08/30/2026
If you’ve been thinking about taking the leap and starting your own cleaning business… DO IT. 🤍
In 2022, I lost my full-time job. I had just gotten my first apartment, had bills to pay, and genuinely had no idea what I was going to do next.
I started cleaning on the side for a friend. They suggested I pick up a few more houses just to help pay the bills.
Well… a “few houses” turned into me sitting at home researching how to open an LLC. 😂
Then came the EIN, insurance, bonding, courses, equipment, products, learning different surfaces, learning what products can damage those surfaces, understanding what actually cleans versus sanitizes, figuring out pricing, policies, scheduling, bookkeeping, marketing… ALL OF IT.
Sometimes I forget that I DID THAT.
I did the research.
I filed the paperwork.
I bought the equipment.
I took the courses.
I learned through mistakes.
I built the brand.
I found the clients.
I kept showing up.
And three years later, we have built a beautiful list of recurring clients and our books are currently FULL. 🥹
But I also know I would not have been able to build Whiteside Cleaning into what it is today without my husband.
He’s a retired Army bomb technician, and when I came to him with this crazy little idea, he never made me feel like it was “just cleaning.” He encouraged me to make it a BUSINESS. And now he shows up every day as my right-hand man. He has supported every idea, every stressful day, every exciting milestone and every growing pain along the way.
If I could give anyone starting out some advice, it would be this:
Treat your business like a business from DAY ONE.
Do the things that set you apart.
Book the brand photoshoot. 📸
Get the shirts made.
Order the business cards.
Create the logo.
Invest in good equipment.
Educate yourself.
Get insured.
Create policies and STICK TO THEM.
Learn your numbers.
Build a brand people remember.
One thing we started doing is giving every new recurring client a Whiteside Cleaning Welcome Packet. It explains who we are, our policies, routine cleaning versus deep cleaning, references, cancellations, discontinuing service and what clients can expect from us.
Those little things matter.
There is SO much more to owning a cleaning company than walking into a house and making it sparkle. You become the cleaner, scheduler, accountant, marketer, customer service department, inventory manager, content creator, problem solver and business owner all at once. 😂
But when you look at something that started because you were simply trying to pay your bills and realize you built an actual business that supports you and serves families in your community… it hits differently.
I’m incredibly proud of this little business I built from the ground up, and incredibly grateful for the husband who believed in me enough to say, “Let’s do it,” and then rolled up his sleeves and did it right beside me. 🤍
Three years down, and I’m still learning every single day.
So to the cleaner sitting there wondering if you should take the leap…
Start. Learn. Invest in yourself. Build the brand. Take yourself seriously.
You never know what your “few houses on the side” might turn into. 🧽✨
