Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC business?

[Connor]

What was your tipping point to get into Carpet Cleaning?

What made you do it, what was the draw?

 

[truckmount girl]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I started cleaning repo's for VA & HUD in 1987. Used to clean the whole house inside and out. From windows, ovens, toilets...and carpets and hard floors.

They decided to split the housecleaning and carpet cleaning contract, and offered me the carpet cleaning because I was the only house cleaner they had who was using professional carpet cleaning equipment. I used a porty everyone else was using a Bissel or a Rug Doctor rental.

Carpet cleaning paid WAY better than housecleaning and was a lot easier work, so i ran with it. Then in '98 my husband died of a stroke. There wasn't enough repo business to support myself and four kids, so I took the 35K life insurance and bought a new van and TM and started doing residential and commercial.

Take care,
Lisa

 

[Brian R]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Mom and dad bought a Chem-Dry in 19seventysomething.

I was a helper. We cleaned carpets in the armpit of hell. Better known as Oakland CA.

I've cleaned full time or part time since then.

 

[bob vawter]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

in the armpit of hell. Better known as Oakland CA.

do you realize I could be yor GRAND FATHER!!!!!

 

[Connor]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

What about you, bawb, what's your story?

 

[Brian R]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

in the armpit of hell. Better known as Oakland CA.

do you realize I could be yor GRAND FATHER!!!!!

Yeah, Grandma was ........................ in her day. :shock:

 

[amygeorge]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I worked for the State of Texas as a rural economic developer. The state had a 27 billion dollar shortfall and my job ended (I was given 4 months notice). I live in a rural area and would have to drive a minimum of 50 miles one way to find a decent job. We were in the middle of the worst drought on record, so running more cows was out of the question. I had been working with the previous owner get ready to sell his business and also helping another man buy the business (business plan, etc). I approached the guy wanting to buy and asked if I bought the business would he work for me and he said yes.

 

[ascrubabove]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

wife and I worked at the same company, she was keeping the books, and I was a diesel mechanic, she was quiting and going to start a cleaning biz, so to show my support I said I would start CC, 4 years later I think I made the right choice!!!

 

[Nate The Great]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I had no choice... I was born into the business... !dork!

 

[Jim Martin]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I blame Stanley Steamer........

 

[floorguy]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I had no choice... I was born into the business... !dork!

Ditto...

and i used it a ton as my crutch in school....ohh i dont need to do this, ill have my secretary type it up...

yeah well...bad idea :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

but i truly LOVE the cleaning and working part of the job/biz.....

on the flip side

I hate the marketing/paper work side of things....

Dream scenario.....I can sell my biz and list to a larger corp...(dare i say cintas) and then they retain me as a manager/district manager type job, with good pay and benis, and then i can leave it at the shop, instead of 24/7 in my head...

and on the flip side my custys are happy cuz i am still in a fashion doing the work...as a lot of my custys like that

 

[AshleyMckendree]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I had no choice... I was born into the business... !dork!

x2

 

[Ken Snow]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I married into it LOL. Actually I took a break from junior year of college and never went back. Fast forward 32 years, YIKES!

 

[Ross Buettner]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Own a janitorial franchise. This has accounts that needed scheduled carpet cleanings that were included in the price.

The rest comes along..lol

 

[hogjowl]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I was young and thought everybody around me was dumb as hell.

So, I fugured I would save myself from them and go it alone.

Now, I realize it was the other way around.

They thank me every time I see them.

 

[Out of Character - 0]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I used to do facilities management and decided to start a janitorial service. I worked both for about 6 months. We maintained our carpets with Spartan bonnet and traffic lane cleaner, red pad, cotton bonnets. Professionals would come do demos at our building and never get the carpets looking as good us. One day we rented several warehouses and an office to a 25 tm company. I seen what they were doing and wanted to make carpet cleaning a bigger part of what we do. I much prefer carpets/tile/etc to janitorial.

 

[rwcarpet]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Started out in 1976 as a helper to a distant cousin of my wifes. I was in the middle of an 18 month layoff from General Motors, and was getting bored waiting for call back. ( We were building Vegas at the time, and the sales just fell off). Hauled little and big portys until 1977, when we picked up a Steamway TurboMatic. Got called back to GM in Fall of '77, but contiued to help a few times a week. Got into a wage arguement with the cousin, and quit working for him. Worked for other local guys I met in the area while out cleaning. In 1988, went out and bought my first porty and started my business. Within 4 months, I bought a truck mount, SW MasterMatic, used a few years, bought a new PowerMatic in '92, used a few years, bought a ProChem Performer 405 in '95. Kept that running till I bought the PowerClean Genesis 59 in 2003, and still running it everyday.


To be continued.......

