Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: paul ette on November 15, 2013, 04:44:52 pm
-
just lately in my area im seeing lots of new people around, see one guy yesterday, drove up to me in a 2010 plate vivaro with a brand new ionics systems installed etc probly about a 10k setup. i asked him how long he had being doing it for and he said since march this year, he reckoned he brought in 250 ish on a good week, jeez talk about running before you can walk. really dont see how you can spend that much money on a setup before you have a customer base.
then again i was broke when i started so didnt have a choice to spend very little on a setup.
-
the van will be on ebay next year
-
He probably got made redundant and had a payout. You can have all the kit in the world, but unless you're doing a good, trustworthy, reliable job, it ain't worth squat! ;D
-
Im not saying this about him, but there is a well known phrase...
ALL THE GEAR AND NO IDEA
-
thats what i thought, made me feel a bit small when im standing there with a diy kit an an old van, but could not beleive it when he said he only earned that amount. whats the point...
-
You can have all the kit in the world, but unless you're doing a good, trustworthy, reliable job, it ain't worth squat! ;D
Spot on Robbo!
-
just lately in my area im seeing lots of new people around, see one guy yesterday, drove up to me in a 2010 plate vivaro with a brand new ionics systems installed etc probly about a 10k setup. i asked him how long he had being doing it for and he said since march this year, he reckoned he brought in 250 ish on a good week, jeez talk about running before you can walk. really dont see how you can spend that much money on a setup before you have a customer base.
then again i was broke when i started so didnt have a choice to spend very little on a setup.
at least i'm busy .... and not on the social
-
just lately in my area im seeing lots of new people around, see one guy yesterday, drove up to me in a 2010 plate vivaro with a brand new ionics systems installed etc probly about a 10k setup. i asked him how long he had being doing it for and he said since march this year, he reckoned he brought in 250 ish on a good week, jeez talk about running before you can walk. really dont see how you can spend that much money on a setup before you have a customer base.
then again i was broke when i started so didnt have a choice to spend very little on a setup.
Well when so many spout how much they can earn down your way it's hardly surprisin you see lots of new cleaners.........word gets around.
-
just lately in my area im seeing lots of new people around, see one guy yesterday, drove up to me in a 2010 plate vivaro with a brand new ionics systems installed etc probly about a 10k setup. i asked him how long he had being doing it for and he said since march this year, he reckoned he brought in 250 ish on a good week, jeez talk about running before you can walk. really dont see how you can spend that much money on a setup before you have a customer base.
then again i was broke when i started so didnt have a choice to spend very little on a setup.
Was he a fireman? ;D
-
It's becoming very annoying having to convince new customers that just because the last guy cleaned their windows with "a pole thingy" and left them in a worse state than before he started, doesn't mean that I will repeat the procedure.
There seems to be an inordinate number of individuals going round wetting window for a living and disparaging our beloved purified profession in the process.
-
newish vivaro says it all
-
By way of an adjunct to my last post on this matter, just recently, the only way I could convince a potentially new customer that I was really worth employing was to offer a free first clean... yeah, I know. I payed for the opportunity to convince them that I was indeed a window cleaner.
-
I got the job!
-
By way of an adjunct to my last post on this matter, just recently, the only way I could convince a potentially new customer that I was really worth employing was to offer a free first clean... yeah, I know. I payed for the opportunity to convince them that I was indeed a window cleaner.
I always say decorators all use the same tools, some do a good job and some are 5h1te. Its the same with us
-
By way of an adjunct to my last post on this matter, just recently, the only way I could convince a potentially new customer that I was really worth employing was to offer a free first clean... yeah, I know. I payed for the opportunity to convince them that I was indeed a window cleaner.
I always say decorators all use the same tools, some do a good job and some are 5h1te. Its the same with us
;D
-
Good luck to him.
The best incentive to make a go of something is to have a lot of money riding on it.
-
You get good and bad in every trade, that's how life is.
Be professional, look smart, clean signwritten van and be nice and polite...and have a laugh!
If I ever have a wary pole customer, I clean one downstairs window for free and come back later the same day.
I show them how good it looks, give them a bit of chat and give them a fair price.
If they don't want, then I don't want them as a customer. ;D
-
Good luck to him.
The best incentive to make a go of something is to have a lot of money riding on it.
Absolutely Sean. I couldn't agree more. We shouldn't jump to conclusions. The insufficiency of the evidence obviously precludes a conviction.
-
if it was me i would of spent the money on a round or get a canvasser to smash an area to peices to get me started, rather than buy a van and cant earn nothing with no customers... just sayin
-
so he is working 1 to 1 and a half days a week?i bet he has another job as well! ;) ;D ;D
-
It's becoming very annoying having to convince new customers that just because the last guy cleaned their windows with "a pole thingy" and left them in a worse state than before he started, doesn't mean that I will repeat the procedure.
