What did you do before getting in the cleaning industry? Work, Hobbies??

[Mark Saiger]

I have been so blessed and so lucky!

I have been exposed to so many things in my life, I just can't say how thankful I am to have had so many great life experiences. I truly believe all my experiences have helped me and my business today!

I have been in music all my life as my dad was a band director and carpet cleaner (I said I would never be like my dad....I lose!). I have been a racer (stock cars, motorcycles, snowmobiles, jet skis...if it could be raced...we raced it!) The family is from farming background so I have been around wheat (grain farming) and all the mechanical skills needed for that. It also gave me a great respect for the land and environment.

I also Incorporated music and racing together, performing the opening of many jet ski and snowmobile races with the "Star Spangled Banner" and "Oh Canada" to open up National race events (and raced at the events). I also have played professional for many groups (and while still being a teacher) for such groups as Little Anthony and the Imperials, Sonny Geraci, been with Maynard Ferguson, many other Blues and rock bands....I have even strapped a $5000 custom trumpet to my back in a soft gig bag and rode 30 miles through the twisty wooded trails on a snowmobile to play at local bars with local musicians! Nothing like seeing a good old dive bar come to life with people dancing in their sorel snow boots!

One of my race sleds during a cross country race:


Yes, I did win a lot



Me playing at opening event for a jet ski race....note the life jacket...I was in the first heat after I got done playing! Also note the greasy arms...I was putting in a set of new pistons before the race...AGAIN!









I took a small town band of 65 members in grades 10-12 to over 375 students participating in my band from grades 10-12 and also had over half over every grade involved in instrumental music during my 25 year teaching career in the school district...with hardly any extra staff.

Some pics of some of my bands....a lot bigger than 65 students!





Made a National competing marching band program that competed and won many National awards. Even was told by many that I couldn't do this being up North because of weather and location constraints. My bands even went to competitions with all original music arrangements and designs. I was told "I would never even make a cut in the competition....well guess what...in 1999 out of 65 bands, they made me be the first competing band at 7:30 am, had driven the furthest, slept on gym floors, up the earliest! We made the finals out of 10 finalist bands....and finished 7th place against all big dog bands. Most of them had 30 staff members. I had myself and 3 other part time teachers....and with all original music and arrangements....(next year, there was a lot of original music and arrangements)

Our 7 place finish in 1999 BOA St. Louis Finals
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcImr7JqcpE of good and evil GRHS MB

Our 2001 original show of "Time" with one of the largest Hour glasses ever made...and made in my garage! But it didn't make the Guinness book of world records because it wasn't traditional enough to qualify (yes I did enter it) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdaInTi8ClI

I have never been one to accept....it's never been done that way, so you shouldn't do it that way....

My bands won many National awards also in Jazz and concert bands, and we had corporate sponsors! That doesn't happen everyday to small school programs or in small towns in small Northern MN communities. But corporate sponsors like underdog success stories.

I was known as the only racing band director in my activities....and I received a lot of sponsorship because of this. You don't go out and blow up $18,000 race motors everyday on a teachers salary!

My point here....don't let someone tell you it can't and shouldn't be done that way. Make a positive name for yourself. People want to be part of winning organizations. Is your business know as a winner?....are you fun to be around? Are you a problem solver? I have found people will spend money if you give them a reason to feel good about doing so. Every experience we have can be an opportunity to learn and better yourself and your business. How you present yourself is part of your business marketing and brand.

There is so much more that has blessed my life. I hope all of you are having some of those same golden "Life" Moments! I look forward to meeting everyone who can make it Mikeysfest this February too!

Mark Saiger
www.saigers.com

 

[Mikey P]

damn fine post Mark


Cant tell you how proud and excited I am to have you on the program at M10F.



and to answer your question

My point here....don't let someone tell you it can't and shouldn't be done that way. Make a positive name for yourself. People want to be part of winning organizations. Is your business know as a winner?....are you fun to be around? Are you a problem solver? I have found people will spend money if you give them a reason to feel good about doing so. Every experience we have can be an opportunity to learn and better yourself and your business. How you present yourself is part of your business marketing and brand.