 

[rwcarpet]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Started out in 1976 as a helper to a distant cousin of my wifes. I was in the middle of an 18 month layoff from General Motors, and was getting bored waiting for call back. ( We were building Vegas at the time, and the sales just fell off). Hauled little and big portys until 1977, when we picked up a Steamway TurboMatic. Got called back to GM in Fall of '77, but contiued to help a few times a week. Got into a wage arguement with the cousin, and quit working for him. Worked for other local guys I met in the area while out cleaning. In 1988, went out and bought my first porty and started my business. Within 4 months, I bought a truck mount, SW MasterMatic, used a few years, bought a new PowerMatic in '92, used a few years, bought a ProChem Performer 405 in '95. Kept that running till I bought the PowerClean Genesis 59 in 2003, and still running it everyday.


To be continued.......

(Oh, and I retired from GM after 31 years in 2002. 10 year retired anniversary coming up next month)

 

[Doug Cox]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I worked for a company that wanted to sell in 1988 and everything is history.

 

[ACE]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I was 20 and no one would give me a good job. I worked for a very BASIC cleaning company in town an realized that if that guy could do it I sure could. I started my first biz out on the janitorial side, sold it and then worked for someone that also did carpet cleaning. I'm good at cleaning but not a great empolyee, so what else is there for me?

How did Conner end up on this board?

 

[Connor]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I was 20 and no one would give me a good job. I worked for a very BASIC cleaning company in town an realized that if that guy could do it I sure could. I started my first biz out on the janitorial side, sold it and then worked for someone that also did carpet cleaning. I'm good at cleaning but not a great empolyee, so what else is there for me?

How did Conner end up on this board?

ConnOr!

Google.

 

[Connor]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Bum;\p

 

[KevinL]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I have to blame Stanley too. I was selling office supplies when I went into Stanley Steemer and the owner talked me into coming to work for him. I worked there through one brutal busy summer and was one of the few kept through the winter when there was no work. When the next spring started to get busy he raised prices and lowered our commission that ended up costing each tech a few hundred a week. I walked and went to work in construction. Built houses until 2002 when the owner died and decided to start cc. Bought a piece of crap Chemtex from Darner in Wisconsin. When that caught fire in the middle of a job I went to the boards to ask if anyone had a tm for sale. Rich Michniak sold me a monster tm that ran for 2 years until the weight of it killed a Ford. Went looking for a used tm on Jondons site and bought my first White Magic in 2005 and now own 2.

 

[boazcan]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Started out @ SS @ 19. Put myself through college working there. It was actually a really fun job. My seniority and sales ability always got me the best route out of 12-15 routes. Worked a little over part time making full time money.

Quit SS and college (had 2 classes left), started my own company with 2 other guys from there. SS was pissed to say the least :shock: We had locked down a contract with Rooms to Go - all of them at the time. Ran with it for almost 2 years, other partners got lazy - I sold out to them. Finished college - finance degree.

Did "finance" stuff for 12 years. I made very good money - saved it. Got laid off in '07 when the financial mess started. No more good jobs in that field. Looked at buying a 20 y/o cleaning & restoration company, but I could not put it together. Damn business brokers make used car salesman look like librarians.

Bought my AT 6 months before getting laid off doing weekend work and night commercial. Been at it ever since. If I could ever find someone decent enough to run the business and truck, I would get back into the finance world for the benefits alone. But good help is hard to find.

 

[jcooper]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Worked for scumbags, learned how not to do things!

3/4 months later got a portable and went on our own.

 

[miksar]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I retired from postal service, wanted something to do and I saw a Rotovac ad in a magazine. Now it's hard to get a day off lol.

 

[Vivers]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

I actually was in the automotive industry most of my younger life. Back shop and then front shop. Firestone finally drove me out of the industry with terrible pay, horrible hrs, and really only place to go was DM which made my hrs look light.
I answered an ad for SS, benefits looked good and hung with them for 2 years, tried 4 other companies, small ma & pa, larger, portables, etc.. All which would lay you off come right at Christmas time do to lack of work.
Started my own with a portable 14 years ago or so. Now 2 vans, employees, and all the stuff that comes with that. Good & bad.

 

[sam miller]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

My Dad was a meat cutter 16 years and his brothers were in the service station/ gas business when my uncle Clint bought a porty and conviced all his brother to start a carpet cleaning business 1974

I started mixing chemy's in the back room at 12 and then fixing porty when I was 16 when I got outta HS went to work full time answering phones. That was in 1981 left my dad in 2000 to start my own business and its worked out well for me.

I figure if we never got into this business Id have 30 year in as a meat cutter, and would be missing a few digits! thathurts

 

[dgargan]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

Was burned out from owning a restaurant so I sold out and went to st Thomas in the virgin islands for 6 months to figure out what I wanted to do next. Well it turned into 3 years. Finally came back to look for a business I could do with out employees and low stress. Served me well until I was 45 then I decided I liked employees again.

 

[Greg Cole]

Re: Where'd you come from, how'd you get into the CC busines

My dad cut off my college money my junior year. (failed music appreciation! lol). I started cleaning carpets to pay tuition. Graduated, entered coporate Amercia and realized that I could make soooo much more in the carpet cleaning industry. Quit IBM and started my company 2 weeks later......