ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

Latest trends in the Russian cleaning market, from Oleg Popov of Cristanval Cleaning.

For the Russian cleaning market, the second year of the third crisis wave has come to an end. We’ve undergone serious downturns in 1998 and 2008 and now we’re going through another one. To say that Russian entrepreneurs have been hardened is an understatement. Each crisis has its own ‘face’ and develops unpredictably. Thus, 2016 has also been a difficult year of contradictions.

Both services suppliers and customers continued to optimise their expenses and cut back costs. Our lives became more aesthetic, but forecasts and expectations in the beginning of the year were significantly worse. The cleaning market has already decreased in square metres and almost caved in in roubles and the next time it will be obvious that the people will always bring cleanliness and order. This is a necessary service and companies will no longer return to their own cleaning services. Such a prediction existed, but was not fulfilled.

The concept of ‘sanctions’ has become less daunting as oil prices grow little by little, salaries haven’t fallen, and there’s practically no unemployment. In these conditions, the downturn is developing only in people’s minds. The most innovative businessmen, especially the young ones without experience under difficult circumstances, try to take advantage of the situation and open up new companies. We’re seeing explosive growth in the apartment cleaning and single-click segments.

The main thing that large federal companies have sensed is a lack of customers’ desire to pay for services, bankruptcy, unabashed scams, instalments, delays, etc. For some of the clients that’s real problems in business, meanwhile others tried to take advantage of situations and not pay. Legal services of companies are in demand like never before!

Of course, this hasn’t concerned all clients. A large mass of scrupulous customers have voiced their desire for optimisation during negotiation and cleaners have always been willing to hear out their clients. For any service company, the only all-encompassing strategy is a customer-oriented approach, and quality.

Also being implemented are public initiatives that are important for the sector’s growth. The renewed professional standard ‘Professional Cleaning Specialist’, has been passed by Order of the Ministry of Labour of the Russian Federation. For the first time in Russia, the world crafts championship has been held in the cleaning field according to international World Skills standards among youth aged 18-22.

In 2017, contractors will be bidding to service the world soccer championship 2018. As the supplier of the cleaning services at the Sochi Olympics in 2014, I can confidently say that my work experience at large sporting events is priceless. It mobilises all the abilities of the company, pays for, and motivates the team.