Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: matt jones on March 11, 2007, 07:44:51 pm
-
Hi guys,
Got some good news tonight a posh local hotel tried getting hold of me tonight regarding a large dining room they want cleaning, i need to get back to them tom morn. Havent really touched on commercial as yet and would love to get this job but not sure how i go about it to be honest. Firstly i hope its not a belgium wilton as a hwe extraction machine is all i own as for aggitation i use a brush as for measuring i would only have a tape measure at hand hopefully you can see where im going with this as im still progressing my business would you say a job like this would be out of my depths? Never done a method statement or risk assessment nor any of the other requirements so any advice would be greatly appreciated. By the way this job has come from a cleaning lady i met on a job back along so they have refered me to this hotel.
regards
matt
-
Why don't you go along tonight and have a look. I've never found hotels difficult to deal with and none have had B/ W
Check out the sockets, water access, dumping location.
Biggest problem, is when you will get access, probably, post midnight.
Just treat it as " a big room "
-
Cheers for that mate. I know what your saying its just abit scary especially when you haven't been in this business for long. I know the hotel but can't remember what the carpets are like to be honest so will have to go have a look.
Matt
-
Hi guys,
Got some very rough dimensions for the carpet to be cleaned it is 1600sq/ft approx. Any ideas what i should charge for this? Thinking along the line of 25p a sqft so £400 does that sound about right? They need it doing this week.
Regards matt
-
FAR TO CHEAP FOR THIS PART OF THE WORLD
-
So what would you of quoted then jimmy?
-
Matt, for the crediton area which is i believe where you are, and if nobody else is quoting on the job, if i were you price at .40 sq/ft, then offer 15%discount as area is over 1000sq/ft.
good luck
-
by the way, are your prices inc or exc of vat??? something to consider!
-
Jimmy how the hell do you know where im from do you know me?
matt
-
I think i know what company your in relation with but am very confused about who you actually are? Can you send me a p/m
matt
-
well jimmy actually quoted £350 for the dining area in the end just phoned them up and apparently had another quote even cheaper so i can't of been that cheap.
Matt
prob some splash and dash who quoted £10 for the lot lol.
-
Always the way, you run around pannicking.............then it was all for nothing ::)
-
yeah great fun. Think what i will do in future is ask the company after a quote to get a few quotations then ill be last to quote that way it gives you a better chance even if you don't end up price matching with a stupidly low quote least you could put abit of uncertainty in there mind why it might be better to use your services over someones who seems abit to cheap. Why does it come down to the cheapest quote most the time don't they relise you get what you pay for? I also find if you are of a younger age then you are sometimes not taken seriously which works against you and really annoys me. All in all bit of a cxxp day today. And doesnt help when i have someone saying stuff which they shouldn't know about me let alone disclose without my permission with a blank profile.
-
Matt,
Was there other postings in this thread.
Was out a lot yesterday.
If you have had a problem use report to moderator button
-
Matt i am glad you got the job, although in my opinion a tad to cheap, but if you are happy with the price then that is all that counts. Regarding knowing where you are from, i happened to be reading one of your own posts from back along, not sure which one now, as there are so many, but its there for all to see, where YOU stated that was where YOU were from!! So i have not disclosed anything to anyone, in which case you have nothing to be upset about. Really ,calm down and try not to accuse somebody when all they are trying to do is offer some advise.
-
Yeah well thats it i did not get the job! :( I don't ever remember giving out where i was from apart from devon which is on my profile but maybe i did if you have seen it somewhere and if thats the case then i apologise.
matt
-
dont worry to much hotels are always tight with there money
-
no problem Matt, a simple mistake to make, sorry you didnt get the job after all, did you find out who quoted under you? might be useful for you to try to find out who is underselling themselves in your back yard. Better luck next time as the previous post says, some hotels can be a little tight.
-
No i didnt because when i phoned back the manager had gone home and it went through a third party which he didn't know who had under quoted me. Would like to know though so might phone them up again they prob won't tell me! Shame it was a nice little job and i thought the price was fair. If i got it i would of tried chatting them up for a regular contract aswell but nevermind out to do some leaflets in a mo dead quite recently probably cause this other company and under cutting all my prices lol.
