If you’re exploring Vanguard Franchise opportunities in the commercial cleaning sector, this detailed review will give you all the information you need. Vanguard Cleaning Systems is a well-known cleaning services franchise brand with a long history. Below, we’ll cover Vanguard’s current status, history, what you get as a franchisee, a breakdown of startup costs and fees, and how it all compares to our own Assett Commercial Cleaning Franchise. By the end, you’ll understand the pros and cons of the Vanguard franchise opportunity and see how Assett’s unique advantages stack up. Let’s dive in.
Overview of the Vanguard Cleaning Systems Franchise
Vanguard Cleaning Systems (often simply referred to as “Vanguard”) is one of the established names in commercial cleaning franchising. Founded in 1984 in California, Vanguard has grown over the past few decades into a large network of franchise businesses. Today, the Vanguard franchise system includes over 2,500 independently owned franchise units across North America, supported by more than 50 regional master franchise offices. In other words, Vanguard operates on a two-tier franchising model: local janitorial franchisees (unit franchisees) are overseen and supported by regional master franchise offices.
Scale and Reach: Vanguard franchisees collectively service over 15,000 commercial cleaning accounts ranging from offices and schools to healthcare facilities. With this widespread customer base, the Vanguard system has achieved significant scale. While the company doesn’t publicly disclose exact financials, industry analysts estimate Vanguard’s annual system-wide revenues to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars per year, making it a major player in the janitorial franchise arena. The brand has also earned recognition in franchise rankings – for example, Entrepreneur Magazine has consistently ranked Vanguard among top low-cost and home-based franchises in past years.
History and Background
Vanguard’s story began in 1984 when it started offering franchises in the San Francisco Bay Area. From the start, the company’s goal was to leverage a franchise business model to deliver quality cleaning services. By franchising since its founding year, Vanguard expanded its footprint rapidly. Over the years, it refined a master franchise system – meaning experienced entrepreneurs could buy regional rights (becoming Area Franchisors) and then recruit many individual unit franchisees within their territory. This approach helped Vanguard spread to 38 U.S. states and Canada by servicing local clients through local franchise owners.
As the network grew, Vanguard Cleaning Systems gained a reputation for its recurring-revenue business model and strong support programs for franchisees. The brand emphasizes quality service and customer satisfaction, which has helped it retain clients without relying on long-term contracts (they use performance-based agreements). By the mid-2010s, Vanguard had been ranked as high as #7 in Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500 list and earned spots on Franchise Times’ “Fast & Serious” growth rankings. Today, with 3,000+ franchisees system-wide, Vanguard is a proven franchise brand in the cleaning industry.
Franchise Model and Types
One important aspect of Vanguard’s franchise system is that it offers two types of franchise opportunities:
- Unit Janitorial Franchise: This is the standard Vanguard franchise where an individual (or small business entity) owns a commercial cleaning business operating under the Vanguard brand. As a Vanguard janitorial franchisee, you typically start a small cleaning business – you hire and manage your own cleaning crew and service clients in your area. Vanguard unit franchises are usually home-based businesses (no office required) and can even be started part-time (though success often demands full-time effort). Most people interested in “buying a Vanguard franchise” are referring to this unit franchise opportunity.
- Area Master Franchise: Vanguard also offers a higher-level opportunity for experienced entrepreneurs to become regional franchisors. An Area Franchise (Master Franchise) involves running a regional Vanguard office that recruits, supports, and manages unit franchisees in a given territory. The area franchisor sells Vanguard unit franchises, obtains commercial cleaning contracts in the region, and then assigns those accounts to the unit franchisees. Essentially, the area franchisee is a B2B sales and support hub, while unit franchisees handle the cleaning work. The Area Franchise requires a much larger investment (commonly a six-figure franchise fee) and is more of an executive business opportunity. (For this comparison, we’ll focus on the unit franchise level, since that’s where most individuals start.)
