It's really important to us that our guests have a relaxing stay in our apartments, sometimes they've relocated around the world, they're away from their families or they find themselves somewhere completely new. We have Katalin Pfortner and her team – "The Pink Army" - to thank for making sure that our properties are always spotless and for doing our guests' ironing, so I decided to track her down and find out more.
Two and a half years ago, when I first met Katalin, she was a cleaner and housekeeper for Bright & Beautiful. Now she's the franchisee and Operational Manager in Nottingham, with a team of 22 cleaners.
Here's our chat from earlier in the week...
What is the best bit about what you do?
There are so many things I love about my job. As you can imagine I like places to be clean and tidy but there's a lot more to it than that. I really enjoy providing a personal service and the face-to-face contact I have with clients. There's lots of problem-solving when you're managing over 100 customers and I find it really satisfying.
What do you do for Nook & Cranny?
We do two different types of clean – interim (during a guest's stay) and exit cleans, which are more thorough. We also change the bed linen and towels, and do the ironing if guests ask us to. Last year we updated ALL of the bed linen and towels in every single flat, that took some organising! Now you've got over 20 apartments, with people arriving and leaving at different times, we have a special system to manage exit cleans and we provide a 7 day a week service just for you to fit in with your guests.
Two and a half years ago, when I first met Katalin, she was a cleaner and housekeeper for Bright & Beautiful. Now she's the franchisee and Operational Manager in Nottingham, with a team of 22 cleaners.
Here's our chat from earlier in the week...
What is the best bit about what you do?
There are so many things I love about my job. As you can imagine I like places to be clean and tidy but there's a lot more to it than that. I really enjoy providing a personal service and the face-to-face contact I have with clients. There's lots of problem-solving when you're managing over 100 customers and I find it really satisfying.
What do you do for Nook & Cranny?
We do two different types of clean – interim (during a guest's stay) and exit cleans, which are more thorough. We also change the bed linen and towels, and do the ironing if guests ask us to. Last year we updated ALL of the bed linen and towels in every single flat, that took some organising! Now you've got over 20 apartments, with people arriving and leaving at different times, we have a special system to manage exit cleans and we provide a 7 day a week service just for you to fit in with your guests.
Katalin, Cleaning Chief & Head of Housekeeping
"It's a luxury service, like a hotel"
What makes Bright & Beautiful different?
Well, firstly the products we use are all eco-friendly, we don't use bleach or anything else that's harmful to people or the environment. We use soft cloths and feather dusters, nothing harsh or abrasive. The other thing is the way we're set up. We're not an agency, we believe in looking after our staff so all of our cleaners are employed and they're paid for their travel time too, which is unusual in the industry. As the boss, I treat everyone the way I'd like to be treated myself and I wouldn't ask someone to do something I wouldn't be prepared to do myself!
Have you got any funny stories (please keep it clean!)?
There are a few stories I can't share... all I'll say is that some of the exit cleans after actors' parties are interesting! Nook & Cranny has a lot of different guests so we meet all sorts of people - actors, tourists, professionals, sportspeople. The team tends to fight over who gets to clean your apartments when you have professional footballers and cricketers staying in the hope that they might meet them!
Well, firstly the products we use are all eco-friendly, we don't use bleach or anything else that's harmful to people or the environment. We use soft cloths and feather dusters, nothing harsh or abrasive. The other thing is the way we're set up. We're not an agency, we believe in looking after our staff so all of our cleaners are employed and they're paid for their travel time too, which is unusual in the industry. As the boss, I treat everyone the way I'd like to be treated myself and I wouldn't ask someone to do something I wouldn't be prepared to do myself!
Have you got any funny stories (please keep it clean!)?
There are a few stories I can't share... all I'll say is that some of the exit cleans after actors' parties are interesting! Nook & Cranny has a lot of different guests so we meet all sorts of people - actors, tourists, professionals, sportspeople. The team tends to fight over who gets to clean your apartments when you have professional footballers and cricketers staying in the hope that they might meet them!
The Pink Army
Have you got any tips for those of us who might not be quite so keen on cleaning?
Yes, a few... my first one is that if you're not sweating you're not doing it right! Cleaning is great exercise, none of us need gym memberships any more. I'd also recommend doing two hours of cleaning if you feel stressed, it's surprisingly relaxing.
Thank you so so much to Katalin, there's always a lot more to a job than meets the eye, I might even start viewing my cleaning as relaxing...
A lot goes into providing an excellent service to everyone who stays at our properties, we'll be giving you a behind the scenes look at some of the other people who make it happen soon.
If you've got any comments or questions fire away and, as always, feel free to contact us if you're looking for short-term luxury accommodation in West Bridgford, Nottingham.
Now, where's my feather duster...
Yes, a few... my first one is that if you're not sweating you're not doing it right! Cleaning is great exercise, none of us need gym memberships any more. I'd also recommend doing two hours of cleaning if you feel stressed, it's surprisingly relaxing.
Thank you so so much to Katalin, there's always a lot more to a job than meets the eye, I might even start viewing my cleaning as relaxing...
A lot goes into providing an excellent service to everyone who stays at our properties, we'll be giving you a behind the scenes look at some of the other people who make it happen soon.
If you've got any comments or questions fire away and, as always, feel free to contact us if you're looking for short-term luxury accommodation in West Bridgford, Nottingham.
Now, where's my feather duster...
Katalin's Story
Within a month of joining Bright & Beautiful's army of cleaners, Katalin was made Team Leader, she quickly became Senior Team Leader and then the full-time Operational Manager. She now owns and runs the local franchise of Bright & Beautiful, which covers all of Nottingham city and beyond (postcodes NG1 to NG14). Her local team provides a professional cleaning and ironing service, offering regular weekly and fortnightly cleans. Kat has already grown the business and has a team of 22 cleaners, and she's aiming to double that within the next 2 years. Having seen what she's capable of we're sure she'll achieve it!
Within a month of joining Bright & Beautiful's army of cleaners, Katalin was made Team Leader, she quickly became Senior Team Leader and then the full-time Operational Manager. She now owns and runs the local franchise of Bright & Beautiful, which covers all of Nottingham city and beyond (postcodes NG1 to NG14). Her local team provides a professional cleaning and ironing service, offering regular weekly and fortnightly cleans. Kat has already grown the business and has a team of 22 cleaners, and she's aiming to double that within the next 2 years. Having seen what she's capable of we're sure she'll achieve it!
RSS Feed