As you don’t need any introductions to the group here I’ll get right to it…
Thank you.
-How long did you actually clean carpet as an owner operator for, and did you have some experience as an employee first?
I was a waiter when I started cleaning carpet with a Host machine out of the trunk of my car. I cleaned from 1984. I got up to around $360k per yar in 1996. At that time, I didn't do a lot of cleaning, but helped out on big jobs, etc.
-and who was your first employee? Office help or a hose puller?
My first employee was my busboy. We cleaned carpet in the daytime and waited tables at night for 3 years.
-What was the most beneficial move to get the 2nd truck rolling full time?
I did it ALL WRONG in the beginning. What you SHOULD do: Build a solid one truck operation with an assistant on the truck and someone in the office. You should be able to do $250k to $400k with one truck depending on a lot of factors.
-How much time went by between your first carpet you cleaned to taking on your first protégé/student?
I started helping other carpet cleaners in our local association about 17 years ago and started Phenomenal Products in 1998.
-On your way to the top, how many cleaning companies did your acquire and incorporate into Clean as a Whistle?
Early on I bought one guy out but he was only doing $40k and his list wasn't very good. Then in 1997, I brought on two partners. They were each doing about $100k each, so on April 1st 1997, we were at about $560k. That year we went to over $800k together. In 1998 we did $1M, 1999 $1.6M, then we went over $2M in 2000 and continued with incremental growth. January 1st 2005, I bought out my two partners. This past year we did just over $3M.
-How involved are you now in the day to day operations of CaaW?
Not involved in the day to day at all. The more time that goes by, the less I'm involved. My main role is supporting my 3 managers. They are very good at what they do. I coach them. I work out of my home and most of my time is invested with Phenomenal Products, Zig Ziglar, speaking, traveling, etc.
When I am in town, I stop by the office and visit with them. Sometimes I come to the weekly managers. Once in a while I'll go to the weekly staff meeting. When I have in town meetings, I meet at my office, so I get to see the staff then too.
And then my Phenomenal Products staff is there so I meet with them a little more often than CAAW staff. So, all in all I'm probably there twice a week for a couple of hours.
It is truly turnkey. I spent many years working on it to get it that way.
-You currently run 10 On Location trucks, with two techs per truck? How many employees combined for CaaW?
We have 40 staff between both companies. Phenomenal Products has 5 and the rest are CAAW, so 35.
-Would you please give us a breakdown of the percentages of CaaW’s profits?
We don't track "profit" per category necessarily, other than when we are pricing our services, but I'll give you the sales breakdown:
On Location Carpet Cleaning 47%
Upholstery Cleaning 11.1%
Hard Surface cleaning/Stone restoration 15.7
Rug Cleaning 17.44
Water Damage ZERO!!! (We focus on high end residential only)
Micro Seal 8.98%
-Are your techs specialists or can any of them do all of the above?
Many of my techs can do all. The newer guys do carpet first, then upholstery, then move into the other areas.
-Currently, how many people do you currently REALLY mentor? (as in the have your cell phone and can call at any time?
Very few. I have coaches that work for me now. I mentor them, and I have some local facilitators that I mentor and about 15 clients that call me on my cell. I don't take on private coaching anymore, but some members qualify for one day with me. I only do groups I have a very high end group, a middle group and our main coaching group. We have 246 people going through our main coaching program right now. About 50% of them are in the cleaning industry.
-Do you regret not going Blue with your rug washing equipment?
Ha ha. Not touching that with a ten foot pole!
-How much time do your personally spend with each Inner Circle member over a year's time?
Some members get a one day with me and I get to know them real well. Also, I do a weekly webinar where they can ask me questions every week. We do a two day member orientation at our shop with about 20 people at a time, so I get to know them there, and we have 4 quarterly events. I facilitate the middle and high end group, but all through the event, I hang out with members. We hang out at the beach, and have a lot of fun.
In fact, at our Destin Dream Retreat we had a sandcastle building contest, and I was right there with them the whole time. We love our members and build a real sense of community. Our members love each other too. It's amazing to see them bond like they do.
