Pricing past and present

[THL4KEL]

Back in the days when it was just trad, the start up costs couldn't of been lower. The market wasn't completely oversaturated with cleaners people made a living. 

Due to the economic conditions of the last 15 years with people getting a redundancy pay out  you see brand new vans kitted out with top of the range wfp kit, then six months later it's listed on eBay..  

It's the same with pressure washing.. A lot of people think it's easy cash then they find out it's tough getting decent customers, they start suffering with joint pains and the jobs can be very tough especially in bad weather conditions.. 

This game is not just for everyone.

 

[ksp]

Back in the days when it was just trad, the start up costs couldn't of been lower. The market wasn't completely oversaturated with cleaners people made a living. 

Due to the economic conditions of the last 15 years with people getting a redundancy pay out  you see brand new vans kitted out with top of the range wfp kit, then six months later it's listed on eBay..  

It's the same with pressure washing.. A lot of people think it's easy cash then they find out it's tough getting decent customers, they start suffering with joint pains and the jobs can be very tough especially in bad weather conditions.. 

This game is not just for everyone.

I agree with you it’s not for everyone. When it was trad people were put off by having to work at height. Now with WFP they don’t need to, they can make more per hour from the safety of the ground and I dare say most people didn’t realise the earning potential when someone was going around with a ladder and bucket.
 

Taxis are a great example! I was speaking to a woman who said that since Uber has come along and made it more accessible for people to start as self employed taxi drivers she has to work double the hours per week to make what she used to. That doesn’t mean businesses can’t still expand buts it’s unquestionably made things more difficult and I’m sure I remember black cabs in London going on strike as cabbies we’re going out of business when Uber were allowed to operate there? 

 

[dazmond]

If the immigration service raided all these car washes and clamped down on illegals working there would the prices stay the same? 

Sooner or later there will be a clamp down on them.

there already has just down the road from me...2 large immigration vans at my local car wash arresting people a few weeks ago...

 

[dazmond]

Lads what u have to realize is 20 years ago car washes were a lucrative business just like window cleaning is today and then the euoropeans and kurdish/afghan came over and took over... knocked the prices low and they now have people slaving in car washes offering rock bottom prices , i am not talking about detailing... i am talking about car washes (wash and go), outside wash - £5.00 in and out is £10.00

It is now more easy to start a window cleaning business then it is to pitch your own car wash  i can honestly see a higher number of wfp vans in the next few years meaning more competition with one another, does not bother me but its the way i think the market is going to go.

WFP systems are available cheap now and there is also people starting up offering UPVC cleaning aswell as conservatory valets and fascia/soffits etc at rock bottom prices i have seen it with my own eyes...conservatory roofs for £40.00 etc  this will only get worse as WFP systems are easily available.

If im charging £20.00 for a house and one of my customers gets 2/3  leaflets offering the same service for £12.00 then its not going to look good on me, makes it look like im ripping them off.

When i first started out i was driving a lot but now our work is very compact where we have 15/16 houses on 1 road we do still drive a bout but not as much as we have 2,000 + customers all within 12 miles. The longer u are trading for the more compact your work becomes.
 

i have estate work where i clean 90+ houses all virtually next door to each other,there has always been 4 other window cleaners cleaning 2 or 3 houses each in the 26 years ive been cleaning on there,they never seem to gain anymore customers!?

the kurds/afghans/europeans near me all work in barbers shops..... all charging between £8-£10.....not a hope in hell of them moving into domestic window cleaning because people that live in the affluent areas i work are slow to trust......it took me a good 15 years for things to snowball for me in my chosen area......

 

[Pjj]

@ksp finally someone who understands ?  honestly u know what you are talking about u really do, i am very entrepreneurial myself and those who choose to take on board what i say are the wise ones the ones who dont need to wake up ? ?  Lol

The amount of start ups there has been in the PAST 5 years is pretty high but.... the amount of starts ups in the NEXT 5 years will be 4x/5x higher then the previous 5 years if that makes sense.

