[Doug Holloway]

Hi Guys

Several points.

If the customers didn't think it was worth it they wouldn't pay it.

I estimate only 1 in 10 CC's make it and become established, so it cant be that easy.

It's often knowing what not to do which makes the difference.

Having said all that I have had my second best week ever and I wouldn't mention how much to my friends because they just wouldn't believe me.

So here we have the conundrum, easy job , top money, both can't be true!

Cheers

Doug

[nevil]

I am happy for the carpet cleaning side of our business to pull in an average of £25 per hour (per person) worked. This to me is fair and reasonable when all things are considered.
 
Pressure washing aside, it is also way above what we can get for all other sides of our business.

In my opinion people talking of regular earnings of £100 per hour (per person) are not in the real world and are either stretching the truth or worse, ripping their customer off.

I would say good luck to them but I'm more inclined to feel sorry for the poor fool's they're working for, regardless of standard of finish.

I would agree that truck-mounts and super fast porty guys can easily achieve higher rates than £25 per hour but surely those claiming to achieve £100 per hour should questioning of their morals.

What a load of nonsense. I sometimes hit that number. But it doesn't account for my travelling time or cost. It doesn't count for the time i spend doing repairs, maintain machinery, it does account for the time spend quoting or doing my accounts or banking or designing a leaflet. Get off your high horse. I think folks who don't charge enough have seriously missed a trick and I question their business acumen.


On a separate note. I did a clean for an Argyle striker on Wednesday. He paid me and gave me tickets for the home games against Carlisle today. Top bloke too.

[wynne jones]

I love it when someone says it's imoral to earn more than X pounds per hour. LOL

[markpowell]

Speaking to various trades people recently they struggled to come to terms with how much I charge,lad who did my decking charged me £150 for two and a half days work and he had a helper,garage charged me £40 for fitting brake shoes and wheel cylinder after explaining I was a mechanic asked why I wasn't doing it myself I told him I could make more money cleaning carpets.Painter just decorated my 3 bedrooms,lounge and staircase £150 3+ days.Now most days I aim for £250 a day without killing myself 2 or 3 jobs some days its more others it less

So what makes us able to justify our charges?Or why do we think we can justify our prices?


Where did you get a decorator from for less than 50 quid a day mate?
Mark

[Nigel_W]

At £25 per hour I would be losing money. Now that would immoral!

Nigel

[hotsteam]

Hi Topgunn why is your painter charging less than the minimum wage (£150 for more than 3 days work) when he is self employed ?  :

[Tony Gill Carpet Smart]

Hi Steve don't know what your decorator did but that is silly money I started on my own over 20years ago and my customers valued me more than that then.
As a lot of you know we still run the decorating and as an example I don't think that is very representative.
As a fair example on monday we are doing a standard size lounge emulsion ceiling and walls two coats of satin on the woodwork £465 plus materials.
I must say though I wish we had started the carprt cleaning 20years ago I would be retired now lol

Cheers Tony

[M.Acorn]

If you have it set in your head that you are not worth £100+ per hour,then it`s going to be much harder trying to convince potential customers that your worth that !

[JandS]

Everybody has a minimum price usually around the £40 - £60 mark
usually for doing say a medium sized lounge which we'll say takes
an hour.
So what do the £100 an hour people charge? Minimum or £100.
As for £465 for painting a lounge, you wouldn't be doing mine.

John

[Mike Halliday]

Everybody has a minimum price usually around the £40 - £60 mark
usually for doing say a medium sized lounge which we'll say takes
an hour.
So what do the £100 an hour people charge? Minimum or £100.
As for £465 for painting a lounge, you wouldn't be doing mine.

John

of course you won't hit £100/hr on just a average L/R but on a easy clean, through lounge and hallway it can sometimes be possible

[M.Acorn]

I started up because I was made redundant from my head chef`s job.
The only business experience i had was as a promoter,running club nights in and around Cambridgeshire.

Was on 18 grand as a chef,but i made more than that in my 2nd year doing this,it has taken me 6 years to get to the stage i am at now,it`s not been easy,but it`s worth it as my quality of life has vastly improved. used to average 60+ hours a week as a chef,and i regularly earn what i earned in a week in a day doing this,it has been very close at points too though,but that has taught me that i need at least a few grand in the bank as a buffer,for the quiet periods of trade.
My machine will be 7 years old this year,and i am going to try and make it last 10 before i upgrade,i would like a Prowler,as i think you get the best of both worlds with one of those.

I have learned from my mistakes,and have managed to cut my advertising budget by 3/4`s this year,and I am busier as a result !
I don`t have any plans for world domination,have no interests in expanding or taking on staff and hate the whole fast track stuff

[Carpet Dawg]

Good post Mark I like your posts, they always seem chatty/real/straight from the horses mouth! If that makes sense lol

Should we not quite down a bit from the whole "oh its an easy job, anyone can do it and the money is very good!" posts that some have made on this thread and others?
I mean, none of us need more competion in our areas surely? from people lurking now and the future!!Or am i being a grumpy bugger? 

