Life and Work with Katie Lambert

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Lambert.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
In 2009, I was preparing to graduate from the University of Hawaii, Hilo. It was not a great time, in fact, all of our professors were trying to convince us to stay in school, get another degree, or go for our masters because the job market was less than stellar at this time. Knowing this was not an option for me, I quickly tried to figure out what I was going to do, after all, I would be graduating and had 0 job prospects and bills starting to pile up. My mother even called me to tell me there were no jobs in Colorado either, so if I enjoyed Hawaii, I might as well stay out there. That is when I got on the phone with my sister who owns All Star Cleaning Services in Fort Collins. I would clean for her company when I was at home during summer and Christmas breaks so she said why not clean? The original plan was to make enough money to move off the island.

I was very excited to start this new venture! I remember telling my business school advisor and he laughed! Said “who would pay for cleaning in this economy?!”. I felt discouraged but also grateful that I had my sister as an example who was making it work even in this bad economy.

My whole family came to Hawaii for graduation and I had ordered my first postcards to flyer the neighborhoods for cleaning jobs. Everything felt like it was coming together, then the day after graduation, I broke my foot jumping into some water that was too shallow. This set me back about a month, but as soon as I could walk, I was cleaning. I started working by myself with a goal to hire my first employee within six months. We blew past that goal and quickly became the only professional maid service in my service area of Hilo, Hawaii.

Now, I had never intended on staying in Hawaii. I knew from the day I started, I did not want to live their full time and the original plan was to make enough money so I could move home! However, the longer I stayed, the harder I felt like it was to leave. I had employees that depended on this job, I had clients that depended on us to clean their homes, and I was having so many problems managing everything I always felt like I would be a failure if I quit. So, I stayed, for almost eight years.

I became severely depressed and unhappy. Managing employees was a lot harder than I ever expected and I also was not great at managing money or staying organized. I was also very hard on myself and instead of learning from my mistakes I ended up making the same mistakes over and over and over again. Needless to say, my self-confidence was very low. After two years in business in Hawaii, I was ready to quit but had no idea what I would do. So, I kept going and learned a lot. I met many business professionals that taught me a lot and also learned to use resources like the SBA for advice. I also had the support of my sister and countless friends from the cleaning industry.

Finally after 8 years in business, and I had found happiness living in Hawaii, I decided it was time to move home. I listed my business and actually ended up selling it to one of my local clients. I was very proud to be leaving this legacy in Hawaii and excited (and nervous) for my new adventure in Denver.

In the months before I came to Denver, I was so scared. Not sure if I was going to be able to make it, sure I had made it in a small town, but Denver was a big city! I was not sure what to expect.

After only one year in business in Denver, we managed to build a business that was almost the same size as the one I sold in Hawaii that took me eight years to build. Sure, I was starting new, but I had so much knowledge and experience from my last business to carry me into this one. I am very proud of what we have built so far in Denver and am very excited for the future of Clean Queen.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not! It has been a very bumpy road in fact, with a lot of lessons along the way. My biggest struggle has always been with myself. I need to grow and learn in order to continue to grow my company. I have struggled with nearly every aspect of growing a business. The biggest struggles being with managing employees and managing money. My advice for anyone struggling is to seek help. Find a business coach or someone who is successful in the area you are struggling in and ask for help. Also, never stop learning. I love to network with others in my industry, attend industry conferences, take industry classes, read business and self-help books, and network with other business owners in my community.

Please tell us about Clean Queen.
I own Clean Queen Denver. We started in April 2018 and are now cleaning for over 100 families in North Denver and the surrounding suburbs. We specialize in Eco-Friendly House Cleaning and that is all we do. We focus on this area of cleaning so we can be the best of the best for residential cleaning in Denver. All of our training is tailored to house cleaning only with eco-friendly products. I am very proud of my team. They work so hard and really care about their work and genuinely want our clients to be happy. I believe what sets us apart is our customer service. Our mission is to treat everyone like royalty which extends to our clients, employees, vendors, and anyone we are in contact with throughout the day. We stay true to our mission and it really sets us apart with our customer service.

What advice would you give to someone at the start of her career?
The most important advice is to make mistakes, fail fast, learn from those mistakes and move onward and upward. You will make mistakes, it’s inevitable. It is how you handle the mistakes and grow from your mistakes that will really set you apart. Also, find someone who is doing what you want to be doing and is successful and learn from that person! There are a lot of people who will want to give you advice but the people you really want to listen to are the ones who are successful doing what you want to do!

Contact Info:

• Address: 7100 Broadway, ste 2FPH
  Denver, CO 80221
• Website: www.cleanqueendenver.com
• Phone: 720-845-5560
• Email: info@cleanqueendenver.com
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/cleanqueendenver

Image Credit:
Kjean Photography

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