Spotless water encourage people to venture there own window cleaning business as well lol

People will suffer but it also has potential of making window cleaning a dead end trade.  People at this current time want to start window cleaning because they can earn good money but in 10 years time the prices will be that rock bottom people will think twice about starting up due to the slump in pricing etc.





 

I understand the principal of what you are saying , Ime in sleepy Cornwall and just in my small town there are over 800 new houses being built at the moment , several thousand more are due to be built over the next 18 months , there is more than enough work for for  the current window cleaners in the area and at least a couple of dozen  more at least , us country far more houses are being built than down hear , most of the new start up cleaners I see don’t  make it last the first year as they have no motivation , buisness acumen  , or a clue about pricing , most are doomed to failure , only a very small number make a success of it . As for foreign nationals going in cheap yes I know they do but most where I am wouldn’t have them as they have a reputation for being let’s say being dishonest and criminal actively , people arnt daft , they like to know the persons coming on to there properties , by name and know there background , I have 30 years in the Fireservice behind me and am very well known in the local community, this isn’t boasting just saying this to show that people value a trustworthy company and would rather pay more for this , we have keys , codes for numerous houses a lot are multi million pound properties owned by famous people and pop stars ,and normal well off people they are very fussy who they allow on there properties and this works well for good honest companies they certainly wouldn’t accept a transit van full of Eastern European’s turning up on there doorstep , and Ime not slagging off Eastern European’s as most are hard working  but charging a couple of quid per house they wouldn’t get very far down hear they would be viewed with suspicion. Maybe where you are things are different??? But it won’t happen any time soon hear . 

 

[steve garwood]

I understand the principal of what you are saying , Ime in sleepy Cornwall and just in my small town there are over 800 new houses being built at the moment , several thousand more are due to be built over the next 18 months , there is more than enough work for for  the current window cleaners in the area and at least a couple of dizziness more at least , us country far more houses are being built than down hear , most of the new start up cleaners I see don’t  make it last the first year as they have no motivation , buisness acumen  , or a clue about pricing , most are doomed to failure , only a very small number make a success of it . As for foreign nationals going in cheap yes I know they do but most where I am wouldn’t have them as they have a reputation for being let’s say being dishonest and criminal actively , people arnt daft , they like to know the persons coming on to there properties , by name and know there background , I have 30 years in the Fireservice behind me and am very well known in the local community, this isn’t boasting just saying this to show that people value a trustworthy company and would rather pay more for this , we have keys , codes for numerous houses a lot are multi million pound properties owned by famous people and pop stars ,and normal well off people they are very fussy who they allow on there properties and this works well for good honest companies they certainly wouldn’t accept a transit van full of Eastern European’s turning up on there doorstep , and Ime not slagging off Eastern European’s as most are hard working  but charging a couple of quid per house they wouldn’t get very far down hear they would be viewed with suspicion. Maybe where you are things are different??? But it won’t happen any time soon hear . 

Very similar scenario to myself. If an Easter European turned up in a van with no phone numbers etc and tried his luck on some of the big houses that I do, well, I know what these people would say

 

[Part Timer]

What people are failing to see is big business has already moved into, and destroyed a lot of, the commercial jobs. With the big push into a cashless society this will allow them to move into residential cleaning as well. They can afford to throw hundreds of thousands at it and not bat an eyelid. I'm not quite predicting Armageddon like @Haz, but it is nearly as "profitable" now in my area to compete with the £8 a house boys as competing against the big commercial boys

 

[Pjj]

What people are failing to see is big business has already moved into, and destroyed a lot of, the commercial jobs. With the big push into a cashless society this will allow them to move into residential cleaning as well. They can afford to throw hundreds of thousands at it and not bat an eyelid. I'm not quite predicting Armageddon like @Haz, but it is nearly as "profitable" now in my area to compete with the £8 a house boys as competing against the big commercial boys

Guess Ime lucky down  hear then ????