Support and Benefits for Vanguard Franchisees
One of the selling points of the Vanguard franchise is the support structure in place for unit franchise owners. When you join as a Vanguard janitorial franchisee, you are not starting from scratch on your own – the regional Vanguard office provides several key benefits:
- Initial Customers: Unlike many franchises where you must drum up your own first clients, Vanguard’s master franchise will typically offer you a base of initial cleaning accounts to get started. These are paying customer contracts that the regional office has sold and will assign to you as the service provider. This jump-starts your business with immediate revenue and “eliminates a significant amount of risk” that comes with finding customers on your own.
- Sales & Marketing: The Vanguard area office is dedicated to selling commercial cleaning contracts on behalf of franchisees. If you don’t have sales experience or time to prospect, this is a major help. The regional team markets Vanguard’s services to local businesses and secures accounts for you and other franchisees. Essentially, they handle much of the sales pipeline so you can focus on service delivery. Many franchisees find this beneficial for growing their business beyond the initial accounts.
- Billing and Collections: Another operational headache that Vanguard franchisees avoid is invoicing clients and chasing payments – the area franchise office handles billing and collection for all Vanguard accounts. They send the invoices to your customers and collect payments, then remit the funds to you (after deducting franchise fees). This centralized billing ensures consistency and lets franchise owners spend more time managing cleaning crews rather than paperwork.
- Training and Ongoing Support: Vanguard provides initial training on how to run your cleaning business, including both on-the-job training (typically 6–12 hours) and classroom training (8–14 hours) for new franchisees. You’ll learn cleaning procedures, business operations, and how to use Vanguard’s systems. Beyond startup, the area office offers continued support like periodic meetings, an annual convention, field support visits, and access to purchasing co-ops for supplies. You’re in business for yourself but not by yourself, as Vanguard likes to say – you get the freedom of owning your company with the backbone of an established network.
- Brand Reputation: As a Vanguard franchisee you operate under a nationally recognized brand that has a 40+ year reputation in commercial cleaning. This credibility can open doors with clients who might prefer a known franchise over an unknown independent cleaner. Vanguard emphasizes its strong brand and peer network of franchisees – being part of a larger system means you can share experiences with others and benefit from a proven business model. The Vanguard brand also focuses on modern trends like green cleaning and high-touch disinfection (especially post-2020), which you can leverage in your local marketing.
In summary, the Vanguard Cleaning Systems franchise is structured to be a turnkey small business: you invest a relatively low amount, and in return you get a few initial customer accounts, training, ongoing sales support, and back-office assistance. It’s designed for someone who wants to start a cleaning business quickly with guidance and a book of business provided. Of course, these benefits come in exchange for the various franchise fees and some control ceded to the franchisor – which we’ll detail next.
Vanguard Franchise Costs and Fees
One of the most important factors in evaluating any franchise is the financial picture. Vanguard is often cited as a “low cost” cleaning franchise, and indeed its entry costs are lower than many other franchises. However, it’s crucial to understand both the startup costs and the ongoing fees you’ll incur as a Vanguard franchisee. Below is a comprehensive look at Vanguard’s costs, compiled from their disclosures and franchise industry sources.
Initial Investment and Startup Costs
Franchise Fee: The minimum initial franchise fee for a Vanguard janitorial franchise is typically around \$5,000 for the smallest package. This fee can scale much higher if you choose a larger package that includes more initial business; sources indicate the franchise fee could be up to approximately \$32,000 on the high end for an extensive package of accounts. The exact fee is set by the regional Master Franchisor and may vary by location and how much monthly business volume you’re buying into. Many new franchisees opt for a package in the ~\$10,000–\$15,000 range to start, but Vanguard advertises entry as low as ~\$5K for those who want to begin very small.
Total Initial Investment: Including the franchise fee and other startup expenses, the total investment required ranges broadly. Official franchise directories list Vanguard’s total initial investment range at about \$5,500 up to \$36,600. Vanguard’s own regional offices echo this range; for example, Vanguard Cleaning Systems of the Southern Valley notes that “the initial investment for most new franchises is between \$10,800 and \$36,000” (with a minimum down payment as low as \$5,000). The low end would correspond to a bare-bones starter kit (few or no accounts included, minimal equipment), whereas the high end would involve purchasing a larger revenue base of accounts and necessary supplies.
What do these startup costs include? Typically, your initial investment will cover:
- Initial Franchise Fee – ~\$5,000 (for a basic plan; higher if more accounts are included).