-How do you deal with two competitors both looking to join the Inner Circle, or one already being “in” and another wanting in..
We don't allow local cleaners to join for obvious reasons. We have many people from other coaching programs. Some of them have become very close friends. I don't really even think about that anymore because what we have really works and people are happy with it. Working with Ziglar, Maxwell and those guys, I get exposed to lots of other groups and I don't consider any of them competition. People need to find the right fit for them. People want to belong to a group that has the same values as they do. So, after searching around, people eventually find the group they gel with.
-How do you balance your time between family, exercise, CaaW, mentoring, Inner Circle and play time?
Scheduling. I don't work at night except for doing networking online like this (beats falling asleep in front of the tube). My wife is watching TV right next to me. My son is in college. So, I schedule appointments at certain times of the day, and I have certain blocks of time that I write, etc.
Believe it or not, I sleep 7 or 8 hours a day. I go to bed about 9 or 10 and get up at 5 (because I want to). I take a nap in the sun everyday (therefore the tan), and I don't do ANY work on Sunday. I got to church and play basketball. Saturday night is date night with my wife. Since I have a turnkey business, I can pretty much go on "vacation" anytime. We take a few exotic trips each year and we have a condo in Florida. Sometimes I go great places for "work" too. This summer Tom Ziglar and I spoke at Cambridge University, and I went over to Greece for a week after that to stay at a friend's house. Then I went to St. Thomas with John Maxwell's group.
Don't get me wrong, I work hard, but most of my work is writing, planning, and speaking or teaching.
- What don’t we know about Howard Partridge?
You probably don't know that I have a coffee pot named Wilson. And believe it or not, I'm just a regular guy that loves to hang out.
-If you had access to the Necker Island Hot Tub who would be at the top of your list of living people (six seats available if I recall, I was so tipsy and star struck I can’t quite remember) to share the water with?
(Hmmm.... you went to Necker Island?)
-Who or what companies do you consider your greatest success stories in terms of helping them find their way?
How much time do you have?
We could start with Eric Sprague and Larry Wilberson in California. We helped them quadruple their restoration business. Then because of too much work I had to help them get it organized!
Tim Killman and his wife worked on the truck for 28 years, and now they are off the truck and making more money.
Gary Mizrachi, a cleaner in Maryland doubled his business this year. We have so many, it would take all night.
It just works. Of course, there are all the ones who started with me years ago. The ones who continue to work the program have more and more success over the years. Like John Browning and John Torres. John Braun is doing what he does because the Inner Circle helped him get his cleaning business organized enough that he didn't have to do the cleaning. The list goes on.
-What advice would you give a carpet cleaner who flat out refuses to grow beyond one truck with no helper?
If that is what you REALLY want, I don't have a problem with it, but if you are "settling" for that because you are afraid to give up control, or your afraid of employee nightmares, you'll never be happy.
Everyone needs to determine what they really want in LIFE first. Then believe that you CAN accomplish it. Others have already done what you want to do. There is a way, but all growth comes outside of the comfort zone. You need to have a vision, you need to have business skills and you need to be willing to work through difficult situations so you can finally reach your dream. That's what we teach people to do.
Thanks Howard! Is there anything else you would like to add or say?
Yes. Don't let stinkin' thinkin' keep you from success. Several years ago I was part of a local group of carpet cleaners.They complained that customers wouldn't pay their price, the economy, etc. I showed up wearing a tie and a positive attitude and they laughed at me and said "Who do you think you are, Zig Ziglar or somebody?" I didn't even know Zig at the time. As it turns out, I'm their exclusive small business coach and the last chapter of Zig's very last book was based on my quote: "The ONE and ONLY reason your business exists is to be a VEHICLE to help you achieve your LIFE GOALS.
Don't let anyone steal that from you. Make a decision to pursue your dream regardless of what the naysayers say and you may find yourself sitting on a tropical island sipping a mai tai instead of cleaning out a nasty waste tank. Whichever you would prefer to do is your choice.
My story and my work is to show you that you can everything you want in life.
Thanks for the opportunity to share.
