[jeff1]

Reading a post about how long you have been WC and it was interesting to see how old some of us are.

This made me think of what actually got me into WC and reading posts gone by over the past year, it got me thinking how lucky I was against some of you Guy's, who have spent months and years building up your rounds.

here's my Story on how I became a WC.

Sat at home one evening and a neighbor knocks the door and asked if he could have a word with me?

We sat down and started to chat and he told me that him and his partner were about to retire and asked me if I would like to have his WC business    I immediately said no,
I could not see my self as a WC and had a perfectly good Job as a security engineer for the past 15 years.

He left and I sat and thought about it, and began to speak to the Boss (wife) about it and we came to the decision that we would give it a try, so the next day I popped up to see him and find out more details and what a shock I got from him and his partner who was there at the time.

Right you will have a well established round of 500 customers and at least 50 of them are commercial and 20 of them are on a 2 weeks round he gave me the figures of what my earnings would be? The business included all the equipment and a small old car. Then came the crunch I had to ask how much money he was looking for to buy all this from them?
They looked at me in a blank manner and said to me, we don't want anything for it, we want to give it to you,
On the condition I spent the final 6 weeks with them so they could introduce me to all there customers and teach me how to clean windows before they retired.
Hands shook, deal done, I was now a business owner but still a little apprehensive why some one would do this??
neither one of the guy's needed the money and both owned more than one home. (not due to WC I might add)

We started cleaning windows on June 1st 1997 so June of this year will see me into my 10th year
my self and the boss worked together for 6 years, and the boss decided she had enough of wc and gave it up, but continued to do all the things for me behind the scene's, when this happened I had to reduce my round by about 200 customers, so I picked the least liked area's and gave them to another WC who worked the same area, he asked why I didn't want money for it, so I just told him it was given to me, so I wanted someone else to benefit from my good fortune.

I continued on my own for the next four years and on some Jobs found it difficult, So January this year, I changed fully over to wfp, I have'nt lost one customer because of wfp, but continue to gain more and more along the way, I need now to gain back at least 150 more new customers.

So here is looking to the next 10 years as a WC. 

What got you Guy's and Gals into being a WC???

I would like to dedicate this post to  Stewart and Stan who have both sadly passed away and helped me on the long and prosperous business road.

[rhys11]

what a nice thing them old boys to do

im just starting out and finding a bit hard finding the custmers hope to get there soon.

[brett walker]

Hi Jeff

what a brilliant success story, i love to hear stories like that be good to read things like that in the PWC mag instead of all window cleaning adverts.  I am pleased you are doing really well and it looks like you dont regret a single moment you must be the envy of many window cleaners on this forum, as when you first start out its hard.  Wether you buy the round or canvass there are so many joining this industry now
I remember when i first started 16yrs ago i just had one days training with a window cleaner an old friend of my dads there was no forums back then and no other window cleaners was interested in helping you.  The new guys of today just starting up are lucky to have all this help freely available

I think you are a top bloke dedicating this story to Stewart and Stan they sound like real legends

regards

Brett.

[jeff1]

Thanks Brett

I had known these 2 guy's for several years, but I never knew they were WC, until that night.

my neighbor (Stewart) was a pen pusher in the RAF before he retired, he always came across as a business man and not a WC, he handed me all the paperwork including the customer list and every detail of the customer was documented, even down to the customers pets name's.

I know this, they were well respected, I would say 90% of the customers gave them both a retirement gift, be it cash or a small gift.

Stan the original owner was a WC for nearly 40 years before he retired, so You see the company name still stands today, I can honestly say  to customers Reflections have been in business for nearly 50 years.

[Paul Coleman]

He left and I sat and thought about it, and began to speak to the Boss (wife) about it and we came to the decision that we would give it a try, so the next day I popped up to see him and find out more details and what a shock I got from him and his partner who was there at the time.

