Buying time

You've got a deadline looming at work, a leaky pipe in the bathroom, your mum is coming to stay for the weekend, it's your son's birthday on Sunday and there is not a single item of clean underwear in the house. If only there were more than 24 hours in a day; if only you could buy yourself a bit more time. Well, now you can.

Isobel Greatrex and Alex MacArthur have set up their own York-based lifestyle management service - Imagine - to help busy professionals and families with the everyday chores that clog up their already hectic schedules.

Believed to be the first consultancy of its kind in the region, the business uses a tried and tested formula which has taken off in a big way in the USA and the south of England.

Isobel and Alex met while working together as head-hunters in the recruitment sector before setting up their own successful recruitment agency. Their experience in this field brought them into contact with busy managers, managing directors and chief executives on a daily basis.

"We saw that many people were struggling to fit in work commitments with family demands to achieve the perfect life balance," said Isobel. "For some it was impossible to find the time to manage the everyday jobs.

"We decided to establish Imagine to provide confidential life management service for these busy people. We act as an invisible support, relieving them of the burden of tiresome tasks."

The service ranges from sourcing reliable cleaners, gardeners or plumbers to helping with house moves or booking a holiday. They can also sort out your dry cleaning for you, buy the perfect birthday present or simply make sure their is food in the house at the end of a challenging day. In other words, whatever job you don't have time for, they do.

Their recruitment agency was doing very well, but both admit to feeling a little jaded and, when they noticed a gap in the market, they decided to take the plunge.

"We saw people working 60-plus hours a week, and we weren't working much less than that," explained Isobel. "My daughter had a birthday party coming up and I had friends coming over to stay. I was working long hours and just couldn't find the time to get everything organised.

"Alex offered to help but I didn't want to impose. You wouldn't hire your friend to do your cleaning, would you? You would get someone in. That made me think that maybe it would be handy to be able to 'get someone in' to organise the birthday party and prepare the house for my friends' visit.

"That's when we realised there was a definite gap in the market, and we could fill it."

Imagine opened for business in October last year and, after just three months, is already catering for a wide range of clients, from ladies who lunch to businessmen too busy to eat.

One client works in London but has a holiday home in Harrogate. He needs Isobel and Alex to keep an eye on the house while he's away and make sure the heating is on and the fridge fully stocked when he and his family arrive for the weekend.

"We will do anything as long as it is moral and legal," said Isobel. "We have not been surprised by a client's request yet - but we haven't been in business for long.

"We get a lot of male clients, and none of them has got the wrong end of the stick yet about the services we provide. To be honest, I think most busy 30-something guys are more interested in looking for a surrogate mum."

Men are not backwards about coming forwards for help, but women often need a bit more encouragement.

"Women are encouraged to be superwomen, to do everything," said Isobel. "We can usually juggle more things than men, but we still need some help sometimes. I think women have to be very comfortable with themselves to ask for help."

It goes without saying that she is a very organised mother and businesswoman herself. She is 47 and has two children, aged 11 and 14. Alex is 30 and was recently married - so she could organise a full wedding for you without too much trouble.

"We are very different people, but we are both mega-organised," said Isobel. "We have got very different skills to offer. My background is in human resources, so I know what makes people tick. I also know what questions to ask when it comes to consulting clients and interviewing potential suppliers.

"Alex has got great PA skills and is more talented than me at the admin side of the business."

When a potential client contacts Imagine, they receive a free consultation to gauge what their needs are. After that there is a basic hourly rate of £25, which can be renegotiated if a client books the team on a regular weekly or monthly basis.

"It's a bespoke service, tailor-made for each client," said Isobel. "Customer service is paramount to us because we want to work for people on a long-term basis. That means they have to trust us completely."

Alex and Isobel work hard at developing a relationship with their clients, and at developing their contacts, because in their business it is not what you know but who you know that really matters.

They do mountains of research to ensure that they can provide just the right electrician, chef, dry cleaner or children's entertainer to meet their clients' exacting needs.

"We are building up the business gradually," said Isobel. "To be honest, our ultimate aim is to have fewer clients who we work for regularly.

"And you don't just have to employ us for yourself, you can do it for other people. We have men who employ us to help their wives, or parents for their kids. We even had one woman who took us on to help her pregnant daughter so she could put her feet up for a while when the baby was born.

"They say you just can't buy more time. Well, now you can."

- For details about Imagine or to book a consultation, ring 01347 888164 or visit the website at www.imagine-lifestyle.com

Updated: 10:32 Tuesday, January 14, 2003