Doc Holliday said:
That's funny, we bought out our local Carpet One franchise in 99, great van, best designed shelving I had ever seen. We actually moved it into another truck and would have again but they were pretty ragged at that point...
Cintas, Sniffing around my accounts
- Thread starter AshleyMckendree
- Start date
That's funny, we bought out our local Carpet One franchise in 99, great van, best designed shelving I had ever seen. We actually moved it into another truck and would have again but they were pretty ragged at that point...
Desk Jockey
Member
The one's we bought were 02 Hydramaster CDS's, not bad units, we gutted the van's and threw out the shelving units and water tanks. :shock: Put in 100 gallon fresh and Rokan reels, while the old ones were nice, they took up too much room.
I actually gave the tanks, shelving and reels to Mike Brummett, just to get them out of here.
The big companies have no advantage in the carpet cleaning business.
They have good salesmen that need to get paid, the Salesman has a boss that needs to get paid.
The workers have to get paid, the workers have a boss that needs to get paid.
They buy equipment cheaper than you can but they pay way more for maintenance than most carpet cleaners do. Probably a wash in equipment costs.
They will spend a lot more time doing the jobs than you will because the employees usually are not as motivated.
The well run owner operator can work faster and better and cheaper than any large corporation.
Cintas will be in it for the long haul because of the investment and because it is not far from what they have been doing. For Carpet one and Lawn Green it was a totally foreign market, especially from a retail store to a carpet cleaning business. Lawn green could use illegals, felons etc to work outside of a customers house. Try that in the house....Lawn green did not realize the busy season for both businesses coincide...duh.
Cintas is a service/cleaning business. The investment in equipment written off over five years is a drop in the bucket compared to their wage payments.
I was just in Las Vegas and Cintas had five guys working out of a new aerotech truck. I watched them for over an hour and three of the guys stood around the whole time while two guys at a time worked.
If you could not run a crew better than that then you should be out of business.
They may make you become more efficient and make pricing more competitive.
The problem the big chains have is if they do not have a significant cost saving in some part of their business they cannot compete with the small operator. Overall their cost of doing business is higher.
The advantage the Franchises have had has been in advertising. They force the franchise to have enough capital to do business and to advertise. Most BDCC's (Broke Dick Carpet Cleaners) start on a shoestring and build. Many go out of business because they don't know how to tie their shoes never mind run the business.
Advertise or Market....continuously.
They have good salesmen that need to get paid, the Salesman has a boss that needs to get paid.
The workers have to get paid, the workers have a boss that needs to get paid.
They buy equipment cheaper than you can but they pay way more for maintenance than most carpet cleaners do. Probably a wash in equipment costs.
They will spend a lot more time doing the jobs than you will because the employees usually are not as motivated.
The well run owner operator can work faster and better and cheaper than any large corporation.
Cintas will be in it for the long haul because of the investment and because it is not far from what they have been doing. For Carpet one and Lawn Green it was a totally foreign market, especially from a retail store to a carpet cleaning business. Lawn green could use illegals, felons etc to work outside of a customers house. Try that in the house....Lawn green did not realize the busy season for both businesses coincide...duh.
Cintas is a service/cleaning business. The investment in equipment written off over five years is a drop in the bucket compared to their wage payments.
I was just in Las Vegas and Cintas had five guys working out of a new aerotech truck. I watched them for over an hour and three of the guys stood around the whole time while two guys at a time worked.
If you could not run a crew better than that then you should be out of business.
They may make you become more efficient and make pricing more competitive.
The problem the big chains have is if they do not have a significant cost saving in some part of their business they cannot compete with the small operator. Overall their cost of doing business is higher.
The advantage the Franchises have had has been in advertising. They force the franchise to have enough capital to do business and to advertise. Most BDCC's (Broke Dick Carpet Cleaners) start on a shoestring and build. Many go out of business because they don't know how to tie their shoes never mind run the business.
Advertise or Market....continuously.
LisaWagnerCRS
Member
I would not underestimate the national plan here... there are big bucks behind this, and they have an existing infrastructure of clients to tap - though I have to say I was not happy with their uniform service.
This is more reason to identify your best accounts and determine how you can better serve them (this does not mean cut prices...) and build your relationship capital. You do not stop business with friends who care about you and their work, in any industry.
You also look at what elements/characteristics make up your "best" clients, and you go out looking for more of them. Whenever you have one account that is 10% or more of your annual revenue - that's a danger. Many in this business have accounts that are 20% or more of their gross. You lose that, it's a knock-out... but if it's a smaller overall percentage, it's just a right hook.
It's something to prepare for, whether it's Cintas or anyone else. Someone someday is going to get that formula right... but if yours is already "right" you will have no worries at all.
Lisa
This is more reason to identify your best accounts and determine how you can better serve them (this does not mean cut prices...) and build your relationship capital. You do not stop business with friends who care about you and their work, in any industry.
You also look at what elements/characteristics make up your "best" clients, and you go out looking for more of them. Whenever you have one account that is 10% or more of your annual revenue - that's a danger. Many in this business have accounts that are 20% or more of their gross. You lose that, it's a knock-out... but if it's a smaller overall percentage, it's just a right hook.
It's something to prepare for, whether it's Cintas or anyone else. Someone someday is going to get that formula right... but if yours is already "right" you will have no worries at all.
Lisa
Steve Toburen
Supportive Member
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- Name
- Steve Toburen
This entire post is great. But the very best phrase is "Advertise or Market ... continuously."rick imby said:
I've learned a lot about food and dieting by supporting Sioux (and Weight Watchers) in her weight loss efforts. WW teaches you that losing weight (and keeping it off) is not about a "diet". it is a 'way of life".
Most carpet cleaners do their commercial selling efforts like most people diet. They get desperate and do a crash, "binge diet" sales effort. Then they sell a few jobs, get complacent, stop selling, stop contacting new prospects and then wait for the whole sad cycle to start over again. So dumb!
The one and only area where the big boys beat us in is they NEVER STOP MARKETING AND SELLING. If you copy their efforts in sales PLUS keep all the other advantages a small, focused entrepreneur brings to the table you will beat them at their own game.
Steve "I'm no guru" Toburen
http://www.SFS.JonDon.com
PS I don't often offer additional resources on MB because the Board Police don't like it. But this topic is important simply because it might pull someone out of their destructive 'feast or famine" cycle. So if you want to know how we became a stable, sane company with a routine cash flow based on regular, consistent selling to commercial contract accounts just go here: http://sfs.jondon.com/755/resources/spe ... commercial
If you don't want to ... don't. (And if you don't want to bother with the 30 second registration process just send me an email and I'll send you the information and not sign you up for anything else without your permission.)
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