

Exec launches professional cleaning service - justin
http://techcrunch.com/2012/10/30/exec-cleaning/

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marciovm123
I tried this and was really impressed. Removed the hassles of 1) finding a
cleaner; 2) arranging a huge time window to be home (they text you when they
are on their way); 3) guessing what cleaning products I need to provide; 4)
guessing what language to speak.

I'm already familiar with what a cleaner is for so it was a small step for me
to try this. Now that I'm in their system I'm much more likely to use Exec for
things I've never considered hiring someone to do before.

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RollAHardSix
65 an hour! Even with two people that seems a bit much. I have a woman I pay
30 dollars for an average of 3 hours of cleaning and she does such a good job
I only have to have her over usually once every two weeks. She also does
laundry, dishes, windows, sweeps and mops the floors, the whole shebang.

Still I like how Exec is looking at their customer base and adapting, that's
how you stay relevant in an ever-evolving market!

~~~
tomkinstinch
Seriously, $65/hr is nuts. If that's the going rate for cleaning service in
SF, I clearly picked the wrong profession. Even for two workers that's high.
What are they doing, cleaning up hazmat? How can it be that their regular
service functions at $25/person-hr, but cleaning is $32.50/person-hr?

I wonder if they have trouble finding trustworthy workers, or if they are
intentionally targeting the the upper segment of the market. (Perhaps to drive
sales for other Exec services?)

Is it possible they are providing benefits to their workers, and that explains
the cost? It probably makes sense for someone who is around harsh chemicals
all day to have decent healthcare.

~~~
groby_b
If people actually pay taxes/ssi, $65/hour isn't that nuts any more.

Sure, you can go ahead and go the "no paperwork" route, that'll get the job
done cheaper. But it's probably not a good plan for a web service.

~~~
tomkinstinch
How can they make their regular service work for $25/hour then?

~~~
tvjunky
Contractor vs. Employee would be one easy difference. Cleaning is a more
specific task. I'm guessing they have a list of "do's and don't" for the 2
people @ $65 rate. If you have someone performing random "on demand" tasks
paid after completion, they could easily just be 1099's. Profit could be
similar.

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bravura
I found this end note interesting:

"Kan faces competition from the YC family itself. Another Y Combinator-backed
startup Pathjoy is doing maid services for as little as $20 an hour."

Besides the fact that Pathjoy has terrible design (sorry, it's true) and is
much cheaper, is there a big difference between the two?

~~~
abbasmehdi
Pathjoy seems to specialize in cleaning only. I really loved using them. The
whole before, during, and after experience was seamless and great. The lady
they sent over was extra sweet and stayed out of our way while she cleaned.
She even left a note on her way out that really showed how much pride she took
in her work and how hard she was willing to try to meet her own standards
(which beat my standards of "clean" ;-) ).

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joonix
How is this a "startup" that needs VC funding? It looks like a cleaning
company, just like the millions that are already out there. What am I missing?
They have an app?

~~~
IsaacL
My question as well. Though I think you _can_ scale service businesses, they
scale differently to product businesses. (E-myth revisited provides a
roadmap).

But yes, cleaning is already a crowded market, and if someone could make the
"Starbucks of cleaning companies", you'd think they'd have done it anyway. I
guess Exec's bet is that they can leverage tech somehow to change the dynamics
of the business, like Uber did.

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rolandal
Does anyone else on HN think this is a growing trend?

\- Services/Startups that start really wide and then begin to pivot by
narrowing in scope/niche (ex. An exec for all things -> building an Uber for
cleaning service)

~~~
jevinskie
I think that is simply a sign that the company is recognizing their markets
better (hopefully).

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rayiner
I don't understand how this is different than the cleaning services that
already exist in every major city. I use <http://www.accessmaids.com> here in
Chicago. I can schedule online, pay with a CC, tell my doorman to let them in,
and they send 2 people over for 1.5 hours for only $81 + tip.

Please tell me a service like this is novel in SF...

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otakucode
Why are they employing anyone? This sounds like the perfect data service to
provide to hook up people who have a cleaning job that needs to be done with
people who are willing to do the job and enable them to agree on a price, with
the data service taking a (small, no more than a finders fee) cut.

Include some ability for users to feedback on their experience with various
cleaners, allow cleaners to feedback on users, provide some scheduling
management tools for the cleaners, maybe take another small sliver for those
services, etc. The goal being making it as easy as technologically possible
both for someone to get their house cleaned and someone who wants to clean
houses to find work. This is the model that will destroy all traditional
employers, and doing so with great speed is important. There's not time to
drag feet and try to drag along archaic structures like holding employees or
being tied to employers any more.

~~~
vidar
Guaranteed performance would be my guess.

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gadders
We've hired cleaners through agencies in the UK before.

The issue these and similar businesses will face, I expect, is that once the
cleaners become established with a household, there is always a large
temptation to "go direct" and cut the agency out of the loop. THis is a
win/win for the cleaner and the household. Typically the agency markup is
split 50/50, and the cleaner makes slightly more and the family pays sligtly
less.

There also isn't an easy way for the agencies to enforce non-competes or
anything either, I'd expect.

~~~
tvjunky
This may be another factor Exec discovered before rolling out an "official"
cleaning service. The focus then is less on one off requests and more on
getting return business and managing the customer. It would be easy enough for
a contractor who got random work from Exec to pull a few regulars if there was
no follow up after the web scheduled job. As a side note, I disagree with the
win/win idea. Ethics and trust are put into question for me. If the service
provider is willing to screw over their employer, what are they going to do in
your home.

~~~
gadders
I don't know how Exec will run their business, but typically in the UK an
agency will supply a cleaner for you, who is typically a housewife or similar
with time on their hands and wants to earn some extra money. If you're happy
with the cleaner they supply, they end up working regularly at your house, for
months or years.

All this time, the agency is taking a % cut for providing the original
cleaner. After that, the additional value they add is zero.

So yes, it may be unethical to disintermediate the agency, but by this time
you have been working with the cleaner for weeks/months, so you get a fairly
good idea as to what sort of person they are.

~~~
tvjunky
If you think of it as a placement agency, i.e. contractor, who works for you,
then yes that extra % may seem like a problem. But then do you manage
sick/vacation time? A company who manages the schedule would usually try to
have a backup cleaner during those times or provide a new cleaner in the event
the current one leaves. They might also follow up to maintain work standards.
They might(should) provide insurance coverage on your belongings in case of an
accident. On the cleaner side, finding "part-time" work is often a challenge
and they enjoy the benefit of having the job handed to them and don't have to
worry about where the next job is coming from.

It's interesting, there seems to be a few here on HN that have a problem with
people building businesses and making money. Is it implausible that the
cleaner you have had for months/years could end up with more work than they
can handle and begin to bring in help to do the jobs they won? That's often
how small businesses are created.

~~~
gadders
I have absolutely no problem at all with people starting a business and making
money. Good for them.

I am just saying the flaws in the business model as I've experienced it.
Agencies could add value via insurance, holiday cover etc, but the ones I've
experienced never do.

