08/26/2024
Hi 👋 – it’s Matt Graves (owner of Cleen Detailing). If you don’t know our story, back in 2021 I put every dollar I had (and even moved back in with my parents) so that I could invest my heart and soul into building a mobile car detailing business with a 2-part mission:
1) To save customers hours of their time, by delivering the most convenient, reliable, and fair-priced car detailing service that comes to YOU at home or work.
2) To set an industry standard for employee treatment, by creating jobs that pay livable wages, and empower employees to succeed inside & outside of the workplace.
As we celebrate our 1,500 five-star review milestone, I wanted to reflect on the progress made thanks to our incredible customers and employees.
First, we brought the to 6,000 customers in Ottawa, saving them from over 15,000 hours of commute/wait time at a detail shop. We did this by staying focused on a convenient end-to-end experience:
- Easy online booking
- Detailing at your home or work
- Rain or shine service with a canopy
- Self-supplied power & water with our Cleen Van
- 2x faster service with 2-person crews
- Friendly, top-rated service with safe, industry-leading equipment
- Reliable & on-time service guaranteed
Second, our philosophy of paying a livable wage & creating a positive work environment has led to industry-leading employee retention (in fact ALL of our employees returned this year).
This retention allowed us to:
- Launched NEW paint enhancement services
- DOUBLED our efficiency with 2-person crews
- EXPANDED our service areas to all of Ottawa
- REDUCED prices for our customers
- Open an outdoor location at the Real Canadian Superstore in Kanata (760 Eagleson Road)
Finally - our progress this year has not been without its own set of challenges.
From months-long delivery delays on a new detailing van to cash-flow stress caused by too high a debt burden, my evenings, weekends, and holidays have been dedicated to getting Cleen over the final roadblocks to being a long-term, sustainable business. Taking on debt (as opposed to equity investors) has had its pros and cons - with one lesson being the challenge of cash flow!
As we plan for next year and beyond, we're ready to explore outside equity investment to fuel our next stage of growth.
On behalf of the WHOLE Cleen team, a huge thank-you goes out to all of our customers and followers who’ve shared our story (sharing helps us a lot!)
We’ll be offering our services until mid-November (and spots fill up quickly each month) so if you or someone you know needs a detail, book asap here: https://www.cleendetailing.com/car-detailing/ottawa?utm_campaign=2024-thank-you&utm_source=meta-facebook
-Matt Graves, Owner at Cleen Detailing