Right you will have a well established round of 500 customers and at least 50 of them are commercial and 20 of them are on a 2 weeks round he gave me the figures of what my earnings would be? The business included all the equipment and a small old car. Then came the crunch I had to ask how much money he was looking for to buy all this from them?
They looked at me in a blank manner and said to me, we don't want anything for it, we want to give it to you,
On the condition I spent the final 6 weeks with them so they could introduce me to all there customers and teach me how to clean windows before they retired.
Hands shook, deal done, I was now a business owner but still a little apprehensive why some one would do this??
neither one of the guy's needed the money and both owned more than one home. (not due to WC I might add)

We started cleaning windows on June 1st 1997 so June of this year will see me into my 10th year
my self and the boss worked together for 6 years, and the boss decided she had enough of wc and gave it up, but continued to do all the things for me behind the scene's, when this happened I had to reduce my round by about 200 customers, so I picked the least liked area's and gave them to another WC who worked the same area, he asked why I didn't want money for it, so I just told him it was given to me, so I wanted someone else to benefit from my good fortune.

I continued on my own for the next four years and on some Jobs found it difficult, So January this year, I changed fully over to wfp, I have'nt lost one customer because of wfp, but continue to gain more and more along the way, I need now to gain back at least 150 more new customers.

So here is looking to the next 10 years as a WC. 

What got you Guy's and Gals into being a WC???

What happened to you was very special and rare.  Sometimes people do not look after things very well when they have been given them.  I'm glad to see that you have nurtured the business.
In answer to your question, I got into W/Cing due to unemployment in the early 1990s.  Apart from when I was briefly a builder's labourer (straight from school), I had always been an employee in dead end jobs.  I did have one job where I was meant to train for better things but the company went bust.
In the early 1990s, even many of us more fortunate ones in the southeast tasted sustained unemployment.  Three redundancies in two years got quite irritating.  I had always regarded self employment as being insecure but I reckoned that it couldn't be any worse than what I had already been through.
I had no money, no debts, no dependants BUT I did have an old Datsun Cherry hatchback.  I spent the last money to my name on some food, some scrims/applicator/squeegee, a tank of petrol, and I borrowed a ladder from a plumber who had left the trade.  I then proceeded to spend some bitterly cold winter evenings knocking on peoples doors.  It was so cold one evening, I couldn't get the pen to write in the notebook and one of my new customers gave me a couple of biros.  Some evenings I might pick up six or seven jobs and go home elated.  Other evenings I got none.  Sometimes I would get one £5 job and travel all the way out there the next day just to do it in case I lost the customer.
I then had a break.  I stumbled across a well paying job (self employed) which involved going away driving for one week a month.  It was one of those ad wagons and I used to just spend a week driving around an area advertising a new Superdrug store in that area.  This took me hundreds of miles from home sometimes.  But it meant that I was well paid for one week in four and gave me a small cushion on which to build the window cleaning.
Then I had another break.  I was at the janitorial supply shop when some guy asked me if I wanted a regular window cleaning job.  It turned out to be a £100 office.  So I did that at £100 per month and every third month I did all the insides and partitions for an extra £150.  Doing the outsides of that place used to take me all day for £100 (1992 so not as bad as it sounds) and I would be knackered at the end of it.  I needed a triple 3.5 metre ladder for it (not fully extended) so I made the purchase.  When I did the inside reception area, I would be perched high up on beams to do some of the windows (I must have been nuts).  However, that job and the driving job came along just when I needed them ad they helped me get through the first year or so.
I made loads of mistakes.  I quoted far too low.  I'm astonished I never killed or badly injured myself when I remember the crazy things I did on the ladder.  I did it the hard way.  Probably the total opposite of what happened to you.

[dai]

Nine years ago I gave £650 a month round to my son in laws brother. This was on brand new estates that were still expanding. One estate had another 90 houses to build. He just couldn't hack it. Now he's a great guy, and has had no problems in his new job. He just couldn't discipline himself to being self employed.
I regret doing it now, as after I moved this work is much closer to where I live, and with WFP would have been a doddle. Dai

[jeff1]

Reading some of your replies, I can see how very lucky I was, no canvasing, no freezing in the winter nights trying to pick up the odd customer and most of all straight into a well established round, that had been handed to me on a plate.
Its taught me a couple of things.

1st. There are some very kind people in this world and were very lucky when we come across them.

