15 Cleaning Service Success Stories [2023]

Updated: July 23rd, 2023
Start A Cleaning Service

A housecleaning side business is a beautiful idea for people with free time on weekends or even weekdays. The side hustle idea requires little capital to start. During the launch, you can choose to offer the service to your neighbors and scale as you gain experience. The average salary for a house cleaner is $17.32 per hour.

By starting a house cleaning business, you are tapping into an enormous market with plenty of clientele. There could always be demand for your cleaning service, which keeps you in business as you help homeowners keep their homes spotless.

Here are some real life success stories of starting a cleaning service:

1. Two Maids & A Mop ($7.2M/year)

Ron Holt (from Birmingham, Alabama, USA) started Two Maids & A Mop over 20 years ago.

Revenue
$600K / month
Team
1 founders / 500 employees
Location
Birmingham, Alabama, USA

Case Study

Hello dreamweavers, empire builders and world changers. My name is Ron Holt, CEO & Founder of Two Maids & A Mop.

Today, we serve 82 markets across the country and generate more than $25M in annual revenues. The Two Maids & A Mop network employs more than 500 hard-working employees everyday and here’s an amazing and boastful stat:: my little cleaning business that only cleaned two homes on its first day cleaned nearly 400,000 homes last year! It’s been a crazy ride built on a ridiculous dream from a small-town country boy who believed his 250 square foot office space was just a temporary home that would one day grow into one of America’s most successful residential cleaning brands.

how-warren-buffett-inspired-my-lifelong-journey-creating-a-25m-cleaning-empire

2. Go Green Cleaning & Maintenance Services ($360K/year)

Nicholas Ciano (from Walnut Creek, California, USA) started Go Green Cleaning & Maintenance Services over 6 years ago.

Revenue
$30K / month
Team
1 founders / 3 employees
Location
Walnut Creek, California, USA

Case Study

Hi, my name is Nicholas Ciano, I own an exterior home cleaning company called Go Green Cleaning & Maintenance in Walnut Creek, CA. We take pride in customer service and five-star performance.

I started this company 4 years ago on the idea that I wanted to work for myself and provide for my growing family. We specialize in gutter cleaning, solar panel cleaning, exterior window cleaning, deck restoration, cement, and paver sealing. We average about $20,000/month.

how-i-started-a-20k-month-exterior-home-cleaning-service-company

Learn more about starting a cleaning service:

Where to start?

-> How to start a cleaning service?
-> How much does it cost to start a cleaning service?
-> Pros and cons of a cleaning service

Need inspiration?

-> Examples of established cleaning service
-> Marketing ideas for a cleaning service
-> Cleaning service slogans
-> Cleaning service names

Other resources

-> Cleaning service tips
-> Cleaning service hashtags

4. Hangover Helpers ($36K/year)

James Hookway (from Perth Western Australia, Australia) started Hangover Helpers over 8 years ago.

Revenue
$3K / month
Team
2 founders / 2 employees

Case Study

I am James Hookway and I own and run Hangover Helpers. The business is an after-party cleaning company that started about 5 years ago. We don't just clean up your mess we also bring breakfast and refreshments. (Please note due to COVID-19 we have ceased the food and beverage services until further notice).

Monthly revenue about 3k a month with some months up to $7k during the busy summer period. After COVID-19 there is a big backlog of cleans here in WA so we are having to say no to cleans as not enough staff. We are about to hit our 500th clean, so on average we do 100 cleans a year (just on weekends).

how-i-started-a-3k-month-side-business-offering-after-party-cleaning-services

5. DeluxeMaid ($1.2M/year)

Finn shifted from a typical engineer job to starting his local house cleaning business. He launched in 27 days. Nowadays, they’re making $60k/mo.

Revenue
$100K / month

Case Study

Finn shifted from a typical engineer job to starting his local house cleaning business. He launched in 27 days. Nowadays, they’re making $60k/mo.

6. MaidThis Franchise ($1.2M/year)

Neel Parekh (from Los Angeles, CA, USA) started MaidThis Franchise about 10 years ago.

