EP #81: Moms Do It Best Commercial Cleaning Company with Melissa Morris
Feb 20, 2024
Have you ever wondered what drives someone to leave the comfort and predictability of the corporate world to venture into the unknown territory of entrepreneurship? Melissa Morris, founder of Moms Do it Best Commercial Cleaning Company, takes us through her transition from the corporate grind to creating a business with a heart. With her, we explore how meticulous cleaning isn't just about spotless surfaces but also about changing lives, one single mom at a time.
Join us as we unfold Melissa's tale, which is not just about dusting corners but also about building a community. Discover how Mom's Do it Best is rewriting the narrative of the commercial cleaning industry by empowering single mothers with opportunities that offer dignity, flexibility, and fair wages. This is a story of grit, motherhood, and entrepreneurship that will leave you looking at every shiny floor and tidy workspace with new eyes.
Have you ever wondered what drives someone to leave the comfort and predictability of the corporate world to venture into the unknown territory of entrepreneurship? Melissa Morris, founder of Moms Do it Best Commercial Cleaning Company, takes us through her transition from the corporate grind to creating a business with a heart. With her, we explore how meticulous cleaning isn't just about spotless surfaces but also about changing lives, one single mom at a time.
Join us as we unfold Melissa's tale, which is not just about dusting corners but also about building a community. Discover how Mom's Do it Best is rewriting the narrative of the commercial cleaning industry by empowering single mothers with opportunities that offer dignity, flexibility, and fair wages. This is a story of grit, motherhood, and entrepreneurship that will leave you looking at every shiny floor and tidy workspace with new eyes.
Speaker 1:
This is the Good Neighbor podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Stacey Risley.
Speaker 2:
Hello friends and neighbors, welcome to North Atlanta's Good Neighbor podcast. Today we're here with Melissa Morris, and she is the owner of Mom's Do it Best Commercial Cleaning Company. Hi, melissa, how are you?
Speaker 3:
Hi, stacey, I'm great. Thank you so much for having me. How are you?
Speaker 2:
I'm doing great. I am super happy to have a fellow female entrepreneur on the show, as always, so I'm really excited to have you here. So we're going to jump right in and, if you will, melissa, go ahead and tell our listeners about your business.
Speaker 3:
Well, mom's Do it Best is a female minority-owned commercial cleaning company in the Greater Atlanta area. We focus on routine cleaning and maintaining a customer's or client's productive work environment. We also pay attention to high-touch surfaces that other companies may possibly overlook, and this is because we think that paying attention to detail is really essential, and what makes us a little bit different from other cleaning companies as well is that our mission is to employ single moms who are looking for flexible employment opportunities, and we believe or I believe in providing a supportive work environment and offering fair wages to all of my employees.
Speaker 2:
Okay, wow. Well, I absolutely love that. First of all, that you focus on single moms. I too am a single mom and that's awesome. That is really special. I initially thought when I saw the name Mom's Do it Best that maybe you were a residential cleaning company and I was super excited about that. But you are a commercial only. I'll just clarify with the audience that you only are doing commercial cleaning. Is that correct? Yes, they say I love that you focus on hiring single moms. Love it. I love the name because to me, moms do it best and still kind of a sense of trust with your client base. You know, like that, people trust moms because we're trustworthy, right?
Speaker 3:
We have to be.
Speaker 2:
Exactly, especially single moms. I didn't know, that far about it. I love that. Okay, melissa, tell our listeners about your journey. What led you to do this and what led you to start a business with such a passion and the mission to help other single moms?
Speaker 3:
no-transcript. Well before I started my business, I used to work in corporate for many years. I had a lot of additional job tasks out of my job title. So during renovations, part of my additional tasks was to find trustworthy, good cleaners for the office that we were expanding to. During my process of doing that, when we did get cleaners, I noticed that a lot of people would complain little things like oh, the cleaners left the coffee creamers on top of the microwave, or the break room chairs are stacked, not realizing that oh, they put the creamers on top of the microwave to fully wipe down the countertop, or the chairs are stuck because they completely mop the floors.
Speaker 3:
So over the years I was able to realize what businesses are looking for when they hire cleaners that you have to pay attention to details. Even if you have done an amazing job, you have to go back and put things where they are placed. If you have cleaned the bathroom from top to bottom and a hair falls into the sink, to someone coming in, it looks like the bathroom was not cleaned at all. So you have to really pay attention to details. And I said well, as a mom, these are things that I do every single day wiping up the blue sparkle toothpaste from my son's bathroom sink, things like that. So I just went out on the limb and decided to take a go for it. And this was five years ago and business has been great ever since.
Speaker 2:
That is a great story and you're so right. Like you are so right, people will pick apart things, like you know, the coffee creamers on top of the microwave, and not pay attention to the fact that everything else is sparkling plain, and I love that. You said that you know cleaning up your son's mess of whatever. My like oh, mine was glitter. I have two girls glitter with my absolute nightmare, yeah, yeah. And moms, yeah, you guys, we definitely do it best. Well, are there any myths or misconceptions, melissa, that you may want to clean up? Clean up, see, look okay.
Speaker 2:
That makes sense, right. Clean up, Clear up about your industry Well a lot of times specifically more.
Speaker 3:
It's okay. A lot of times when I go on walkthroughs, you know, to give cleaning quotes with potential clients. I asked you know listening to see. Well, what is the issue that you're having now with your current cleaning crew and a lot are that commercial cleaners use harsh cleaning products or that they are snoopy and you know they can't be trusted, that they're afraid their cleaners are going to go through their personal belongings. And I have to say that we really try to use non toxic harsh chemicals when we are cleaning, and disinfectants that are safe to the environment. Some of our businesses they're they bring their dog in or something. It's part of their business, is part of their family, so we try to be really cautious of that, making sure that they're not products that could affect their health if they're ingested or irritate their health and their eyes.