There seems to be an inordinate number of individuals going round wetting window for a living and disparaging our beloved purified profession in the process.
I had that very situation today. The bloke spoke to me yesterday while I was cleaning shop windows. Went and had a look today.
4 bedroom detached house. Previous window cleaner, shiny new van and in a uniform. Customer said he was there and gone in under 10 minutes. When I saw the windows from the inside of the house - eeeeeeeeeukkkkkkkkkk and the customer had paid £25 for that 2 days ago.
Cleaned just the patio doors and kitchen window just to give him an idea of how windows come up when they are cleaned properly. This evening he phoned me - got a new job to do first thing tomorrow.
Every year around here, and i guess it's the same in other areas, the shiny new vans appear in Spring and Summer but by the following January and February, it's the same old faces and vans as there's always been.
-
I always say decorators all use the same tools, some do a good job and some are 5h1te. Its the same with us
I'm going to use that. What a great quote.
-
I always say decorators all use the same tools, some do a good job and some are 5h1te. Its the same with us
I'm going to use that. What a great quote.
Yeah good wasn't it.
-
[/quote]
Cleaned just the patio doors and kitchen window just to give him an idea of how windows come up when they are cleaned properly. This evening he phoned me - got a new job to do first thing tomorrow.
[/quote]
Nice one Ross!
-
Good luck to him, so if he has put his redundancy into his business he is seriously having a good go at it.
I was In the same boat 5 years ago, new baby on the way wife on maternity leave and I was made redundant from a very well paid job in Print.
-
Cleaned just the patio doors and kitchen window just to give him an idea of how windows come up when they are cleaned properly. This evening he phoned me - got a new job to do first thing tomorrow.
[/quote]
Nice one Ross!
[/quote]
Nick, it works nearly every time.
-
This also works if you clean just about a metre of guttering too.
Don't ask first though, just do it & upsell a SFG clean.
-
I always say decorators all use the same tools, some do a good job and some are 5h1te. Its the same with us
I'm going to use that. What a great quote.
I pinched it from someone on here, I'm not that clever
-
This also works if you clean just about a metre of guttering too.
Don't ask first though, just do it & upsell a SFG clean.
If you do it without askin, some customers could be annoyed that the contrast between the clean and dirty gutters is unsightly.
-
This also works if you clean just about a metre of guttering too.
Don't ask first though, just do it & upsell a SFG clean.
If you do it without askin, some customers could be annoyed that the contrast between the clean and dirty gutters is unsightly.
Ooh-good point. Thanks for pointing that out.
-
lot of new starts in my area but mainly trad...i saw two guys today
in different areas
on foot hauling ladders and all their gear with them. i instantly
thought fairplay at least they have the balls to get off their backsides
and try something.
As for the guy who has the sparkly new van okay he has been
mugged by ionics but he has a start of a round and if he keeps his
head down gets on with learns from his mistakes like we all have to
There is a good chance he could be making a decent living a year
from now.
Me thinks too many worrying about what others are doing,when they
should be watching where they are going themselves :)
-
I started up working out of my car, and now many vans later i still respect anyone else who starts up in our trade whether they have a sparkly new van or an old fiesta, just keep your own business going and leave them to it!
-
lot of new starts in my area but mainly trad...i saw two guys today
in different areas
on foot hauling ladders and all their gear with them. i instantly
thought fairplay at least they have the balls to get off their backsides
and try something.
As for the guy who has the sparkly new van okay he has been
mugged by ionics but he has a start of a round and if he keeps his
head down gets on with learns from his mistakes like we all have to
There is a good chance he could be making a decent living a year
from now.
Me thinks too many worrying about what others are doing,when they
should be watching where they are going themselves :)
Well said.
John
-
Feb 2010 I was a new starter with a not very shiny van but with a £16000 loan to buy it and about 200 customers.
Im still here with the loan paid off next year :)
HOWEVER if it wasnt for the advice from here I dont think I would be still here.
Obvious difference is I didnt have shiny van but did have a near enough guranteed income.
-
Feb 2010 I was a new starter with a not very shiny van but with a £16000 loan to buy it and about 200 customers.
Im still here with the loan paid off next year :)
HOWEVER if it wasnt for the advice from here I dont think I would be still here.
Obvious difference is I didnt have shiny van but did have a near enough guranteed income.
You spent £16000 on a van and it wasn't shiny what happened ?
-
lot of new starts in my area but mainly trad...i saw two guys today
in different areas
on foot hauling ladders and all their gear with them. i instantly
thought fairplay at least they have the balls to get off their backsides
and try something.