-
lol just got of the phone to them. Lady went to ask as the manager was not in today she came back and said they did not know who he was but run the local scouts group or something. If they really didn't know this guy (which lets face it they must know his name) he must of come across really well if he didn't even introduce himself. Some local cowboy i expect who will turn up with a vax and flood the hotel then they will come running to me to fix his problem in which case i will charge them double and tell them i did warn you lol. Well thats what i would like to happen not that im jealous or anything :)
matt
-
Matt, work like this, in the long run, you can do without, let the other guy kill himself for peanuts, he is not trying to deliver the quality of service that you are, stick to your goals, things will come right, eventually people will hire you on reputation and recomendation no matter what your price, but it takes time.
good luck
-
why is it that when someone puts a cheap price in people always jump to the conclusion that they must be a firm of cowboys , when i looked at the size of the room the job at a push could have been done for about £240 and maybe who ever did the job put a cheap price in just to get his foot in the door for further work which i myself do on large jobs or if i am a bit quiet , it is better to make a bit of money rather than sit at home with no work.
-
because if you do a job properly you cannot do it cheap! But a fair enough comment and do you know what if they had got back to me and said we have had a cheaper quote can you come down abit or price match then i probably would off but they didn't ask that is what was annoying and i find alot of people are to afriad to ask why would you want to discount the job if at first you don't know if there will be any resistance you wouldn't you would discount after if you wanted it. But hey ho let them learn i suppose.
matt
-
sorry to disagree but i feel that if someone was to give me a qoute for a job then i aproached them and said i had got it a lot cheaper and they then turned round and said they would beat the new price , then alarm bells would start ringing thinking they was trying to rip me off with their original qoute , it is better to give what you think is a fair price for the job and stick to it , if someone beats that price then good luck to them but dont call someone a cowboy just because their cheap rather why not go back and see the standard off the job done, if it is bad point the faults out to the manager and explain how you would of got it better, if he has done a good job try and find how long it took at least you will know how much your competitor is willing to work for.
-
To be honest i really don't care what my compitition are willing to work for there will always be someone cheaper then you so why work your nuts of for nothing.
Matt
-
Matt, you started this post saying how you were not experienced in this kind of work and didnt know what to charge etc etc and thats fair play to you for being honest. Now the crunch part is there are people who will either take a risk/gamble on submitting a quote with little or no experience and others whom just see it as a routine job. Dont lose heart over one loss but rather learn from the experience it has given you. Personally i would rather undercut on a new venture to get many many repeats-(hotels have a lot of staff-remember) than go for top dollar initially. Incidentally the next time you do a hotel/b and b always flood their bars with cards AND have a large A-SIGN out front to give them an idea of whom you are-it tends to stick in some memories!
Damian 8)
-
Damian thanks for the advice mate. I get a feeling that alot of stuff which is said on here is far from the truth especially when it comes to prices and what people are prepare to work for. When i got there i asked if the had already had any quotes the answer was no so i had nothing to go on i had no idea what price they had in there head im no mind reader but in future i will ask them before i start if they are after the cheapest quote or a thorough quality job um you can pretty much guess what they will say ::)
Makes me wonder how some of you manage to get some real serious prices?
Please feel free to share your experiences
Matt
-
Matt, not on ere mate! lol There are too many snipers! lol I keep my businesses close to my chest-TIGHTLY! Dont mind if you wanna e-snail me tho. Will help where i can. Although i dont really know much about this cleaning game as i only own a puzzi s and a numatic cleantec and i wear high heels with spurs!! :o lol
Damian 8)
-
Matt
Next time you quote for this kind of job, it might be worth considering how long it will take to actually do the job, and remember that commercial work is usually more price driven, than domestic.
rob
-
Ching!! lol
Damian 8)
-
I dont care what anyone says, if this joker has gone it at £300 to undercut all other quotes then, he is welcome to it, he will only last so long, in my opinion a part timer probably looking to earn a quick buck to subsidise his dole money, as far as i am concerned for that size of job in this part of the world at that price, it's border line slave labour, i would forget it and move on, there is so much work out there, all you gotta do is go get it matt.
