Opportunity Knocks: Cleaning Up
Start your own high-profit biz in an untapped market: residential cleaning services.
Small Business Opportunities • Winter 2003
Are you ready to clean up? You can create a great future in an industry that is experiencing tremendous growth,
says MaidPro. Today, U.S. consumers spend more than $9 billion a year on residential cleaning, and that spending is
growing at a rate of more than 20% each year. And with MaidPro's proven system, success is only a question of
your own motivation and hard work according to their franchise experts.
MaidPro has a vision to clean up America. They see sparkling bathrooms and kitchens, beds made, furniture dusted
and polished, shining floors and freshly vacuumed carpeting.
The company has been in business since 1991. It all started when Mark Kushinsky, one of MaidPro's founders,
was living in Beacon Hill. He called a local maid service to have his home cleaned. Although he was shocked by
how high the prices were, he was looking forward to regaining valuable time. On the day of the cleaning, Mark arrived
home eager to see the work that had been done. He was very disappointed. The job was inadequate. He
complained to no avail. Mark called another company whose rates were even higher. He gave them a try.
They not only did a poor job, but locked his cat in the bathroom without a litterbox. This is not the end of the
story, but the beginning of MaidPro.
Mark Kushinsky shared his experiences with his friend Richard Sparacio. The two of them recognized a great
opportunity and they opened MaidPro's first tiny 200-square-foot office on Boston's historic Beacon Hill in
September, 1991.
The company began to expand its list of clients. They knew they had to expand. The dynamic duo first offered
"MaidSoft" software to help others start a residential cleaning service.
In 1996, Mark and Richard began to research franchised cleaning companies and were shocked to find they did not provide
the franchisees with the most basic business and customer service tools. Inspired by this research, Mark and Richard
began envisioning MaidPro throughout the country.
Today, MaidPro is one of the fastest growing cleaning companies in the U.S. with more than 20 offices serving 11
states.
As a MaidPro franchisee, one does not have to perform the actual cleaning tasks; a staff can be hired to accomplish the
job.
The franchise is structured to include flexible investment options and financing. There are three different
investment plans. The franchise fee is $7,900 for each level of investment. The silver plan requires $35,000
of working capital and the territory will include at least 15,000 qualified households. A minimum of two years of
business/management experience is required. The gold plan requires a minimum of four years of business/management
experience and $70,000 of working capital. The territory will include 20,000 households. The platinum plan is
for the seasoned business owner with six years of management/business experience. The territory includes 30,000
qualified households.
Here are some typical questions and answers about MaidPro franchisee ownership:
How often do I pay royalties?
MaidPro does not expect you to file weekly sales reports and pay weekly royalty fees like most franchisors in our
industry. That's 52 reports and 52 payments you are responsible for every year. We respect your valuable
time, so we designed our software to handle the tasks of preparing reports for you. We bill for our fees only once a
month.
Is there a national marketing fee?
MaidPro does not charge a national marketing fee. Most other franchises charge a full 2% or more of gross sales
for national marketing, which brings your ongoing fees to nearly 10% of your gross sales. At MaidPro, we think you
should be the one who decides where and when you spend your marketing dollars. So we don't charge a national
marketing fee. Our local marketing is so effective we haven't needed extra dollars to provide national marketing
efforts. Of course, if our franchisees find that they need regional or national marketing, we would be happy to
coordinate it.
What marketing services do you offer?
We have the most contemporary and effective marketing materials in the industry. Imagine sending your customers
the most fresh and up-to-date advertising available. MaidPro is currently the only franchisor in the industry with an
in-house direct-mail department. Sending a demographically targeted direct-mail campaign to your territory takes only
minutes. We will design, print, label, pre-sort and mail. Choose from our seasonally updated print materials,
or take advantage of our own graphic designer for special projects. Other marketing includes award winning radio and
TV spots, banner advertisements, sponsorship programs and a host of other ideas.
Is it mandatory to own a fleet of company-owned vehicles?
Most franchisors require you to have an automobile for each team. This just doesn't make good business sense
to us. We know just how devastating it is to your bottom line and your time to be overseeing a fleet of
vehicles. Just a simple calculation of running only five vehicles at a cost of $600 per month is almost $40,000 per
year. MaidPro is flexible. We let you decide.
Will I be required to purchase supplies and other things through MaidPro?
MaidPro will never require you to make a purchase through us. Other franchisors will give you a list of items you
must purchase through them. However, we do use our buying power to negotiate the best possible prices from
wholesalers and allow you to purchase directly from them with no middleman. As a business owner you save money that
you can invest in your business and allow you to grow it more quickly. We have everything you need, but the
purchasing decisions are yours.
For more information:
If you want to learn more about the franchise opportunity offered by MaidPro, visit their website at:
www.maidpro.com. You can also contact the franchise headquarters located at 180
Canal Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02114. The phone number is 617-742-8787 and the fax number is 617-720-0700.
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