- Equipment and Supplies – the cost of basic cleaning equipment (vacuum, mop, cleaning solutions, etc.) which could be a few hundred to a couple thousand dollars depending on needs. Some sources indicate Vanguard offers financing for equipment purchases.
- Insurance and Licensing – you may need to obtain liability insurance, bonds, or local business licenses. Initial insurance premiums or fees might be a few hundred dollars.
- Initial Training Fee – Training is generally included in the franchise fee, but if travel is required (e.g. to regional office for training), you might have travel expenses. Vanguard’s Item 7 in the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) would detail these; for master franchises they list a couple thousand for travel, but for unit franchises this is usually minimal since training is local.
- Working Capital – It’s wise (and often recommended in the FDD) to have some additional cash on hand (perhaps a few months of expenses) as additional funds to cover your business until it becomes cash-flow positive. For a Vanguard unit, this might be a few thousand dollars.
To illustrate, one franchise listing summarized Vanguard’s investment as: Total Investment: \$5,048 – \$35,150; Liquid Capital Required: \$7,000; Net Worth Required: \$50,000. The “liquid capital” is the cash you should have available (around \$7K+) to ensure you can pay the fees and operate initially, and the net worth figure suggests they want franchisees to be financially stable. In practical terms, a new Vanguard franchisee might spend roughly \$8K–\$15K upfront on average to get started with a modest package, though you could invest more for a bigger starting revenue base.
It’s worth noting Vanguard sometimes offers veteran discounts on the franchise fee (many locations participate in the VetFran program), so military veterans may be able to start for a lower fee.
Ongoing Fees and Royalty Deductions
Once your Vanguard cleaning franchise is up and running, you will be responsible for ongoing fees to the franchisor and regional office. Understanding these fees is critical, as they affect your profit margins:
- Royalty Fee: Vanguard’s standard royalty is 11.5% of your gross revenue. This percentage is deducted from the cleaning contracts that the Vanguard system provides to you. In practical terms, the regional office usually handles client billing and simply keeps 11.5 cents of every dollar of contract revenue as the royalty. (If you generate your own independent accounts outside of Vanguard, those might not be subject to this royalty – but the support and billing also wouldn’t apply to those). The 11.5% royalty is somewhat higher than many franchises in other industries, but it’s common in commercial cleaning franchising to see royalties around 10% or more, given the sales support provided.
- Administrative and Management Fees: In addition to the base royalty, Vanguard franchisees often pay a bit more out of gross billings to cover other support services. According to franchisees, the total taken out by the franchisor/area office can be around 15% or more of gross revenue for fees beyond royalty. This may include a general management fee or account processing fee (sometimes a few percent) that the master franchise charges for handling your invoicing, customer service, etc. The exact structure can vary by regional franchisor. For example, one Vanguard franchise owner noted that their regional office took 15% off the top as franchise fees and then another 5% for insurance and bonding. In effect, about 20% of the client billing was deducted (11.5% royalty within that, and the remainder for various support/insurance fees). While individual experiences differ, it’s wise for potential franchisees to clarify all the percentage-based deductions with the Vanguard regional office upfront.
- Insurance Contribution: As referenced above, Vanguard typically requires franchisees to carry liability insurance (to protect against damages or claims from cleaning clients). Some regional offices arrange a master insurance policy and charge franchisees a fee for it – often this is around 4-5% of revenues to cover general liability and bonding. In other cases, you might purchase your own policy independently. Either way, you should account for insurance costs in your ongoing expenses, whether it’s paid via the franchisor or directly to an insurer.
- Account Sales (Finder’s Fee): If you want to grow your business by obtaining more accounts from the Vanguard master franchisor, there is usually a one-time fee per account. Vanguard (like many janitorial franchises) will “sell” you additional contract volume beyond your initial package. The cost is often calculated as a multiple of the account’s monthly gross value. For instance, a franchisee in Texas reported that after the initial included volume is fulfilled, the franchisor will “sell you additional volume at 3 or 4 times the monthly contract price”. That means if you want a new account worth \$1,000 per month, you might pay \$3,000–\$4,000 upfront to the franchisor for that account (financing options are sometimes available for these fees). This is essentially a sales commission for the franchisor. It reduces your short-term cash flow but in theory gives you long-term revenue from the account. Many cleaning franchises use this model of charging for accounts, so it’s not unique to Vanguard – but it’s very important to factor in if your growth plan relies on the franchisor feeding you contracts.
