Cleaning Industry Analysis 2015 - Cost & Trends Cleaning Industry in 2015 at a Glance The cleaning industry provides several different services. Franchises in this large industry mostly fit into one of three areas: cleaning and jantiorial services, carpet and upholstery cleaning services, and dry cleaning and laundry services. In 2010 there were about 50,000 cleaning services operating in the United States and about 9,000 carpet and upholstery companies, which brough in a total of about 40 billion dollars in annual revenue. About 90 percent of the cleaning revenue is accounted for by cleaning companies, versus about 10 percent by carpet and upholstery. There were 30,000 companies in the laundry and dry cleaning business that brought in about 10 billion dollars in revenue last year, 70% of which were retail laundry and dry cleaning operations, and 30% of which were coin-operated laundry locations. Cleaning services include general services like trash pickup and floor polishing, and also include more specialized services like window washing. Carpet cleaning services not only clean carpets, but also can clean leather, tile, or offer water damage restoration services. Cleaning industry locations tend to be centered by urban and suburban hubs where there is a lot of office space. Dry cleaning consists of collecting clothes, either at a retail location or from a customers home, and cleaning them either at the retail location or a centalized facility, pressing the clothes, and returning the clothes to the customer. Dry Cleaning Efficiency and good location are imperative to successful dry cleaning companies. Expensive equipment is a factor making costs particularly high in this sector. Customer retention is very important and prices depend on the fabric being washed or the services being performed. Federal regulations are a factor for business owners, governing environmental emissions and disposal of potentially hazardous chemicals which are involved in the dry cleaning process. By owning a franchise, a franchisee can get the benefits of working with a large company and cleaning laundry at a centralized facility. Smaller independent facilities often have trouble affording new equipment, complying with government regulations and being as efficient as large organizations. At home pick up is another way some dry cleaners have been able to expand business, and some work exclusively with at home pick up. Examples of retail dry cleaning franchises include Comet Cleaners and Dry Clean USA while a pick up dry cleaning franchise is Dry Cleaning To-Your-Door. Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning The appearance of wall-to-wall carpeting in the 1950s sparked the growth of the carpet and upholstery cleaning industry;. Whereas before people had to roll up their carpets to bring them in to be dry cleaned, the carpet and upholstery cleaning industry brings the convenience of the dry cleaner to customers homes. By 2010, there were about 20,441 carpet and upholstery businesses operating in the United States, employing 69,408 people and bringing in 3.1 billion dollars in revenue. The industry is dominated by small businesses; companies in the field employed an average of five people each. In the 2000s, commercial customers were the biggest growing section of the field, as schools, stores and offices switched from hard flooring to carpeting. Referrals are very import in the marketing of redisdential carpet cleaning companies. Chem-Dry and Heavens Best are two carpet and upholstery cleaning franchises. Cleaning Services There were 824,394 workers in the cleaning industry in 2010. The industry is fairly top-heavy – the fifty largest companies account for about thirty percent of the revenue. About 7% of cleaning workers were self-employed. There are both small and large cleaning companies. But small companies tend to be restricted to residential cleaning, since large commercial cleaning requires many employees and specialized skills. The economic depression of the last few years hit the cleaning industry as it hit most American industries, but the health care industry played a large role in managing to keep the cleaning industry profitable. As the number of elderly americans increased, there was a greater need for cleaning services. Jani-King and MTO are typical janitorial cleaners, and KEI Window Cleaning is an example of a common window cleaning franchise. Marketing is especially important in this area, as there are notably low barriers of entry into the field which makes for some serious competition. For this reason, profit margins tend to be low, and customer retention is critical. Labor costs generally represent about 80% of total operation costs. Costs are often the most important factor for businesses when choosing a provider in this industry. Immigrants are an important part of the labor force in this field, so knowledge of related regulations can be essential. Immigration audits can and do happen, so business owners must be prepared. These jobs tend to be low paying and also can subject employees to dangerous chemicals which can have adverse heatlh effects. These factors lead to high employee turnover which can be a serious issue for businesses. The Future for the Cleaning Industry Low vacancy rates in office spaces are important to the continuing success of both the cleaning and carpet cleaning sectors, as they depend on getting most of their business from offices and commercial buildings. When office vacancy rates went up during the recent depression, business suffered significantly. For residential cleaning, the economy is also important. When incomes are lower, residents will choose to save money by putting off carpet cleaning. Competition may come to cleaning services from larger catch-all companies who offer cleaning as part of a bundled program of many more services, such as parking, snow removal, and pest control. In-house janitorial services operated by buildings and management companies may also serve as competition. Green cleaning products and procedures are a trend to watch out for in the future. As environmentalism becomes more and more popular and new environemental regulations come onto the books, businesses should keep in mind the benefits of being green. For all types of cleaning, there is an opportunity for businesses who use new technology to have a leg up on the many companies that have not changed their cleaning methods in years and years. For dry cleaners, the wet cleaning process is one these forms of technology that is becoming more popular. In addition, dry cleaners should be prepared to face tigher water supply regulations in some areas of the country. Improving home cleaning technology may serve as potential competition for dry cleaners as well, in addition to a trend towards wearing less formal and easier to clean clothes. The cleaning industry is one of the fastest growing service industries in the United States. It is predicted that cleaning services will experience a five percent growth rate between 2008 and 2018, and this growth will be largely due to the health care industry, where elderly care needs will only increase over that period. In addition, personal consumption for cleaning, laundering and repair of clothing is predicted to increase at a compound annual rate of 3 percent from 2010 to 2015. Courtesy:franchisehelp
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 16:59:42 +0000
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