The New Sexy In Window Cleaning?

Business cards to go - photo for MIK stampede appeal in Calgary.

Toronto firms bring sexy back to cleaning with French maids and men in kilts: Scrubbing and cleaning in the right outfit can do wonders for even the most mundane chores. Whether it’s sexy girls sporting French maid costumes while cooking and dusting your home, or manly window cleaners flaunting their legs while up on ladders in traditional Scottish kilts, some new local businesses are bringing sexy back to cleaning, while catering to their clients’ needs, whims and fantasies. With Men in Kilts, Canada’s largest full-service window cleaning, gutter cleaning and pressure-washing company setting up shop in Toronto last month, local owners Sentwali Lewis and Darcy Longpre are hoping their unusual work attire will give them a leg-up in the local industry.

“All the other window cleaning companies out there, they all do a good job, but I think we could do a better job, while providing excellent customer service and putting a smile on all of our clients’ faces,” says Lewis. The reaction they’ve gotten so far has all been positive, says Lewis, who brought in new clients just by shopping dressed in his kilt. “I was walking through the store, the manager of the store couldn’t stop laughing and giggling,” says Lewis, who’s already used to being the centre of attention. “And we signed on to do their windows for them commercially.”

While Lewis’ business is about keeping the exterior clean, for the in-house chores, Maids and Valets, which opened up shop in Toronto last June, has the solution. Margo Belaya and her business partner Kaytee Normad say it’s good old practical housecleaning and visual entertainment all in one. “It’s better to have your house cleaned, someone cooking for you, if it’s a sexy person,” says Belaya. “Any service is better performed by ‘eye candy.’ ” Their cleanup crew is made up of 20 housekeepers, butlers and bartenders, who will wait on their clients wearing anything from professional attire, a French maid outfit, lingerie or just their underwear.

It’s a business idea that’s been growing in Europe and other parts of the world, but still fairly new ground for Toronto, says Belaya. After finding postings looking for similar services on sites like Craigslist and Kijiji, she knew it would be a hit here in the city. But it’s all strictly visual, says Belaya, who stresses that their crew do not provide any sexual favours. With a $500 fine attached to any sexual advances or harassment stated in their policy, that rule hasn’t been broken so far, according to Belaya.

Maids and Valets have been hired on for nude family gatherings and birthdays for seniors to spice up the party, but besides bringing the fun with them, they also help cure some lonely hearts. “It’s not only about cleaning or cooking, sometimes people are lonely, they just want company, they just book someone to sit there with them, eat lunch, have a drink and talk, and that’s it,” says Belaya. “So it’s all about communication sometimes.”

Sexy services online: Some U.S.-based websites offering up unique and sexy products and services.

Those who don’t have that special someone to snuggle up with can pay for private sessions with pro-snugglers at The Snuggery. Single men can purchase girlfriend-like services for just $5 at www.girlfriendhire.com and get their new fake online girlfriends to text them, comment on their Facebook walls, and more. For couples looking to spice things up in the bedroom, The Fantasy Box mails out fantasy kits which include toys, costumes, lingerie and a variety of other sexy items to get you started.

Men In Kilts Calgary introduced its newest clan member! Wallace the fire truck.

Kilt-wearing window washers have strict 'no peeking' rule: The window washers in Holliston, Mass., not only hang from buildings, they also hang loose. A new window-washing, pressure-washing and gutter-cleaning franchise, spun off from a business in Vancouver, British Columbia, features male workers with no pants on — because they're wearing kilts. Men in Kilts has been a hit with customers and onlookers. "I got a good thumbs up from everybody," said one employee who contends he's paying tribute to his Scottish heritage. While the company insists it has a strict "no peeking" rule, it's hard to imagine how they could enforce it. And, after all, women have all those years of being catcalled by construction workers to exact revenge for. Payback's a bitch, guys.

Sentwali Lewis (left) and Luke MacLeod are two of the Men In Kilts, a new window, eavestrough and siding cleaning business in Aurora.

Men In Kilts offer revealing look at business - (By Chris Simon) Go ahead, take a look up Sentwali Lewis' kilt — you won't be the first person this spring. He opened a Men In Kilts franchise in Aurora earlier this year and has been busy cleaning gutters, windows and siding outside Greater Toronto Area buildings since then. The company serves residential and commercial clients, he said, while setting up at a south-end Aurora work site. "People are surprised, but yes, we do show up in our kilts," he said. "You have to be a very outgoing person to do this work because you get a lot of attention. People are always smiling and pointing ... and trying to peek."

