Clean It Up
UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Ste M on September 17, 2009, 10:12:03 pm
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Hello just wondered how you all turn up to jobs, do you all have sign written vans or cars and all logo'd up clothing? I am just about to order some polo shirts and also jumpers for the winter and i was wondering if this is how you all operate or do you just turn up in your old clothes like i have been doing for the last few years.
Do you think your appearance makes a difference to how your customers see's you? Do you use busines cards as well?
sorry for all the questions but small things can make a big difference
ste
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old clothes? like "jim royal" ? ;D ;D
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
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I think it makes a big sub conscious impression if you look neat and well presented, logod van and signed clothing helps too i reckon although i still need to get that done we wear black polos and black sweaters though and black trousers/waterproofs but i am going to get some embroidered once part timer does more days
Getting a van in january too so that will be signed from day one and i will be much happier about appearance then
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If you look like a pro, you can charge like one too :).
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Saw a guy in the toilets at Morrisons today......left without washing his hands :-X :-X :-X Logo'ed polo shirt.....went ouitside and carried on cleaning the windows.
Regardless of his appearance, i still had him down as disgusting after seeing that. Sometimes i think it's your conduct that counts more.
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I think there is some merit in looking pro and feeling pro.
I drive a non-signwritten, white dispatch and i do feel better than when i turned up in my old escort van. Throw a high vis vest on and i'm the man. ;D
If you look like a pro, you can charge like one too :).
I think so too. I have very few quotes queried nowadays.
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
This is also true.
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
this maybe true for SOME residntial but commercial is differnt and it defo counts now some may sa commercial is crap in todays climate but that is bull poo my business has turn over has increased nearly double in 9 months all commercial.
one of he reasons is image, Uniform, sign written vans, ID cards<, employees having respect for ther surroundings and th employees being NVQ trained hasnt hindered my process......
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
this maybe true for SOME residntial but commercial is differnt and it defo counts now some may sa commercial is crap in todays climate but that is bull poo my business has turn over has increased nearly double in 9 months all commercial.
one of he reasons is image, Uniform, sign written vans, ID cards<, employees having respect for ther surroundings and th employees being NVQ trained hasnt hindered my process......
do they really care ? ? ?
i turn up at commercial quotes in my VW golf, they might see me arrive and park in the car park, they might not ( my guess is they dont ) i wear a tidy T-shirt ( normally of a surf brand ) and in the summer a pair of knee length shorts ( in the winter a pair of jeans ) i give them the spiel about the H&S side of things, hand over my standard RA and MS sheets, the waffle about how long i have been trading and my methods and what i expect from my side of things, then hand them the quote ( or walk around to look at job )
they do not see my van till i arrive to clean, i honestly think they have more important things to do than look around a van with a tank in it, they just want the job done and no fuss for themselves, just a invoice / cheque to sign
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If you want to do local low price terraced, semi homes, shop fronts, industrial units etc then fine wear what you like..
However if you want to start doing real big homes million plus and large office blocks and the like then you need to look, act and be a professional. No one with money is going to look at you and say yes please scruff working from a beat up van/family car clean my windows.
Its all down to how you deal and how you want to take your business.
First impressions count every time.. you may have all the experience and H&S training etc in the world - but people are gonna remember you if you look dodgy.
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I think first impressions count, so I always have company logo branded clothing, van and paperwork/correspondence.
I think this helps when pricing domestic, for the customers who appreciate a professional job anyway. (And more importantly the customers who are willing to pay for it)
Definitely for larger jobs and commercial work.
It costs me about £6 for a nice polo shirt with company name/logo embroidered on. Cheaper than buying standard shop bought clothing so why not ???
From here by the way, very good, and everythings properly embroidered on in with the great prices -
http://www.eliteindustrial.co.uk/
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I think first impressions count, so I always have company logo branded clothing, van and paperwork/correspondence.
I think this helps when pricing domestic, for the customers who appreciate a professional job anyway. (And more importantly the customers who are willing to pay for it)
Definitely for larger jobs and commercial work.