-
cheers for all the advice guys it has been very helpful!
matt
-
Meanwhile Matt.........you think.........how long would it have taken to complete.
Slavery !!!!!!!!!at £100 to £150 plus per hour.......get real......this kind of comment totally misleads : -
The public viewers of the forums.
The people who are in their early stages of the business.
rob
-
1600sq feet = 178sq yds X £1.50 for commercial work = £267
-
brucie that price of £267 is spot on and i would veiw that as a decent price that is why i said £240 to get your foot in the door.on commercial work i think people have to be realistic to what businesses are willing to pay.
-
£1.50 A SQ/YARD????????? YOU ARE STILL LIVING IN THE DARK AGES MAN!
IF THATS ALL YOU CAN GET, YOU ARE WELCOME TO IT! :o
-
furthermore, for all the public viewers of this forum, if you are covering the 178 sq/yds that quick to earn 100 or 150 per hour, you must be giving it a quick flick over and your gone, so i have to disagree with your comments and believe you are the one trying to mislead.
-
why does anybody care what anybody else earns??? ???
if someone works for peanuts.........then that is their choice :-X
personally i prefer steak!!!! ;D
-
jimmy i think an area 7yds by 10yds is easily acheivable in an hours work even if the carpet is extremely dirty ok you would have maybe 20 minutes set up and put away time on top of that but at £1.50 a yd that is £105 for say an hour and halfs work so if that is working for peanuts i dont mind being the monkey doing it.
i think what people have to remember is that large areas are much easier and quicker to clean in that your not moving things around as much and pipes etc getting in the way, also your not wasting time travelling from small job to small job setting up and putting away but spending more time in productive cleaning so my price would reflect that.
-
trevor.......
i would work for those peanuts too ;D ;D
-
All I can say about your sarcasm and condescending attitude, J T is that you are well named !
-
and hes a fat unfunny liverpudlian!! ;)
-
Matt commercial work is little different from domestic...........in the main, it's simply bigger and, if it's new to you and you really want to break into it, I'd suggest you follow your instincts, rather than depend on conflicting opinions.
In my world..............you learn, then practice, then become proficient and only then do you deserve to charge for your services, anything, other than low rates.
You will find many posts encouraging you to .............GET AS MUCH AS YOU CAN FOR YOUR SERVICES, OR CHARGE WHAT YOUR WORTH, OR, WHATEVER !
I doubt very much, that the people advocating the above, would follow their own advice, if confronted be an inexperienced novice at their door, offering to..................pave their driveway / landscape their garden / fix their roof / or carry out any other service, AT PREMIUM RATES, OF COURSE!!!!!
A fair number of people have been posting, recently, the opinion, that you should learn and gain experience, before charging more than average prices and I agree.
But.............what's moderate / cheap / expensive ? All down to personal opinion, but, where do you rate c/c 's in the general marketplace?
Should they have a higher status / worth, than car mechanics, or firemen, or police, or armed forces, or nurses...................etc,etc ?
If you think they / you have...................please explain to me why you believe this, as I simply can't come to grips with how anyone, in this industry, imagines for one second, that they truly have a higher value, than the above, or others who rescue lives, put wrecked bodies together, and so on.
The people above work for around £10 - £15 per hour ( after a qualifying period ) some of the posts on here are suggesting carpet cleaners should be charging about 10 times that amount and think people charging around 3 times those rates, are monkeys, or cowboys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So just who pays people like Jimmy Tarbuck those fantastic fees and why would they do so ?
-
Matt
Fact of life Carpet Cleaners charge different prices.
I take time over a job but I do not charge high prices,
Higher prices come but you need experience Just because someone charges Higher Prices does not mean he is not a Cowboy
Some customers call high price cleaners Rip Off Merchants
I'm just trying to illustrate insults about fellow cleaners can go both ways so its best not to use them.
