Cleaning company start up
Discussion
I’ve recently been looking for a domestic cleaner for a couple of hours a week and it’s been unbelievably hard to find any local companies with availability, and prices seem to start from £15 per hour.
This got me thinking, as I’ve always had aspirations of being a powerfully built director type
I’m actually in quite a good position to start a company like this, I currently only work until 2pm, my other half does flexible agency work, and my mum is already a cleaner and has lots of free time in the week, so between us, we could get something up and running. I’m thinking nice smart uniform, small van, start with domestic with a view to moving to commercial, end of tenancy, carpet cleaning etc. and just try to do a very good job for a reasonable price.
Ultimately, this could be a really tough market and tricky business to grow, or it could go from strength to strength, and end up being a multi million pound facilities management company with lots of full time employees (one can dream!)
Does anyone have any experience or anecdotal stories of this sort of thing? Very simple start up, and lots of competition, but as I’ve found in my area, seemingly in short supply.
This got me thinking, as I’ve always had aspirations of being a powerfully built director type
I’m actually in quite a good position to start a company like this, I currently only work until 2pm, my other half does flexible agency work, and my mum is already a cleaner and has lots of free time in the week, so between us, we could get something up and running. I’m thinking nice smart uniform, small van, start with domestic with a view to moving to commercial, end of tenancy, carpet cleaning etc. and just try to do a very good job for a reasonable price.
Ultimately, this could be a really tough market and tricky business to grow, or it could go from strength to strength, and end up being a multi million pound facilities management company with lots of full time employees (one can dream!)
Does anyone have any experience or anecdotal stories of this sort of thing? Very simple start up, and lots of competition, but as I’ve found in my area, seemingly in short supply.
As above, to make money on your £15 an hour, you’ll be paying any staff you end up taking on, minimum wage. People who are willing to do minimum wage work cleaning toilets etc can be a pain to deal with.
Maybe carpet cleaning, oven cleaning, and the commercial stuff would be a better bet than house cleaning.
Maybe carpet cleaning, oven cleaning, and the commercial stuff would be a better bet than house cleaning.
Edited by CX53 on Thursday 19th September 21:06
A buddy of mine used to own a residential cleaning company. The biggest issues he seemed to face were (in no particular order):
- Unreliable staff - pay peanuts, get monkeys
- High turn over of staff - he always had adverts running, always interviewing etc
- Inconsistent quality
- Home owners wanting to pay less and less
- Cleaners demanding more and more money
- Most of the cleaners did not have a driving license or a car so he spent quite some time driving them from job to job
- Home owners lying about cleaners damaging items
- Cleaners lying about damaging items
- Collecting payments - if someone doesn't pay for a 5 hour clean, it's really not worth chasing them up - you spend far more money collecting than you collect.
The Moose said:
A buddy of mine used to own a residential cleaning company. The biggest issues he seemed to face were (in no particular order):
WHS. Plus ask your mum... she's much better placed than most to tell you how hard it would be.- Unreliable staff - pay peanuts, get monkeys
- High turn over of staff - he always had adverts running, always interviewing etc
- Inconsistent quality
- Home owners wanting to pay less and less
- Cleaners demanding more and more money
- Most of the cleaners did not have a driving license or a car so he spent quite some time driving them from job to job
- Home owners lying about cleaners damaging items
- Cleaners lying about damaging items
Let me give you a reality check:
- STAFF; ask anyone running a business what the most stressful part of it is and they will say this. Even worse, you will be employing aspiring cleaners, this demographic are not best known for punctuality, flexibility, honesty, ambition etc. I won’t say too much more but just remember what sort of people you will be dealing with. Finding decent, dependable employees in this industry is TOUGH. You will be out covering for your “sick” staff more often than you’d hoped.
- You have to pay your staff minimum wage; checked out what that is? Now how much do people expect to pay for a cleaner? Not much! Margins are tight, and with that new van you want to run (think again), the cleaning equipment, chemicals, insurance, and general overheads, you will not be making a tidy profit for a long time. Oh, and when you do start getting some decent turnover in you will have to start charging VAT which will completely f
k everything up.
- Gone are the days of advertising in the yellow pages. Potential customers now like to use Facebook to get quotes. Great you say. Nope. Calling your leads? Very few will answer your call. No matter how well you can sell, the vast majority on this platform will go for the cheapest they can find after sending out dozens of quote requests. Competition is MASSIVE.
I started and grew my cleaning business from just me to a staff count of 10 and a turnover of over £100k a year. This was done out of my garden shed, no premises, no cars (employees used their own), and eventually I sold the business and started in property.
If this doesn’t deter you, my best advice would be CUSTOMERS. Find customers who see the value (older generation mostly), serve them well, look after them, and sell on service, not on price.