YES!

 

[Mikey P]

btw, now that your out of the fire and water racket will you be re-wraping your vans?

 

[Mark Saiger]

btw, now that your out of the fire and water racket will you be re-wraping your vans?

Looked at tweaking them, but it seems I have too many locals (especially a lot of women) who love the flames with the blue....go figure! I might change them a bit, but they are working for now.

Just found out that one of my local competitors just did a wrap on their van, and it just happens to be Blue I guess. Haven't seen it myself, but had some clients tell me they had to go up close to it to read it. I would say that is not a good sign for them that their logos are not working on the wrap. If you can't read the name of the company, people are probably going to think I added another van. LOL!

My insurance company also says I can still do some restoration and they will reduce my insurance rate about $2000 - $3000 for the year. Another ah ha moment for us. Any restoration work I do is going to be quite limited and pretty selective as to who I do work for. It sure is a lot more relaxing not dealing with the trauma and drama attached to the restoration game in our area right now. Carpet cleaning is still going great and everyone is happy when you show up for that!

A lot more fun right now!

Mark Saiger

 

[GCCLee]

John Olson should love this, the mass majority of images here, I took.
www.wideners.com

More than I should have. burned out and quit after 12 yrs

 

[Russ T.]

I graduated High School in upstate New York in '94. I attended 4 different colleges in an effort to earn my A.S. in Liberal Arts. I was the kind of kid who had no idea what he wanted to be when he grew up. While in college I did a few things to basically fund the party that my life was. I worked retail a little and did a lot of restaurant work beginning in the kitchen and working my way to the front of the house as a server, then bar back, then bartender for a couple years. During one of the dazed and confused seasons of my life, I moved south to Charlotte, NC for a change in scenery.
I worked for 4 carpet cleaning companies from Charlotte, NC, to Rochester, NY (my hometown), then 2 in Summit County, CO. I met a business broker in CO that ended up finding me an old Ford Truckmount in Bozeman, MT. What was a guy like me to do? I moved ;-). Ran my first small carpet cleaning business in Bozeman for 3 years before meeting the girl who would be my wife wife (3.5 months later) who was visiting her mom in Bozeman. She had a 6 year old boy (EJ who is 12 now) at the time and they were from central Iowa. What to do, what to do...I moved ;-). I have owned The Clean Machine of Iowa LLC since the Spring of '08. Although it is the same business technically, we also moved one more time about an hour east to where we live now, about 2.5 years ago. Despite breaking my tibia and fibula in a motorcycle fall shortly after the move, things have gone pretty well here. I'm really looking forward to meeting all of you guys at MF in February. You guys are kind of like the family I've never met before.


The Clean Machine

 

[dealtimeman]

I was in Highschool.

 

[Spurlington]

Saiger" data-source="post: 4253791" class="bbCodeBlock bbCodeBlock--expandable bbCodeBlock--quote js-expandWatch">

One of my race sleds during a cross country race:

Holy cow .. looks like you were doing a backwards wheelie .. based on the snow tracks .. thats amazing - then I realized you were riding someone else's track - great picture - nice adventures to add to your life story book - anyone see the movie UP - love the book of adventures

I graduated High School in upstate New York in '94.I moved south to Charlotte, NC for a change in scenery.
I worked for 4 carpet cleaning companies from Charlotte, NC, to Rochester, NY (my hometown), then 2 in Summit County, CO. I have owned The Clean Machine of Iowa LLC since the Spring of '08. I'm really looking forward to meeting all of you guys at MF in February. You guys are kind of like the family I've never met before.


The Clean Machine

Rochester .. are you related to a Roslyn .. I'm guessing you might .. we were looking at commercial property she was showing .. what a great person she is .. very kind, knowledgable and more than willing to go out of her way to help us .. I felt bad we didn't find what we wanted ..

What company did you work for in Rochester .. we might know some of the same people

 

[dealtimeman]

Aw shucks! Russ!

Will be good to meet you too, if I can make it to mikeysfest.

 

[steve_64]

i was a drunk...

explains a lot im sure

 

[Russ T.]