The right price for ou for commercial cleaning is the price level customers start acepting your qoutes and then increase umtill you reach price resostance. its basic Economics Law of Supply and Demand
-
Matt
What can I say so many variables which dominate the commercial world but you will really love the commercial world if you get into it (hard work, but the reward are good) as for pricing site survey is a must until you fully established with your contacts (I’ve even dropped £100 to get the job but the below had an influence)
What to charge I would check out there payment terms and price accordingly (no good if you are living on overdraft due to them! bank manager quote over trading but am sure you know about this)
Good luck in the future.
spindle2k
Go any where near one my contact I will let your tyres down, by the way did get the job in BH had to up it a bit a porty job and had to pay 50p :'( parking attendant did not believe me that will cost them. ;D
Len
-
carpetguy...The people above work for around £10 - £15 per hour ( after a qualifying period ) some of the posts on here are suggesting carpet cleaners should be charging about 10 times that amount and think people charging around 3 times those rates, are monkeys, or cowboys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So just who pays people like Jimmy Tarbuck those fantastic fees and why would they do so ?
........
maybe you should go back to being employed as this seems to be the scenario thats sits most comfortably in your mind set, i for one am in business to provide the best possible service and result at the same time as actually making money, as for the answer to your final question.....THE PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT PAYING YOU!......enjoy your peanuts fellas.
-
dont know yet len posted quote early today................. ;D ;D
decided that i really dont want the job..........filthy....so i have made it worth my while if i get it!!!!!!! ;D ;D
i didnt talk to your contact....................... :-X
but you still punctured my tyres.................. :'( :'(
no parking at r and p??bh?........a whole 50p!! :o :o
p.s got an invoice for you !!!!!
-
I do a lot of commercial work and would've quoted £200 if the room was clear of furniture and £300 if I had to move it. So that's £1.25/£2.00 per metre.
Commercial is a different world from domestic and it's a breeze to clean one large empty room.
If anyone thinks this is cheap my hourly rate is anywhere between £80 and £120 per hour and a minimum call out charge of £50 for domestic and £80 for commercial (plus VAT).
I'd probably use micro-splitters and charly pads with the use of a Host machine to agitate where necessary - thus faster drying times.
The quality of my clean is always excellent and my customers are always delighted with the results - I have two written testimonials from Masterfoods (a division of Mars), among others.
So, I'd be a lot cheaper, be more than satisfied with what I'd be earning, and have a happy customer who would almost certainly have me back on a regular basis.
Does this make me a cowboy operator (or someone who knows their business)?
Chris
-
Matt,
At the end of the day you know what the other company quoted. You also know a few contact names within the hotel and you also know when it was last cleaned.
You can contact them in 6 or 12 months time, reminding them that their carpet needs re-doing. You'll also have a better idea of a price they are likely to accept.
-
calmore, funny enough mate i dont know any off that i they didnt even seem to know the guys name who was doing the job in the end let alone how much he was going to do it for which is a shame.
matt
-
J T
I'm afraid I don't know anyone who pays their employees £40/ £50 an hour and neither do you.
The fact that 90% of carpet cleaners probably charge nearer £15/£20 puts them in an income bracket, well above the average UK income, a long way above peanut level.
A very small minority of people in this industry, earn around £100 an hour on a regular basis, but the way they achieve this, is public knowledge and they are unlikely to post the kind of drivel, you choose to.
Unless you can justify your comments and stop making sad remarks, which are offensive to many hard working individuals and unhelpful to newcomers, you might be better to button it.
I should add that I am neither a monkey, nor a novice, but simply try to give advice to people which will benefit them, at start up, or early stages of any business.