Men In Kilts was founded in 2002 and has expanded across Canada and the United States. Mr. Lewis said he and partner Darcy Longpre were excited to open the franchise. "We know business," Mr. Lewis said. "For us, it was just a matter of learning a new skill set." The season is young, but the business' schedule is filling quickly, he said. "We try to do our best to deliver excellent customer service and go above and beyond," he said.

The franchisees also hired window washer Luke MacLeod, who proudly dons a tartan kilt each work day. "It's a great ice breaker and helps you get to know the people who are doing your windows," Mr. MacLeod said. "Whether you're peeking in their windows or they're peeking up your kilt, it takes away the whole, 'Who are these people looking in my house?' And you've got the built-in air conditioner for the hot summer." The franchise has high employee safety standards, so staff cannot clean windows and eavestroughs on buildings higher than four storeys, Mr. Lewis said.

From Camo to Kilt: The transition from US Army Specialist as a Military Police Officer, to that of a kilt-wearing window and exterior cleaning technician might seem odd from an outsider’s perspective. But in all reality, it makes perfect sense!

Chris Murphy, Operations Manager at Men In Kilts Boston, served in the US Army for just under 11 years and during that time was deployed to Iraq twice. He spent a year in Baghdad where he provided personal security to Tier 1 government officials. After being back in Boston for 6 months, Murphy volunteered to go back and this time he travelled to Fallujah where he worked with Iraqi police on daily operations and helped them to develop procedures and protocols.  

Murphy’s time serving in the Army was nothing short of rewarding, but he was ready for a change. Deciding to become a part of a franchise was deeply rooted in the support systems that Murphy knows are in place for franchisees. “The brand and operational support that comes from the franchisor is definitely a bonus. From fellow employees, the franchisor, and even other franchisees, there is always someone there to help you. In the Army, it is the same way. There is an endless system of support and everyone works together as a team,” says Murphy.

The transition from military to civilian was pretty easy for Murphy. “In the military, I was used to long days of training and work, and not having a set schedule was pretty standard. Being a part of a franchise is very similar. I could have a job that requires me to work earlier than 8 am or later than 5 pm, and I just have to go with it. So, when I came back to work full-time in the franchising world, it was pretty smooth.”

Previous franchise experience came from Murphy’s 8 years spent with 1-800-Got-Junk? Murphy’s mother, Judy Briggs, owns both the 1-800-Got-Junk? and the Men In Kilts franchise in Boston. “With my mom being an expert franchisee, it all just made sense to me to become a part of this industry as well,” says Murphy.

Men In Kilts first caught Murphy’s attention when the company was featured in Entrepreneur Magazine. He said he could not help but smile. “The thought of anyone washing windows while wearing kilts was so cool!” says Murphy. It was not long after when his mother came to him and asked, “Have you ever thought about wearing a kilt?” Murphy did not hesitate.

The Men In Kilts mission is to “bring smiles into the world…one kilt at a time!” Just like the Army, Men In Kilts is fighting to make the world a better place. Even if it is something as simple as making someone smile, Murphy’s passion for caring for his country and all the people in it, carries on in his work at Men In Kilts.

Murphy recognizes how he has brought smiles to the world by recalling one particular moment. “One Monday morning, we were in the heart of Boston cleaning windows and everyone that walked by couldn’t help but smile. I remember thinking, ‘people are normally miserable first thing on a Monday morning, but we just brought smiles to all these faces by doing something as simple as wearing a kilt’. That is pretty powerful!”

Murphy’s hard work has made Men In Kilts recognize the amazing fit for veterans in the company, and the opportunities to work with veterans in the future. Men In Kilts prides itself on dedication and a high level of work ethic, which is a great fit for veterans who have the skills and attributes necessary to succeed in a franchise such as Men In Kilts.

Men in Kilts just opened up a franchise in the Boston area and owner Judy Briggs said the response has been tremendous. She and her two employees went to Vancouver to train how to do window washing, gutter cleaning, power washing and other services for homeowners.

Men In Kilts Opens In The U.S., Offers Window Washers Dressed In Scottish Garb: “No peeking,” read the uniforms worn by employees of Men in Kilts, a Canadian company that just in opened shop in Massachusetts, offering home cleaning services by men dressed in the traditional Scottish garb. “It just grabs people’s attention,” Chris Murphy, a Men In Kilts worker, told local news station WCVB Channel 5 on a brisk morning this week. “It’s really comfortable, lots of freedom with it.” Judy Briggs of Men In Kilts said the phone has been ringing off the hook since she launched the franchise in the Boston area. And hers isn’t the first business to shine a light on workers doing less-than-glamorous labor. College Hunks Hauling Junk, an 8-year-old moving and junk-hauling company that’s expanded to nearly 50 franchises in the U.S., dresses its sprightly employees in bright orange hats and green shirts.

More Men in Kilts blogs here.