Kendry

29/05/2026

Live to work or work to live?
The passion in my life has always been motorbikes and racing. I love every form of bike racing from MotoGP all the way through to the Isle Of Man TT (which starts this week and is the inspiration for this topic). So this week, I’m going to talk about myself and the way I managed my own carpet cleaning business.
One of the prime reasons for starting our own business is to have more time for both ourselves and our family. We all have to work to a diary so it’s essential to schedule personal time otherwise another job will be slotted in. We also need to be profitable enough in order to permit leisure time and activities. For myself, from 1986 onwards, each year I would attend the IOM TT races. Rides down to the South of France too for the 24 hour Bol d’Or endurance races, plus much more over the years. This was in addition to family holidays. Daytime activities and events at the childrens’ schools would be entered into the diary and attended. Lots of parents are often unable to do this because of work commitments. When the children were old enough, they would come and work with me at weekends and school holidays. The benefits of this are enormous. Being paid for what they work for is a great life lesson and just as important is the communication skills they learn by meeting and talking with other adults.
In 1998, my life changed. I had a near-death health issue requiring major surgery and more again 12 months later. Savings became exhausted and, financially, I only just managed to weather the storm. By running a successful business and costing in an emergency fund savings account made all of this less stressful than it would otherwise have been.
Once my life and health had fully recovered it was back to my lifestyle business. Annual 2 weeks on the Med along with, every 2 or 3 years, up to 6 weeks “Adventure Break” in Australia. Being an owner/operator, it was simply a case of turn on the voicemail and lock the door on the way out. I’ve really had a blessed life. Businesses with employees have a bigger challenge for this, but it’s still achievable.
My point behind all of this is that you need to have a plan along with the profits to achieve it. Especially as you get older (from around the age of 50), your production rate on the tools may diminish leading to fewer jobs and less profit. However, if your marketplace is for the more discerning customer who is looking for a premium service rather than a low price point, your work rate and profits are more easily maintained.
Being able to achieve consistently high standards requires not only good business skills but technical excellence too, and this is where our training can help you to be the best you can be. To discover more about our Kendry One-On-One Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Advanced Stain Removal and Commercial Carpet Cleaning training courses, please forward your email address for details by return.
Work to live, not Live to work!
Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

23/05/2026

The most popular natural fibre found in upholstery fabrics is cotton, so we as professional carpet and upholstery cleaners must have an understanding and respect for this fibre. Below is some key information about cotton.
The cotton fibres grow in a boll which is designed to protect the seeds. Within the boll, the longer cotton lint is used to make a yarn whilst the shorter lintners are used for such things as making paper or the manufacture of cellulose which, amongst other things, can be used to manufacture viscose.
Cotton is a low-cost fibre that is easy to blend with other staple fibres and also easy to dye. As with other cellulosic fibres, cotton may be coloured with reactive dyes. These dyes have good colour fastness properties but if cleaning is completed using an acidic rinse there may be some colour change in a way not too dissimilar to the changes of colour on pH indicator paper. Best to keep the rinsing pH neutral or mildly alkaline.
Cotton fibres do not shrink. When wetted they actually swell and it is these swollen fibres that cause a fabric to shrink.
Cotton is highly flammable so in upholstery fabrics will almost certainly be treated with a flame retardant.
Cotton will retain more than it’s own weight of water so benefits from even wetting and drying. Uneven drying may cause cellulosic browning to the fabric. Cotton is tolerant of higher temperatures and cleaning alkalis up to approximately pH10.
Haitian cotton is less highly processed and so will contain other “waste” material from the cotton plant including seeds (which on their own can create a brown dye stain). Cellulosic browning is a high risk. Haitian cotton fabric is dimensionally unstable so will have a back-coating. Fine Fabric Cleaning training is advised.
Being a natural fibre, cotton is more prone to abrasion wear than synthetic options.
As you can see from these brief notes, cotton needs to be respected and cleaned accordingly. If you would like to discover how our Kendry One-On-One Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Advanced Stain Removal and Commercial Carpet Cleaning training courses can help you to be the best you can be, then forward your email address for details by return.

Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

15/05/2026

New entrants into our industry have it tough. They may be starting a new business for the first time, so they are on a steep learning curve before they even purchase any kit or product. They may have seen favourable results from a TV advert or even rented a machine themselves to clean their own carpets and then be under the illusion that it’s all as simple as ABC. It’s just cleaning, it’s easy to do ‘cos that’s what BillyTheKid does on YouTube, so training is not necessary. Cleaning a sofa with a 12” floor wand? Simples! Domestos on a stain? No worries about that one. There’s no need to pre-vac a carpet ‘cos their all singing, all dancing beast of a carpet cleaning machine is so much more powerful than a Dyson. Easy Peasy.