What company did you work for in Rochester .. we might know some of the same people

I worked for Stanley Steemer in Rochester, NY for probably a year or so. It was probably 2001-2002? I couldn't make much $ with them, having a very upsale focused pay structure. They usually sent me and a guy named Ken to smooth out the bad (and still wet) ones from the day before.


The Clean Machine

 

[Steve Lawrence]

Congrats on all your successes, Mark.

I appreciate your posts and value your comments.

 

[Chris A]

I was in Highschool.

me too, bought my dads business a few weeks shy of my 21st birthday.

 

[Spurlington]

What company did you work for in Rochester .. we might know some of the same people

I worked for Stanley Steemer in Rochester, NY for probably a year or so. It was probably 2001-2002? I couldn't make much $ with them, having a very upsale focused pay structure. They usually sent me and a guy named Ken to smooth out the bad (and still wet) ones from the day before.


The Clean Machine

2001-ish, Im thinking maybe Ben P, Ryan R or old man Joel .. congratulations on taking the bull by the horns and getting started on your own .. were you able to sell the 1st business in Bozeman or have someone run it after your move .. after moving an hr away from where you set up camp in 08 do you still drive back to service the previous customers ..

I started my gig in Nov of 1999 .. wasnt much til 3-4 years later before it became full time then another year or 2 I became so busy I hired on a couple of guys .. at the beginning, I started it just to fund my fun time with working less hrs .. otherwise I could probably have built this business alot sooner .. dont quote me but if I remember right I think my 1st year(2000) I did around 7K .. 2nd year about 17K then 45k for year 3 .. then I quit my full time job .. my overhead was extremely low .. my 1st loaded van was in great shape for $3500 I paid cash for and then a year or so later I bought a cargo van with a new paint job for $3000 cash .. a year later I bought a new Hurricane TM for $7500 cash .. can you tell I hate monthly payments .. I absolutely love this business ..

 

[Lee Stockwell]

Dad was a tool and die maker, mom cleaned lake cottages in Michigan. I worked with dad building stuff from sawmills to testing racks for industry and figured that would be my direction. However cleaning ended up being more consistent and profitable.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Charlie Lyman]

I was pursuing a career as a pro skateboarder.
That fell through and I went to work in a warehouse. I hated every day of it.


Sent from my motorola flip phone using Crapatalk 1.1

 

[GCCLee]

I was pursuing a career as a pro skateboarder.
That fell through and I went to work in a warehouse. I hated every day of it.

Thats awesome!
Rode a little when I was younger, mostly mini ramps. Anything with wheels we abused : )

Couple months ago I got bored and build the kid across the street a 2 1/2 ' 1/4 with cooing. Lil bugger wears it out. Love watching and i did ride it a few times to show Him I still had it.

I had some pics lemme see

 

[bob vawter]

can you push a wand wit a broken leg...

jus wonderin'

 

[GCCLee]

can you push a wand wit a broken leg...

jus wonderin'

I Love being the underdog! They never see me coming : )
Yea,btw umm its across the street at his house now!

Pretty cool though, his Mom actually approved the building of a mini half pipe in their backyrad.
Kid despises helmets and pads so we are at a stalemate on the ramp.

 

[Lonny]

After college, I worked/managed for Penske truck Leasing in SLC, and then here in Boise. I grew tired of the grind, and started flight school. To fund the flight school and allow for time during the day to do so I started commercial cleaning, carpets were an add-on service, not a focus, which is changing =). When my flight school went under I got serious about the cleaning biz.
I had a bit of 'fun' along the way.

View attachment 3355

 

[dealtimeman]

me too, bought my dads business a few weeks shy of my 21st birthday.

Pulled my dba, open a bank account, and got liability insurance the day after I turned 18. It's been work, work,work since then.

 

[Spurlington]

Was that flight school or fight school ..

 

[Derek]

mixed mud and dragged brick & block for 3 years on new homes. then laid brick for 2 years. working outside 12 months a year for less than $10/hour was for the birds. took me 5 years to realize this which is the sad part. smartened up a little & quit that field to start our own biz indoors. when we have a long bad day we always talk about how much better this is than what i'd be doing back then. it's been a great 20 years, very fortunate.

