Entrepreneurial couple Mike and Nicky McNee are already targeting expansion after seeing demand for their fledgling bin cleaning business take off across the north-east.
The McNees, under the trading name Bin-Cleaned, have been tackling the smelly dustbins of domestic and commercial clients around Aberdeen city and shire since late 2015.
Strong demand and encouraging feedback from customers have now encouraged the pair to think about franchising.
Mrs McNee said there were opportunities galore in a variety of markets but a fast-growing customer base, spread across a wide area, was pushing the existing business to its limits.
The couple, who live in Bieldside, Aberdeen, hope to establish franchises in Aberdeenshire and possibly beyond to support their war against the harmful bacteria and other germs that lurk in and on our wheelie-bins.
They are particularly encouraged by their success so far in what are challenging economic conditions for any north-east firm.
Mr McNee, whose redundancy in December 2014 after a 30-year career in the oil and gas industry was a catalyst for Bin-Cleaned, said: “If we can make a success out of the business at this time, then who knows what’s in store for us after the economy picks up again.”
Some parts of the UK have well-established bin-cleaning businesses but many others do not – an opportunity the McNees are keeping a close watch on, spurred on by an increase in inquiries from south of the border.
They have also tapped into another potential growth market – cleaning dirty horseboxes and other forms of equine transport either before and after events, or on a more regular basis.
The commercial client list has snowballed to take in hotels, social clubs, assisted living accommodation, retirement homes, restaurants, shops, butchers and nursery schools.
Bin-Cleaned is also retailing its own deodoriser for spraying bins between washes, and kitchen waste containers and plug holes.
In other innovations, the firm has introduced a customer referral scheme and is about to launch a competition on its website as it spreads its bin-hygiene message to a growing audience.
And in a sign that Mr McNee’s new-found entrepreneurial skills are not going unnoticed, he was invited to deliver a talk about starting up a business in the current economic climate to students at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen.