It costs me about £6 for a nice polo shirt with company name/logo embroidered on. Cheaper than buying standard shop bought clothing so why not ???
From here by the way, very good, and everythings properly embroidered on in with the great prices -
http://www.eliteindustrial.co.uk/
You say that, but £6 each, if you buy 15 or more! So that's £90, for horrid poly/cotton shirts, granted they have yr logo on. :)
However, I buy 100% cotton polo shirts, as many or as few as I like, for just £4 a shirt. Okay, not logo'd, but always same colour so uniform is recognisable. Also, 100% cotton is a lot more comfortable than sweaty man made! 8)
I also don't wear jeans anymore, and I do feel more professional, so that will come across to customer.
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I think first impressions count, so I always have company logo branded clothing, van and paperwork/correspondence.
I think this helps when pricing domestic, for the customers who appreciate a professional job anyway. (And more importantly the customers who are willing to pay for it)
Definitely for larger jobs and commercial work.
It costs me about £6 for a nice polo shirt with company name/logo embroidered on. Cheaper than buying standard shop bought clothing so why not ???
From here by the way, very good, and everythings properly embroidered on in with the great prices -
http://www.eliteindustrial.co.uk/
You say that, but £6 each, if you buy 15 or more! So that's £90, for horrid poly/cotton shirts, granted they have yr logo on. :)
However, I buy 100% cotton polo shirts, as many or as few as I like, for just £4 a shirt. Okay, not logo'd, but always same colour so uniform is recognisable. Also, 100% cotton is a lot more comfortable than sweaty man made! 8)
I also don't wear jeans anymore, and I do feel more professional, so that will come across to customer.
The clothing I buy from the link I posted is very good quality, comfortable, long lasting and looks good. For about £6 each that's a bargain. About 2 years ago I bought a logo embroidered fleece from them (it was a Regatta brand) can't remember exactly but about £20, I'm still wearing it now and it's very nice. I even wear my branded clothing when not working, it's a good advert and helps get your name around / market awareness.
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Ohh, and on that site, embroidered polo shirts from £3.95.
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Ohh, and on that site, embroidered polo shirts from £3.95.
Yeah, but you have to buy 100!!!! :o
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Ohh, and on that site, embroidered polo shirts from £3.95.
Yeah, but you have to buy 100!!!! :o
;D Ok, £6 then ;D Just seen the £3.95 price and thought it was a good point to make, should have researched my facts lol.
Still, I think for the price you can get logo embroidered workwear I think it's worth wearing. I have fleeces, polo shirts, short sleeved shirts, a couple of caps and all sorts.
If I'm turning up for a quote I like to have company branded workwear on, along with the paperwork/cards.
Obviously for a very large contract you wouldn't wear a polo shirt, more like a shirt/jacket.
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I think first impressions count, so I always have company logo branded clothing, van and paperwork/correspondence.
I think this helps when pricing domestic, for the customers who appreciate a professional job anyway. (And more importantly the customers who are willing to pay for it)
Definitely for larger jobs and commercial work.
It costs me about £6 for a nice polo shirt with company name/logo embroidered on. Cheaper than buying standard shop bought clothing so why not ???
From here by the way, very good, and everythings properly embroidered on in with the great prices -
http://www.eliteindustrial.co.uk/
You say that, but £6 each, if you buy 15 or more! So that's £90, for horrid poly/cotton shirts, granted they have yr logo on. :)
However, I buy 100% cotton polo shirts, as many or as few as I like, for just £4 a shirt. Okay, not logo'd, but always same colour so uniform is recognisable. Also, 100% cotton is a lot more comfortable than sweaty man made! 8)
I also don't wear jeans anymore, and I do feel more professional, so that will come across to customer.
logo'd clothing can be put down as advertising and some can be put a PPE when doing accounts.
Normal clothing cannot be claimed. So there is also a tax advantage to having a professional looking uniform.
However if you are just looking at the money cost of a uniform, rather than the benefits it brings to you, i think you have already made a decision about your business and how you want others to see you.