 

[Part Timer]

Guess Ime lucky down  hear then ????

Low density areas will probably stay more lucrative, initially, than more populated areas, anyway you can afford to retire now  :1f603:

 

[dazmond]

the main thing thats been missed when "scaremongering" that we will all be forced to lower our prices and work more hours to make the same money because of the hordes of window cleaners all fighting over too little domestic work(i doubt that very much!)is people buy people.......if your friendly,approachable,smart,polite,professional with a nice tidy sign written van,reliable,well established in affluent areas then you have absolutely nothing to worry about....

this sort of scaremongering has all been said before.......PROJECT FEAR!

personally ive never had it so good as a window cleaner...sometimes i have to pinch myself....i love the short hours and ive never earned as much money as i do now and ive recently stopped collecting after 26 years as most customers pay online these days.....happy days indeed....

and yes i have my work regularly canvassed and leafleted at least 5 or 6 times a year and have done for many years.....it doesnt bother me one bit as i make sure my own house is in order(regular,reliable and do a good job).

 

[Part Timer]

this sort of scaremongering has all been said before.......PROJECT FEAR!

It's opinions, you think it's project fear, I don't. Who cleans all the bus stops in your area, I know mine are done by a huge company with a smart uniformed man in a new white van with a built in pressure washer and a reach and wash system. When we get to a society that doesn't have cash, that are programmed in to setting up DD's, then we will have a problem. Probably not in the more senior members working life but definitely before we're pushing up daisies.

We already have the "new towns" where Councils don't charge rates and private companies collect the rubbish, cut the grass etc. How much longer before window cleaning falls into the maintenance charge. 

 

[dazmond]

It's opinions, you think it's project fear, I don't. Who cleans all the bus stops in your area, I know mine are done by a huge company with a smart uniformed man in a new white van with a built in pressure washer and a reach and wash system. When we get to a society that doesn't have cash, that are programmed in to setting up DD's, then we will have a problem. Probably not in the more senior members working life but definitely before we're pushing up daisies.

We already have the "new towns" where Councils don't charge rates and private companies collect the rubbish, cut the grass etc. How much longer before window cleaning falls into the maintenance charge. 

you worry too much......private houses wont be affected anyway(which makes up the majority of my round)

 

[Part Timer]

you worry too much......private houses wont be affected anyway(which makes up the majority of my round)

I'm not worried personally, If I can make a grand a month it will allow me to do what I want to do as I have another business. I just think that within the next 10 years with the cashless society we're rushing towards big business will be able to get a foothold into residential work. If you look around you now there are more and more multi van companies and franchises doing well. There are more and more people pushing for Gocardless type payment, all of this will come to the attention of others. If you think this will go unnoticed then rather than me worrying too much I think it's naivety to think it won't happen.

As I said, this won't happen overnight, it will however, in my opinion, happen. 

 

[ksp]

With reference to Europeans coming over and branching in to window cleaning there are 2 polish people who have work in my area who both have sign written vans and their own uniforms. One always waves to when I see him, seems a nice guy and running a professional business. 
 

There’s no intent on my part to scare monger. I’m saying for Monday people that if you look for it, the seeds of change are already there. I agree that more rural areas are going to be more insulated from this, as are areas that companies like spotless water don’t operate in and as I’ve said before I think smaller business which established rounds and good customers are better setup to be protected from this. However, pinning my flag to the mast it’s my assertion that it’s not just going to happen but is already happening. 
 

I’m very particular in who I take on as a customer, I only go for people who want a regular clean and that I have a good vibe which has inhibited my rate of growth but I feel much more secure with customers and I do have and looking at my expected earnings for the month that I’ll hit that number at the the end of the month. I’ve still lost 1 customer who tried to haggle the price because someone offered her window cleaning cheaper. 
 

If people are aware now you’ve got time to take action (or no action if you choose) to future proof your business. 