- Marketing or Advertising Fee: Interestingly, Vanguard does not charge a national advertising fund fee to unit franchisees in the way that some franchises do. There’s no required percentage that goes to a corporate ad fund. The flip side is that franchisees are often not allowed to do independent marketing without permission (the franchisor handles most marketing). Vanguard’s FDD indicates franchisees should spend between \$5,000 and \$10,000 on local promotional activities as needed, but this isn’t a formal fee – more of a guideline for your own business growth. Essentially, your “marketing fee” is indirectly the portion of revenue you surrender for the franchisor’s sales efforts. So, while you won’t pay a weekly ad fee, the franchisor is taking that role of marketing via the royalties and account fees you pay.
- Other Miscellaneous Fees: The FDD likely outlines other potential charges – for example, renewal fees if you renew your franchise agreement after its term (Vanguard’s franchise term is typically 5 years, with renewal options). There could be late fees if you don’t pay royalties on time, transfer fees if you sell your franchise, etc. There may also be a technology fee or an optional software purchase, though from available info, Vanguard’s main recurring fees are those tied to revenue.
In summary, a Vanguard unit franchisee can expect to net around 60–70% of the gross billings after all the franchise-related fees and costs are taken out. For example, if you bill \$5,000 in a month for Vanguard-sourced accounts, roughly \$1,000+ might go to royalties, insurance, etc., leaving you ~\$4,000. From that you still pay your operating costs (your labor, supplies, etc.), and what remains is your profit. Understanding this balance is key – the franchisor provides value (accounts and support) but takes a significant portion of revenue. Many Vanguard franchise owners are comfortable with this trade-off, as it allows them to start and grow a business with less effort on sales and admin. However, others feel the fees limit their earnings potential. This leads to an interesting comparison with how Assett’s franchise model is structured differently.
Comparing Vanguard and Assett Commercial Cleaning Franchise
Now that we’ve covered Vanguard in detail, let’s compare it to our Assett Commercial Cleaning Franchise offering. Both Vanguard and Assett enable entrepreneurs to own a commercial cleaning services franchise, but there are some notable differences in ownership structure, business model, and support systems. Below we break down a few key comparison points:
Ownership Structure: Corporate vs. Family-Owned
Vanguard Cleaning Systems is a long-established brand that is run as a larger corporate franchise system. The company is headquartered in San Mateo, CA and led by professional management (President: Raymond Lee). While Vanguard is privately held, it isn’t a small family business – it operates through a network of regional offices and has a more “corporate” feel in its operations. In fact, the master franchise network means many layers: you as a unit franchisee are three steps removed from the top (you → regional master franchisor → Vanguard corporate). Decisions, support, and culture are influenced by the multiple tiers and the size of the system. Vanguard has been around for decades, so it has well-defined processes, but you might not interact with the original founders or executives as a small franchisee.
Assett Commercial Cleaning Franchise, by contrast, is a newer franchise brand and is family-owned and operated by its founder. Our company was started by Matt, who built the original Assett Commercial Services business from \$0 to over \$557,000 in annual recurring revenue in its first 12 months (launched January 2019). Matt and his family personally operate the franchise brand to this day. This means when you join Assett, you’re joining a franchise where the founder is directly involved in supporting franchisees and is deeply invested in their success. The culture is very people-centric – we operate on core convictions like “People First, Partnership in Everything, Professionalism, and Pioneering Spirit”. Being family-owned, we pride ourselves on treating franchisees like partners and family, not just another number.
The difference here translates into potentially more personalized support and flexibility with Assett. Decisions can be made quickly and with individual franchisee circumstances in mind, since there isn’t a large bureaucracy. Many entrepreneurs also appreciate that Assett’s leadership is accessible – you’re essentially working with the folks who built the business from the ground up, rather than going through layers of hierarchy.
