had been loyal and hard-working, so a buyout made sense. Zanart became a separate business with its own workshop and a team so capable that it has consistently made the podium in framing competitions.
Easyframe itself recently took first prize in the 'Get Framous' competition, run by Larson Juhl UK, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, with an entry built around a pair of 'Those Damn Crows' drumsticks.
Hard work, and what lies behind it
As our meeting draws to a close, Rob and Nick reminisce, much of it about hard work and ungodly hours. Their dad was up at 3am to make bread. As young teenagers in the 80s they got up at 4am to sell pictures from market stalls, Rob at Finmere and Nick at St Ives. Rob did his work experience with his dad at 'Houseproud'. They bristle with pride that the next generation is getting the same induction, in a business that needs to work from 5am to 5pm to keep pace with orders.
What is the secret of their success, if it's not hard work?
Rob says: "Although we are still skilled picture-framers, nowadays we are more makers of picture-frames than we are framers of pictures. Because the online service we provide allows the end-user to assume the role of the picture-framer. We've created a great media presence that allows us to sell the same product as picture-framers do but at half the price".
Nick adds: "And the pandemic has been kind to us. People stuck at home are more likely to invest in framing and reframing. So we are successful. But we're always looking to the future".
One way they are doing that is by creating a resource for students and teachers of the Pearson Edexcel History of Art A Level. By September, the Easyframe website will have a specially commissioned article on every artist and artwork on the syllabus. It is a considerable investment and, as far as they know, unique. To find out more, scroll down the homepage at www.easyframe.co.uk.
There have been stand-out moments over the decades:
- The night somebody smashed into Zanart to steal a pair of beautifully mounted boxing gloves once owned by Muhammad Ali.
- The private message that Nick, a Manchester United fan, concealed in a frame he assembled for Sir Alex Ferguson.
- The hundreds of framings the pair did for the corridors of Arsenal's Emirates Stadium.
- The countless medals, including MBEs and OBEs, each with its own story.
- The mementos framed to commemorate the likes of Nelson Mandela, Laurel and Hardy and, of course, the cast of 'Only Fools and Horses'.
Conclusion
EasyFrame is, at heart, a family business, and it employs family members, Kerry being the latest recruit. It has edged its way forward for 37 years, adapting well and promptly to circumstances and trends. That is why it has stayed successful in a competitive market. I'd be willing to bet that Nick and Rob would be in no rush to sell the family silver, even to Warren Buffett. For them and their team, Easyframe never was, and never will be, just a business.
To pick Rob or Nick's brains on framing, or just for a chat, call 01234 856 501 or email sales@EasyFrame.co.uk. They enjoy chatting and charge nothing for advice.