Revenue
$100K / month
Team
1 founders / 9 employees

Case Study

Hey! My name is Neel Parekh and I am the Founder and CEO of MaidThis® & MaidThis® Franchise, a cleaning franchise that helps residential homeowners and short-term rental hosts (Airbnb, VRBO, etc) with their cleanings.

  • We made our niche focus on cleaning Airbnbs and vacation rentals, in addition to regular home cleaning, which is a rapidly growing industry. We became the first cleaning franchise specializing in vacation rental cleaning.
  • Local businesses are often pretty old school and typically aren’t the best with marketing, especially digital marketing. We’re bringing new-age marketing tactics to this old-school industry.
  • Remote work: we’ve been able to stay extra nimble and lean with having a global workforce. This was initially done out of necessity so I could travel, but quickly became a huge competitive advantage. Our office team works across 8 different countries.

how-i-started-a-100k-month-home-cleaning-service-for-busy-individuals-and-airbnb-hosts

7. CleanLots.com ($720K/year)

Brian Winch (from Alberta, Canada) started *CleanLots.com * about 42 years ago.

Revenue
$60K / month
Team
1 founders / 1 employees
Location
Alberta, Canada

Case Study

Hi, I’m Brian Winch, owner, author, and creator of Cleanlots - America’s Simplest Business. I manage a simple environmental service that provides daily litter cleanup for property management companies. Our service is performed after hours on foot using unique hand tools. Almost as easy to do as going for a walk!

I started this business in 1981 as a side hustle with little money, education, and skills but plenty of passion, patience, and persistence. I quickly grew this gig into a successful full-time one-man operation, then scaled it into a yearly 6 figure business that utilizes an army of people to keep my city litter-free.

how-i-started-a-40k-month-commercial-litter-cleaning-service

8. Orange Window Cleaning ($720K/year)

While he was a full-time student, Johnny Robinson built OrangeWindowCleaning.com into a $700k a year operation. If you want to start your own business, it doesn’t necessarily take a never-before-seen business idea to have a never-before-seen impact on your life. Johnny's a long-time Side Hustle Sh…

Johnny Robinson (from Orange, CA) started Orange Window Cleaning over 6 years ago.

Revenue
$60K / month
Team
1 founders / 5 employees

Case Study

While he was still a full-time student, Johnny Robinson built OrangeWindowCleaning.com into a $700k/year operation.

One day while hanging out with his friend Sergio, Johnny came up with the idea of the window cleaning business. He first approached door-to-door marketing and approached local stores to offer window cleaning services.

Later, after he discovered digital marketing and how tools and software could help him multiply his client base was when this journey started to take off for real.

His story proves that if you want to start your own business, it doesn’t necessarily take a never-before-seen business idea to have a never-before-seen impact on your life.

article

Listen to the full podcast on sidehustlenation.libsyn.com ➜

9. Kroopin's Poopin Scoopin ($48K/year)

$1000 a week cleaning backyards? Erica Krupin turned some earbuds at the start of the year with her fast-growing pet waste removal business.  Since we spoke, she's added another 50+ recurring weekly customers and expanded to a new location. Tune in to hear: What's working on social media today.…

Erica Krupin (from Detroit, MI, USA) started Kroopin's Poopin Scoopin about 5 years ago.

Revenue
$4K / month
Team
1 founders / 1 employees

Case Study
  • Kroopin's Poopin Scoopin, also known as KPS, is owned by Erica Krupin. They are a dog waste removal company that genuinely cares about your yard's cleanliness.
  • Since it was founded in 2018, this business has made a name for itself in the pet waste removal sector. KPS's goal is to give customers a wonderful experience and make sure they do not have any complaints about her services.
  • Erica Krupin is making around $1000 per week scooping dog poop. Since she was earning a good profit from this business and decided to leave her day job to do it full-time.

article

Read the full story on sidehustlenation.com ➜

10. Go 2 Girls ($996K/year)

Read this inspiring story from Crystal Hamm about how she grew her maid service to a 7-figure business.

