The Profitable Cleaner

#194 How A New Cleaning Company Landed A $300,000 Contract

James Harper Episode 194

This episode is proof that mindset, hustle, and heart can take you farther than any résumé.

In this deeply personal and powerful conversation, James sits down with Jay — a successful entrepreneur, relationship-driven barber, and now cleaning company owner — to unpack how he went from cutting hair in his basement to securing a $300,000 commercial cleaning contract.

Whether you're building your janitorial business from the ground up, looking to break into larger contracts, or trying to balance business with family life, this episode will speak to your core.

Jay opens up about:

  • Starting with nothing but clippers and a vision
  • The importance of humility and human connection
  • Why mastering relationships beats mastering sales tactics
  • How Cleaning Prophets changed everything
  • The real mindset that separates dreamers from doers

💡 What You’ll Learn:

  • ✅ How to scale from zero to $300K without prior experience
  • ✅ Why relationships beat marketing in service businesses
  • ✅ How to outgrow legacy clients without losing momentum
  • ✅ What it actually takes to build trust and loyalty
  • ✅ The real reason consistency trumps hard work


⏱️ Episode Breakdown:

  • (00:00) – From the Barber Chair to the Boardroom
  • (06:10) – Growing Up Different, Leading With Grit
  • (13:45) – Starting With Nothing, Building Something Real
  • (21:00) – Why Relationships Will Always Outperform Marketing
  • (28:30) – The $300K Cleaning Contract Nobody Saw Coming
  • (37:40) – What Most New Cleaning Business Owners Get Wrong
  • (44:20) – Leveling Up as a Leader, Father, and Man
     

💼 Brought to You By Our Partners:

  • ✅ uSource: All-in-one hub for the facility maintenance industry  – Start Free Trial 
  • ✅ Campos Law: Legal partner for cleaning companies – Book a Call 
  • ✅ Team Engine: Hire, communicate, and manage your workforce – Learn More 
  • ✅ Swept: Janitorial software that scales with you – Check it Out


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