When it’s profitable to hire a cleaning company? When it’s better to get somebody else for doing the cleaning?

All businessmen ask themselves one day, if they need to form their non-purpose departments. But is it always necessary to create this department, if the company may get no less profit without it? When is it the moment, when the retailer should be involved in trade only and outsource the non-profile job? These questions were asked to the retail operators and representatives of companies, which do the list of services to the trade organizations.

Supercleaners in Supermarkets

The first cleaning companies in Ukraine appeared about ten years ago. As a main reason, which caused it, the experts name the developing of office and real estate market. The following splash of activity of professional cleaners is caused by appearance of foreign companies, which used to get rid of unnecessary activity by outsourcing it.

According to the cleaners, the main principles of their business are organization and professionalism. The retailers get those when ordering cleaning services. The difference between the tasks of the trade company and specialized company is in the attitude to the job. The first one doesn’t consider it as a main activity, that’s why you’re never sure how good the job’s done. The second one considers it as a main activity and tries to do everything perfectly clean. Why is the part of trade companies just 30% from the whole list of orders? Why do the biggest retail companies create their own cleaning structures?

“First of all, they order cleaning company’s services, when the real estate object is no less than one thousand square meters”, Valerij Simanov, the general manager of cleaning company Clear Star, says, “In this case the prime cost is equal the expenses, which make the trade company ask for professional help. For example, the trade chain Bumy-Market created its own cleaning department because of the small area of the shops (400 sq. m in average). Each cleaner had 200 sq. m (the whole quantity of staff in the department is 80-100 people for 43 shops). The expenses minimize thanks to equipment: as the area is small, it’s not necessary to buy the expensive machines for EUR20–100 thousands. The professional tools for cleaning of stores is used, it costs from $200. The function of administrator and manager are performed by the three people: a manager, senior stores assistants and a deputy manager. The number of cleaning doesn’t depend on the quantity of guests. They do a standard cleaning – once a day”.

“At the beginning our financial department did the counting of expenses in case of collaboration with cleaning companies”, Sergej Martynenko, the manager of marketing department of Bumy-Market, explains, “As a result, we decided to create our own structure. Moreover, we make sure, that it’s better to manage cleaners, if they are employed by our company.”

Denis Kish, the general manager of cleaning company Shaden Group, doesn’t agree with this point of view.

“It’s a pity”, he says, “A very few companies manage to create a good cleaning service. They don’t create a special position for that – they just ask someone from their employees to do the job. Professional technique isn’t cheap; and a well-trained cleaner can properly use it. Same with chemicals: they need to be dosed properly. Same is with exploitation technique and safety.”
As a rule, the demand in cleaning appears with the intensive growth of chain, when the main expenses are spent on its development. In order to create its own cleaning service, the serious primary investments (EUR20–40 thousands) needed. When the area of cleaning is big, the machine with operator seats and traction engine is vital, but it costs more than 100 thousands grivnas. Correspondently the staff department is needed for employing the cleaners.

The leaseholders of shopping mall stores face the different situation. There’re a couple of schemes to distribute the financial obligations for cleaning services. Some owners of trade centers distribute the expenses between the leaseholders, including the expenses into the exploitation price. The solution has an important profit, because the level of taxes lowers: you don’t need to pay a percent of the capital, which you don’t have. Lots of trade centers conclude contracts for cleaning of the public places (elevators, bathrooms and corridors), and the leaseholders conclude the treaties with cleaning company and pay the service of cleaning their object of lease. The leaseholder may minimize their expenses by means of administrators; it means the specialists of cleaning companies will control the quality of the cleaners’ job.

Besides, the trade centers may save money by temporary hiring of managers on the temporary base. The manager will be a connecting chain between the customer and cleaning company.
“The improper management may cause losing money”, Valerij Simanov says, “The ability to create a proper technological scheme of jobs optimizes the salary. The proper distribution of staff may cause the situation, when 30 people may work instead of 50. Besides, the qualified staff, which should be properly managed, needs its own professional individuals. A few retail companies have such specialists. Even though they can be trained, educated, this is just a question of aim: do you need to do this, is it their profile business or not.”

Today lots of trade chains use the service of cleaning companies, for example Perekrestok, Billa, Metro, Eko. Furshet, which used to do cleaning just by itself, also orders professional cleaning service now. Even though the independent organization of cleaning is expensive, it has its fans: Veluka Kyshenya, the chain Amstor, trade center Karavan, which didn’t want to comment their unwillingness to outsource the cleaning jobs.

The non-food representatives turned out to be more communicative. The furniture company Liga Nove, which uses the service of subcontractors of trade center Imperia Mebeli, notices the serious economy of the inner expenses of its enterprise.

“Today different trimming materials are used in construction, which need the different care with using of solvent, not regular domestic detergents”, Julia Kostina, the real estate specialist of Liga-Nova, says, “There’re surfaces, which are difficult to take care of. The unprofessional care of the real estate may lead to the unjustified growing of expenses for redecoration and capital repair. The other feature of the modern cleaning process is using of expensive equipment. The cleaning company acts at the objects according to the technological card, what saves a customer from the constant control. Considering, that real estate cleaning is a business for specialized company, there is a direct interest in qualitative work performance.

Source: “Torgovoe Delo”