#112: How Jacques Bastien Built a Cleaning Business Without Being the Cleaner

Welcome back to Filthy Rich Cleaners! In this episode, Stephanie sits down with Jacques Bastien, co-founder of Chery Maids in Tampa, Florida, to talk about what it takes to scale fast without burning out. Jacques shares how Chery Maids grew to 6 cleaning teams and 100–150 cleans per month in only 1.5 years, why he and his wife walked away from short-term rentals, and more. He and Stephanie talk about failure, marriage + business boundaries, hiring virtual team members, and Jacque's deeper mission behind his work supporting Black and Brown creators.

📌 What You’ll Learn

— Why Jacques ditched short-term rental cleanings for a simpler residential model

— The SEAD framework: Systematize, Eliminate, Automate, Delegate

— What to focus on before SOPs, and why most people do it backwards

— How to reduce stress by designing your business rules

— A practical way to create scripts/SOPs by recording real work and using AI to draft documentation

— Challenges of recruiting quality cleaners when reputation matters

— How Jacques and his wife split roles to work together

— How virtual team members can run real, important operations

Resources Mentioned

• Book: The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss
• Book: The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande
• Book: The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It―A Guide to Starting a Business in a Productive and Successful Way by Michael E. Gerber

 

👉 Try ZenMaid free for 14 days: https://get.zenmaid.com

📞 Book a Consulting Call with Stephanie: https://serene-clean.com/consulting-services/

 

🎙️ Listen to the Podcast:

📖 Read the full transcript: https://www.zenmaid.com/magazine/building-a-cleaning-business-without-being-the-cleaner/