What is a Cleaning Franchise?
Cleaning franchises provide the opportunity to own residential or commercial cleaning businesses using the well-known name of established companies. You can find a wide range of cleaning business types, including specialty businesses that cater to situations like pet waste cleanup or grill cleaning. These cleaning franchise opportunities often have high demand and a large customer base.
Cleaning Franchise Industry Overview
Understanding the cleaning franchise industry helps investors decide if this is the ideal niche. Several growth factors are making cleaning a profitable option for franchisees.
Market Size and Structure
Cleaning franchise opportunities account for about 10% of the total cleaning market. Within the cleaning industry, there isn't one single company that dominates the niche. No single company accounts for more than 6% of the market. That means there are many potentially successful cleaning franchise opportunities available that could meet your criteria.
Growth and Projections
Between 2020 and 2026, projections for the cleaning industry show a compound annual growth rate of more than 6%. That revenue growth pays off for people who invest in cleaning business franchises.
Specializing in a particular niche within the cleaning industry could be even more beneficial. For example, floor and carpet cleaning accounted for 26% of the industry's total revenue in 2020.
Key Growth Drivers
Consider the key growth drivers in cleaning services:
- An increase in dual-income households, reducing time to clean, and increasing income to pay for extra services
- An aging population that needs assistance with household tasks
- Flexible schedule and pricing plans that make cleaning services more accessible to the average person
- Greater awareness of the importance of hygiene
- Increased commercial spaces requiring professional cleaning services
Impact of Recent Events: The Pandemic and Disinfection
COVID-19 permanently changed the way many homeowners and businesses looked at cleaning and disinfection. Even though life has gone back to normal for the most part, people are still conscious of ways to limit contagious diseases to create healthier environments. That can impact how you approach franchise opportunities in the industry.
Increased Demand
During and immediately after the pandemic, many consumers sought out disinfectant services. This is still a factor in many areas, particularly in industries like senior living, where maintaining healthy environments is crucial to residents' well-being.
Electrostatic Disinfection
Specifically, electrostatic disinfection treatments became popular due to recent events. The process involves adding a positive charge to the cleaning solution to help it reach all surfaces, even hard-to-reach areas, and spread evenly for more consistent, effective coverage.
Types of Cleaning Franchises
You have a wide range of options for types of cleaning franchises. Consider these options:
- Residential cleaning: This type of franchise focuses on cleaning homes for individuals. It involves tidying up spaces and cleaning surfaces, such as floors, baseboards, and counters.
- Commercial cleaning: With this option, you clean larger commercial spaces, including offices, retail stores, and commercial buildings. The work is often done after hours to prevent interfering with operations.
- Restoration cleaning: These cleaning services help clean up after fires, floods, and other disasters. It's also used in the case of hoarding or decontamination.
- Specialty cleaning: Examples of specialty cleaning services include dry cleaning, upholstery, pet waste, and junk removal.
Emphasis on Green Cleaning
Many consumers are leaning toward green cleaning, opening up new franchise opportunities.
Importance of Green Cleaning
People spend an average of 90% of their time indoors, so using green cleaning methods is essential. It can help with health concerns, including allergies, asthma, and other irritations often linked to traditional cleaners.
Environmental Impact
Many consumers are also concerned about the environmental impact of traditional cleaning methods. Green options reduce the use of water and paper while reducing the chemicals introduced into the environment.
Operating a Cleaning Franchise
Is a cleaning franchise right for you? Find out here.
Franchise Advantages
Opening a franchise cleaning business versus an independent service has many advantages, including:
- Brand recognition with a known name
- Proven successful business model
- Marketing support from the franchisor, which often includes lead generation
- Ongoing business support
Ideal Franchisee Characteristics
While many people can successfully operate a franchise, some characteristics can increase success, including:
- A strong work ethic
- Ambition to achieve
- Enjoyment of a challenge
- Entrepreneurial spirit
- Strong leadership skills
- Willingness to learn
- Ability to adhere to an established system
Management Structure
If you want to scale your cleaning franchise, you may need to hire employees. This allows you to share the business's workload with those hired leaders. However, you also need to be prepared to train those managers and have them sign non-disclosure contracts.
Why Consider a Cleaning Franchise?
With so many franchise opportunities, why should you enter the cleaning industry? Here are some benefits:
- Entrepreneurial freedom: You can work for yourself, setting your own hours to increase your freedom. Keep your cleaning business small with just yourself as an employee, or hire other cleaners to scale your business.
- Flexibility: The cleaning industry has many subcategories that allow you the flexibility to focus your services. For example, you might choose residential or commercial services.
- Ease of start-up: Cleaning businesses don't require a high degree of training, so you can get the business up and running quickly. Since the work is done at different locations, you don't need a large commercial space, and you can get started quickly.
- High demand: Cleaning is an ongoing service that clients want regularly. Once you secure a client, you can have recurring business indefinitely.
Cleaning Franchise Investment Costs
It's important to understand the expected investment costs for opening a cleaning business through the franchise business model. You have initial franchise fees along with ongoing business costs.
Initial Franchise Fee Range
You can expect an initial franchise fee between $11,000 and $100,000 for the cleaning industry. You may also pay ongoing royalty fees once your business is up and running. Those costs don't include commercial space, supplies, labor, and other expenses to run your business.
Factors Influencing Cost
The average fee range is wide, so you need to do some research to determine the exact investment amount needed. Common factors that influence the total include:
- The franchise brand
- The local market, including rent and labor costs
- Corporate services
- Service area size
Financing Options
You don't need to have the full amount saved to open a cleaning franchise. Many franchisees borrow money to cover the costs of starting a franchise. The Small Business Administration offers loan programs, or you can explore local lenders. Some areas also offer small business grants or financial incentives.
Start Your Cleaning Franchise
Turn your cleaning skills into a profitable business by taking advantage of franchise opportunities. From carpet cleaning and window cleaning to commercial cleaning and janitorial services, the available cleaning franchise opportunities allow you to find an option that works.