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If you want to do local low price terraced, semi homes, shop fronts, industrial units etc then fine wear what you like..
However if you want to start doing real big homes million plus and large office blocks and the like then you need to look, act and be a professional. No one with money is going to look at you and say yes please scruff working from a beat up van/family car clean my windows.
Its all down to how you deal and how you want to take your business.
First impressions count every time.. you may have all the experience and H&S training etc in the world - but people are gonna remember you if you look dodgy.
looking dodgy, who mentioned looking dodgy
its funny how many people survive without the logo's, you mention "real big homes million plus and large office blocks" funny really as i wear a RL fleece and i have them mentioned jobs, infact a few very nice big houses, the type with swimming pool and tennis courts, oh i allso so the "local low price terraced, semi homes, shop fronts, industrial units" that you seem to look down your nose at ::)
some customers want the local guy who has built a name for himself, they dont want the shiney van and uniform ( i know i think it smacks of franchise )
for the record, i have printed T-shirts from vista print, but people only really see it in the summer
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surviving in business and growing in business are totally different......i prferethe latter
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surviving in business and growing in business are totally different......i prferethe latter
most window cleaning business grow's, its the nature of doing a good job and getting recommended by customers
then again, when you are at a point you cannot expand anymore, thats where i currently am, and i am 100 % happy with that as i have no wish to employ, i guess that makes my business a failure in some eyes
just out of interest, when i phone windowcleaningstockport and your guys turn up from the last job being done by rcwcleaningservicesltd with the rcwcleaningservicesltd logo on, do they get changed ? ? ? ? or do you have magnetic signs for the van and velcro logo's for the uniform ? ? ? ;) ( is it anything like the bucks fizz eurovision song contest outfit change ? ? ?
edited with thanks to john tomkins for pointing out the error, buzz fizz, i dont know ;)
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Matt you do talk some rubbish sometimes.....
Everyone knows its "Bucks Fizz" ;D ;D ;D
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Matt you do talk some rubbish sometimes.....
Everyone knows its "Bucks Fizz" ;D ;D ;D
thanks ;) buzz fizz, i dont know what i was thinking
just for the record
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACePi441ds
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Ahhhhh those were the days :)
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embroided polo shirts , sweatshirts and coats smart trousers i also use business cards of vistaprint for calling cards , no battered old van just a good highly polished car, presentation counts
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
Matt agree with you on most things ,but not this one.
make an effort to look smart and professional
signed van helps with the image.
we have polo shirts and tshirts and huddys with our logo on them.
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
Matt agree with you on most things ,but not this one.
make an effort to look smart and professional
signed van helps with the image.
we have polo shirts and tshirts and huddys with our logo on them.
Huddys! Great image that.
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The question is:
Who are you trying to impress?
The customers?
Or other window cleaners?
I have had it said to me (from custy's) that too flashy an image, and you know they are going to be expensive, as you are paying for all of the frills!
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
Matt agree with you on most things ,but not this one.
make an effort to look smart and professional
signed van helps with the image.
we have polo shirts and tshirts and huddys with our logo on them.
but you can still look smart and not have logo'ed clothes, i feel i look smart in my Ralph lauren fleece and a pair of tesco's jeans and a pair of black work boots
i have a van with 4 magnetic signs on ( now i know people have slagged them off in the past, for reason i didnt get )
i dont think my customers care though, i really dont, most of my new work is though recommendation for being honest ( a very big selling point ) and doing a good job
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At the end of the day its what your happy with.
Matts happy the way he runs his business, its not written in ink that every business has to grow and grow.
I see alot of builders just having enough work for them to comfortably live from.
No point being the richest man in the grave yard.
Yet others run their business in a totally different way, signed vans, uniforms etc thats all good if you want to expand a lot.
If you are just comfortable with just the work you have then why do you need signwriting?
The Difference in my eyes is the ones without signwritten vans and uniform are just self employed window cleaners, where as the guys with the signwritten vans and uniforms etc are looked at as a company.
Just my view on this so don't take offence.
