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| Peter Waterfield washes windows in his kilt on Oxford Street, near Cook Street Village, Wednesday. |
Window cleaning is height of fashion - Victoria goes crazy for Men In Kilts: Peter Waterfield puts on his kilt just like everybody else in the morning - both legs at once. Then he pulls up his socks and laces his boots, straps on a tool belt bristling with little mops and squeegees, and climbs ladders all day. Waterfield isn't your typical window washer.
And Men In Kilts isn't your run-of-the-mill window-washing company. "The air-conditioning is great . . . but there's no peeking," jokes Waterfield, who runs the first Island franchise for Vancouver based Men In Kilts Window Cleaning. Since launching a week ago, Waterfield has been run off his feet.
His tartan-clad van has caught a lot of attention and so has his green kilt as he scrambles up and down ladders washing windows of houses in Fairfield. He's generating business by being out there and through referrals and flyer drops in neighbourhoods.
And he's in the process of hiring staff to take on the burgeoning work orders. "I knew it was a great idea when we first saw them working in Vancouver a few years ago," said Waterfield as he washed the windows of an Oxford Street home Wednesday. "People see a lot of tradition, history and work ethic associated with the kilt, and that's what the company represents. We do a good job and we guarantee customer satisfaction."
Men In Kilts was launched 10 years ago by second-generation Scot Nicholas Brand in Vancouver. With just $500, a squeegee and a rusted-out Honda, Brand adorned his hand-sewn kilt and started washing windows. He brought partner Brent Hohlweg aboard in 2006 and, three years later, added Tressa Wood, who was one of the top three executives who made 1-800 Got Junk into one of the fastest growing franchises in North America.
Over the past two years, Men In Kilts merged with Calgary-based Window Works and added franchises in Seattle, Edmonton and the Fraser Valley. Waterfield's franchise gives the group seven and Hohlweg says it is on track to add 30 more in 2013, with a longer-term goal of a presence in every major metro centre in North America by 2017. Hohlweg said the seven franchises so far are on track for $4 million in sales this year, a 300 per cent growth curve from 2011.
Much of the growth is predicted in Greater Victoria. "It's been an over-the-top response so far from Victoria - more than any other franchise so far," said Hohlweg. "The people have just really responded to it." "We are definitely not an overnight success story . . .
We've been at the franchising side of things for two and a half years, and started the original location 10 years ago. We persevered through all the challenges that come with starting a business, and, even more daunting, a franchising business. "But we built a franchise organization during a recession, while competitors were standing still."
Waterfield, 49, an army brat who grew up on bases on the East Coast and has Scottish roots on his mother's side, was a former technology professional specializing in medical security systems, but had been laid off due to cutbacks. He revels in his new business because it allows him to mingle with people every day. He says there is "great satisfaction" in doing good work. "I'm a people person, so this is perfect for me," said Waterfield.
His partner, Duff Gardner, a technology consultant, said the kilt image grabs attention, but the quality of the work will make the franchise a success. "There's more than enough people going around cleaning windows," said Gardner. "This is about quality first. And if you can be happy and fun while doing a good job, that's what helps us stand out."
The company also offers power washing for houses and decks, as well as gutter cleaning using environmentally friendly products. Jack deMacedo, who hired Waterfield to clean his windows, was impressed with the thorough job and the fact that the company is bonded with insurance.
A workman's kilt is nothing new. Steve Aston, who owns Freedom Kilts in Fernwood, has been manufacturing the Scottish garb for more than a decade and is one of the biggest suppliers of kilts in the country. The kilt is a symbol of work-ethic and trust that has spread from the battlefield to formal occasions and into the workforce, he said. His cargo kilts, made from heavy canvas, are some of his bestsellers as construction workers and others in the trades covet their image and mobility. Kilts not only attract attention but give the wearer a sense of pride and confidence, Aston said.
"It's the power of the kilt - swish plus swagger equals swoon," says Aston. "You walk taller, you feel confident and you do a better job. That's the kilt."
And Men In Kilts isn't your run-of-the-mill window-washing company. "The air-conditioning is great . . . but there's no peeking," jokes Waterfield, who runs the first Island franchise for Vancouver based Men In Kilts Window Cleaning. Since launching a week ago, Waterfield has been run off his feet.
His tartan-clad van has caught a lot of attention and so has his green kilt as he scrambles up and down ladders washing windows of houses in Fairfield. He's generating business by being out there and through referrals and flyer drops in neighbourhoods.
And he's in the process of hiring staff to take on the burgeoning work orders. "I knew it was a great idea when we first saw them working in Vancouver a few years ago," said Waterfield as he washed the windows of an Oxford Street home Wednesday. "People see a lot of tradition, history and work ethic associated with the kilt, and that's what the company represents. We do a good job and we guarantee customer satisfaction."
Men In Kilts was launched 10 years ago by second-generation Scot Nicholas Brand in Vancouver. With just $500, a squeegee and a rusted-out Honda, Brand adorned his hand-sewn kilt and started washing windows. He brought partner Brent Hohlweg aboard in 2006 and, three years later, added Tressa Wood, who was one of the top three executives who made 1-800 Got Junk into one of the fastest growing franchises in North America.
Over the past two years, Men In Kilts merged with Calgary-based Window Works and added franchises in Seattle, Edmonton and the Fraser Valley. Waterfield's franchise gives the group seven and Hohlweg says it is on track to add 30 more in 2013, with a longer-term goal of a presence in every major metro centre in North America by 2017. Hohlweg said the seven franchises so far are on track for $4 million in sales this year, a 300 per cent growth curve from 2011.
Much of the growth is predicted in Greater Victoria. "It's been an over-the-top response so far from Victoria - more than any other franchise so far," said Hohlweg. "The people have just really responded to it." "We are definitely not an overnight success story . . .
We've been at the franchising side of things for two and a half years, and started the original location 10 years ago. We persevered through all the challenges that come with starting a business, and, even more daunting, a franchising business. "But we built a franchise organization during a recession, while competitors were standing still."
Waterfield, 49, an army brat who grew up on bases on the East Coast and has Scottish roots on his mother's side, was a former technology professional specializing in medical security systems, but had been laid off due to cutbacks. He revels in his new business because it allows him to mingle with people every day. He says there is "great satisfaction" in doing good work. "I'm a people person, so this is perfect for me," said Waterfield.
His partner, Duff Gardner, a technology consultant, said the kilt image grabs attention, but the quality of the work will make the franchise a success. "There's more than enough people going around cleaning windows," said Gardner. "This is about quality first. And if you can be happy and fun while doing a good job, that's what helps us stand out."
The company also offers power washing for houses and decks, as well as gutter cleaning using environmentally friendly products. Jack deMacedo, who hired Waterfield to clean his windows, was impressed with the thorough job and the fact that the company is bonded with insurance.
A workman's kilt is nothing new. Steve Aston, who owns Freedom Kilts in Fernwood, has been manufacturing the Scottish garb for more than a decade and is one of the biggest suppliers of kilts in the country. The kilt is a symbol of work-ethic and trust that has spread from the battlefield to formal occasions and into the workforce, he said. His cargo kilts, made from heavy canvas, are some of his bestsellers as construction workers and others in the trades covet their image and mobility. Kilts not only attract attention but give the wearer a sense of pride and confidence, Aston said.
"It's the power of the kilt - swish plus swagger equals swoon," says Aston. "You walk taller, you feel confident and you do a better job. That's the kilt."
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