 

[bob vawter]

I Love being the underdog! They never see me coming : )
Yea,btw umm its across the street at his house now!

Pretty cool though, his Mom actually approved the building of a mini half pipe in their backyrad.
Kid despises helmets and pads so we are at a stalemate on the ramp.

Chris...don be a dumazz......even a broken finger can put you at risk of NOT feeding yor family....
don say i didn't tell you so....

OHH an' the LAWSUIT from the kids mom will destroy you!

 

[GCCLee]

Chris...don be a dumazz......even a broken finger can put you at risk of NOT feeding yor family....
don say i didn't tell you so....

OHH an' the LAWSUIT from the kids mom will destroy you!

Yes Sir ; (

 

[Lonny]

Flight, lol. The fight school came later. I was just looking to go workout in a different environment. I was bored. I got talked into a first fight after 6 months of training. Almost got knocked out, lol. Since then I HAVE been Ko'ed, submitted, lost by decision. Won some too though. Of course it's been a few years now. I do actually enjoy cleaning carpets, much preferred to commercial cleaning. Just trying to up my game now =)

Was that flight school or fight school ..

 

[rwcarpet]

Met Wife 8th Grade
Graduated HS - 1971
Got hired at GM Lordstown - June 1971 - Chevy Vegas!
Entered US AirForce Reserve boot camp - October 1971 - took leave from GM
Married my Wife, Gloria, December 1971 - took her back to Denver/Lowery for three month Honeymoon (and tech school training - munitions maintenance and loading.
Back to Youngstown and GM, with 6 years of Reserve ahead of me.
First child, Amy, November 1972.
Many hours working at GM.
Second child, Bobby, September 1974.
More work (and a few layoffs) at GM.
Big 2 year layoff at GM - 1975.
Started working with a family member that had CC company, 1976 - Steamway portables!
Picked up our first Steamway Turbomatic - 1977 - continued running full time cleaning empty aptartments.
Called back to GM - September 1977 - continued to clean during the day.
Backed off on cleaning, but continued to clean through 1978 - hours were long at GM.
Third child, Danielle, born October 1979!
Continued working cleaning untill mid 1980 - another 18 month layoff at GM.
Cleaned and raised family 80 through 81.
Back to GM with the J car! - still cleaning.
Fourth child, Jamie, September 1981.
Working, working, cleaning, working.
Fifth child - Anthony - Janurary 1984.
Work and clean. 84 through 88.
Sixth child - Matthew - Janurary 88.
Started my own CC business late 88 with Steamway porty, and soon moved up to Mastermatic.
Continued GM and cleaning full time - 89, 90, 91.
Bought Powermatic in 92, continued cleaning and GM full time.
Bought PC 405 Performer 1995, still cleaning and GM fulltime.
96, 97, 98, 99, 00, 01, 02, 03......cleaning and GM, and of course, raising all those kids!
Retired from GM May 2002, 30 and out pension!
Dec 02, lost my Daughter Danielle in an auto accident....toughest time of my life.......quit cleaning for a few months till Spring of 03.
Decided to keep cleaning. Bought the Genesis 59 in 03.
Picked up many commercial jobs, and still have many today. All referral work from then on.
Had many (6) Grandkids along the way. Keep me busy.
Still cleaning today, mostly by myself.
Plan on one more big machine (AT, PC 650?), and to lay out a nice box truck for self contained cleaning (carry all water and waste water back to shop).
Turn it over to my Son or Son's, whomever wants it.
Move to Cali and soak up the Sun!

Along the way, we traveled, snowmobiled, camped, maintained our own pool for family........I can't remember all the things we did. All Family activities. Only crazy thing I did without Family was to fly right seat in a Cessna A-37 attack support jet. We got to hitch rides to weekend deployments, and got to fly right seat (side by side) seating. What a blast! Even got to fly the stick when we hit 30,000 feet.

The Saga continues......I ain't slowin' down at 60.....yet. Cleaning is the best workout I can give myself. And I still enjoy doing it.

