David Rundle originally set up Blue Star as a cleaning business but realised lots of people in the St Andrew’s community were missing out on home help. The company, which has just celebrated its fourth anniversary, now serves the St Andrew’s community, helping people with cleaning, shopping, cooking and appointments.
Name: David Rundle
Age: 34
Position: Manager
WHAT’S YOUR BUSINESS CALLED?
BLUE Star
WHERE IS IT BASED?
ST Andrew’s but we also cover East Neuk and the surrounding areas.
WHY DID YOU SET UP THE BUSINESS?
I USED to be a manager at a care company which restructured in 2014 so I lost my job. When I was interviewing for new jobs they said I was overqualified. With one week to go until I lost my job my father in law said I should launch my own business. I have OCD so I turned a negative into a positive by setting up my own cleaning company. I created the business to support my family but also to help people. I fell into it and it all came together. The business has developed hugely. It was just me at the beginning and now we do home help style services so it is a very different model to what we were at the beginning.
HOW DOES IT HELP PEOPLE?
LOTS of our customers were stuck in a hole of the council offering care packages but companionship was not included. When we were cleaning lots of customers were asking for company. We would be asked to take them to a visit or make them lunch. The council doesn’t support that side. We do shopping, companionship and socialising, cooking and take people to appointments. We do everything apart from the personal care side.
HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM COMPETING BUSINESSES?
I THINK we offer a bit of everything. Most cleaning businesses don’t offer home help services as well. We have started to work alongside the companies that cover personal care, including Fife Council and Handy Services in Fife. There’s a whole host of companies we work with. It is a priority to us that people are looked after the best they can so it is quite nice that these companies are starting to make referrals to us.
Last year we also launched our own range of eco-friendly cleaning products. This was completely driven by customers because many of them were concerned about chemicals so we made what they asked for. We sell the products on our website.
WHAT IS YOUR TARGET MARKET?
A VERY wide range of people use our services. We have no clear target market. We work with working couples, the elderly and parents. We work with a whole array of customers which makes it hard to pitch ourselves. We do an assessment when we first meet a customer to give them a tailor-made package to meet their needs.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT RUNNING THE BUSINESS?
IT is a really rewarding job down to a simple cup of tea with someone or taking them out to a coffee shop. We are often the only person they will see all week. It is a really privileged place to be. Last year we started being recognised much more. We were shortlisted in the new Start Up Business category of the Kingdom FM Local Hero Awards 2017 and for the Family Business of the Year category in the Courier Business Awards 2017. It is quite nice because at a simple level we get rewarded on a daily basis but now we are getting wider recognition. We also sponsor small local teams.
WHERE DO YOU HOPE THE BUSINESS WILL BE IN 10 YEARS?
IN four years it has gone from myself doing everything to having 18 staff members so the company has seen quick growth. The plans for the next five years are to expand and specific sides of the company that haven’t had enough time given to them. One of these is our eco-friendly products. It might become another business we create or it might remain part of the current business. We are also planning to look at ways we can give back a bit more.
I am in a lucky position because some people start a business and it doesn’t work out so it is good to give back to the community. We don’t go out and sell to anyone and try to work within the customers’ budget.
We always give much more than we mean to. It is not about the money, it’s about making sure we do the best we can.
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