Speaker 3:
All of my team members are background checked. My company is bonded and insured. I trained. They have to train personally with me. It could be a week of training, it could be two months of training and tell. I also feel comfortable that they are, you know, in a client space and I will have to knock on wood in the air if I could, but you know, since my business has been running, we've never had any of those such issues. So that's been for five years and I'm looking for it to continue like that for many more years to come.
Speaker 2:
And I think that that is is wonderful and I'd love that you said every one of your I mean every one of your employees is has to be background checked. You know, because you know that is important. You know you do have to trust who you're going to have into your personal environment and you have, you know whoever's, whoever's making that hiring decision of that cleaning company, you know they don't want it to fall on them. If they have someone who's trust worthy, I mean that that that is paramount and I would imagine so. This isn't a question that I normally ask. Ask clients are, I'm sorry, guests on the show, but what he was your ideal client like what? What size businesses are you looking for? What, like what's best for you?
Speaker 3:
We have businesses, literally, that may be about 50 employees to businesses that are about 500 employees. So in that price in that employee range. Some of our businesses are two story businesses. Some have attached warehouses. We service dental places, different medical offices, chiropractors, car dealerships, engineering companies, flooring companies. It's broad. Usually we just see if we're a good fit for each other. Yeah.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, well, and I would imagine too, like you said, medical practices, and that is, I mean, crucial to again the trust factor and the sanitation and just the sterilization really you know, for those types of practices I love that you do have, you know, a broad spectrum of clientele. You know that you're not that you really you know. When I kind of ask that question, not not sure if you were going to say, oh, we really you know mostly do real estate offices or you know I wasn't sure if you were going to have a more specific answer.
Speaker 2:
I love that. It's broad. You know that you can do that. Attached warehouses to medical practices, so that's great. I think we really are a good fit for any. Well, let's, now we are going to shift gears to something a little more fun. Except this has been fun already. I really enjoy this interview. So what are you, melissa? What are you doing for fun when you're not working?
Speaker 3:
I have small opportunities that I have a chance to just do me. It's usually exploring a new restaurant or traveling, if I can, although those trips are very short because I have to get back to work. Of course, I love spending time with my 11 year old son being able to volunteer at school trips, or sometimes we go to museums just anything active I'm pretty much let me do it. I love art, shows, live sporting events, concerts. I'm a Capricorn, so we pretty much can fit into anything.
Speaker 2:
That is true. I know that about Capricorn. I'm Pisces myself to say about to have a birthday coming up soon. Happy early birthday, thank you. I wish I could. They could just stop them at this point, but that's okay, I'm aging gracefully, and I'm in, you and I both.
Speaker 2:
It's just a number. It's just a number. Well, so going into something a little more serious, is there, melissa? Have you been through a life, hardship or a challenge that you have faced that you can say now, for having been through that experience and come through the other side of it, that you're stronger and better for it today?
Speaker 3:
Yes, so last July my dad passed away very unexpectedly. There was no forewarning to that and he was my son and I's biggest support system. So I can't say I've pushed through and I, you know, keep moving forward, because that's only what he would want. I can't tell you, I'm totally to the other end of it yet.
Speaker 3:
But I know that you know making sure that I still have passed on the values that he raised in me with my son. It's something that makes every day a little bit easier. I won't say a lot but a little bit easier to keep going.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, and that's one of those those you know. I appreciate you sharing that with us. First of all, it's very vulnerable and that's very recent, especially if he was your biggest support system and I am very, very close to my, my dad, and and we're going to be facing that soon ourselves but it's you don't get over. You know that's not something you get over, but you do get through it, you know, and and in each day, like you said, it gets a little bit, a little bit better, and I love what you said about that. You're focused on making sure that you continue to, you know, instill the values that that he taught you, raising you.
Speaker 2:
So I really appreciate you sharing that with us, because that is one thing that we all will face right. Yeah, we will. You know, at some point we're going to to lose our parents and and and or other other family members, you know. So I appreciate you sharing that. Well, we're really kind of about to wrap up. Is there anything else you would like our listeners to know about? Moms? Do it best? Commercial cleaning company.
Speaker 3:
Um, probably just that we are currently accepting new clients. We do have a promotion going on with 20% off your first cleaning If you use the promo code moms. Of course it shouldn't be anything else, and that you know we definitely go above and beyond for all of our clients. We have great reviews and I personally believe in going above and beyond because your clients should be extremely satisfied, and that is what I also train and teach my team.
Speaker 2:
Well, I love it. I love what you said at the very beginning about how you noticing you know that you were in charge of hiring the people who cleaned and then noticing that people would complain about chairs stacked and you know that you do know what to look for. You know what businesses are seeking and what their expectations are of their cleaning service. So, yeah, I think of a, of a of a better fit. So if our listeners want to reach out and learn more, what is the best way for them to get in touch with you?
Speaker 3:
I would say social media, Instagram, it's moms do it best. Underscored 2018. Or. My contact number is 404-276-9346.
Speaker 2:
Wonderful Well, thank you so much for being here, Melissa. This has truly been a pleasure. I have enjoyed getting to know you and getting to know your business.
Speaker 3:
Thank you so much again for having me Stacy.
Speaker 2:
You are so welcome. That is all for today's episode Atlanta. I'm Stacy Risley with the Good Neighbor podcast. Thanks for listening and for supporting the local businesses and nonprofits of our great community.
Speaker 1:
Thanks for listening to the Good Neighbor podcast North Atlanta. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, Go to GNPNorthAtlantacom or call 470-946-7007.