Matt
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
Matt agree with you on most things ,but not this one.
make an effort to look smart and professional
signed van helps with the image.
we have polo shirts and tshirts and huddys with our logo on them.
but you can still look smart and not have logo'ed clothes, i feel i look smart in my Ralph lauren fleece and a pair of tesco's jeans and a pair of black work boots
i have a van with 4 magnetic signs on ( now i know people have slagged them off in the past, for reason i didnt get )
i dont think my customers care though, i really dont, most of my new work is though recommendation for being honest ( a very big selling point ) and doing a good job
Matt you can't go around Thinking your customers don't care. try talking to your customers as just mention it in passing conversation.
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burbery hat peaked umbro t and nike trackys but i allways tuck the bottoms in my socks.
8)
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look a pro -- be a pro
think big -- be big
and other pooty silly statements
most will not care if you shave daily, most will not care if you wear jeans and most will not care if you drive a car or a van
Matt agree with you on most things ,but not this one.
make an effort to look smart and professional
signed van helps with the image.
we have polo shirts and tshirts and huddys with our logo on them.
but you can still look smart and not have logo'ed clothes, i feel i look smart in my Ralph lauren fleece and a pair of tesco's jeans and a pair of black work boots
i have a van with 4 magnetic signs on ( now i know people have slagged them off in the past, for reason i didnt get )
i dont think my customers care though, i really dont, most of my new work is though recommendation for being honest ( a very big selling point ) and doing a good job
Matt you can't go around Thinking your customers don't care. try talking to your customers as just mention it in passing conversation.
i do, i pride myself with chatting to my customers, i know i do it too much ( infact i have cut it right back so i earn a little more )
i am not sure if you have taken the "i dont think my customers care though" out of content, they care about a good job, but most couldnt care about if i wear a logo'ed jacket or a pair of dickies work trousers, as i have said, i have built a round that people accept me as a honest family man who is earning a wage to look after my family with a disney / orlando holiday every 18 months, my customers allways ask about my children and how my oldest is enjoying school etc etc, they then pass my details on to friends who will know the service i offer and what i am about
now i pick up commercail work with a tag line about the service and standard i work at, i had a client phone me 2 weeks ago asking if i was the window cleaner who " insert tag line " , it made me laugh, as they know what they get and thats why they offer me work
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Fair play Matt.
I was just pointing out, it is foolish to think you know what the customer wants rather than actually knowing what they want.
Taking my kids to Disneyland paris next year, Told it would of been cheaper to of gone to the real one. lol
How have you found work this year?
I found it was slow until about may/june then started to pick up and now its flooding in.
Matt
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surviving in business and growing in business are totally different......i prferethe latter
most window cleaning business grow's, its the nature of doing a good job and getting recommended by customers
then again, when you are at a point you cannot expand anymore, thats where i currently am, and i am 100 % happy with that as i have no wish to employ, i guess that makes my business a failure in some eyes
just out of interest, when i phone windowcleaningstockport and your guys turn up from the last job being done by rcwcleaningservicesltd with the rcwcleaningservicesltd logo on, do they get changed ? ? ? ? or do you have magnetic signs for the van and velcro logo's for the uniform ? ? ? ;) ( is it anything like the bucks fizz eurovision song contest outfit change ? ? ?
edited with thanks to john tomkins for pointing out the error, buzz fizz, i dont know ;)
not sure what you mean to be honest who is window cleaner stockport???
who says most window cleaners businesses grow??? you??? well in the past when iv advertised for a vacancy at least 50% of the applicant have had there rounds but for somestrange reason they havent any moree??
now matt i wouldt say your were a failure we obviuosly differ on the point of uniform looking the part and being the part i know for a fact its help my business grow and thats all that counts.
Now Johnny who through you a peanut.........
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Fair play Matt.
I was just pointing out, it is foolish to think you know what the customer wants rather than actually knowing what they want.
Taking my kids to Disneyland paris next year, Told it would of been cheaper to of gone to the real one. lol
How have you found work this year?
I found it was slow until about may/june then started to pick up and now its flooding in.
