History of Commercial Cleaning Companies: How did it all start?

Author: Jim Knight

"Housework is something you do that nobody notices until you don't do it."

- Anonymous. Although commercial cleaning is somewhat different than housework, there are several parallels as well. For instance, you realize its need only when no one does it, and the later you realize, the harder it is to do. Industrious as you may be, there are certain things best left to professionals. This is especially true for commercial buildings and industrial structures where specialized knowledge and skills are all the more important. To put things into perspective, if you had a tooth that required to be extracted, wouldn't you rather go to the dentist than tying a string around it and yanking it out yourself? When there are professionals who can do the task , faster and at cost, it makes sense to defer to their expertise. Enter commercial cleaners. The history of commercial cleaning companies began four decades ago in 1968 in the small town of Norman, Oklahoma. Jim Cavanaugh, a student at the University of Oklahoma and blessed with the entrepreneurial streak, began marketing janetorial services to clients in the locality, clients he would service at night after school. Within a year, Cavanaugh founded Jani-King in 1969, the name derived from "janitor" and "king". He soon that the future of the company lay in expansion, and pioneered the company's unique franchisee model where franchisees are offered initial leads to business. This helps the franchisees as they do not have to start from scratch. It's no wonder that Jani-King has consistently ranked amongst the top ten franchisers in the country. Jani-King's expansion was not restricted to the United States; the company went international when it its first Canadian franchise in 1986. It was during this that Entrepreneur magazine first bestowed the coveted title of the No.1 Commercial Cleaning Franchise Company, a title it has held for 19 of the last 20 years. Cavanaugh had already shifted his headquarters from Oklahoma to Dallas to this exponential , and he wasn't unsatisfied. The 90s marked a of of Jani-King. The company established its 5,000th franchise and into Argentina, Australia, Brazil, France, Great Britain, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand,

Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, and Turkey. In 1998, Entrepreneur magazine ranked Jani-King the No. 1 Maintenance Franchise and the No. 1 International Franchise in its Top 200 list.

Today, there are more than 12,000 reported Jani-King franchisees in the world. Jani-King supports more than 120 regional offices in 16 countries, and services the commercial cleaning requirements of millions of customers annually.

While Jani-King is indisputably the largest commercial cleaning company, there are various other reputed ones as well, some with a national presence and some to cities or states. Janitize America and Coverall are two prominent national commercial cleaning companies.

Your of a commercial cleaning company has to be based on the local of the company. While national reputation is substantial, the main factor in your decision should be how the local franchisee is perceived by its clients. And as always, should also be a factor, but never the most important one.

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