The Inspiring Story of Ron Holt, Two Maids & A Mop

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Ron
This is Ron Holt and the story of his establishment of Two Maids & A Mop, a residential cleaning franchise brand with 20 office locations across eight US states and one US district.

Originally from a small town in southwestern Georgia, Holt’s journey to success began with a job as a chemical technician with precision instrument manufacturer Micromeritics Corporation. His efforts would pay off and soon enough, he would be promoted to laboratory director. It would seem that Holt had it all: admiration, status, and a level of respect most Americans would envy.

The question you may be asking yourself now is probably how and why he went from living the good life in favor of a risky career change? What possesses a man to risk everything for a goal that might lead to nothing at all? Here are the answers that you seek, straight from the man himself.

Q: What prompted you to start Two Maids & A Mop?

My decision made no sense to those in my personal and professional network, but it made perfect sense to me. I wanted to control my life by building a business.

I was living the American Dream fifteen years ago. I had just been promoted to the Senior Lab Director position within a company that served as a global leader within its industry. Not only was I the youngest and least educated to ever hold that position, but I was also earning almost $100K annually. Then, abruptly, I quit to open a cleaning service in another town, with little to no support from friends or family.

My decision made no sense to those in my personal and professional network, but it made perfect sense to me. I wanted to control my life by building a business, so I started reading every business and investing book I could get to better understand what opportunity would provide me with the best chance for success. After years of study, the allure of recurring revenue became very exciting and I decided to focus my investment search to businesses with repeat customers. That led me to the consumer services industry, and eventually the residential cleaning space industry.

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Q: What’s your definition of “customer service”?

Our business requires exceptional customer service on a daily basis. We clean dirty floors and nasty toilets every day, but our customers demand more than just a clean home. We get to know them on a personal level as much as possible because our services can never be viewed as invisible. It’s often that clients hire us because their homes need cleaning. However, we work hard to flip that role by using a variety of technological platforms that allow our employees to provide more than just a simple house cleaning.

To me, that’s what customer service is about. It’s not the old school thought process where every customer is right. As a customer service professional, it’s your job to know what they want before they even think about being right.

Q: Tell us more about fundraising advices, early failures, missteps, productivity, and culture management.

It took several years of pinching pennies by eating cheap frozen foods but I managed to scrape together approximately $150,000 in personal savings. It took eighteen months for my business to make its first dollar in profits and nearly two full years to earn my first paycheck. Along the way, I made a ton of mistakes, but each one created long term positive results for me.

I struggled more than I ever imagined, but it made me stronger, leaner and more efficient. Success doesn’t happen just because you willed it and rest assured, difficult times are ahead of you. For me, learning from my mistakes helped create a scalable business model that generates fast growth with a lean operating structure. Today’s franchise partners are reaping the success from those early missteps.

Q: What are the major milestones and achievements of your company?

It took six years for us to open our first location outside our home state. Today, we serve nine different states and Washington, DC. Our success has been heralded in major publications such as Entrepreneur, Success, and Better Homes & Garden. Three years ago, we were recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of the top companies in our industry and we’ve maintained that designation for the past three consecutive years. It’s been a fun ride and the best is yet to come.

Q: What are your upcoming plans or projects?

Two Maids & A Mop has always experienced phenomenal growth but the next few years look to be extremely exciting. We serve 24 markets throughout the country and have a bold vision to open another 75 outlets within the next three to five years. Our goal is to become the fastest growing and most innovative residential cleaning company in America and we’re well on our way to achieve that. We’re a dominant leader in almost every market and can’t wait for our brand to extend across the country.

Q: What’s your advocacy or advice to millennial entrepreneurs?

Having a true vision for your business does not guarantee your triumph but you are going to fail without one. Visualize your goal, believe in it and respect it every day.

My story is pretty romantic nowadays but the early days were filled with stress, anxiety, fear, and outright pessimism. It takes more than just a healthy savings account to build a business because the vision for your business’ success will be tested daily throughout your journey. Having a true vision for your business does not guarantee your triumph but you are going to fail without one. Visualize your goal, believe in it and respect it every day. Your success won’t be created overnight but you’ll have the best chance of long term success if you have faith. Don’t waste another day without creating a vision for your life or business.

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Business Writer
Not weird enough for the freaks. Not obsessive enough for the geeks. Thoroughly laconic but will communicate for food/existential expression. Graduated with a Degree in Marketing Management but chose to write for a living instead.