Buying a commercial cleaning company in Southwest Florida

• Many customers, none too large, so losing one doesn't hurt badly. Watch for one property manager who controls several buildings.
• Customers who have stayed for years, including through price increases.
• Prices based on the hours each building actually takes, with profit tracked by account.
• Area managers or supervisors who check the work and handle complaints without the owner.
• Specialized work that's harder to replace, like medical offices, floor care or buildings that require security clearances.
• A steady way to hire and train, because turnover never stops here.
• Written agreements with every customer, not handshake deals.
• Customers who've added services over time, a sign they trust the company in their building.

• Revenue by customer, and the five largest customers' share.
• Contract terms: length, notice period, price increase clauses, and whether the contracts can be transferred to you.
• Customer turnover: accounts gained and lost each year for three years.
• Labor cost per account, overtime, and pay compared with local competitors.
• How cleaners are paid: as employees with taxes withheld, or as contractors with nothing withheld. If contractors, ask your accountant about the risk.
• Immigration paperwork (Form I-9) for every employee. Florida also requires employers with 25 or more employees to check new hires through E-Verify.
• Insurance claims: damage to customers' property, accusations of theft, injuries.
• Who customers deal with, and whether they'll stay.
• Supervision: how many buildings each supervisor checks in a night, and what happens when a cleaner doesn't show.

• How many accounts do you have, and how long has the average customer been with you?
• Which accounts did you lose last year, and why?
• Are your cleaners employees or independent contractors?
• How do you know a building was cleaned properly?
• When did you last raise prices, and how did customers react?
• Who brings in new accounts now?
• Which customers buy extras like floor care, and how do you price it?

This region covers Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Sarasota and Manatee counties on the Gulf coast and Hendry, Glades and DeSoto inland: Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Naples, Bonita Springs, Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Sarasota, Venice, Bradenton, LaBelle, Clewiston, Moore Haven and Arcadia. The coastal economy runs on people who choose to live or spend the winter here: retirees, seasonal residents, and the construction, real estate, health care, financial and home services that follow them. Tourism, golf and boating add to it.

Inland, the economy is agricultural: sugarcane around Clewiston, citrus, cattle and vegetables, with Immokalee in Collier County a center for farm work. The building trades, pool, landscaping and pest control companies, property managers, medical and dental practices, and marine businesses tend to do well along the coast.

This is one of Florida's most seasonal markets. From roughly January through April, restaurants, shops and service companies run at full speed. Summers are slower, so look at monthly revenue, not only the yearly total. The coast has taken two major hurricanes in recent years: Ian came ashore at Cayo Costa in Lee County in September 2022, and Milton at Siesta Key in Sarasota County in October 2024. Rebuilding brought a wave of work for contractors that won't last forever, so ask how much recent revenue came from storm repairs. Insurance costs and flood zones weigh on every property.

Housing costs near the coast make hiring hard, especially around Naples. New communities east of Interstate 75 in Lee, Collier, Charlotte and Manatee keep service companies busy.