Matt
fair enough, i do spent too much time chatting to customers, when i had my hernia op, i didnt get back around to some of my round for allmost 4 months, they understood i was having the op and waited, that to me says that my relationship with my customers is fairly good
ref disney, it does work out cheaper to do to orlando than paris, if you work out the cost per day, its a fair bit cheaper, WDW ( disney orlando ) have some cracking deals on right now, we have nevr been to pairs disney, no need imho, as orlando ticks every box
ref work, i havent picked much up on the domestic front as my round consists of streets where i do 80 - 90 % of all the houses, i have filled in a few gaps, i now only take on the bigger stuff outside my round, commercially i have noticed they have all cut back on the preq of the cleans, i have picked up work for management companies, i have allways avoided subby work ( which i feel management companies are akin to ) BUT i decided i would bang in good prices and if they took them, great, if not, nothing lost
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surviving in business and growing in business are totally different......i prferethe latter
most window cleaning business grow's, its the nature of doing a good job and getting recommended by customers
then again, when you are at a point you cannot expand anymore, thats where i currently am, and i am 100 % happy with that as i have no wish to employ, i guess that makes my business a failure in some eyes
just out of interest, when i phone windowcleaningstockport and your guys turn up from the last job being done by rcwcleaningservicesltd with the rcwcleaningservicesltd logo on, do they get changed ? ? ? ? or do you have magnetic signs for the van and velcro logo's for the uniform ? ? ? ;) ( is it anything like the bucks fizz eurovision song contest outfit change ? ? ?
edited with thanks to john tomkins for pointing out the error, buzz fizz, i dont know ;)
not sure what you mean to be honest who is window cleaner stockport???
one of your sites if for window cleaner stockport, now if a client used the site, they might expect you to be called window cleaner stockport
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have a look at the site you will then see its still rcw cleaning services so they will know exacly what there getting ;)
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If you look like a pro, you can charge like one too :).
I totally agree, I think appearance is very important.
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have a look at the site you will then see its still rcw cleaning services so they will know exacly what there getting ;)
i know, i did
still the URL might confuse them, though to be honest, my remark was said more in jest than a serious way
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How did I get those schools and that car manufacturer's offices and that brick factory and those other firms on my round and all those professional peoples' big houses when I had my ten year old estate car with a trolley system?
It wasn't my appearance I can assure you - perhaps it was cuz I kud spel on my kwotes and my gramma was proper?
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Dungarees, Frankie Says Relax t-shirt and Ugg boots for me 8).
Gerry.
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gold is that aimed at anyone?
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???
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gold is that aimed at anyone?
Everyone except himself.
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why is it so hard to swallow that being uniformed and proffesional is a good way to present yourself
Okay some of you turn up in surf gear and a boy racer and still bag the job you obviously are confident and price right
But i know that in my area (manchester) i would feel much more confident turning up looking the part than not
Why would all the big companys do it if it was a waste of profit???
What a ridiculous thing to suggest to new starters that people turn up to a quote in casual wear !! No business man in any other trade would say - dont bother looking professional for that all important quote wear your scruffs and just pretend you know what your saying the manager of the building wont care as long as your quote is the cheapest
Turn up looking the part and price as keenly as you can and the job will be yours
And i think all the chat is bull crap if someone rang you tommorow with a big quote i dont care what you say you will do your best to impress
If you dont you dont deserve the work
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its really down to how you stand,how you smile and talk the talk more than what you wear in the windowworld. just my opinion
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( surviving in business and growing in business are totally different......i prefere latter ) Ronnie has hit the nail on the head. Uniform is not were you are comming from but were you are going to.Look as if you are on the up and you will go up. Clients see this too.So for me its uniform . On e bay you can get 2 polos 1 sweatshirt and fleece with logo for +/- 36 pound not the best quality but great for a start .
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another plus for uniform is when you go to old folks houses i tell them it will only be me cleaning windys and if anybody else turns and says they working for me they will know straight away i tell them as they will be uniformed , few dodgy folk about at moment quite a theiving