Clear Cleaning
The Beginning
At first their jobs were mostly piece work, averaging about £60
each. Mitcham Town Hall was probably their biggest contract.. “We
both ended up working with a company that cleaned chandeliers as
well as windows,” says Colin. “We did that for 6 years or so, and
learned quite a bit about the cleaning and maintaining of
chandeliers.”
In 1994 Colin and Richard, realizing they could offer a better service
than most of the companies they worked for, approached The Princes
Youth Business Trust and asked for a loan of £3,500.00.
“We were given a dedicated business advisor,” Colin remembers,
“and with honesty, hard work and the assistance of our long-term
employees we gradually built up a thriving business.”
Their first office was a purpose-built timber shed with a veranda at
the back of Richard Emmanuel’s house. Its fourteen square feet
housed four hard-working bodies, and many late nights were spent
doing paperwork, following long, hard days cleaning windows. A
highlight of this time was taking part in a London Weekend
Television documentary called dangerous jobs.
Health and Safety Demands
Dave Allen, a member of the London Weekend Television crew,
introduced Colin and Richard to the issues of Health and Safety, and
assisted them in the preparation of their first Risk & Method
Statements. This was valuable experience, and it laid a solid
foundation for their appreciation of the importance of safety.
“Today we employ the services of an external consultant who
Audits the Met Police Authority,” says Colin. “We also get a great
deal of support from Andrew Willis, a leading working at height
consultant for Time Consultancy. Andrew sits on the Federation of
Window Cleaners Safety Advisory Committee and is a trainer and
NVQ2 assessor with Linden Management and Merton College.”
So What Makes Clear Cleaning Tick?
Colin and Richard believe that any company that wants to be
successful must be motivated by the desire to provide quality work,
and must have the ability to make profits. “That has to be the
foundation,” says Colin. “We’ve put that philosophy into practice,
and our growth has been steady throughout the years, and has
always been self funded.”
Clear in 2009 and Beyond
For Clear Cleaning, the customer is king. “It’s hard work to attract
Throughout 2009 Clear will continue to
and secure new business, so we treat our clients royally, and we
promote its new corporate branding and will
never stop listening to them,” says Colin. “That’s one of my main
keep customers informed of exciting
developments such as the Rope Access
messages: in difficult economic times like these, many MDs and
Suspension Trolley – the first of its kind in
CEOs become insular, ignoring customers and turning their focus to
the UK to be CE marked. “When you reach
internal operational challenges. That’s a huge mistake. As a result,
more people, you get more customers,” says
they disconnect themselves from the best source of current revenue,
Colin.
and from future success.”
In 2009 Clear will move to new premises.
Colin maintains that teamwork and staff development are also vital
“This will give us more scope for growth and
factors. “We pride ourselves on being one big family, and we are
provide us with storage for the new systems
dedicated to our team. We encourage everyone to aim for higher
and equipment that we are bringing onto
levels of achievement through Merton College’s NVQ2 Window
line. It will also give us a firm base for
Cleaning Course, and this is already paying dividends. Everyone at
further growth, so we can continue to provide
Clear is now able to think of new ways to solve problems, and we’ve
our customers and principal contractors with
seen a significant improvement in staff attitude.”
the high standards of service they have
The Importance of Advertising
become accustomed to, living up to our
company motto: ‘you’re only as good as your
During a recession, many small businesses cut back the amount
last job.’”
spent on advertising. Colin sees that as a fundamental error. “All the
signs point the other way. It’s vital to maintain current spend, and
advertising and promotional campaigns should be undertaken For further information on Clear Contact…
throughout the recession period. At Clear we make it a priority to
demonstrate our company's value and stability at every opportunity,
Clear Cleaning Limited. 08454 004111
and you do that through advertising.“ richard@clearcleaning.co.uk
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