Revenue
$83K / month
Team
1 founders / employees

Case Study

Crystal Hamm founded Go 2 Girls, a woman-founded & women-operated house cleaning service co in Wake County, NC.

They provide cleaning services for bathrooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and living rooms.

Crystal wants to ensure that both her clients and staff are satisfied with the company’s service and work ethics.

The company also offers free cleanings to women undergoing cancer treatments.

Go 2 Girls supports various nonprofit organizations, including school fundraisers, The American Red Cross, Colitis Foundation, and The Salvation Army.

article

Watch the full video on youtube.com ➜

11. Mrs Buckét ($3M/year)

Name: Rachael FlanaganCompany: Mrs BucketCompany description: Domestic and commercial full service cleaning companyStarted in: 2005

Revenue
$250K / month
Team
1 founders / 48 employees

Case Study

In 2005, Rachael Flanagan founded Mrs Buckét, a business providing industrial cleaning services.

They operate a commercial cleaning company that has won numerous awards. They provide commercial cleaning services and facilities to companies in the public and private sectors.

Mrs Buckét offers commercial building services to facilities in south Wales and Bristol for prestige car showrooms, offices, manufacturing & educational institutions.

When she started out, Rachael was only 18 years old, and she had just £20, which she used to buy a hoover and flyers.

article

Read the full story on startups.co.uk ➜

12. Bright & Beautiful ($5M/year)

Ten years after leaving her high-powered job Rachel Ray employs nearly 500 staff and has a turnover of £5m

Revenue
$417K / month
Team
1 founders / 800 employees

Case Study
  • Rachel Ray was motivated to found Bright & Beautiful when she observed a need for an expert cleaning service.
  • In 2007, Ray quit her demanding job as a business consultant to launch her own professional housekeeping franchise.
  • She made this a priority to use non-toxic, environmentally friendly products for cleaning her business.
  • There currently oversee over 50 franchises for Bright & Beautiful in the UK.

article

Read the full article on manchestereveningnews.co.uk ➜

13. Wolf's Auto Detailing ($36K/year)

Joseph LandWolf Sanchez (from Phoenix, AZ, USA) started Wolf's Auto Detailing over 2 years ago.

Revenue
$3K / month
Team
2 founders / 1 employees

Case Study

Hi Starter Story! My name is Joey Sanchez and I'm the founder of Wolf's Auto Detailing in Phoenix, Arizona. We are a mobile auto detailing service that focuses on quality work and convenience. We specialize in interior detailing, Paint polishing, and ceramic coating just to name a few.

While our client list consists of many different types of vehicles and personalities, they all share one thing in common: they all understand the value of quality work. We hold our standards very high and measure our success not only in dollar amounts but in the satisfaction of our clients. However, making $3K a month only working 3 days a week isn't a bad deal!

how-i-started-a-36k-year-auto-detailing-business-working-3-days-per-week

15. Queen Bee Cleaning Service ($1.5M/year)

Chris Mondragon (from Seattle, Washington, USA) started Queen Bee Cleaning Service over 8 years ago.

Revenue
$125K / month
Team
2 founders / 25 employees

Case Study

My name Is Cristobal Mondragon, I own and operate Queen Bee Cleaning Service in Seattle, we offer house cleaning and Airbnb cleaning services. It all started back in 2015. My wife suggested we start our own cleaning business,

I couldn’t believe it! Fast forward to today Queen Bee Cleaning has made over $5.8 million in sales & generating $1.5M per year.

how-i-started-my-1-5m-year-house-cleaning-business-in-seattle

Pat Walls,  Founder of Starter Story
Want to find more ideas that make money?

Hey! 👋 I'm Pat Walls, the founder of Starter Story.

Get our 5-minute email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.

Starter Story
Unlock the secrets to 7-figure online businesses
Dive into our database of 4,418 case studies & join our community of thousands of successful founders.
Join thousands of founders