MOST important thing in your life – YOU!
was introduced to the practice of networking to grow her business.
“It creates more “me” time and gives clients more time to focus on what makes them tick-whether it is being with friends and socializing, or working in the garden or exercising or volunteering at church,” says Denise. “Also, for people who are extremely busy, it is a stress reducer. Personally, when I come home and my house is a mess, it is really stressful for me. I can only handle a certain amount of clutter and dirtiness before I get completely stressed out. It is a relief to know that you are going to come home and once or twice a week or once a month, your home is going to be clean and that is one less thing you have to worry about,” notes Denise.
It seemed like the perfect balance: a full-time job while maintaining and operating a relatively low maintenance business. But it didn’t necessarily work out that way. After its first year of business, DiCi Services did not make money or lose money and Denise was encouraged by the company’s first fiscal year. At the same time, Coca-Cola, the company where Denise worked full-time, , was pressuring her to take an option to re-locate to different areas of the country and that option was one she was not willing to take.
DiCi Services was kick started in 2001 when Denise’s daughter left for college. With her daughter gone and having more time to spare, she thought it would Often tending to our homes be an ideal time to earn extra is the first sacrifice that is money, while maintaining a made when it comes to time full-time job. Starting a cleaning constraints. Unfortunately, it is our business typically takes little homes--our true sanctuaries-overhead for small to mediumthat suffer as a result. Yet many sized residential cleaning women seem to hold back from services. Denise’s sister owned asking for help. Having someone a cleaning company for several clean your house shouldn’t years in Virginia, so Denise had make you feel bad or make a mentor and a strong support you beat yourself up (as I did system to get started. Not to before I began working with DiCi mention, things just started falling Services). It frees up time for you into place. She was connected to focus on the more important with a logo designer, and with things in life or to focus on the the designer’s connections; she
The road has not always been easy. Staffing, for example, can be a challenge. “When you are dealing with other people you sometimes have to be their coach, mentor and sometimes, their disciplinarian. It is a challenge to figure out what motivates individuals. It is not the same for everyone,” states Cagan.
Fortunately, Denise Cagan’s business exists to keep strong and dynamic women (like Women With Know How readers) at ease when it comes to our homes. Denise is the owner of DiCi Services, a local and independently owned residential cleaning company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. DiCi Services covers the Greater Charlotte area from Mooresville to as far south as Indian Land, South Carolina.
In May of 2002, Denise decided it was best for her to resign from her job and dedicate herself fulltime to DiCi Services.
Denise has found ways to create a strong and supportive staff. She adds, “The key is to build a community within my staff because if they are happy working for me, they are going to perform better cleaning for our clients.”
November 2009 | The premier women’s business resource guide
We are women. We are busy. Whether we are taking care of our families, working multiple jobs, working extreme hours at one job, or keeping up with a demanding social life, time often seems like it is not on our side. I am more than willing to bet that if you ask five women, or even five men for that matter, what they lack most in their lives, time will be in the top three answers, if not number one.
15