Franchisee mops up

New Zealand-based One Tree Hill resident, Roger Guo (pictured right), started his commercial cleaning franchise in 2002 with the firm conviction that strength lies in numbers. Today he services 11 large accounts with the help of four staff.

According to Guo, it is his ‘strength in numbers’ principle that has driven the success of his Jani-King business services franchise, boosting monthly business turnover from $6000 to $16,000 in just over three years.

“My franchise services large accounts including offices, shops, a medical clinic and factory,” he says. “I knew from the word ‘go’ that if I wanted to grow my business sufficiently and take on larger accounts I would need a strong base.

“The factory we service is a sizeable job because it manufactures building products and has many sites and offices in different areas. To service an account like this, I always take along an extra employee to ensure we have the capacity to carry out all cleaning tasks efficiently.”

Although it is sometimes difficult for some bosses to entrust staff to carry out work tasks independently, Guo concedes that he would not be where he is today without the support of his team.

“Letting go of the controls is sometimes a tough thing for business owners, but I believe it is a critical step, particularly if you are aiming for business growth,” he says. “I honestly could not have met the expectations of servicing such large accounts on my own – my staff have made a real contribution to my business success so far.” The flexibility of owning his own business has also enabled Guo to enjoy a quality-enhanced lifestyle.

“I like to go fishing every once in a while which helps me to really unwind. I also appreciate quality food, so I try to dine out with friends as much as possible,” he says.

Despite this affinity for his ‘down time’, further growth is on the cards for Guos’ business – even though he is determined to take things slowly and steadily.

“I have a strong focus on continuing to expand my business in the future but will concentrate on doing things strategically and carefully. I certainly don’t want to get ahead of myself,” he maintains.

“The business principles I have applied have worked so far, so if I stick with these and keep employing staff according to my business growth, I’m confident I will continue to achieve business success.”

Jani-King office service franchise turns over A$66 million per annum and is the world’s number-one rated franchise cleaning company. It has more than 800 franchisees throughout Australia and New Zealand.