One Year After Opening, TruBlue Total House Care of North Idaho Continues to See Success

TruBlue Total House Care, the franchise that provides subscription-based home maintenance and handyman services for seniors and families, is growing rapidly across the country as more entrepreneurs recognize the strength of the brand’s proven business model and in-demand offering. Brian Espinoza is one such entrepreneur. Espinoza signed on with TruBlue in September 2021 in North Idaho and has already seen significant growth over the past year. 

Espinoza has 20 years of experience as a hotelier. He and his wife Stephanie, who is also a co-owner of the TruBlue location, have worked with multiple corporations in sales and marketing, project management, customer service and business operations.

“Before opening TruBlue, we were determined to open our own business with the sole purpose of improving lives,” said Espinoza. “We chose TruBlue so we could serve the people in our community struggling to find a solution to their home maintenance needs. TruBlue is more than just a home maintenance business — it’s a full-service professional company dedicated to serving your biggest investment: your home.”

In addition to general handyman services for busy adults, TruBlue specializes in aging-in-place services for senior citizens, a population that is growing rapidly in the U.S. In Espinoza’s market of North Idaho, for example, the 65-and-older population has more than doubled since 2001.

And with 90% of seniors saying they plan to remain in their homes for the next 5–10 years, TruBlue’s home maintenance and handyman services are increasingly needed all over the country.

“What we’re finding is that a lot of people in the outskirts of the city can’t find anybody to help them because nobody wants to go out that far,” said Espinoza. “We are a busy and active couple ourselves with four beautiful children and our family dog. We understand what it’s like to have a busy schedule with the demands of maintaining our home, extracurricular activities, and involvement in our children’s education, careers and family time. We want to take that stress off of our customers’ shoulders.”

TruBlue offers a range of customizable, subscription-based services that customers can bundle, depending on their unique needs and their unique home. And while the subscription model serves as a key differentiator in the handyman industry, it’s the preventative maintenance within the House Care Plus plan that truly helps the brand stand out. The House Care Plus plan is preventative — a program in which TruBlue will come out once a quarter and focus on seasonal maintenance, such as changing air filters and testing smoke detectors. 

“Our professional technicians are specialized in handyman repairs, cleaning services, yard work, special projects and minor home renovations,” said Espinoza. “We work with homeowners, vacation homes, small businesses and rental property owners with ongoing maintenance projects. In addition, we collaborate with realtors who need to get homes move-in ready quickly and keep them maintained.”

Since starting the business in September of 2021, Espinoza says demand has only continued to grow and shows no signs of slowing down. And that is certainly not an anomaly within the TruBlue system. The brand doubled its year-over-year revenue in 2021 for the second straight year, and that momentum has continued into 2022, as TruBlue is on pace early to reach its year-end goal of opening 40 new locations for a total of 100 units in operation.

“There is such a high demand for a quality experience when it comes to home services,” said Sean Fitzgerald, TruBlue’s President. “And it’s exciting to see what we’ve been able to do, especially for seniors, with the handyman services we offer. I believe that TruBlue is the missing piece in the equation that will allow seniors to successfully and safely age in place, and it’s people like Brian and our incredible franchisees across the country who are helping us fill those gaps.”

The initial investment to start a TruBlue Total House Care ranges from $65,050-$91,400 and interested owners can visit www.trubluefranchise.com to learn more about franchise opportunities.