What is a Jim's Window and Pressure Cleaning franchise actually like after 10 years? Gus left 35 years in retail at the age of 50 and never looked back. This is an honest look at the work, the money and the flat fee model.

In this episode of the Jim's Group podcast, host Joel Kleber talks to Gus Barilar, a Jim's Window and Pressure Cleaning franchisee in Sydney who made a complete career change at 50.

After 35 years stuck in retail and fruit markets, working 12 to 14 hour days and barely seeing his kids grow up, Gus took the leap into window cleaning and pressure washing.

Ten years on he has a five star rating, a steady mix of domestic and commercial work, and the freedom to start when he likes.

He explains why the Jim's flat fee model beats the percentage models other franchises use, how one mindset shift turned one-off jobs into a stream of referrals, and why he says he would have done it 20 years earlier.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

Why the Jim's flat fee model beats paying a percentage of your revenue
How Gus made a career change at 50 with no window cleaning experience
Why doing the job properly, including tracks and screens, drives referrals
The seasonal reality of the income and how to handle the quiet months
How brand trust brings repeat and word of mouth work across Sydney

0:00 Why lead fees never worried Gus
0:54 Meet Gus: 10 years in the division
1:17 35 years stuck in retail
2:16 Leaving a steady job at 50
3:03 Choosing the pressure cleaning division
5:42 The first job and early doubts
7:12 The mindset shift that changed it all
8:46 How doing it properly builds referrals
10:22 Domestic vs commercial work mix
10:56 Services and complimentary extras
11:50 Gear and learning chemicals on YouTube
13:30 Wash instead of paint, save thousands
14:15 Jobs per week and the physical side
15:31 His strongest skill: customer rapport
17:11 Franchisor support and training Jacob
18:56 The seasonal reality of the income
20:40 Building referral partnerships
22:24 The flat fee model vs a percentage
23:38 The trust in the Jim's brand
26:23 Would he do it sooner
28:51 How the work transformed his health
29:58 How to get started

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Jim’s Group is Australia and New Zealand’s largest home services brand with over 580 divisions. Our franchisees complete 5 million+ jobs every year.

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