As for the guy who has the sparkly new van okay he has been
mugged by ionics but he has a start of a round and if he keeps his
head down gets on with learns from his mistakes like we all have to
There is a good chance he could be making a decent living a year
from now.
Me thinks too many worrying about what others are doing,when they
should be watching where they are going themselves :)
I'm a new starter so to speak, (2nd time around) with not so shiny van, fitted wfp system and struggling. Need to keep faith that it'll get better. Don't be down on us, most of us mean well. Remember you all started more or less the same way. Unless of course you were born with a silver scrim in your mouth.
-
Dee, if was easy everybody would be at it as its a good way to make a
decent living.
I started with 5 mates and another 5 family members so 10 customers in total and worked up from there.
It took a few years before I started making half decent money.
Keep going it will be worth it in the end and best of luck.
-
lot of new starts in my area but mainly trad...i saw two guys today
in different areas
on foot hauling ladders and all their gear with them. i instantly
thought fairplay at least they have the balls to get off their backsides
and try something.
As for the guy who has the sparkly new van okay he has been
mugged by ionics but he has a start of a round and if he keeps his
head down gets on with learns from his mistakes like we all have to
There is a good chance he could be making a decent living a year
from now.
Me thinks too many worrying about what others are doing,when they
should be watching where they are going themselves :)
I'm a new starter so to speak, (2nd time around) with not so shiny van, fitted wfp system and struggling. Need to keep faith that it'll get better. Don't be down on us, most of us mean well. Remember you all started more or less the same way. Unless of course you were born with a silver scrim in your mouth.
err! i think if you read my post...you will find i wasnt bad mouthing new starters ::)roll
-
im not bad mouthing any new starters either, ive only been doing in a year and half myself so im fairly new too, was just saying the guy spent all that money and thought the work would come running to him, i started with nothing and didnt have any money to get me going(as im sure lots of you on here where the same) was just saying that 10k could of been spent on building up a round fast, then thought about getting a good setup in the future, if he did it that way he could of been earning a hell of a lot more now than what he is
-
If he only started in March and he's got £250 a week coming in thats a grands worth of monthly jobs he's found so thats not bad going really. Another 9 months and he might be doing £500 a week if he keeps at it.
-
lot of new starts in my area but mainly trad...i saw two guys today
in different areas
on foot hauling ladders and all their gear with them. i instantly
thought fairplay at least they have the balls to get off their backsides
and try something.
As for the guy who has the sparkly new van okay he has been
mugged by ionics but he has a start of a round and if he keeps his
head down gets on with learns from his mistakes like we all have to
There is a good chance he could be making a decent living a year
from now.
Me thinks too many worrying about what others are doing,when they
should be watching where they are going themselves :)
Very Well Said Gary :)
-
if he invested that 10k wiser he could of been earning a grand a week by now, rather than have a 10k van sat on the drive 90% of the time for the last 9 months, does that not make sense?? and his bank balance would be a lot better than what it is, its just my opinion, why run before you can walk
-
I got a loan for £28 000 to start up... and went the franchise route...
there's different ways of starting things and different goals for people too.
-
It's becoming very annoying having to convince new customers that just because the last guy cleaned their windows with "a pole thingy" and left them in a worse state than before he started, doesn't mean that I will repeat the procedure.
There seems to be an inordinate number of individuals going round wetting window for a living and disparaging our beloved purified profession in the process.
I had that very situation today. The bloke spoke to me yesterday while I was cleaning shop windows. Went and had a look today.
4 bedroom detached house. Previous window cleaner, shiny new van and in a uniform. Customer said he was there and gone in under 10 minutes. When I saw the windows from the inside of the house - eeeeeeeeeukkkkkkkkkk and the customer had paid £25 for that 2 days ago.
Cleaned just the patio doors and kitchen window just to give him an idea of how windows come up when they are cleaned properly. This evening he phoned me - got a new job to do first thing tomorrow.
Every year around here, and i guess it's the same in other areas, the shiny new vans appear in Spring and Summer but by the following January and February, it's the same old faces and vans as there's always been.
That may have been true with ladders but when some find out how easy it is this trade will be swarming with pole wielding windies all under cutting each other in a cut throat business be warned we won't be immune.
-
I started out a year ago , It now takes two of us over six weeks to complete my round. Like any other business you have to speculate to accumulate. By providing a professional image, working to a high standard and selling your company then this sets you apart from Joe Bloggs
By providing alternative services for my customers has given me an income stream of 20K alone. Goodluck to any newbie , work is out their !
-
Hey Aqua I've just clicked on your website but apparently the link is broken! ???
-
seems to be a problem with the link, website or facebook page seems ok . thanks for info