Todd Coupal, owner of the Pop-A-Lock franchise in Vancouver, British Columbia celebrated his one year anniversary of providing professional locksmith services to the people in his community.  This milestone fulfilled Todd’s personal goal of owning a business and introducing an established brand in an untapped market.

In the January issue of Canadian Business, Todd and his locksmith franchise were profiled.  At the young age of 10 years old, Todd was bit by the entrepreneurial bug – house sitting, lawn care, and a paper route.  His strong work ethic was rewarded with a 10-speed bicycle!

Todd discusses his reasons for choosing Pop-A-Lock, “To reach my personal and financial goals, I felt like I would have to start my own company.”  After a period of due diligence, Todd discovered Pop-A-Lock, a 24/7 mobile full service locksmith company.  “Pop-A-Lock met and beat my financial criteria.  The business concept wasn’t trendy or ‘hot’, but it was essentially recession-proof.  After all, when people need a locksmith, they need a locksmith; there’s no alternative.”

Pop-A-Lock of Vancouver opened for business in October 2012 with one full-time locksmith, they now have 3.  Todd is also a licensed locksmith but spends the majority of his time building brand awareness and business development.  The main challenge is building brand awareness.  “We want to be top-of-mind, so we’re using flyers, vehicle wraps, traditional advertising, and various forms of social media.  We’re also active in the business community with local networking groups.”

Pop-A-Lock’s employees are professional and highly trained. Employees will always be in uniform and driving a marked vehicle. They have access to the latest technologies and techniques in security, with smart phone apps and a huge database with information about all kinds of locks.  Todd guarantees pricing and work to all of his customers.  Local competition is nowhere near this level.

For more information about Pop-A-Lock in Canada, go to popalock.ca and popalock.com in the United States.