Over my many years as an industry trainer, I’ve lost count of the number of students I’ve taught who tried to start their new business with this type of mindset only to quickly realise that they had been so naïve. They often purchased the wrong equipment for their needs too. The biggest, badest most powerful machine is not always the best option, not just for a new business, but for an established one too. Perhaps one of the best pieces of advice I can give to a new start-up is to not purchase any equipment before you have been trained, this can, and has many times over, saved students several thousands of ££££s.

If you would like to discover more about Kendry’s One-On-One Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Advanced Stain Removal and Commercial Carpet Cleaning training courses, please forward your email address for details by return
Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

09/05/2026

If you were to tell your customers, whether residential or commercial, that you have had some of the best carpet cleaning training in the land, how would you convince them that it’s of value? Perhaps you would tell them that your training provider was Kendry (me). They’ve never heard of Kendry. Or perhaps it was IICRC, NCCA, Train To Clean or maybe Prochem? Never heard of them either. The public have probably never heard of any of our industry’s training providers and why should they? But if you tell them that you are trained to work to British Standard’s BSI PAS86 specifications, the story will be quite different. The British Standards Institute, along with their logo, are recognised, valued and respected by most in the land. This can help to bring you recognition and credibility over your competition. All of my fellow training providers above can help you to attain the high standards required of the BSI.

If you would like to discover more of our unique Kendry One-On-One Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Advanced Stain Removal and Commercial Carpet Cleaning training courses, then forward your email address for details by return

Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

01/05/2026

From time to time, I’ll get a call from a technician who is struggling to complete the fibre identification test. More often than not it is for a fabric that has a cut pile and all of the cushions are fixed to the chair/sofa, so it is not possible to test the out-of-sight zip panel of the cushion. So what can be done?

The biggest concern for most is whether the pile fibres are viscose or cotton. Synthetic or even wool pile fabrics do not normally present issues of great concern to the trained technician, but cotton and viscose velvets do. A couple of easy indicative tests can be carried out. Somewhere out of sight and with the customers permission, wet an area about the size of a 50p coin. Now push firmly into it with your thumb and hold for a short while. If the pile remains crushed and distorted, it will be cotton or viscose. If it recovers, it’s something else. Another procedure you can take is to use a razor to shave some pile off the fabric, gather enough to roll into a small sausage shaped “ball” and then execute a burn test.
To discover more about our Kendry One-On-One Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Advanced Stain Removal and Commercial Carpet Cleaning training courses, please forward your email address for details by return
Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

25/04/2026

So often, I will see posts on industry social media and forum pages where people seek or give advice about "Wick-back Stains" when, in fact, they are something quite different. Here are a few examples.
A stain treated with a non-volatile solvent is successfully removed only for a few days later to reappear. Not wick-back but failure to remove the solvent residues leading to rapid re-soiling. Ditto for some stains treated with a detergent. Reading the instruction label is not only vital for removing stains but also for preventing further problems.
Next, a carpet is cleaned, appears to be fine only for soiling to reappear even worse once dried. This is wick-back and usually attributed to insufficient dry-soil removal.
A tufted carpet dries with a yellowish stain. This is often not what the technician expects the stain to be. There is a belief that tufted carpets cannot create cellulosic browning because of the tufted construction not using plant-sourced fibres. WRONG! Some have a hessian secondary backing (jute). Where does the latex adhesive come from that binds the pile, primary and secondary backings together? The rubber tree is a major source of latex along with other plants as well as some synthetic options. Loop pile and loop berber style carpets tend to have more latex present than a cut pile carpet so are more at risk of cellulosic browning. The face-pile fibre can be wool or synthetic. There is also BHT yellowing which some may confuse with cellulosic browning.

To discover more about many different types of stain and how to successfully treat them, our Kendry One-On-One Advanced Stain Removal, Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning and Commercial Carpet Cleaning training courses will show you how. For more information, please forward your email address for details by return.
Safe and Happy Cleaning😊
Ken

18/04/2026

The very name of Laura Ashley strikes fear into the minds of some upholstery cleaners. The stories I’ve heard over the years of uncleanable sofas and furnishings cannot be counted. In reality, most of these items could be cleaned safely by following standard industry procedures. For me, the company itself left much to be desired when it came to the cleaning and care advice given. I can still recall a total lack of understanding by the various departments at Laura Ashley. In January 2017, I surveyed a suite that had a 100% viscose crushed velour pile. The care label stated quite clearly “DO NOT DRY CLEAN”. I checked their website and every single fabric had the same instructions. I spoke to their Customer Service Department and they seemed disinterested, but after insistence to elevate the matter, I was finally transferred to their marketing dept where I was eventually promised a phone call from someone more technically qualified to discuss the issue. A couple of weeks later I had the call from an outside consultant who promised to deal with the matter. And the result? They changed the label on everything to “DRY CLEAN ONLY” Aghhhhhhh.

