With its founder, Chris Stoness, still at the helm, Elite Window Cleaning, the Canadian window cleaning franchise, has a unique combination of both support and passion available for franchise partners who join the team. Because Stoness experienced the growing pains associated with a new business personally, he has worked with the team to create systems that help Elite Window Cleaning’s franchise partners to succeed and find prosperity without having to navigate the hurdles he has already overcome. With this, local owners can focus more intently on serving their communities and building a strong business of their own.

“We make every effort to ensure our advisors are people in the field who understand the struggles of everyday operations. I’ve cleaned every type of window and dealt with daily demands of the business, so I know how to be a great coach for the franchisees,” explained Greg Przada, a franchise business advisor with Elite Window Cleaning. “As we grow, our number one priority remains seeing the success of the franchisees — both financially and for them to get the same joy out of the industry that we all do.”

One of the most powerful aspects of Elite Window Cleaning’s training and support process is the personalization that it offers. The franchise business model is appealing to a range of entrepreneurs, and not every new business owner brings the same background and expertise. Because of this, Elite Window Cleaning’s Franchise Business Advisors are specifically trained to account for each local owner’s specific needs.

In many cases, mentors within a franchise system have seen great success of their own in their local businesses, but Elite Window Cleaning is taking this to the next level by ensuring its advisors are also trained as coaches and equipped with a host of additional resources should a franchisee require guidance in a specific area that their advisor may not be as well versed in.

“I find myself leaning on my Franchise Business Advisor, Greg, the most,” said Paul Houngmany, an Elite Window Cleaning franchisee. “He’s always been there, and if he doesn’t know the answer, he’ll find the answer. It’s a huge resource, especially as I’m trying to portray knowledge in the business without revealing how green I am.”

Prior to pursuing business ownership, Houngmany was a chef for 25 years. While some of the customer service requirements have translated well to window cleaning, he said there was a lot to learn. 

“One of the main reasons we are so careful about training and supplemental resources is that we want to make sure we’re meeting franchisees where they’re at,” said Przada. “A business that does $3 million of business in a year is much different from one that’s still in its first year of growth. A lot of the training is focused on how an advisor can encourage the franchisee to tell them what they need rather than just prescribing steps.”

“We have different people in different life stages and different stages of their businesses,” he continued. “We have to adapt and be sensitive to those differences.”

Elite Window Cleaning also follows an onboarding process that other Happinest franchise brands leverage called RAMP. Przada said that, while Elite Window Cleaning had a strong onboarding process prior to partnering with Happinest, the parent franchisor has only honed the process even further.

Through Happinest, new franchisees can partner with onboarding specialists to prepare for the launch of their business, and this allows Franchise Business Advisors additional bandwidth to focus on the early growth of a franchisee through weekly, biweekly or monthly meetings.

With consistent conversations and transparency between a franchisee and their advisor, local owners are able to secure the resources and support they need at every stage and know that, in addition to practical and operational guidelines, they have someone in their corner who intimately understands their current scenario.

“We always want our franchisees to see the Franchise Business Advisor as someone to be working alongside,” added Przada. “We both benefit and need to do our part for the larger franchise system. When an advisor or programs are available, it’s important to participate with them as much as possible because we’re in place to help make sure franchisees see success.”

“This journey for me has been both exciting and challenging,” said Houngmany. “But the good part is that it’s a company of great people.”

For more information on franchising with Elite Window Cleaning, visit https://elitewindowcleaningfranchise.ca/.