 

[scottish cleaning service]

I'm not worried personally, If I can make a grand a month it will allow me to do what I want to do as I have another business. I just think that within the next 10 years with the cashless society we're rushing towards big business will be able to get a foothold into residential work. If you look around you now there are more and more multi van companies and franchises doing well. There are more and more people pushing for Gocardless type payment, all of this will come to the attention of others. If you think this will go unnoticed then rather than me worrying too much I think it's naivety to think it won't happen.

As I said, this won't happen overnight, it will however, in my opinion, happen. 

The reason cash will always be king is because IT will never be 100% safe. Received a letter last year from RBS which stated that the UK lost £36 Billion from IT fraud the year before. A bank robber can only physically steal the cash that's in the bank but an IT bank robber can steal All the banks money which is usually the Thursday before Good Friday. Swedish Government sent out a letter to all citizens stating that if a war should happen then make sure you have plenty of cash at hand. Sweden is nearly a cashless society. No, its just a cycle and cash will come round again. We left the stone age but never ran out of stones. ?

 

[dazmond]

I'm not worried personally, If I can make a grand a month it will allow me to do what I want to do as I have another business. I just think that within the next 10 years with the cashless society we're rushing towards big business will be able to get a foothold into residential work. If you look around you now there are more and more multi van companies and franchises doing well. There are more and more people pushing for Gocardless type payment, all of this will come to the attention of others. If you think this will go unnoticed then rather than me worrying too much I think it's naivety to think it won't happen.

As I said, this won't happen overnight, it will however, in my opinion, happen. 

it wont affect guys like me,i have over 300 domestic jobs in a 5 mile affluent area built up over 26 years...from my experience lots of domestic customers prefer a decent one man band window cleaner who has a good rep and is trusted around the area with full contact details and address rather than a big company...i dont even have a website,i never needed one,all new jobs come from word of mouth and recommendation and have done for years,lots of my customers pay online these days but some prefer to pay by cash/card on the day...?

 

[scottish cleaning service]

it wont affect guys like me,i have over 300 domestic jobs in a 5 mile affluent area built up over 26 years...from my experience lots of domestic customers prefer a decent one man band window cleaner who has a good rep and is trusted around the area with full contact details and address rather than a big company...i dont even have a website,i never needed one,all new jobs come from word of mouth and recommendation and have done for years,lots of my customers pay online these days but some prefer to pay by cash/card on the day...?

The personal touch I call it, big companies don't have it. Warren Buffet told the same story when he first started out in business. He opened up a garage near a busy garage down the road from his. He just couldn't make money yet the other garage was booming. No matter what he did in the garage he could not compete with the other garage. He quickly realised that he was losing money and shut his garage down. This was his best lesson in business, humans will remain doing something until it goes wrong or as I put it, motion will stay in motion until it gets deflected.

 

[scottish cleaning service]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49278070

This is another reason Cash will always be King.

I'm getting my charges back which is around a score, great building society is the Nationwide if anyone looking to join. ?

 

[dmw]

I've noticed that now having a full round and at one time I never knocked a door if they moved out, but now I have to knock on that house and keep the customer or as I call them " the run around boys " could take it off me. I'm finding in this job you can't always wait and expect the work to come to you.

 

[scottish cleaning service]

I've noticed that now having a full round and at one time I never knocked a door if they moved out, but now I have to knock on that house and keep the customer or as I call them " the run around boys " could take it off me. I'm finding in this job you can't always wait and expect the work to come to you.

I thought that was only natural but I would post a card with the monthly price that I charge. One next to my round has sold and it used to be cleaned by a company that only clean that house on the estate. I don't think they will want it back so I will be posting a card with my new price of £6 a month. 

 

[dmw]

I thought that was only natural but I would post a card with the monthly price that I charge. One next to my round has sold and it used to be cleaned by a company that only clean that house on the estate. I don't think they will want it back so I will be posting a card with my new price of £6 a month. 

The only thing with giving them a price on a card is they can decide without you being there.  If you doorstep them I think you have a better chance of getting them on board at a price that suits you .