Good luck to you.
- STAFF; ask anyone running a business what the most stressful part of it is and they will say this. Even worse, you will be employing aspiring cleaners, this demographic are not best known for punctuality, flexibility, honesty, ambition etc. I won’t say too much more but just remember what sort of people you will be dealing with. Finding decent, dependable employees in this industry is TOUGH. You will be out covering for your “sick” staff more often than you’d hoped.
- You have to pay your staff minimum wage; checked out what that is? Now how much do people expect to pay for a cleaner? Not much! Margins are tight, and with that new van you want to run (think again), the cleaning equipment, chemicals, insurance, and general overheads, you will not be making a tidy profit for a long time. Oh, and when you do start getting some decent turnover in you will have to start charging VAT which will completely f
k everything up. - Gone are the days of advertising in the yellow pages. Potential customers now like to use Facebook to get quotes. Great you say. Nope. Calling your leads? Very few will answer your call. No matter how well you can sell, the vast majority on this platform will go for the cheapest they can find after sending out dozens of quote requests. Competition is MASSIVE.
I started and grew my cleaning business from just me to a staff count of 10 and a turnover of over £100k a year. This was done out of my garden shed, no premises, no cars (employees used their own), and eventually I sold the business and started in property.
If this doesn’t deter you, my best advice would be CUSTOMERS. Find customers who see the value (older generation mostly), serve them well, look after them, and sell on service, not on price.
Good luck to you.
roadsmash said:
Let me give you a reality check:
- STAFF; ask anyone running a business what the most stressful part of it is and they will say this. Even worse, you will be employing aspiring cleaners, this demographic are not best known for punctuality, flexibility, honesty, ambition etc. I won’t say too much more but just remember what sort of people you will be dealing with. Finding decent, dependable employees in this industry is TOUGH. You will be out covering for your “sick” staff more often than you’d hoped.
- You have to pay your staff minimum wage; checked out what that is? Now how much do people expect to pay for a cleaner? Not much! Margins are tight, and with that new van you want to run (think again), the cleaning equipment, chemicals, insurance, and general overheads, you will not be making a tidy profit for a long time. Oh, and when you do start getting some decent turnover in you will have to start charging VAT which will completely fk everything up.
- Gone are the days of advertising in the yellow pages. Potential customers now like to use Facebook to get quotes. Great you say. Nope. Calling your leads? Very few will answer your call. No matter how well you can sell, the vast majority on this platform will go for the cheapest they can find after sending out dozens of quote requests. Competition is MASSIVE.
I started and grew my cleaning business from just me to a staff count of 10 and a turnover of over £100k a year. This was done out of my garden shed, no premises, no cars (employees used their own), and eventually I sold the business and started in property.
If this doesn’t deter you, my best advice would be CUSTOMERS. Find customers who see the value (older generation mostly), serve them well, look after them, and sell on service, not on price.
Good luck to you.
Out of curiosity, obviously it’s not an easy industry to exist/make a profit in, but did you find running that business better than working in a ‘9-5’? Was it possible to grow? And was it this that enabled you to get out and do something else? - STAFF; ask anyone running a business what the most stressful part of it is and they will say this. Even worse, you will be employing aspiring cleaners, this demographic are not best known for punctuality, flexibility, honesty, ambition etc. I won’t say too much more but just remember what sort of people you will be dealing with. Finding decent, dependable employees in this industry is TOUGH. You will be out covering for your “sick” staff more often than you’d hoped.
- You have to pay your staff minimum wage; checked out what that is? Now how much do people expect to pay for a cleaner? Not much! Margins are tight, and with that new van you want to run (think again), the cleaning equipment, chemicals, insurance, and general overheads, you will not be making a tidy profit for a long time. Oh, and when you do start getting some decent turnover in you will have to start charging VAT which will completely f
k everything up. - Gone are the days of advertising in the yellow pages. Potential customers now like to use Facebook to get quotes. Great you say. Nope. Calling your leads? Very few will answer your call. No matter how well you can sell, the vast majority on this platform will go for the cheapest they can find after sending out dozens of quote requests. Competition is MASSIVE.
I started and grew my cleaning business from just me to a staff count of 10 and a turnover of over £100k a year. This was done out of my garden shed, no premises, no cars (employees used their own), and eventually I sold the business and started in property.
If this doesn’t deter you, my best advice would be CUSTOMERS. Find customers who see the value (older generation mostly), serve them well, look after them, and sell on service, not on price.
Good luck to you.
I’m always intrigued by these low barrier to entry businesses and of course nothing like this is easy money, but for those of us who feel stuck in conventional employment, it’s nice to think there could be ways out that don’t require a lottery win level of investment.
