Many people have gone to great extremes during the pandemic to clean the surfaces in their homes and workplaces to prevent themselves from coming into contact with the coronavirus.
We bought cleaning wipes in bulk and stored them in our garage, and had plenty of hand sanitizer to go around. We cleaned everything in our path—the kitchen, office and bathroom—only to clean them again later in the week.
That mentality won’t be changing anytime soon, and could be why national chain cleaning service MaidPro projects 50% growth in the industry between 2020 and 2024. Simply put, people all over the world have a new appreciation for keeping clean.
“I think people are more aware of germs in general now after the pandemic,” said Shelli Brighi, who owns a MaidPro franchise in Las Vegas. “Our target clients are people with kids and pets, and I think people are more aware now about being clean.”
Just before the pandemic started in early 2020, Michael Amato-von Hemert’s MaidPro franchise, based in Henderson, had a client list of close to 100. Once the pandemic—and the ensuing panic—hit that spring, the list dropped to about 30.
“At the time, there were health concerns and I think people weren’t sure about letting other people into their homes,” Amato-von Hemert said. “There were major furloughs and job loss happening, too, which I’m sure affected discretionary spend.”
But now with the vaccine readily available, along with more information on how the virus spreads, business is booming.
“It has taken us about that entire 18 months, but we’re back to where we were before the pandemic,” Amato-von Hemert said. “We’re looking to grow; there’s demand there right now.”
For the most part, Amato-von Hemert said his crews service residential homes between 1,500 and 2,500 square feet every two weeks.
They provide basic household services like vacuuming, dusting and bathroom and kitchen cleaning, but also work to clean units that people are moving into or out of.
Depending on the size of the property and the work provided, having a service clean your home runs about $150-$200 a month on average.
“There’s a resilience to this kind of business, which is one of the things that attracted me,” Amato-von Hemert said. “Yes, we took a hit, but there’s definitely potential in the business, and in this model.”
FILLING JOBS REMAINS DIFFICULT
Similar to what’s being seen in many other industries, it’s been difficult to find employees as the town emerges from the pandemic, Amato-von Hemert said.
Economists believe that an unusually large number of people across the country continue to remain outside the workforce for multiple reasons, including health concerns, expanded jobless benefits and factors leading people to stay at home to care for family members.
“It’s tougher than it was before, that’s for sure,” he said. “We’re still getting candidates, but it’s a lower volume of candidates.”
Roger Schulze, owner of Las Vegas-based Desert Maids, says he’s offering $15 per hour and a Christmas bonus, but still can’t populate his workforce.
In fact, he said candidates have suddenly disappeared once he attempts to move forward with the hiring process.
“The same thing has happened about 20 times in a row lately,” Schulze said.
It has gotten so bad, Schulze says, he’s down to just one employee. As a result, Desert Maids can’t take on more clients, turning away potential work.
Echoed Amato-von Hemert, “We certainly have the business. We can’t keep up right now.”