The commercial cleaning gold rush is on, but are franchisees getting the gold mine… or the shaft?
Commercial cleaning is being hyped as the hot, recession-defiant franchise opportunity
The February, 2010 Entrepreneur Magazine states “of the 10 fastest-growing franchises measured by Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500, six were commercial cleaning companies. That’s downright recession-defiant.” In fact, nine of Entrepreneur’s 100 fastest-growing franchises were commercial cleaning companies.
Janitorial franchises have a low cost of entry (Unit level franchises are generally less than $10,000) and don’t require an academic or a professional background, making them attractive to vast numbers of desperate, unemployed or under-employed opportunity seekers. Many allege that some of these companies specifically target recent immigrants or non-English speaking groups.
The complaints behind the hype?
The complaints we’re reading about janitorial and commercial cleaning franchises are remarkably similar from company to company: Franchisees not receiving accounts as promised, franchisees receiving underbid, unprofitable accounts, franchisees having accounts unfairly taken from them and given to other franchisees (to meet the franchisor’s and master franchisee’s obligations), and franchisees being charged excessive fees.
Nearly 10% of Entrepreneur’s “fastest-growing franchises” list are commercial cleaning franchises: #1 Jan-Pro Franchising Int’l Inc., #3 Stratus Building Solutions, #5 Anago Cleaning Systems, #7 CleanNet USA Inc., #8 Bonus Building Care, #10 Vanguard Cleaning Systems, #16 System4, #66 BuildingStars Inc., #91 Mint Condition Franchising Inc.
Janitorial franchises also hyped in the Entrepreneur 500 list include: Jani-King, ServiceMaster Clean, OpenWorks, OctoClean, Office Pride Commercial Cleaning, City Wide Maintenance, Janitize America, and OMEX. (Coverall is conspicuously absent from Entrepreneur’s lists.)
Other commercial cleaning franchises on Entrepreneur.com: BearCom Building Services, Champion Clean, E.P.I.C. Systems Inc., On Target Maintenance, Pro One Janitorial Inc., Service One Janitorial
Please share your experiences and observations – good and bad – with commercial cleaning franchises by leaving a comment below, or on one of the relevant posts.
Commercial Cleaning Franchise Posts & Discussions:
JANI-KING Franchise Complaints
ANAGO CLEANING SYSTEMS Franchise Complaints
OCTOCLEAN Janitorial Services Franchise
JAN-PRO: Janitorial Franchise Warning
CHAMPION CLEAN Using Bogus Franchise Statistics
Commercial Cleaning Franchises: 10 Reasons to NOT Buy One
FTC Guide to Buying a Janitorial Services Franchise
FTC’s Janitorial Franchise Buyer’s Guide
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HORRIBLE! AWFUL! These people clean at our offices, if you want to call it cleaning. Did not vacuum for months, did not dust for weeks, and did not take clearly marked trash out. They do not supply their own cleaning supplies; you must do that for them. They barely show up when scheduled. They do not restock bathroom supplies (toilet paper/paper towels.) THEY ARE AWFUL!
Yes they might be cheaper than any other cleaning company, but you might as well just clean yourselves. The old adage "You get what you pay for." is completely true. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY....spend the extra $$ for some other company.
Im looking to franchise with a Cleaning Company. I was looking into ( OpenWorks franchise) Do anyone know of any "GOOD" cleaning company? I live in Baltimore MD I'm going to start my own cleaning business in the next month or so and I really don't want to wait around for the clientele ....
From all City Wide is the worst. They underbid and at the same time they didn't tell you how much the original bid is.You just believe them. If they bid 500/month they will tell you they bid 400/month and will take additional 30% form your paycheck. then you get less than 300/month from a 500/month account.When you calculate it it is below the minimum wage.
I don't know why independent contractors do not report to FTC about this rip offs.
I agree with all those who say all cleaning franchises are a ripoff. I have seen people go totally broke getting into these cleaning scams. It is a losing proposition. Don't fall for the slick sales pitch these slimy salespeople deliver so well. If it was so great, they'd be doing it themselves. Ask them why they are sitting behind a desk instead of going out all night pushing a mop and broom for next to no pay.
I purchased and Office Pride franchise in 2009. Office Pride markets to people of faith, but when I began to ask questions about the value I received for the $50.00 in fees I paid them in the first 1 1/2 years things went bad pretty quick. Do not buy into the "Christian Values" marketing because it is just slick marketing in the name of Christ. Two of the top executives and a few others left the organization in 2012 because (in my opinion) their integrity was more important than their jobs.
they suck so do not buy
they take all ur money
I have owned a stratus franchise for the past 4 years as a part time job. After the first 2 years I was able to quit my full time job and now make a comfortable living working at night and a few weekends a month. We meaning my wife and I don't understand all these issues we see on here. We know 4 other franchise owners and they are all satisfied with the service and payment by our Master. We own in the SWFL region and would highly recommend them. We have increased our package 3 times and have gotten the new accounts withing days of signing the new paperwork. We deal with Jeff and George.
I spoke to the local Buildingstars Guy in White Plains, NY (Westchester County, directly north of the Bronx, NYC) and after emails, he refused to give me the franchise contract so I could read it prior to going to his office to get the hard sell ! So, finally, I told him in an email that until I got that document and either sample or actual customer contracts there would be no meeting. So far, no documents . . .
...
What I really want to do is this Dry Ice Blasting service but I want a partner who is a good closer. I have a one ton van and the blasting equipment is available for rent. How many moldy bath tub grout lines can be done per day at $150 per ? 10-15-20 ? And then there is fire damage removal and dirty restaurant kitchens not to mention paint removal and pet urine removal. It's endless !
I think I am looking at $1,000 to maybe $10,000 PER DAY ! Or more ?
Why bother with emptying office waste baskets and vacuuming carpet and buffing floors ?
I suck at sales, so I'm looking for a closer to partner with !
RUN!