CX53 said:
Out of curiosity, obviously it’s not an easy industry to exist/make a profit in, but did you find running that business better than working in a ‘9-5’? Was it possible to grow? And was it this that enabled you to get out and do something else?
I’m always intrigued by these low barrier to entry businesses and of course nothing like this is easy money, but for those of us who feel stuck in conventional employment, it’s nice to think there could be ways out that don’t require a lottery win level of investment.
It’s incredibly difficult and stressful for many reasons, the main one for me was watching my savings quickly begin to deplete but it is also incredibly rewarding and when sharing those moments and milestones with your other half, family etc, it can feel very special.I’m always intrigued by these low barrier to entry businesses and of course nothing like this is easy money, but for those of us who feel stuck in conventional employment, it’s nice to think there could be ways out that don’t require a lottery win level of investment.
Is it better than working 9-5? Yes and no. You don’t get holiday pay, sick pay, compassionate leave, time off for doctors appointments, etc. But you do gain freedom, being your own boss, buck stops with you, complete control, and so on.
I would always encourage people to start on their own but make sure you have a plan B and plenty of money behind you to pay the bills.
22 said:
Couldn't you get your mum to do yours?
Friend owns a 'big' one and staff relentlessly let him down. Struggles to find people in managerial and service delivery roles.
This this this, mate was a plc director and decided to start a end of tenancy / upmarket cleaning company. Nearly killed her!Friend owns a 'big' one and staff relentlessly let him down. Struggles to find people in managerial and service delivery roles.
Staff staff staff - that’s it, so unless you have a huge family’ with low aspirations I would definitely not do this.
However twist it a bit, specialise and it will work - think path jetting, bin cleaning etc.
KnackeredSwede said:
...Very simple start up, and lots of competition, but as I’ve found in my area, seemingly in short supply.
The only reason why it's in short supply in your area is that the staff are in short supply, so unless you plan to do the cleaning yourselves then you will be competing for the same staff with probably the same amount of luck.If you fancy doing something in that line then you might consider going in to carpet cleaning and doing the work yourself. As it's equipment intensive there's less competition and I understand it pays pretty well, though that might depend on the area you are in.
The best cleaning businesses I've seen are ones where the owner is still doing some cleaning themselves - because it's their standards that set the bar for their staff. So generally speaking a team of owner plus 1-4 staff going around and working really hard, essentially.
If you can scale a cleaning business successfully, you'll be doing a fantastic job. Good luck
If you can scale a cleaning business successfully, you'll be doing a fantastic job. Good luck
Employ staff on sponsored work visas. It is amazing how people are suddenly more reliable when they need a visa in order to stay in the country.
We have found that our sponsored Doctors and and Nurses are far more committed than domestic candidates (Australia specific) A friend operates a shared services centre here in Poland and will pretty much only employ from non EU countries as staff are much less likely to simply forget to turn up for work citing "personal reasons"
As harsh as it sounds that industry will be magnet for people who have very little commitment to their jobs. I have noticed a marked increase in staff members who just fail to turn up for weeks and then get offended when you finally get hold of them and ask where they are. (Last 3 years)
Cleaning company is an excellent idea. Where there is dirt there is gold.
We have found that our sponsored Doctors and and Nurses are far more committed than domestic candidates (Australia specific) A friend operates a shared services centre here in Poland and will pretty much only employ from non EU countries as staff are much less likely to simply forget to turn up for work citing "personal reasons"
As harsh as it sounds that industry will be magnet for people who have very little commitment to their jobs. I have noticed a marked increase in staff members who just fail to turn up for weeks and then get offended when you finally get hold of them and ask where they are. (Last 3 years)
Cleaning company is an excellent idea. Where there is dirt there is gold.
I had a thought for you op. Loft cleaning. tbh I can't be arsed dealing with the dust spiders webs etc that gather over time in my loft. I would pay £20 per hour to have someone bring their own kit and make it back to a nice clean space again. Couldn't find any local companies who who do it and I don't know if regular house cleaners would do it?
I'm no expert at cleaning business at all, but you say you are looking to charge £15 an hour?
Even if you find someone decent who is prepared to work for minimum wage (£8.21 an hour). I struggle to see how you will make a profit after staff wages, insurances, fuel, cost of vehicle, cost of equipment, cost of materials, marketing etc etc....
That's not even taking into account gaps when you don't have any bookings, slow payers etc.
Taking into account all of the above, i would have thought the cost to you would be around £15/hr minimum???
Even if you find someone decent who is prepared to work for minimum wage (£8.21 an hour). I struggle to see how you will make a profit after staff wages, insurances, fuel, cost of vehicle, cost of equipment, cost of materials, marketing etc etc....
That's not even taking into account gaps when you don't have any bookings, slow payers etc.
Taking into account all of the above, i would have thought the cost to you would be around £15/hr minimum???
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