Oh, and along the way, (2005), we bought an Embroidery and Screenprint Shop for my Son's to have jobs. We're down to just screenprinting now.

 

[GeeeAus]

I was in high school in the early nineties and graduated in 1995. While in year 11 in 1994 I did work experience with a local computer company. The guy there new I spent a lot of time on my own systems. He gave me my first job, which I did after school for the next two years.

I did a few things for my school as well, was weird getting pulled out of a class to go and fix a laser printer. In my last year of school I had a few bumps in the road. I got in some shit for making a "magic" boot disk for our new (at the time) Novell NetWare based server. The school had paid quite a bit of money (too much) for the system and had been selling the benefits to the parents in order to raise funds. The setup had a really nice HP DesignJet printer / proofer which could make full page glossy colour prints. This was BIG in 1995 and so was the cost. It was my last year in school and my class wasn't permitted to use the new machinery, which seemed shitty as we were the schools graduates, and we had paid (in our fees) for a system for which we saw no benefit.

I went to work at the computer store one day and the store was a Novell dealer, we built Netware servers and deployed them in business. I had access to the server build room so I made a magic boot floppy that permitted me to reset a lost password, setup storage resources, all kinds of administrative functions. Next day I went to school and booted a workstation from this floppy, which brought me to "Console One" which was basically where most of the system's resources could be controlled.

I made myself an administration account and removed the account restrictions for student logons for printing. restarted the workstation and logged in as my new account, I could see all the staff shares, had access to the modem etc.

I got busted because I sent a centrefold of Madonna from her coffee table book, I think; to the HP DesignJet.

Got is mega shit. School actually approached my boss seeking leverage for him to dump me. It was a bad move on my part. Set me up though. I had a job the moment I finished school with a local business who wanted a tech guy. I went to Uni and did computer and information science. While living at the uni in student housing I had my first carpet cleaning experience. I bought a Kirby for myself. There were some students who got a few bucks for doing work about the place in the student accommodation. One guy was a qualified electrician and was pretty handy in general, we used to smoke bucket bongs together in my flat's laundry. He did a lot of odd jobs which basically meant he lived rent free.

There was a wild party in a unit one night and the newly laid carpeting was damaged. There was drinks and mud and shit everywhere. I told the housing manager not to panic just yet, I can help I went and got a jug of peroxide and another of cheap dry foam and set it right. After that they gave me the whole complex to clean annually for a few years. 88 rooms, 44 corridors, 88 mattresses and 22 lounge suites in total - all cleaned with a Kirby.

I made $2890 for this work, I managed to get it done in 13 days. I met a proper carpet cleaner in here somewhere and he showed me a good few tricks. I had done well with chem at school too and so it all kind of came together. Students would pay me to do their cars.

While at uni and in the student housing I met my wife in 2000.

I went to work for myself in 2001 with a business partner and we had TL Computing. Did that for five years until my wife got pregnant and he wanted to move away. He kept the business, but I got some customers and good will and I did a deal with Whyalla Computer Centre.

Worked there between 2006 and 2012 doing business networks, servers and most importantly looking after out Apple Macintosh work. In the end the boss lost her way and made bad choices post GFC. I lost my ability to reach her anymore and she announced that the company was doing very badly. I'd had enough. 17 years had been a long time. I left so as to secure my entitlements.

With my severance package I bought the Bissell Big Green, some chemicals from Scot Labs (Carly was already doing Kirby warranty work and selling bags, chems etc). I went to the Uni and said "hey, I'll do some carpets for you if you like?" They gave me the main campus building. Yikes. So there I am, this time last year with a Kirby, Rotowash, pump up sprayer, chems and a Bissell Big Green cleaning a university campus building. Over the past year I've been asked back to the Uni a few times to do more work. I actually have some stuff there again tomorrow. I've gradually built myself a customer base and I just continue to chip away at the high / quality clean end of my market where the result is what matters, not getting a quick once over so somebody can get their security bond back.

Found a few forums, this being one of them. I was a member of the Aussie forum for maybe 2 weeks before I fell out with the admin. Found this place, and we're all good with that.

Grant

 

[Becker]

I've never had a job.

 

[bob vawter]

hard time