Wichita Entrepreneur Flourishes in the Cleaning Bu
Wichita, KS, August 20-- When his family's business, South Central Business Forms, closed, Paul Rodriguez found himself trying to figure out what to do with his life, according to the Wichita Eagle.
An opportunity to get into the carpet-cleaning business presented itself.
"I saw a way to make a good livelihood," Rodriguez said. "My ambitions have always been of an entrepreneurial type. I don't want to work for someone else."
Prestige Carpet Cleaning's home office in the Kansas City area wanted to open a branch in Wichita and hired Rodriguez to do so.
He started in the industry in 1999, learning on the job. He now owns Prestige in Wichita. He incorporated in 2000 as a limited liability company. He owns the rights to the Prestige name in Kansas.
He leased the equipment when he first started and now has paid off the trucks and machines.
The 38-year-old Wichita native cleans carpets, furniture and area rugs for residential and commercial customers. Prestige also recently began offering to do professional maintenance of vinyl flooring, which includes stripping, sealing and waxing.
About 95 percent of Prestige's business is residential. Rodriguez is trying to grow his commercial business. A meat-packing plant recently awarded Prestige a contract for its vinyl floors.
But Rodriguez--who enjoys playing acoustic and rock music in his spare time and riding motorcycles--is picky. He wants clients who are interested in maintaining their homes and businesses--not customers who let things slide to the point of no return.
He's walked away from some jobs because the prospective clients needed someone to clean their entire homes, not just their carpets. "I've seen some where I wonder, 'Why are we even here?' " Rodriguez said.
Luckily, that's the exception, not the rule, he said.
Much of his business is repeat work. Rodriguez, who has two other employees, said he competes on value, not price. "Nine out of 10 jobs we do, we'll get them back," he said.
Prestige Carpet Cleaning uses a dry-foam method that Rodriguez says doesn't saturate carpets and padding.
Prestige doesn't charge by the square foot, but by the room. Rodriguez has a running special offering carpet cleaning in a living room, dining room and hall for $64.95 in Wichita. Prestige serves the metro area and charges a little extra to go outside Wichita.
Carpets should be cleaned about every six months if not treated with a soil retardant and about every 10 months if treated, Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez recently moved to a new home and so he hasn't cleaned his own carpets yet, but he cleaned those in his former home about every six months.
