Thirteen might be considered an unlucky number for some, but for Auckland East franchisees Geeta and Anand Sharma, 13 years with CrestClean has brought them nothing but prosperity and success.
Having grown their business, they are now the proud owners of a beautiful, six-bedroom home, two rental properties and two new cars.
And it’s not just their business that has grown. When they started with CrestClean in 2008, Geeta and Anand were the only Auckland East franchisees — now there are 28 franchise teams in the region.
“We were so happy when we started achieving our goals that we encouraged our family and friends to buy CrestClean businesses too. My husband’s cousin was second in the region. We told him all about the business and he said ‘okay I’ll go for it’,” says Geeta.
Over the years they have inspired seven of their family and friends to buy CrestClean franchises.
Originally from Fiji, Anand served in the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF) as an army officer for 19 years, of which six years were spent on United Nations peacekeeping missions in East Timor and the Middle East.
“We are celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary this year, but I joke that it’s only our 24th,” says Geeta.
Towards the end of his army career, Anand completed a plumbing course so the family could pursue a new life together in New Zealand.
After emigrating in 2006, Anand initially picked up plumbing work in Huntly, an hour’s commute from Auckland. But with all the travelling he soon sought another job closer to home, and took up a security role with Middlemore Hospital, while Geeta worked at a supermarket.
Wanting to increase their earnings, they started to look at options that would fit in around their other jobs.
“We thought, why don’t we do some cleaning, or something like that. Cleaning was not as popular as it is now. We looked at a few cleaning opportunities and they didn’t sound that good to us. Then we found CrestClean. There was a lot of support offered and it sounded good, so we bought it,” says Geeta.
After three years they were able to buy their first house, upsizing four years later to a six-bedroom home. Their first home is now one of two rental properties that they own.
The couple have also been able to support their son, Vishal, through university and both their families back in Fiji on an ongoing basis.
“Some people think that cleaning isn’t a good job but we wouldn’t have been able to achieve what we have without CrestClean. It would have been too hard with a family,” says Geeta.
“As long as our health is okay, we will keep cleaning. It keeps you fit and it’s something different. I’m a hardworking lady and I love to work!
Auckland East Regional Manager Linda Hill says Anand and Geeta are reliable, hardworking franchisees who are valued by their customers.
“Their largest customer has been with them since they started and the staff there just love them,” says Linda.
“They deserve to have such a beautiful home — they are lovely people and they’ve worked hard for it!”