In short, Vanguard is an established brand with a corporate structure and franchisee network in the thousands, whereas Assett is a rising brand with a hands-on family ownership approach. Depending on what you value – a big brand name vs. close-knit support – this is an important distinction.
Franchise Model and Growth Potential
Perhaps the most significant difference between Vanguard’s franchise model and Assett’s is the scale of business and growth trajectory for franchisees. Assett’s franchise model was intentionally designed to address what we saw as limitations in the traditional unit franchise system used by Vanguard and similar companies.
Vanguard – Unit Franchise Model: Vanguard franchisees generally operate as owner-operators of small cleaning teams. The Vanguard unit franchise is a “low cost, low overhead” setup which is great for starting small, but it can inherently cap the growth of the franchisee. Why? Because Vanguard (and similar companies) take a relatively high percentage of revenue (often 20%+ in combined fees) and distribute work among many small franchisees in the same market. In fact, Vanguard’s model often does not grant exclusive territories to each unit franchisee – there may be multiple Vanguard franchisees operating in a city, each with a handful of accounts. The regional master can reassign accounts at its discretion and usually handles all marketing, so unit owners are not typically authorized to independently advertise or scale beyond what the master provides. Essentially, as described in industry terms, Vanguard is a “unit franchise” system: the franchisee does the cleaning work (or hires a couple cleaners), and the franchisor does everything else except the cleaning. The advantage is a low barrier to entry and not needing to be a business/marketing expert. The trade-off is that many unit franchisees end up with a small business (or even just a side job) rather than a scalable enterprise. In fact, if fees are very high, some franchisees feel compelled to do a lot of the cleaning themselves to save money – they, in effect, “bought a job as a janitor,” as some critics say. While there are certainly Vanguard franchisees who expand and hire teams, the system isn’t necessarily structured to propel each unit owner to, say, \$1M in revenue – the master franchise might divide the territory among dozens of owners instead.
Assett – Executive Franchise Model: Assett takes a fundamentally different approach. We offer what we call an “Executive Commercial Cleaning Franchise”, meaning when you join Assett, you are the boss of your business, not the cleaner. Each Assett franchisee owns an exclusive territory and is expected to scale up to manage crews and contracts in that area. You are not limited to a few accounts, and we encourage robust growth and marketing. Importantly, Assett does not siphon off 20–40% of your revenue like a unit franchise would. Our royalty fees are much lower (royalty of 3%–7%, and a small ad fund of 0.05%–2%) – this means you keep the vast majority of what you earn, enabling you to afford staff and run a larger business profitably. Assett franchisees are never expected to be the ones pushing the mop; from day one, your goal is to operate as an executive, focusing on client relationships and business growth while your hired cleaning team does the cleaning.
The result of our model is a high income potential. Assett owners have a realistic path to build a \$1M+ annual revenue business. In fact, the average unit revenue for Assett franchises in 2024 was about \$1.53 million per year. Hitting \$1,000,000 in gross sales is an achievable milestone in our system – something that would be quite difficult for a typical Vanguard unit franchise given their fee structure and scale. We only franchise to one owner per region, so you essentially act like the “master” of your territory (without the huge fees of buying a master franchise). This is why we refer to Assett as an executive model – you’re truly building a sizeable enterprise with unlimited growth potential, rather than being confined to a small slice of the pie.
Another major difference: Assett franchisees are allowed and supported to market and grow their client base proactively. We give you modern marketing tools, and we won’t restrict your expansion. Contrast that with unit franchises (Vanguard included) where typically the franchisor wants to control all client acquisition (sometimes even contractually forbidding the franchisee from independently selling to new clients). Assett believes in empowering our franchise owners to sign as many customers as they can service – we provide guidance and support, but we don’t hold you back. Additionally, Assett will never take away your accounts and give them to someone else (a complaint sometimes heard in unit franchise systems). Since you’re the exclusive franchisee in your area, any accounts you have are yours for as long as you maintain the relationships.
