2023-06-05 01:16:10
Image provided by: Duskin Co., Ltd.
2023-06-05 09:30These days, the expansion of women’s employment has become commonplace, and work-life balance is being reconsidered. The values of household chores are also changing. When Duskin Co., Ltd. launched its “cleaning agent service”, some people said, “Please keep it a secret from my husband,” but sales have continued to grow for more than 30 years since the service started (* (Excluding the Corona disaster). How did the deeply rooted value of “cleaning as a woman’s job” disappear, and how did the number of service users increase? We interviewed Ms. Saori Sakaguchi of the division.
[Photo]A full-body shot of Shuri, who played Shunsuke Kazama’s wife in Duskin’s commercial
■ Complaints from users “Don’t stop the car written as Duskin”
Founded in 1963 as a company that rents mops, Duskin Co., Ltd. has since expanded into cleaning services, Mister Donuts, and the restaurant industry. In 1989, we partnered with Mermaid, Inc. in the United States and started the “Merry Maid Business” as a cleaning agency service.
“Three years before our founding, in 1986, the Equal Employment Opportunity Law was enacted, and it was predicted that more women would enter society and play an active role in the future. I wondered if I might do a franchise business, so in 1989 I partnered with an American company and started the business.” (Mr. Sakaguchi/same below)
However, at the beginning, it was difficult to make the service known to the world. This is because in Japan, there is still the old idea that “cleaning is something for women,” and many people were reluctant to ask a third party to clean their homes.
“There were many customers who actually wanted to ask for cleaning, but didn’t want their families or neighbors to know regarding it. ‘I want you to keep it a secret from my husband.’ There were many requests from people saying, ‘I don’t want you to wear an apron.'”
Meanwhile, in the Merry Maid business, we focused on posting flyers as part of service awareness. Occasionally, the owner of the franchise would visit each house and post, asking for requests. Thanks to these steady activities, we gradually gained users. It has been more than 30 years since the service started, and sales have continued to grow, except for the corona crisis of 2020.
The year 2000 marked a major turning point for this business. It expanded the range of services from the previous “cleaning agency” to “housekeeping agency”.
“We received requests from our customers who said they wanted us to help them with their daily chores, such as washing and cooking, so we started a housekeeping service on an hourly basis. I think it was the turning point when I took the rudder for all household chores.
We are constantly listening to our customers and creating and developing various services, such as the “cleaning service” that specializes in cleaning, which was born from the voice of “cleaning up” among “housework”. increase”
Currently, there are many plans that can be used according to the increasingly diverse life stages, such as the “Telecommuting Support Plan” and “Childcare Leave Return Support Plan”.
■ The biggest issue that arose with business expansion and an increase in the number of users
Currently, a large percentage of the staff in this business are women, and people of all ages are active. Some of them are veterans who have been working there since the company was founded.
“There are people who have been full-time housewives for a while and choose Merry Maid when they return to work. Having housework experience is a big advantage when working at Merry Maid.The way we work is really different, and there are people who say, ‘I want to work only once a week on Monday mornings,’ and there are people who come every day.”
“Securing human resources is always a challenge,” says Sakaguchi, in continuing the business. For that reason, I created a video that explains the work content so that many people can understand the work of Merry Maid. In addition, as new employee training, we conduct initial training using a solid manual and continue training therefollowing.
“In addition, we hold study sessions within the company and hold meetings once a month to share the latest information, such as customer feedback and knowledge regarding housework and cleaning, so that the current staff can work lively and happily. I am doing
In addition, we are also focusing on efforts to provide peace of mind as a company so that both users and agents can rely on and carry out work with peace of mind.
“We don’t just receive a customer’s request and say ‘I’ll go straight to the service. We will ask you what kind of service you would like, explain what kind of service you would like to provide, give us an estimate, and then visit the service at a later date. We are trying to keep both the customer and the staff who visit us at ease, such as by working in a two-person system. increase”
■ In the past, the image of “Housekeeping services = something used by some wealthy people” was changed… How has user mindset changed over the past 30 years?
Over the more than 30 years since the start of the Merry Maid business in 1989, there have been various changes in household lifestyles, such as women’s social advancement and an increase in double-income households. Mr. Sakaguchi says that people’s awareness of housework is changing, albeit little by little.
“In the past, I think there was a strong image that ‘housekeeping services were something only a few wealthy people used.’ I heard that there are some people who say, “Oh, aren’t you using a housekeeping service?”In that way, I think that people’s awareness is changing little by little.
Rather than show my child that I am busy and have no spare time, I would like to use a housekeeping service to spend time with my child. That’s why we are grateful to hear that you were happy to use our service. It’s really changing little by little.”
However, there is a difference in demand between urban and rural areas.
“Our company has 790 stores nationwide (*as of the end of March 2023), but I feel that there is no big difference in demand. Depending on the region, there is a difference in service usage depending on the region, such as bathroom cleaning is often used because of the influence of water quality. I don’t think there is any difference.”
In the future, this business will continue to provide services by responding flexibly according to life stages that change with the times. How would you like to be involved with each family?
“Nowadays, I think there are many families where housewives do not take over all household chores, but instead divide the work between the whole family, saying, ‘This is the housework that the father does, and this is the housework that the children do.’ We would be happy if you consider us Merry Maids as members of your family.We hope that you will remember us as an option when you need it, and use it wisely.”
(Interview and text / Yukinori Mizuno)
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