-
Rob, whilst I agree in your comments about the other services that earn I think you said 10 or 15 pounds an hour. I must add that, 1) they chose to be in that "job" and 2) to a degree they are in a controlled enviroment so to speak. On the other side of the coin we as self employed carpet cleaners are 1) have chosen to be in this "job" and 2) are not in a controlled enviroment. This being the case we therefore do not have to work for 10 or 15 an hour. I refuse to work or even answer a phone at 10 pounds an hour but I have that choice, they dont. So if you are going to compare "them and us" then compare that we have chosen a "job" that we can earn many times more than 10 or 15 an hour, whereas they have chosen to do what it is they have. But again, my Deb earns £15,000 a year being an orthopaedic trama nurse which is not acceptable by any means. Does she have a choice to raise her prices? No. Does she pick and chose who she works on? No. I have the choice to raise my prices and I can chose who I work for. That is why I chose ths business to be in. I also comment if you dont know people who are paid £50 an hour then you must have a limited knowledge of people. From your postings which usually make a lot of sense I don't think that is the case so why make a comment such as you did. When I have people working for me I wouldn't insult them by paying them any less than 50 an hour and usually pay considerably more. I am not into polls but if I was how many carpet cleaners on here work for 15 an hour. I certainy hope no one does. For any one new to this business reading these and other posts they need to know that 15, 20 and even 25 an hour will not be enough to run a business. To be a "duh carpet cleaner" then yes, to run a business absolutely not. There are ex-police men and women who now work for the Davvid Bechums of this world charging a lot more than 15 an hour. Your suggestion Rob is that they should work for Davvid for the same 10 or 15 an hour they did when they were "normal" policemen and or women. However the truth of the matter is they are doing the same thing for much much more because of their choice to do so. You and maybe others may not like the way J T is commenting but most of what he has said is quite right. Anyway, lastly and this should be helpful as that is all that is meant by it. If anyone is aspiring to be a carpet cleaner and set up a business and work for 20 pounds an hour, might I suggest you find another job because at that amount of monies being earned you WILL not make it. The lads working at the tip bring home more than you would if thats all you want to charge. It doesnt matter what other people earn, be it another carpet cleaner or a servant of the government. Best, Dave..... P.S. I am adding this on Saturday afternoon around 16:45....... I was also thinking, to the mentioned people who are making 10 or 15 an hour (which granted is wrong) i.e. the nurses and police services or anyone else Rob wants to mention,,,,,,,, they are not running business's with their earnings where as what we earn per hour or job has to run a business, pay all fuel, chemicals, insurances, phone bills, ware and tare, taxes, adverstising and anything else that you can think of. After all these and only after all these you still need at least 20 an hour to have made it all worthwhile. How you can start at 10 or 15 then pay all the above beats me. This is why "we" earn maybe 5 or 10 times what they do. What is wrong with this entire picture is that it is they who are not getting paid enough, not that we get paid too much. Best, again, Dave.
-
I Charge between £1.00 a sqm - £4.00 depending on the size and situation. I do a 6,500 sq m school at £1.00 a sq m and easily do 500-600 metres a day truckmounted. i wold normally be able to DEEP clean a 1600 sq ft capet in around 2 hours easily. £285-£295 thank you very much and off to my next job a domestic lounge 25 metres @£3.00 a metre and h.s.l £125.00 for another hour and a halfs work.
I wouldnt get get too involved with how much per sq metre you charge for commercial - at the end of the day, it is how much money you can earn in a certain ammount of time. I priced a big lounge and dining room up for a residential home the other day and it was a really good axminster and was immaculate 300 m @ £1.60 sq m = £480 for a couple of hours 2 afternoons next week.
Clive
-
carpetguy, how many times are you continually going to miss the point, you can insult me as much as you like, i have been at the very top of the cleaning game for 20 years now and have heard your tail of woe on many occasions, in fact thats where i started, and thank god i learnt quickly, liahona has already marked your card in his last post with everything i needed to respond to, so no need for me to drivel any longer.
The cleaning of carpets, upholstery curtains, leather ....whatever, thats the real easy part, running a succesful, PROFITABLE, rewarding business, whilst still managing to posess some semblance of a life is the real challenge.
I AM MOST GRATEFUL YOU HAVE NOT BEEN IN CHARGE OF MY SHIP, OR ELSE IT MAY OF SUNK RATHER RAPIDLY.
Dave, you took the words right out of my mouth. Nice to see another realist on these pages.
-
I added to my post above, because I left out an important "case". Best, Dave.
-
Jimmy T
I am not missing the point, but it seems to me that either my use of the English language is inadequate in print, or some people, as I've said before tend to " skim " or read selectively, when reading.