2nd. I have another 14 years WC before I retire, (if I retire on time,)
What ever I have built upto, and all my equipment, I'm going to give away FREE, but like the 2 guy's who gave me there business, I think I will have to know its going into the right hands.
Who knows it might even be one of you Guy's.
 

[Sir Squeaky]

I was fed up with my job as a Valeter/Driver/Weekend Salesman at a Ford garage and I saw an advert in the local Jobcentre for a window cleaner.
Got tired of driving people's Porsches, Ferraris, Bentleys...

Turns out it was Ian Giles, who I didn't know at the time.

I worked for him for over 4 years.
We had our regular squabbles, but I'd like to think we respected each other.
He started out as a right slave-driver, but he mellowed a bit when I was making him lots of money.

In fact, I think I was the highest profit maker he'd had...

After 4 years I realised I could do the job without giving him half.
Even though he'd convinced me it cost him that in my overheads! :

I started out on my own and picked up one job here, one job there.
I finally gave in, and bought a load of work from Ian, and still do most of it today.
I've been on my own for 5 1/2 years now.

Ian never employed anyone after that.
I guess no-one could fill my shoes.

Or was it that I'd put him off going through it all again...

Rog.

[jeff1]

I was fed up with my job as a Valeter/Driver/Weekend Salesman at a Ford garage and I saw an advert in the local Jobcentre for a window cleaner.
Got tired of driving people's Porsches, Ferraris, Bentleys...

Turns out it was Ian Giles, who I didn't know at the time.

I worked for him for over 4 years.
We had our regular squabbles, but I'd like to think we respected each other.
He started out as a right slave-driver, but he mellowed a bit when I was making him lots of money.

In fact, I think I was the highest profit maker he'd had...

After 4 years I realised I could do the job without giving him half.
Even though he'd convinced me it cost him that in my overheads! :

I started out on my own and picked up one job here, one job there.
I finally gave in, and bought a load of work from Ian, and still do most of it today.

Ian never employed anyone after that.
I guess no-one could fill my shoes.

Or was it that I'd put him off going through it all again...

Rog.

Squeaky, again hard work on your behalf, has gotten you were you are today and you would not have got there with-out self discipline and hard work, I think I'm right in saying you to have reached your 10 year mile stone?
Well done squeek and I wish you all the best for the future with your WFP system, you won't look back now.

[alwindows]

i was a auto elec for lucas for or 25 year when they went    
 tits up i started window cleaning . i now work 5 hr a day out side and i love it . all so i manufacture a pure water trolley system as i was not happy with any systems on the market
yes it hard in the winter but over all it a good job

[Llaaww]

i washed my first window in 1989, since then I have worked for one or two contractors across the country.
Lucky for me I decided to have a go for myself. When I first started I only had a bucket and a couple of squeegees. I knocked on every single door in the local area. My line was that I wanted to wash the downstairs windows, and that I would be back when I could afford a ladder. What a good bunch of people I met, nearly every door I knocked on took me on.
Be fore long I had a ladder, one of the punters had one that he didn't use. I began to clean upstairs, and before long had a car.
I built a round up in bristol, mostly resi, but some good comm, over time I decided to try and find the bigst poshest houses that I could find, it was like fishing, most of the time you get little ones, and every now and then you get a whopper. I picked up a few good resi jobs in a couple of years, but then I got a whopper. Multi millionaire, more money than sense type. I got swallowed up into the estate and spent three years building gardens. Great fun for the most part, but not enough freedom for me.

I have recently moved to cornwall, (just north of st ives) I started to put a round together on jan 1st 07, since then I have picked up over 50 new commercial sites, and maybe 20 houses. I have just used wfp today, and I think I like it.

[Clive McDonald]

I just had my best ever day, and it was £90. I ache like blazes.

I came into it as a business but I have things that are holding me back. Plus I am finding it difficult.

My first day WFP pole i was unlucky with an awkward customer. I'm probably different because I expect to succeed. Customers are starting to come to me now but it's took longer than I thought.

I'm making all the mistakes such as underpricing etc. I'm hoping i can find a div to do most of the work, but I expect that's me. Off to dominican for 3wks monday and I will give the business some thought, very often there are canadian MBA types and I pick their brains.