As always, the PuroClean Academy has been busy training our future franchise owners through the intense, three-week-long New Franchise Owner Training (NFT). We are happy to announce that our December 2018 class of franchise owners have graduated from NFT. They are ready to begin restoring properties with newly acquired or reinforced technical and business management skills.
We are enthusiastic to have them in our franchise system and can’t wait to see them succeed at their locations! Check out more details about our new franchise owners below.
Before joining PuroClean, Erik earned an MBA and spent nearly two decades working for various Fortune 500 companies. He later pivoted his career by earning a degree in landscape design and launching his own business. Shortly afterward, Erik opened a business in property management and successfully balanced it with his landscape business. However, Erik always desired to operate a franchise and wanted it to complement his experience in property management and landscape design.
After discovering PuroClean through a franchise agent, Erik independently researched the company and was drawn to the company’s business model and open territory system. After attending a “Meet the Team Day” event at PuroClean headquarters in Tamarac, Florida, Erik knew that PuroClean was the best fit for him.
Erik began training in November 2018 and started helping homeowners in the metro west region of Boston in January 2019. PuroClean is happy to have him on board and cannot wait to see all he accomplishes through his business.
Prior to joining PuroClean, Heather spent six years in the Alabama Army National Guard, but her passion has always been working with at-risk youth. After her military career, she held positions as a teacher and a camp counselor at a therapeutic wilderness camp. Adam earned his degree in mechanical engineering and has held jobs as a project engineer for the international space station and then worked in manufacturing sub-sea oil and gas production equipment. After his company let him go in a round of layoffs, Adam and Heather educated themselves on the franchise industry. The timing was right for them to go into business for themselves and their life experiences led them to PuroClean.
After Hurricane Harvey ravaged Houston in 2017, Heather and Adam saw how deeply the storm impacted their friends and family. They saw firsthand the stress and anxiety of their loved ones while they were doing everything they could to help. It was precisely this that led Heather and Adam to PuroClean. They knew they wanted to start a career that would help those around them and fell in love with the servant attitude the franchise system has. They are both excited to restore lives (not just the homes) of their community — Kingwood, a northeast suburb of Houston.
The PuroClean team is happy to have them on board and cannot wait to see all that they accomplish through their PuroClean business.
Getting back into the structure of franchising was something Jason Hirvonen sought. He’d been involved in the construction business his entire life, building multi-track homes and helping his family with other projects, before deciding to go it on his own. He tested the waters with another franchise, sold it, and even worked independently for a while before deciding PuroClean was the right fit for him. He liked the fact that PuroClean provided him with a larger, more recognizable presence in the industry.
What sealed the deal, however, was the culture and the people. Jason found PuroClean’s transparency to be a refreshing change of pace compared to the competition, and he appreciated how truthful and upfront the people were. That’s when he knew franchising with PuroClean was the right move.
In early 2019, Jason launched his new PuroClean business in Arrowhead Ranch, AZ, located about a half-hour northwest of Phoenix, and the surrounding areas. He and his wife, Jennifer, would eventually like to expand the business southward toward other suburbs in the Phoenix market — aiming for another operating unit or two. We can’t wait to see where PuroClean takes them!
Prior to joining PuroClean, Karlton had two primary careers. He joined the army at a young age and worked his way up to Staff Sergeant throughout his 11 years of service. When he got out of the military, he went on to work for a large national building and construction company, most recently serving as the Vice President of Construction. Toward the end of his tenure at that job, he knew he no longer wanted to work for and report to someone else. A father of two young kids, Karlton wanted to make his own schedule and spend more time at home with his family. He began looking into other opportunities when he was recruited by a franchise consultant and first heard of PuroClean.
The more Karlton learned about PuroClean, the more it became evident that it was a natural fit. He loves the structure the franchise opportunity provides him, all while being his own boss and setting his own schedule. He also saw that his market was prime for PuroClean; though Wake Forest is inundated with handyman businesses, there is no true restoration brand. Karlton looks forward to the opportunity the market presents.
Karlton launched his new business in December 2018 and we can’t wait to see where PuroClean takes him! The military veteran is providing PuroClean’s world-class restoration and remediation services to Wake Forest, North Carolina, and its surrounding communities.
Ricardo and David both come to Florida by way of Venezuela. The friends are both active in the Jewish community and met doing community service 10 years ago. In Venezuela, David was a civil engineer who spent the last decade working for a construction company. Ricardo worked as a systems engineer in the IT industry for three decades. His time was spent working with customers in the banking industry. Both David and Ricardo are family men; David is recently married, and Ricardo is married with three children.
They were drawn to PuroClean because of the similarities to David’s previous career and experience, and the need for its mitigation, construction, rebuilding, and restoration services in the South Florida area. Ricardo also notes how similar restoration is to working in IT — it’s an around-the-clock job where you are helping the customers in moments of need
After attending training in late 2018, the friends brought PuroClean’s restoration and remediation services to the Fisher Island and the east shore of Miami, Florida. PuroClean is excited to have David and Ricardo onboard and looks forward to seeing the growth of their business.
With 15 years of experience working in corporate America, Steve’s previous positions have provided him with a background in finance, strategy, and accounting. Steve comes to PuroClean with extensive knowledge of leading teams and committing to a system, having worked at Trimble, ASML, and American Express as a finance manager. Being able to open his own business is a dream come true for this Arizona franchise owner.
Franchising immediately caught Steve’s attention and he knew this was the route to attaining his long-time dream of opening a business. Discovering PuroClean after extensive research on the franchise restoration industry, he was drawn to the established company culture. From the senior leadership and support team, to the tried-and-true systems in place, Steve had found his perfect fit. He fully understands and exemplifies what PuroClean provides — competence, compassion, and world-class customer service. Steve is a Southwest native and enjoys being outdoors, exploring the natural beauty of Arizona and spending time with his family.
Steve is running the business with his wife, Kellyn, and brother-in-law, Zack Zuckerman. The group has begun servicing Paradise Valley, Old Town Scottsdale, South Scottsdale, The Biltmore, Arcadia, and other Central Phoenix communities. We look forward to the great things they will do for their community.
About PuroClean
Known as the “Paramedics of Property Damage™,” PuroClean provides fire and smoke damage remediation, water damage remediation, flood water removal, mold removal and biohazard clean-up to commercial and residential customers. Founded in 2001, PuroClean has quickly become one of the fastest growing property restoration franchise organizations in the nation with a comprehensive network of 280-plus franchise offices across North America. PuroClean technicians are thoroughly screened, insured, and trained in utilizing the latest in mitigation technology and procedures, while operating under a strict code of ethics. Each PuroClean office is independently owned and operated. For more information about PuroClean, click here to download a franchise kit.
