Lily Carson's business, MaidPro/Eco Carpet Pro, is a labor of love - love for people, love for community, and yes, a love of cleaning. "When I was pregnant with my first daughter, I had this eagerness to clean everything!" Lily laughs. "I'd never been a clean freak, but during my pregnancy, everything had to be clean! I had fallen in love with cleaning and really enjoyed it!"

It was also during that time that Lily was considering her next career move. With two engineering degrees from Purdue University, Lily had willingly walked away from her lucrative job in corporate America to focus on starting a family. Throughout her pregnancy, Lily began considering a new family-friendly career path.

"I wanted to do something that would allow me to be there for my child," Lily explains with a smile. "Without any business background, I wasn't sure where to start. I wanted my own business, so I began to consider a franchise."

But which franchise remained a question until the day Lily's friend pointed out a cleaning business truck. Knowing Lily's newfound love of cleaning, her friend exclaimed, "You can do that! That's a franchise." Thus the seed was planted. "That piqued my interest," Lily notes. "So, I started researching cleaning franchises online and found MaidPro.

As part of her research, Lily applied to a local cleaning company to experience first-hand the life of a professional cleaner. "I wanted to know what it was like to work in the field," she recalls, "so for two weeks, I actually worked as a cleaner for a different company before purchasing my franchise. I wanted to experience a cleaner's life and see if it was something I would want to do."
What Lily found during her brief employment as a professional cleaner would profoundly impact her philosophy on running her business and how she would treat her employees. "Not only did I see unhappy employees and low morale, but I was shocked at how differently people perceived me when they thought I was a maid," she notes.

What Lily found during her brief employment as a professional cleaner would profoundly impact her philosophy on running her business and how she would treat her employees. "Not only did I see unhappy employees and low morale, but I was shocked at how differently people perceived me when they thought I was a maid," she notes.

"Coming from corporate America I was used to being treated with respect, dignity and as someone with intelligence. When people heard I was a maid, they immediately treated me differently. The change in attitude was instantaneous. It was quite surprising. I decided then that I would foster an environment that was very supportive of employees, where they know and feel they're important. Essentially, people are the same; we just have different professions. No profession's better or worse than any other. As long as someone honestly puts forth their best effort, they should be respected as an equal. I want to support and encourage my employees, so I treat them equally, fairly, and provide them opportunities."

All of Lily's employees are offered paid holidays, vacations and sick days, healthcare, 401K accounts with matching payments by the company, and profit-sharing. Lily's dedication to providing a positive, supportive workplace has paid off in more ways than one. Since it opened in 2008, Lily's MaidPro franchise has continued to grow, even during the recession.

Lily attributes this success to her team. "I believe it's because we really have good people," she states earnestly. "We have a group of like-minded people who are honest, hardworking and want to help others. We're all a family. I wouldn't be where I am without my team," she states earnestly.

Lily and her team succeed because of the consistent, high-quality customer service they provide, from the first phone call until the job is done. "My goal at MaidPro is to provide top-notch service at reasonable prices," Lily insists. "We work hard to understand our customers' cleaning needs and budgets, and we tailor our services to their fit those. We also provide customers flexibility. We don't require contracts, so people can cancel anytime."

To ensure that her customers get the best cleaning possible, Lily never assigns newly-trained cleaners until they have cleaned her own home to her exacting standards. "After my employees are trained, they have to clean my home first," she smiles. "Then, I can provide feedback. If they're good enough for me, then they can clean for our customers."

After every cleaning, MaidPro's quality control coordinator reaches out to customers to ensure their satisfaction. "We have a 100 percent customer satisfaction guarantee," Lily explains. "To stay successful, we have to provide customers with excellent cleaning and customer service. That's what we do."

Lily's satisfied customers soon began to inquire about carpet cleaning. Unable to find a carpet company to partner with that would provide service according to her standards, Lily created her own. "My husband, Neil, heads Eco Carpet Pro," she explains. "We offer carpet, upholstery, area rug, and tile and grout cleaning. In some ways, we're like a one-stop shop."

Lily shares MaidPro's top-notch service with the community as well through MaidPro's the Gift of Clean program. In partnership with the American Cancer Society, the program provides free house cleaning to local cancer patients.

"At a time when cancer patients need a clean environment the most, they don't have the energy to do it themselves," Lily says. "This program is our way of giving back. Since 2015, we've provided $20,000-worth of free cleaning. For our single parent employees who often don't have the resources to give, the Gift of Clean is a gift of giving for them. During this process, they can see what difference they can make in someone's life, and it makes them feel good and gives their job meaning."

Warm, friendly, modest, and smart as a whip, Lily Carson was able to take a strong case of nesting instinct 12 years ago and turn it into one of the most successful MaidPro franchises in the nation through her commitment to excellence, to her employees, and to her community. Her dedication to what she does is summed up succinctly. "We are in the people business. Our services help people have better lives, and for us, that's what it's all about."