ASHEVILLE — As a software trainer, Anthony Thomas, 39, was on the road every week.
“I hardly ever saw my kids,” he said. “So I thought, ‘What can I do to get a bit more flexibility and time for my family?’”
The answer was cleaning.
Thomas started All-Clean Services three years ago. Initially, he focused on residential and commercial janitorial services, but he discovered that market was pretty saturated around here.
Then Thomas discovered his own niche: cleaning newly constructed homes and businesses just before their occupants move in.
“There’s more of a margin and less competition in construction cleaning,” said Russ Yelton, director of Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College’s Business Incubator. Yelton helped Thomas research and write a business plan and stays in touch with him about his business’ development.
“He’s stuck it out, and as a result, he’s shown really remarkable success,” Yelton said.
Construction cleaning, particularly of high-end homes, turns out to be a labor-intensive job that also requires specialized knowledge, said Chuck Davis, owner of Chuck Davis Construction Inc. Davis hired Thomas to work on several of the homes he’s built over the past year.
“You can’t just come into these homes with a bottle of Mr. Clean,” Davis said. “You have to know how to clean newly-grouted tile, marble and stone. You have to know how to get rid of Sheetrock mud.”
Thomas added: “This requires lots of meticulous attention to detail and a unique kno-wledge of cleaning. My clients have high expectations.”
Thomas moved to Asheville from upstate New York when UNC Asheville hired him as assistant director of admissions. He later served as their coordinator of student retention, then worked as a software trainer for a company specializing in software for universities and colleges.
“I traded in my khakis for dirty jeans,” Thomas said. “I’m still really busy, but I have more freedom.”
He says his biggest challenge is managing employees and being flexible.
“I’m at the whim of the builders,” Thomas said. “Often, they aren’t ready for me when they thought they would be. I’ve got one contract for a new apartment complex that I signed in October that I haven’t cleaned a single unit for because they’re behind on construction.”
“But this is what I choose to do, so I take it in stride.”
Thomas also plans to become a local vendor for environmentally safe cleaning products.
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