I have no tale of woe.........I was clearing over £2000 per week over 20 years ago, while running a, clearly successful business, in the cleaning industry. That equates to around £6000 per week in todays figures.................. Also I was responsible for turning around a business that was trading in deficit, to a big enough success, for it to be sold for £23,000,000 two years later.
So I know a little about the running of a business.
What I continually state............is the need for new people in this, or any other business, to LEARN and gain experience before trying to charge TOP DOLLAR and yes, I will always be suspicious of people who make extravagant claims, particularly when they occompany them with sarcasm, which I regard as pathetic and hadly likely to encourage new people trying to find their way.
It's nothing to do with what I charge ..............my posts are generally aimed at helping new people, with what I regard as sound advice, based on learning and gaining experience, before attempting to charge higher prices and this would apply, even if they are able to purchase expensive equipment.
Dave
You are also clearly missing the point..........I'm not suggesting anyone should be charging £10 _ £15 per hour in this business, I did suggest that the majority earn nearer £20 an hour, but in my opinion, around £40 - £50 was an acceptable average hourly rate, for the higher earners, who occasionally got around £100 per hour. Not the top earners.
Just a few years ago the ALLTEC NETWORK did a roadshow type of presentation, which focussed on " how to take your business to the £1000 per week level" , which was obviously in excess of what most were earning.
At the meeting I attended, I was surprised at the low prices most were charging.
As I've already mentioned...........it's the arrogant and condescending manner of some one who clearly regards himself to be a mature, experienced and successful individual.
Perhaps it's just poor communication skills, or someone who does'nt have to, or wish to consider the less ambitious or talented.
Then again, maybe I'm too kind and giving, to others.....................but I should point out...........the c/c side of our activities only accounts these days for around 20% of the business.
We employ 16 staff and have increased turnover each of the past five years to approximately, £500k in the current year.
-
Rob, I have never known you to contradict your self so often. This is or has gone on long enough but I point out...... The first paragraph directed at me in the above post was all back pedalling. ........ In your other posts you did indeed suggest we should charge the same as 10 or 15 an hour you just went an odd way of saying it. You then went to comment that you knew of no one nor did J T that would earn 50 an hour. Now you are suggesting its an acceptable wage. Well which is it, not heard of? Or acceptable. As to the majority earning 20 an hour, nonsense. I use to enjoy reading your posts as I have always felt you had a lot of good things to say. However with this post and the nonsense you posted about cfr I am dissappointed in what you have to say. If newcomers take advice of what you advise I am sure they will look elsewhere for a business as and again if they charge what you think is all we are worth then they will quickly go out of a business that could do them quite well. Best, Dave.
-
carpetguy, i am glad you say you have had such success, unfortunatley your statements on these pages do not echo such folly. According to your posts your bussiness accumin leaves much to be desired , also your threatening attitude or is it over defensive statements, i'm not sure, leaves a slippery feel and nasty after taste.
My confidence, not as you perceive, arrogance, is what has got me so far in this game.
I think this thread has run it's course, and getting back to the original post, ignoring carpetguys derogatory comments, Matt sell yourself, have confidence in yourself, i sleep well at night charging what i charge, my clients are always happy and would not dream of hiring anyone else, as carpetguy has so clearly shouted out , there are two sides to every coin, i only hope you choose the shiny side....good luck.
-
My eyesight must be failing along with my memory, as your interpretation of what I've written doesn't correspond to what I think I wrote, or what's on my monitor.
On the other hand ................
What's upsetting you about CFR's, they are excellent machines?
I'm amused at being referred to as aggressive or threatening, by someone who prompted my response, by being arrogant and aggressive to another, who was seeking seeking advice !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wonder who he felt was giving the most useful advice, considering his current experience !
This is my last comment on this matter
JT
Your most recent comment, is exactly how you have come across to me, when you replied to someone seeking help and assurance.
a certain gent wrote, a couple of centuries ago " Oh would the power, the giftie gie us. to see ourselves as ithers see us" slightly modified to allow you to understand it.
