Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Bauman.
Thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, how did you get started?
My upbringing and personal story heavily influenced my decision to become an entrepreneur. I spent my early childhood in Indonesia until I was about 5. The expression it takes a village to raise a child was true growing up in small villages with no running water or electricity. This experience taught me an important lesson: what is true in life is also true in business. You can start small and learn to grow with the community you build around you.
My American life was in Madison, Wisconsin, where I spent most of my childhood and teenage years. I felt a lot of pressure to fit in, and I did not have a clear plan for what I wanted to do with my life. I became a jack of all trades doing construction, landscaping, conservation work, car detailing, painting, veterinary assistance, cleaning, and much more.
I eventually found my way to Bozeman, Montana, to study whitebark pine trees and the diseases affecting them. Besides the thrill of climbing mountains and running into wildlife, this was a semi-voluntary position, and I could not survive on the low pay. This is also a time when I met my future husband, Alex Manigault. While we started dating, I worked as a housekeeper and also joined a local company doing residential cleaning. I really enjoyed the satisfaction that came from cleaning, but I did not like being micro-managed. I also didn’t like the use of harsh chemicals, and in the end, I felt overworked and underpaid. These challenges pushed me to think about starting my own business. I wanted to work to live, not live to work, and continue cleaning with supplies that were safe for my health and the environment.
My husband Alex played a crucial role in helping me start my own company. I named it after Alex’s middle name, Pierre, and my middle name, Joy. This was not just a random choice of names. It also reflected our shared values and mission to bring pure joy to everyone’s home. It made sense to bring my clients the same positivity that I want in my life since it aligns with my values.
We moved to Duluth in August 2018 to be closer to my family. I continued to offer residential cleaning services under a new company with the same name in Minnesota. I was a one-woman show for quite a while. When I became pregnant with our first son in 2020, I decided to grow and hire my first employee. When pregnant, I realized it was getting harder to bend over, and I could not handle the high volume of cleanings by myself. I started training my first employee, Grace. I always called her my saving Grace and loved having her around.
Since Alex and I did not like being micromanaged in our past jobs we made it a point to treat employees how we wanted to be treated. I’ve always hired employees with positive attitudes who enjoy cleaning, working independently, and bringing clients an exceptional experience. It’s always been essential to us to ensure employees and clients are happy.
Alex and I moved to Saint Paul in August 2023, and we now have two boys, Augustin and Leo. We have decided to expand Pure Joy House Cleaning LLC here while keeping our 60+ clients and six employees in Duluth. This decision was not taken lightly. We considered the potential for growth in Saint Paul, the support system we have in Duluth, and the balance we could maintain between work and family. My life today is a beautiful adventure with my kids, husband, 2 dogs, and my original baby, Pure Joy House Cleaning.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, has it been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It was a challenging road. During the pandemic, it was harder to meet everyone’s needs while making sure there was social distancing between employees and clients. Also, our decision to move to St Paul involved a lot of adjustments for the business. We needed an on-site manager and team leads to train employees and manage on-site supplies. Our manager Muriel was super helpful while we were trying to move to St Paul. On top of all that, I was pregnant with our second son, Leo, who came six weeks early and two weeks before our moving date. Trying to manage our Duluth location remotely while expanding in St Paul is a new challenge, but I have a solid team to support me, and I feel stronger because of it. Pure Joy House Cleaning would not be what it is today without the hard work and dedication of my entire team; Hannah, Karly, Milly, Molly, Kiah, and Carrie.
We’ve been impressed with Pure Joy House Cleaning LLC, but for folks who might need to be more familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We have been rated one of the best cleaning businesses in Duluth, Minnesota. We pride ourselves on being eco-friendly, caring, positive, and compassionate with our clients. We are also very detail-oriented. We are not your typical cleaning business; I mean it when I say we are detail-oriented! For every cleaning, we don’t just get your usual surfaces, but we clean all and any areas dust collects (such as crevices in doors, trimming, baseboards, window sills, etc.) and all high-touched areas such as door knobs and light switches. We use environmentally friendly products for you and your loved ones to ensure that your home stays a safe and natural environment. PureJoy House Cleaning understands that everyone has different cleaning preferences. We will work with you to create a cleaning plan that meets your needs. We are also a small business, meaning we can provide more personalized service than a larger company. We also profoundly understand your family life and pets and ensure everyone is happy while we clean your home.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
The two most important things that make us successful are ensuring our clients are happy and well taken care of along with our employees. These things go hand in hand. As long as we take good care of our employees (Nice compensation, appreciation, encouragement, opportunities to grow, and monthly bonuses), they will put care into the work and make the clients feel good. We constantly try to improve our process and love hearing employee and client feedback. Another thing that makes us successful in cleaning is that when we train new employees, we follow a consistent and thorough process. We try to accommodate many different learning styles and have employees read, observe, and perform our cleaning process.
Pricing:
- $45/per man hour for regular cleanings
- $50/per man hour for detailed cleanings
- $50/per man hour for move in/out cleanings
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.purejoyhousecleaning.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Purejoyhousecleaning
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/purejoymn?igsh=NW5rbHY0OXd3bmt6
- Other: https://maps.app.goo.gl/NJwC5cvwsnWRxHXH6
Image Credits
Rachel Bauman and Alex Manigault
