7 Unique Cleaning Business Ideas You Can Start Yourself

How Profitable Is a Specialized Cleaning Business?

The cleaning industry has the potential to be a profitable area for business owners with the determination and gumption to make it work.

However, cleaning is a wide space — and there are lots of competitors, which can make succeeding in the industry a bit tricky. One way to stand out from the crowd is to specialize your services.

Specializing your services allows you to target niche audiences and service the specific needs they have. Since these are often very specific tasks, there will likely be less competition than in the general cleaning market. You may also be able to charge higher prices since you are targeting specific problems, helping you to maximize your profitability.

Top 7 Unique Cleaning Business Ideas

There are numerous different niches within the cleaning industry that have the potential to be a business. Here are some unique ideas for a cleaning business to spark your thinking beyond traditional home cleaning services.

1. Specialized Equipment Cleaning and Repair According to Thimble.com, the cleaning industry has an impressive market size of $55 billion (in 2020). Within the United States, there are over a million janitorial service companies, and that number is poised to continue to grow over the coming years.

Clearly, there is a large market of service providers out there. For them to do their services, they must have clean and working equipment.

There are lots of different sectors of cleaning, so choosing one and becoming the best at servicing the equipment of that sector is a good strategy to gain loyal businesses as customers.

2. Window Cleaning

Window cleaning is a great potential business that you can start for as little as $600 and earn $50 to $70 an hour. It also takes very little experience and is a pretty intuitive job to do. With a good marketing strategy to gain customers, a window cleaning business can be a great side hustle or full-time job.

As you gain more experience in the business, commercial window cleaning is where you are likely to get your most loyal customers. If you do good service, businesses can be great repeat clients and help to provide you with consistent business all year round.

If looking to do commercial window cleaning, make sure that you obtain the proper licenses and insurance.

3. Pool Cleaning

A pool cleaning business is something that requires some prior knowledge before starting out. Pool cleaning consists of checking and maintaining proper chemical balances in the water, maintaining pumps and filters, as well as regular cleaning. You must also know and abide by state regulations and may need to obtain certification to clean public facilities.

When successful, pool cleaners can earn $50 to $60 an hour and even up to $200 an hour when equipment repairs are required.

For relatively little initial investment, a pool cleaning business can be an enticing business idea. However, one thing to note about the pool cleaning industry is that it is seasonal, with the majority of business coming in the summer.

4. Boat Cleaning

The best businesses are the ones that you can be passionate about. If you are someone who is a fan of boats and loves to be around them, a boat cleaning business may be right for you. If you have your own boat that you take care of, it can give you an edge and make it easier for you to start in the industry.

As a boat cleaning business, some services that you may choose to offer are regular washes, detailing, bottom cleaning, haul outs, and scheduled checks. Yacht Services Oahu provides a good example of the different services you can offer and gives a more in-depth look at what the different services require.

Running a service for cleaning boats will take some learning and industry knowledge, but it can turn out to be a worthwhile business venture for those willing to put in the work.

5. Shoe Cleaning and Restoration

Shoe collecting has become a popular hobby over the years. As time goes by, beyond the normal wear and tear, shoes can experience yellowing, paint flaking, glue deterioration, creasing, and more, which are blemishes that shoe enthusiasts like to have removed from their favorite kicks.

As a shoe cleaning service, you can help to bring old shoes back to life. From any level of wear and tear, it is possible to return a shoe to relatively new condition, but it does take some learning and skill to do this effectively. It also takes specialized tools and a lot of precision. However, it can be a fun way to turn a hobby into a business.

6. Organization and Decluttering

For someone who enjoys cleaning their room and making things look nice, an organization and decluttering service might be a fun business idea. This cleaning business venture may entail a variety of things, such as helping people plan a move-out or simply assisting with interior decoration and the flow of a customer’s home.

Neat is an example of a company that helps with interior design to make customers’ homes look amazing. Beyond the physical organizing of objects, this can mean offering ideas for new shelving, storage furnishings, and containers that improve the organization and presentability of the room.

Compared to traditional cleaning businesses, an organization and decluttering business can be a great way to explore your creativity in the realm of cleaning.

7. Laundry Delivery Service

A laundry delivery service is a relatively simple business that requires very little start-up costs. When starting out, it is possible to do this out of your own washer and dryer or at your local laundromat. All you need is the time, effort, and customers to get this business up and running.

As a laundry delivery service, the main value is in giving your customers back their time by handling their laundry for them. This typically is made up of washing, drying, and folding or hanging according to customer preference, but you may also choose to add additional services such as dry cleaning.