Have a good life
-
carpetguy....I AGREE THIS SHOULD BE YOUR LAST POST ON THIS MATTER, AS THE WHOLE YOU HAVE DUG FOR YOURSELF IS GETTING LARGER BY THE POST YOUR LAST COMMENT ON THIS MATTER DOES NOT DESERVE A RESPONSE, SO I WON'T. ::)
I WISH MATT THE VERY BEST OF LUCK...EVEN THOUGH HE IS POTENTIALLY ONE OF MY COMPETITORS
-
I haven't read all the posts on this thread (got better things to do :)) But I guess the just of it is about pricing.
As a supplier I get to know a little more about the people and businesses that make up this little industry of ours.
I think you can spread it into about 4 categories. By far the largest group I would say are the one man bands who make a resonable living and sometimes charge far too low a price. These make a wage which is probably around average but have the freedom that self employment brings.
Then there are the one man bands who charge medium to high prices and have an excellent image, marketing etc. They probably make an above average wage in excess of what they could earn in a job, with a few making exceptional money.
Next there are the multi van operations, including carpet cleaning franchises. Working by yourself, unless you are very lucky, you are restricted by the amount you can earn. By having staff and more capacity the opportunity to earn increased profits is available.
I have customers in this bracket earning 150-250k (turnover).
Lastly are the franchises such as Chem-Dry and Rainbow etc who really depend a lot on the fire & flood work this brings with it. I have a customer who needs to earn 38k per month to break even.
I would say this is probably the same across most industries.People have different expectations, skills and living expenses.
Good business men make good money. Thats how they manage to buy villas in Spain and new 4 x 4's. They aren't nescessarily the most expensive but don't work for peanuts.
Thats my personal take on it, I may be wrong.
-
Thanks jimmy. I didnt relise you were so close to me that you see me as a competitor? I thought i knew who my local competitors were not that it makes any difference to me.
Matt
-
Matt i do not see you as a competitor, maybe if you get it right, as my words say, i see you as a POTENTIAL competitor, with respect, there is a huge difference, as yet you are still merely another contender, to be in with a fighting chance you must firstly choose the right path! but thats what this thread is all about , isn't it.
good luck
-
The calm voice of reason John, which is what I usually aspire to, but on this occasion it seems I've fallen into a hole !
rob
-
John is always calm. Rob, with what John has said kind of puts you farther into the hole that you dug for yourself. Which again is very unusual for you. Just this time not only did you end up in a hole you supplied the shovel to do so. John has emphasised (excuse the spelling) everything that I was saying. Kind of blows your theory of 90% of cleaners charging as little as you have suggested.
With regards cfr. I have never said they were "bad" machines the discussion was about bigger is better and as cfr have changed and rightly so to bigger and better machines proved again that I was right. I know you seam to struggle with what I say but if I argue a point it is because I am right. I argued and the other gentlemen and yourself proved me right by your own comments.
I love discussions and opinions as a lot can be learned from them, both the right way and maybe wrong way to do things. This is how we all learn, you and me both. You have again, always given such good advice on here especially to the new people starting up. I just feel on this occasion you were extremely guiding them the wrong way to have a profitable business. Best, Dave.
-
Rob, P.S. you ever going to get your web site done? Or is it my computer that cant get it to come up? When I click on your web thingy nothing happens, best, Dave.
-
Good morning Dave
Other than to say, we clearly take a different translation from the written word, on occasions, or possibly think we have communicated something clearly and expressed ourselves the way we meant, only to find, it's not being received by the reader in the expected way.
This is not to say that some people are always correct and others are always wrong, but sometimes, particularly on a forum, where it can be difficult to express yourself clearly
What John Kelly has written is much the same, as what I was, or thought I was communicating clearly, but obviously, not.
The subject of pricing will continue to be raised, regularly and will always result in a huge gulf, between the top and the bottom, my only contention and this has always been my contention, is that anyone starting up a service business, should expect a transition period, while they develop their skills and gain experience.
During this period, when they are novices, they should not expect to earn at the highest level, but if they have exceptional abilities, they may ascend to the higher level of earnings, fairly rapidly, but.....they will only represent around 5% of the total.