To put it plainly: Vanguard’s franchise model is ideal for those who want a small, easy-entry business with part-time potential, whereas Assett’s model is built for entrepreneurs who aspire to build a large, full-scale business with higher revenue and profit potential. Neither approach is “wrong” – it depends on your goals. But if your goal is to own a business that can reach seven figures in sales, Assett provides a clearer runway for that, with lower ongoing fees and no cap on growth. Vanguard, on the other hand, is often positioned for smaller owner-operators; even the franchisor expects that many unit franchisees will stay relatively small (and if someone wants to go big, Vanguard might upsell them into a master franchise opportunity which is a different league of investment).
Automated Hiring System: Assett’s Unique Advantage
Another area of comparison – and one where Assett truly shines – is in technology and efficiency, specifically our automated hiring system. One of the greatest challenges in the cleaning industry is employee turnover and the time required to find and hire reliable staff. Vanguard and other traditional franchises don’t necessarily solve this for franchisees; as a Vanguard unit owner, you’re responsible for recruiting and hiring your own cleaners, which can consume 20+ hours a week of your time if you’re trying to grow a team. Many small franchise owners struggle with constant hiring needs, which in turn limits their ability to take on more business (you can’t accept a new account if you don’t have crew to service it).
Assett recognized this as the #1 growth obstacle in commercial cleaning businesses and innovated a solution: our proprietary Automated Hiring System. This system is a software-driven, process-optimized approach to recruiting, screening, and onboarding cleaning staff. It was first developed by Matt in 2019 for our own operations and has been continually improved to be a powerful tool for our franchisees. Here’s what it does for you:
- Drastically Reduces Hiring Time: The automated hiring system handles the heavy lifting of finding applicants, filtering them, and even initial training. It can post job ads, process applications, and communicate with candidates with minimal manual input. As a result, “Our Automated Hiring System saves you personally 20–30 hours per week and turns the entire process into 2–5 hours per week,” according to our FDD and franchisees’ experience. Imagine reclaiming ~20 hours of your time every week – time you would have otherwise spent chasing job listings, doing interviews, and filling staffing gaps.
- Better Quality Hires: Because the system is always running in the background, constantly recruiting, you maintain a pipeline of qualified candidates. This means when you need to replace a cleaner or add to your team, you can do so quickly with pre-vetted people. Our system uses screening mechanisms that have resulted in stronger hires and lower turnover for Assett owners (we emphasize finding people who align with our values and reliability standards). A more stable workforce directly translates to better service quality for clients – and less stress for you as an owner.
- Enables Focus on Growth and Quality: By removing the chronic headache of hiring, you as an Assett franchisee can focus more on business growth and customer satisfaction. In fact, our franchisees report that with hiring largely handled, they can “focus more on service quality and keep clients longer,” and also “increase their marketing results to grow revenue faster”. Instead of spending evenings interviewing cleaners or filling in on cleaning jobs, you could be meeting with a new prospective client or implementing a quality control program – the high-value activities that actually expand your business and reputation.
- Cost Savings: The automated system also saves money. In a traditional model, if you don’t want to personally deal with hiring, you might need to employ an HR manager or recruiter as you grow – which is an added salary expense. Assett’s system reduces or eliminates that need. Our franchisees “take home more profit since they don’t need to hire expensive HR staff” and they still build a strong team. It’s like having a built-in HR department that doesn’t draw a paycheck from your bottom line.
This technology edge is something Vanguard’s franchise model does not offer. Vanguard franchisees hire the old-fashioned way (or sometimes rely on the master franchisor for referrals, but there is no proprietary hiring platform provided). Thus, Assett franchise owners have a unique competitive advantage in the market: they can scale up faster with fewer growing pains. While a Vanguard owner might turn down a new account because they’re already working 60 hours a week and can’t find a new cleaner in time, an Assett owner can confidently sell a new contract knowing their hiring machine will supply the needed labor. In fact, our system was a crucial reason Matt could grow his initial business to over \$500K in the first year – he wasn’t bottlenecked by labor constraints.
To put it succinctly, Assett’s automated hiring system is a game-changer. It addresses the “high employee turnover” challenge that plagues the cleaning industry. By effectively removing this obstacle, Assett franchisees can devote their energy to delivering quality service (leading to happy, long-term clients) and driving growth, rather than constantly putting out fires in staffing. This not only saves time and money, but it also reduces burnout – you’re not grinding 7 days a week to keep up with both operations and HR. Our goal is for franchise owners to achieve what we call “lifestyle flexibility” – the freedom to run a successful business without the business running you into the ground. The hiring system is a big part of that equation.