It defo is not an easy job! you need to know how to run a business effectivley, you need to know customer service and how to anwser a phone properly, how to market and advertise your business, its very physical specialy if your a porty user! AND to clean a carpet or sofa properly (for money) i dont think anybody could do it easly! You need to be precise and have patience! Alot of people dont have these! and the job can get boring, i.e. commercial jobs and the constant, getting the gear out of the van, setting up, filling water, emptying water, putting gear back.........yawn...

£465 to paint a living room does seem excessive, depends on area i suppose. I live in a very nice part of Edinburgh, very central and no schemes near by. The New Town if anyone has ever been to edinburger before. Anyways, i had my lounge painted a couple of months ago and the guy charged £150 a day, took him two days. But it was a big lounge, plus ceiling and wood work. i.e. corniseing, three door frames, three doors, and all skirting. And he has an established business of 20 years. Same with my tiler, he charges £115 a day. Both are not Polish lol

Tony

[M.Acorn]

Good post Mark Smiley I like your posts, they always seem chatty/real/straight from the horses mouth! If that makes sense lol

Aw fanks !!

charged £150 a day

My father in law is a painter and decorator now,he was at one point high up management at Ratners jewellers,but that changed almost overnight !!  He is happy earning £150 a day !!!  That`s in Suffolk,in a reasonably wealthy area 

[Doug Holloway]

Hi Guys

There are many difficult aspects to running a successful business and many come and go.

New CC's will see the riches but will they have enough money, staying power and ability to get to the stage they actually make a profit.

One of the reasons confusion reigns in CC earnings is that many quote gross earnings as opposed to net, whereas the decorator has minimal outlay as the customey will pay for materials and his earnings are his labour charge.

I was speaking to a fellow CC this morning who bought a machine off ebay with only seven hours on the clock, the guy just didn't know how to get work.

I stand by the saying that it cannot be an easy job and get top money, doesn't make any economic sense, supply and demand etc.

Cheers

Doug

[Carpet Dawg]

Yeah its harder than it ever has been to be a succseful carpet cleaner/businessmen.

1. The growth in "other" flooring option. i.e. laminate, hardwood, tiles etc So less carpets to clean...

2. More compition. The internet and forums like this (no offense) giving all the ammo the newbie needs!  again no offense lol and places like ebay where people can easly pick up 2nd had deals. And in turn, there now more training courses etc etc

Tony

[Glynn]

The trouble here is that most carpet cleaners are just that. Carpet cleaners.
You need to be a business man as well.
At £25 per hour I would certainly be losing money.

[garyj]

My father in law is a painter and decorator now,he was at one point high up management at Ratners jewellers,but that changed almost overnight !!  He is happy earning £150 a day !!!  That`s in Suffolk,in a reasonably wealthy area 

And look what happened to Gerald Ratner! " It's cheap, because its crap" ..... sums the whole topic up really.

[wynne jones]

£100 an hour is possible but if you could do that 8 hors a day 5 days a week then there would be a few more Bentlies in carpet cleaners garages wouldn't there.

Hears and example.

You quote a thru lounge over the phone you say £65 and can you move any odds and sods out.

You can back onto the drive, go in with your sprayer and prespray, open the back doors and reel in the hose and start wanding. You just have to move the sofa.

You then pack up, get your money and gone in 40minutes tops.

Now most of the time it's... You can't park close, the custy chats and gets in the way, the carpet is a minger with lots of spotting etc etc etc.

But it is possible on 'average price' jobs.

 

[peter maybury]

I have been in business for 20 years in that time my business has gone through many hardships and I have put in a lot of effort to stay in business. I have an extensive knowledge of the products that I clean. I have spent years practicing with chemicasl and have become highly proficient at what I do. I have made a large investment in equipment.
My business always needs new and better equipment despite the fact that my back up equipment is better than many people's daily use equipment. I have no problems whatsoever in explaining to anybody why I need to charge what I do.
There are many carpet cleaners who are monkeys off the street or who could teach what they know to monkeys in the street in 15 minutes.
The quality of service that customers get varies considerably as do the level of skills of the operator.
There are a great deal of people working in the industry that do not even have the intelligence to understand that there is a lot of skill, product knowledge, understanding of chemical and fibre technology required to be able to provides a good service in the first place.
It is these idiots with their useless equipment and non existent skill who are "ripping people off".
I take pride in the work that I do and feel that I should be charging more for the quality of service that I provides, it is only being undercut by these cowboys that keeps the prices down.

Peter Maybury
www.carpetcleanercardiff.com

[PaulKing]

Cos I'm Cheryl from walker and "I'm worth it" Like!