How do window cleaning franchise businesses start? It is a fascinating case study indeed, as most all window cleaning businesses start from such humble beginnings; a bucket of water, a sharp entrepreneur and a quality squeegee. I never thought in a million years I would ever enter the Window Washing Industry. I hate washing windows, probably because I suck at it. Anyway our company The Car Wash Guys Franchise Systems;
http://www.carwashguys.com was featured in a PBS Special on TV on a one-hour program.
www.pbs.org/livelyhood/honeywebought/bossresources.htmlit was viewed by 20 million American people. That night I got a call from a Chiropractor in Tucson. We talked from 8 pm until 5 am and we discussed all kinds of stuff. Two years went bye, then one day I was sitting a Starbucks in Palm Desert CA and a guy comes by washing windows, he was good, I mean like memorizing good. You know when they make the smooth flowing pattern? He cleaned about 10 windows in five minutes and then went to the next store. He had a really cool yellow bucket and I wanted it. It would be perfect for the truck Wash Guys to put on all our trucks. We do now. I was interested in where he got it, but my phone kept ringing.
Finally I ditched the call to talk to this window-washing fellow. I wanted to know where on Earth he found that cool bucket. He said I don't know it's just a bucket. I said no it isn't it is a yellow bucket and it's 2 feet long and 10 inches wide and it is perfect for an 18 inch truck wash brush, which we use for speed in washing trucks. He said here is my boss's card and he knows where he got it. So I called his boss, who just happened to be the son of the guy who saw me on the TV show and talked to me all night from Houston. Neither of us knew this for some time. I met him and he gave me the custom catalog of all kinds of cool products used in the window washing business. I was impressed with this young man, which takes a lot for me because I often have very high standards of business people who I respect. This guy knew everything, I mean wow, he knew his industry as well as I knew mine, his company was started by his dad 35 years ago and now his dad was a Chiropractor and his two sons split up the business and each took a section of it. Tim Bloom continued to answer my barrage of questions, for four hours, and he did not hesitate on one single question, he knew his stuff so cold it was truly like looking in the mirror. We decided to meet again when the subject turned to franchising and pick up where we left off. In the second meeting we talked about franchising and he said he had franchisors already in his industry:
Window Genie
Window Gang
Window Butler
And several other small competitors and Biz Ops, some are quite good and definitely in the top of their game. If you are thinking of setting up your own window cleaning business, we recommend this book:http://www.yourwindowcleaningbiz.com/ which is available thru online purchase.
Tim and I went through each one the companies that offered packages and he had brochures and folders of mail out packages and videos and information on each. He annotated and summarized all of their strengths and weaknesses and what he would do different if in fact he were franchising. Only a few were the caliber that we believed to be viable in the market place. I listened and listened and listened and rationalized all his observation. Except for a very few items, which were generally the miss conception about franchising that even I had when I first started for the first year or so I agreed. He said to me. What can I do to help your business Lance? Exactly what I say to franchisees, and he meant it just like I do. I thought right then this guy would make a great franchisor and he has a good heart and was not corrupted with greed in anyway. A trait I seldom find in business. He truly likes to help people.
He told me of the Screen Machine another franchisor in the area, which we are working, on a co-marketing test effort with in OH between our mutual franchisees. It thought already I am benefiting from knowing this individual. We already helped a franchisee of mine get more business and set up another strategic alliance to help with our awning wash guys, house wash guys to co-market with our system and future systems and help my franchisee in OH get more work washing and detailing cars. Well I know franchising and Tim knows window cleaning and put that together and we could surpass the best window washing franchise in 1 year. Already we have several of our current franchisees that wash cars have also bought into the window wash guys franchise.
http://www.windowwashguys.com .
We can help franchise buyers by getting into this franchise for under $1,000.00 down payment and we can get the rest financed and put them into the Wash Team. With numbers we can expand our market presence. If we can help people without a lot of money get into their own business and help them build it, they might be able to expand their efforts into a bigger franchise within our system and set up a great washing business in their town. Sometimes people just need a little head start. Tim and I both see the Window Wash Guys as a way to help those with little means but high in spirit and commitment. By having the easiest franchise in the world to get into we can really do some good in the franchising industry. We can bring onto team deserving and hard working people who care about service and stand for something but do not have piles of money. This is something they can do on their own without help from family or an investor. By having a franchises from a 2.5 Million dollar Truck Wash facility on a large piece of property all the way down to a franchise you can get into for $1,000 to 4,000 down payment we have something for everyone, and we have customers and a market waiting for them because we will always continue to network the customers of all of our franchises together.
So we have a place to start and these businesses when run correctly can make a ton of money. As we continue to grow our market presence we will be able to provide our customers with a single company made up of many small companies (Small Business entrepreneurs), who will give the great service that all American's deserve but eludes them. Service that only a small business can provide and that the corporate giants forgot assuming that mediocrity is adequate because consumers accept it as so. Because everybody else gives lousy service and we are being accustom to this. That this is somehow acceptable. It is not and it is time to change that. The customers will thank us and we are watching them vote for our team member's services. Consumers vote with their dollars and we want the most votes for our team. Not only cause we do it better and because we deserve it, but because our customers want it and because it is our destiny.
We can do all of that and we are on our way. That is what prompted me to start all these franchise companies and brands. Our customer will be everybody, whether it is a natural person, a corporation or a government agency. We will provide any service that our customer wants on real time and at Internet speed, and if we cannot provide it we will find it and have it delivered by another franchisor that has our same values and whose franchisees share our vision. Our company was founded recently as a hybrid franchise for the new world of modern day franchising. We are on our way to become the greatest franchise ever created. We would not have embarked on such an ambitious journey to not go all the way. It is way to much work and too much sacrifice to go half way. Our team has more industry knowledge than any of our competition in any of our markets. We have set this business up to go all the way and to have the flexibility to move on a dime. To attack any market anywhere at anytime with any competitor, no matter how big, how well financed or how well connected. The people vote with their dollars and they will vote for us. We have studied and learned and have a team that is aggressive and has a killer instinct to win. We have the brains, the plan, the market and the customers. I guess time will tell the rest and if I have anything to say about it "The rest is history."
Sometimes when you have brand synergy and strong customer base you can do just about anything in business. But to do it right, well that is the key for the modern entrepreneur these days. It is important to understand and see opportunities as an entrepreneur, you never know when they will pop up. This business case study is a perfect example. While sipping on a Frappachino staring at a guy cleaning windows we added a co-brand to our team and a super star entrepreneur as well. Think on this, I hope you have enjoyed today’s case study.
EzineArticles Expert Author Lance Winslow
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