Jim is the ‘Upholstery Cleaning King of Polokwane’
34-year-old, Jim Ramoroko, from Blood River worked in the hospitality sector as a general assistant before the itch to start his own business became too much to ignore.
POLOKWANE – Jim left his job and took a big risk of buying an industrial machine and started his business, Jimro Cleaning Company. With support from his fiancee, Rosemary Ledwaba, they started the company where he worked for the first two years.
Today he employs two casual workers, Queen Sekgotha and Hellen Mpe, who come in to assist whenever he needs the extra hands. He plans to employ more people on a permanent basis in future.
You might also want to read: Taking a stand against unemployment: How two friends started their own cleaning company
“I would love to provide young people with work experience through the company. I want the company to be part of empowering young people with work experience which will give them something to add onto their CV’s when they apply for work, or maybe even inspire them to do their own thing,” he said.
One of the challenges he still faces is the lack of transport when he gets jobs. He often relies on his brother, Mikkah who entrusts him with his car, so that he can go to jobs.
“I plan to get a van soon and with the growth of the company, it will soon be a possibility. When I started off cleaning a few houses in the township, I would push around my cleaning materials in a wheelbarrow. I could not allow circumstances to get in the way of doing business and I was willing to do anything to establish myself,” he explained. Jim adds that the struggle of building up his business has helped him because he does not take any of his clients for granted.
“I have a beautiful relationship with my clients. They are people who trust me with their property and some of their most expensive items. Some trust me enough to leave me in their homes the entire day unsupervised, that takes a lot of trust, but I always make sure that I never betray their trust,” he said.
Jim jokingly adds that he tells his workers when they get to a home that they should only focus on what they are doing, do not look around and never ask the clients personal questions.
