Chef finds Crest is recipe for success
What do cooking and cleaning have in common?
Well quite a lot, says Sandeep Vikash, who as well as a well-seasoned chef is a rising star in the cleaning industry.
As CrestClean’s latest addition to the Tauranga team, Sandeep is proving to be a sizzling success at his new found career. He says owning his own franchise has also brought a dramatic change in his personal life.
Now there’s plenty of time to spend with his wife Ashley, who also helps out in the business. And he certainly doesn’t miss the long days working in restaurant kitchens, the anti-social hours, and never having weekends off to spend time together.
Cleaning has many similarities to cheffing, says Sandeep. Both involve ensuring customers receive a very high level of service – but complaints come quickly if things go wrong.
Sandeep and Ashley are originally from Fiji. He has been in New Zealand for six years and when he first arrived he worked at an Italian restaurant in Auckland. After moving to the Bay of Plenty he worked at a number of Tauranga’s popular restaurants.
With an eye to the future, Sandeep and Ashley joined CrestClean two months ago after looking for a business that would fit around family life.
They were impressed by how easy it was to purchase a franchise, and they particularly enjoyed the training they received and ongoing support of CrestClean’s Tauranga Regional Trainer Jill Shepherd.
“Jill is an amazing person. She trained us so we can be 100 percent ready to face anything on our own. She is always there to help me if I have any questions,” said Sandeep.
“We feel proud to have our own business and we’ve made our parents proud of us. They are really happy with what we are doing.
“For me this is way better than being a chef.”
“It’s interesting and very exciting. When I was a chef I was meeting less people and now with Crest I’m meeting more people and making new friends.
“I’m working for myself, I’m not working for anyone it’s just my own business.”
He likes the satisfaction of knowing their customers appreciate the care and effort they put into the cleaning. “If my customers are happy, I am happy.”
Now he enjoys having every Sunday free and the flexible hours that he works the rest of the week.
The business has brought them closer together, says Ashley. “It’s great. I feel that I get to spend more time with my husband.”
Jan Lichtwark, CrestClean’s Regional Manager, says Sandeep, 29, and Ashley, 22, showed they had the “right attitude” from the start.
“They are very determined to succeed. Sandeep is meticulous in his planning and he looks well ahead in his work and he just wants to please his customers.”