In 2020, Laura Ashley went into administration and has since been acquired by another entity. A couple of days ago, I was shopping in Next and saw a lot of Laura Ashley furniture and lots of fabric swatches, a few of which I’ve added to my collection. There is some viscose still present but there’s lots of variation in fabric styles and fibre content. It now reminds me more of what M&S offer. But for me and most importantly, the care instructions clearly state “Professional Cleaning Recommended”. There should no longer be a fear of this new generation of Laura Ashley fabrics or of customers doubting your credibility when you disagree with the manufacturer, just complete a detailed pre-cleaning survey and proceed as appropriate.

If you would like to discover more of our Kendry One-On-One Upholstery Cleaning, Carpet Cleaning, Commercial Carpet Cleaning and Advanced Stain Removal training courses, please forward your email address for details by return.
Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

11/04/2026

Why do we seek training? The obvious answer is to be the best we can be, whether a new student or more experienced looking for Continuing Professional Development. Without any formal training, it will probably take 10 years or more to gain the knowledge and understanding that a good trainer has. Even then, you never stop learning. Experience is also a factor in being the best you can be, but most of the time, experience is gained from doing something wrong so you now know what NOT to do in the future.
Every student will learn differently. Some find it easy to absorb and retain information. In larger classes, some students feel intimidated when surrounded by peers of greater experience and time served. Some may be cursed with dyslexia whilst others may speak English as a second language. In larger classes, practical hands-on-the tools time may be limited.
At Kendry, our training courses are different. Ken Wainwright, our trainer, has been in our great industry for 46 years. That is a lot of experience to share. We do not sell products or equipment, so we teach generically with zero sales pressure on you. We specialise in One-On-One training. We will only accommodate multiple students if they are from the same company or if you choose to bring along a trusted colleague. Perhaps you may wish to bring along a translator (at your expense). Our courses give you the maximum time for the theory, demonstration and practical modules. Post-training technical support is ongoing.
To discover more about our Kendry Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Commercial Carpet Cleaning and Advanced Stain Removal training courses, please forward your email address for a reply by return.
Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]

09/04/2026

I will be at the NCCA Free Open Day on Saturday 30th May, demonstrating how carpet and upholstery cleaning works in practice.

If you are new to the industry, this is a great opportunity to see the techniques, equipment, and processes up close before making any decisions.

If you already have experience, it is a chance to refine your knowledge and improve your results.

You will be able to ask questions, see demonstrations, and get a real understanding of what is involved day to day.

📅 Saturday 30th May
🕙 10am to 3pm
📍 Kidderminster

👉 Book your free place:

Thinking about starting a carpet cleaning business or looking to improve your current one? Visit us on Saturday 30th May and discover the real opportunities in the industry.

03/04/2026

We solo operators and small companies are not carpet cleaners. We are businessmen and women. There are many reasons why we start our own businesses but high on the list is a better quality of life and being able to have more time for our families. A successful business can be a massive bonus in helping to achieve these goals. The early years will not be easy though and business growth and development may take precedence for a while. If your aim is to stay small to minimise the extra stresses a larger business brings, here’s a couple of examples.
A student and industry colleague has 2 or 3 vans on the road. He reckons for about 6 months of the year that he manages his business from a laptop, from his second home in Spain. Scorcio!
I use myself as the second example. As well as family holidays, with my son and later with my daughter, we would take a 2 week pilgrimage to the Isle Of Man every year for the TT races. Once they had flown the nest, every 2 years or so, The Gorgeous One and I would close the business down for up to 6 weeks at a time and fly off to Australia. We just turned on the answerphone with an appropriate message, locked the door and went. If you have the will, it’s easy. Again, this was not a holiday but an adventure, we still had our 2 weeks on The Mediterranean.
To lead these types of lifestyle you need to be successful. To achieve that, you need to be good at your job. Whether a blossoming newcomer to our industry or an established business in full bloom, your technical knowledge and skills need to nurtured and developed. This is where we can help. To discover more of how our One-On-One Carpet Cleaning, Upholstery Cleaning, Commercial Carpet Cleaning and Advanced Stain Removal training courses can help you, please forward your email address for a reply by return.

Safe and happy cleaning😊
Ken
[email protected]