Other Notable Differences
There are a few other points worth noting briefly:
- Upfront Cost: Assett is a larger investment upfront (our franchise fee starts at \$50,000, as listed in our BizBuySell profile, and total initial investment is higher than Vanguard’s unit franchise). However, this is because Assett franchises cover bigger territories and come with more earning potential (and remember, ongoing fees are lower). It’s a classic case of “you get what you pay for.” Vanguard is very affordable to start, but you may remain small; Assett requires a bigger commitment, but you’re building a much bigger business asset. If your dream is a sizable business, Assett’s cost is modest relative to that opportunity – and we do have financing options or veterans’ discounts as well. Vanguard is great for those on a tight startup budget; Assett is for those willing to invest a bit more for greater long-term returns.
- Territory and Competition: With Vanguard, because multiple franchisees operate in a region, you could be competing with fellow Vanguard franchise owners for business (except for the accounts the master gives you). With Assett, you are the only Assett franchise in your market. That exclusivity can be a significant advantage when branding and marketing locally. You won’t lose a sales opportunity because another same-brand franchise underbid you – all Assett business in your area is yours.
- Culture and Values: Vanguard has a solid reputation, but Assett brings a fresh perspective with explicit values of partnership and faith-based principles (as noted in our convictions). We strive to “be a blessing” to our franchisees and put people first. That resonates with many who want not just a franchise, but a supportive community and a purpose-driven business. It’s worth considering which environment you’d feel more comfortable in as a business owner.
Conclusion: Choosing the Right Franchise – Vanguard vs. Assett
Both Vanguard Cleaning Systems and Assett Commercial Cleaning offer viable paths to business ownership in the growing commercial cleaning industry. Vanguard is a proven brand – they have thousands of franchises, a long track record of success, and a model that clearly works for many who want a turnkey, small-scale cleaning business. If you value a low initial cost and are content with a smaller operation (perhaps even doing some cleaning yourself initially), the Vanguard franchise opportunity certainly delivers on its promise of getting you started quickly with accounts and support. It’s a credible, time-tested franchise that will continue to be popular for those seeking stability and a known name.
On the other hand, Assett Commercial Cleaning Franchise is an equally compelling opportunity – especially for entrepreneurs who aspire to more. Assett brings everything Vanguard does and adds its own unique advantages: a family-owned touch, a modern executive-style model with million-dollar revenue potential, lower ongoing fees, and the game-changing automated hiring system. Assett is designed to let you work on your business, not constantly in your business, so you can scale it, enjoy more freedom, and focus on quality service and growth. Our franchise owners benefit from a level of efficiency and support that older models simply don’t have, positioning them to outpace competitors.
In the end, the choice may come down to your goals and priorities. If you’re analyzing the Vanguard franchise opportunity, we encourage you to also take a close look at what Assett offers. You might find that while Vanguard provides a solid foundation, Assett gives you a greater upside with innovative support that addresses the industry’s toughest challenges. Both are viable – it’s about which aligns with your vision of business ownership.
Invitation: If you’d like to learn more about Assett Commercial Cleaning Franchise and how it compares in detail, we invite you to connect with our team. We’re happy to answer questions and help you determine the best path forward. You can reach out through our website (https://assettfranchise.com) to request more information or schedule a call. Starting your own cleaning services franchise is a big step, and whether you lean towards the established Vanguard or the innovative Assett model, doing thorough research (as you’re doing now) is the key.
Final thought: The commercial cleaning market is huge and continues to grow, and both Vanguard and Assett show that franchising is a powerful way to tap into it. Vanguard’s long-standing success proves that franchising works in this field, and Assett’s emergence demonstrates that there’s always room to improve and differentiate. Whichever route you choose, you’ll be joining an industry that’s essential, resilient, and full of opportunity. Here’s to finding the franchise opportunity that best helps you reach your goals – and maybe we at Assett will have the privilege of partnering with you on your journey to building a thriving commercial cleaning business. Good luck!
