When Robert Okubo travelled to Washington, D.C., more than two decades ago, he had no intention of becoming a cleaning entrepreneur.
He was a travel agent then, determined to promote the Kenyan tourism industry after successfully organising domestic travel packages. His next ambition was to break into the international market.
But some global events changed his plans. While in the United States, Mr Okubo says East Africa was hit by a travel ban following an Al-Shabaab attack in Mombasa, leaving him stranded and needing an alternative source of income.
‘I found myself stuck in the US and I needed to make some money. One of my Kenyan friends connected me to a company that does cleaning. I took it as a part-time job but looking at what they did, I was quite fascinated.’
He spent four years learning every aspect of professional cleaning before venturing into the business himself.
‘When I was employed with the cleaning company, I was making about $60,000 a year. So when I started my business there, my first year in business, I didn’t have to work as hard. However, I always believed that in business, you need about three years to get it off the ground.’
He adds that by the second year, his annual revenues had climbed to around $100,000.
‘We used to make this money during summer only, that’s between June and December. I started thinking about Kenya, whether I could come and test this market.’
In 2010, Mr Okubo returned home convinced that Kenya lacked specialised cleaning services, but he decided to start small just to test the market reception. That is how he became the CEO at 200 Degrees Cleaning Services.
‘I came in with about $40,000. I had bought my equipment in the US already but I bought the company vehicle locally,’ he says.
He then began introducing professional deep-cleaning services to a market that largely relied on conventional methods.
Like many startups, growth was slow.
‘It took me around three years again to gain momentum since the first year was big on creating awareness about the service; letting people understand this new technique of cleaning and its efficiency.’
One of the indications of this niche service Mr Okubo says was that at the time, airing mattresses under the sun was the common way of cleaning them.
They introduced machine cleaning that allowed mattresses to be washed, sanitised and dried within hours.
The same innovation extended to the curtains.
Instead of homeowners removing dozens of curtains and waiting several days for dry cleaners to return them, his team cleaned them while they remained hanging.
‘We were able to cut out all that wasted time and clean them as they hang and dry them the same day. A lot of our clients have since accepted and appreciated that technique and it’s popular.’
Mr Okubo started the company with only three employees, including him. He talks of expanding cautiously in order to match growth with demand.
‘By the time we got to the second year of business we started getting overwhelmed. So we introduced a second car with a second team and slowly we grew like that.’
Today, 200 Degrees Cleaning Services has employed about 25 people across Nairobi, Kisumu and Mombasa. The CEO says that the expansion outside Nairobi happened after the company noticed a surprising customer trend.
Clients living in Nairobi wanted professional cleaning services in their rural homes. Initially, the teams travelled from Nairobi to western Kenya to undertake assignments.
‘We decided to get partners from different cities and that worked well.’
Their Kisumu branch has expanded into a car wash operation that has employed four people.
Professional cleaning has become competitive over the past decade, but the business is still profitable.
‘Currently I make about Sh500,000 per month.’
Although Mr Okubo admits that earnings in Kenya are lower than what he made in Washington, he believes the local market offers stability.
‘Kenya is an amazing market, especially Nairobi. We probably charge 30 per cent less than what we charge in Washington, which is sustainable. We also are able to work throughout the year since we have good weather.’
That said, like many service businesses, the pandemic reshaped the cleaning market because the demand surged as organisations sought fumigation services.
During that pandemic time, Mr Okubo’s company volunteered to disinfect police stations free of charge, a move, he says, also enhanced its visibility.
However, that business success attracted competitors.
‘After COVID, a lot of people came into the cleaning industry and I would say we went down by about 30 per cent. But we’ve been able to keep afloat because we have a wonderful clientele that’s been supporting us since we also have a lot of residential clients.’
Rather than compete purely on price, the business has chosen to compete on quality.
‘People invest a lot in their homes and furniture. They need to be reassured that any cleaning company coming to sort out their problems should make sure their stuff is safe. The idea is that if we walked into somebody’s home, we should be able to dry everything and have them use them the same day.’
Winning high-value clients
Over the years, consistency has helped the company secure corporate contracts alongside residential customers.
Its biggest client list, Mr Okubo says, includes Bank of Baroda, Prime Bank, the World Food Programme, China State Construction and engineering firms requiring periodic fumigation.
The next target is regional expansion.
‘We have grown to the extent now we wanted to set up a branch in Malawi.’ Mr Okubo says.
When it comes to the cleaning charges, they vary depending on the scope of work.
A detailed clean for an office measuring about 10,000 square feet will costs around Sh30,000, while fumigation for a standard three-bedroom house targeting pests such as cockroaches and mosquitoes costs about Sh9,000.
Mr Okubo adds that long-term service contracts are priced differently depending on frequency.
The biggest operational headaches
Despite years in business, profitability is still affected by operational bottlenecks.
‘Traffic has been one of the major hurdles we have had to deal with. I could book three clients for the day but by the time we got to the second one, we were running into the time slot of the third one so they ended up cancelling. Which was bad for us because we were losing business and also letting down clients.’
Power outages also disrupt operations.
‘Sometimes power outage ends up being a factor as well. Power disappears for one hour and ends up running into the other client’s time slot. Sometimes we would try and have a portable generator.’
Although cheaper alternatives exist locally, equipment quality presents another challenge. Mr Okubo continues sourcing most of his machinery and detergents from the US.
‘I source a lot of my detergents from the US and equipment because of durability. I’ve had machines running from there for over 10 years.’
Lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs
Having built businesses on two continents, Mr Okubo believes many entrepreneurs underestimate the patience required before a company becomes profitable.
‘You have to have a lot of patience. Imagine the first year, that’s what you’re trying to achieve, to get a client every day. The second year, you’re doing the same thing. So that by the time you get to the third year, you’re hoping to get two or three clients per day.’
He also argues that continuous learning is non-negotiable.
‘You also have to be consistent and keep updating your skills because every three years, new techniques come up, new chemicals come up, new equipment comes up.’
His advice to anyone entering the industry begins with investing in dependable tools rather than the cheapest available. Equally important, he says, is having enough working capital to survive the slow months.
‘Start with the right capital that can sustain for the next six months. So, that means that you have enough time to train your employees, you have time to market. And whether the business is good or bad, you can sustain it for the next six months, if possible even a year.’