The Art of Cleaning

Munit Narayan has recently signed an extension on his franchise with Paramount Services, for good reason. ‘My wife Seema and I have been with Paramount for over six years, and it is giving us everything we want and need,’ he explains. ‘Paramount works as a family; they genuinely help you meet your goals.’

After spending 15 years contracting to major telephone companies, Munit was ready for a change. ‘My job was dying out,’ he explains, ‘so I asked my accountant what else I could do. His advice was very simple, which was to look at the potential of four franchises in the commercial cleaning sector.

‘Following this, I met a colleague who had become a franchisee with Paramount. He put me on to their head office staff, who were all extremely helpful. I began to feel I was on the right path.

‘Everything was carefully, honestly explained. And, after due diligence, I felt confident to go ahead.’

Finding a good fit

Munit and Seema were looking for a business they could run together and had specific requirements. ‘Firstly, I didn’t want to stop working in the IT industry – my day job at the time,’ says Munit.

‘Secondly, we wanted something we could grow into, allowing us flexibility for our family. We started quite small but, due to the excellent system Paramount provides, we have built our business to the point where we can concentrate on it. It now gives us a great living and the time we needed for our family.’

The first site Paramount gave to Munit and Seema after their training was a school in their South Auckland home patch. Munit still chuckles over their first night’s cleaning. ‘We had a terrible time,’ he admits.

‘Despite Seema having some previous experience in the cleaning industry, we were pretty hopeless when it came to cleaning an entire school. It took us 11 hours to complete the job. I’d nearly given up hope!

‘We called Paramount the next day, and they could not have been more helpful. The school was a lot more complex than expected, despite our excellent training. But the company explained carefully where we’d gone wrong. We learned you can’t just clean everything all at once!

‘They showed us how to go about cleaning steadily and methodically. And we soon understood that cleaning is an art, but one that’s easily learned if you have the willingness to succeed. Within a short time, we’d halved the time it took us to do the job.’

From novice to pro

Paramount Services’ national accounts manager Rajan Patel says lack of experience need not be a barrier when considering a cleaning franchise. ‘Many of our most successful franchisees had zero experience of cleaning before they started with Paramount,’ he says. ‘Our support team will give full training, meet clients, assist with quoting, help set up the business and come out to train on site where needed.

‘Munit and Seema took on a complex site but, after very little help, they were up and flying. We’ll do as much as required, and more, to help our franchisees succeed in building their businesses to where they want to be. As Munit pointed out, cleaning is something of an art! And we take as much pride in the results for our clients as we do in helping our franchisees learn that art.’

Today, Paramount franchisees have increasingly diverse portfolios, covering everything from banks to cinemas, shopping malls to food processing plants and education facilities, says Rajan. ‘You name it, we probably clean it!’

When Munit and Seema were considering a business, they gave a great deal of thought to the possible advantages of a franchise over starting green or buying an existing business. ‘We had business experience,’ says Munit, ‘but the longer we’ve been with Paramount, the more we have realised the advantages of a great franchise system.

‘The established brand identity and the tried and tested systems are not the only advantages. We wanted a better work/life balance, with greater independence and family involvement, and we have nothing but praise for Paramount. They have helped us every inch of the way and allowed us to expand our business at a pace that has suited us.’

Family balance

With two children, aged five and six, a daytime priority for the couple, Munit has now dropped his previous day job since Paramount found them three further sites to service.

‘The biggest challenge I faced, when starting all those years ago, was simply cleaning time, says Munit. ‘Paramount enabled us to overcome that.

‘What makes them stand out as a company is that they operate like a family; they care about us and are always there to assist us. We plan growth for the future, and we know Paramount will be there for us every step of the way.’

Paramount is seeking more franchisees throughout New Zealand. ‘We stand out for many reasons,’ says Rajan. ‘We operate as a family, we’re dedicated to sustainability and zero waste, we’ve won the Westpac Franchise System of the Year Award three times, and we will be going carbon neutral by 2025 using electric/hybrid vehicles. What’s more, we guarantee turnover, so call us now! Opportunities start from around $35,000.’  

See this advertorial on page 53 of Franchise New Zealand magazine Year 33 Issue 2

Contact details for Paramount Services

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