WINDHAM, Conn. — When it came to choosing a family business, “family” was what the Harlows were looking for in a franchise.
“We chose AdvantaClean because of the family culture with the brand,” said Russ Harlow, owner of AdvantaClean of Windham.
Family is what it’s all about here. Since all three Harlow children are home schooled, they have the opportunity to be part of the business, which specializes in cleaning up water damage and mold remediation in homes in Connecticut.
“They’ve all done some tough jobs in crawl spaces and taking water damage contents out of basements because we needed all hands on deck,” said Russ Harlow. “I wanted them to enjoy it, want to be part of it and to learn a lot of the aspects of not just work and that kind of work either, but business, and how to run a business. How to do an estimate, how to talk to customers and to understand the things that we do.”
“The kids just really seem to like to help out,” added his wife, Jennifer.
They all have their specialties. What does 12-year-old Russell like best?
“The crawl spaces,” said Russell Harlow.
While 16-year-old Krycia has been taking online marketing classes to help her dad with that aspect of the business.
“It’s a good feeling, helping out and being a bigger part this big business and this big puzzle is awesome,” said Krycia Harlow.
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And 15-year-old James is preparing to take over the business one day.
“I think it’s been a big experience for all of us. When I go on every job, I’m always learning something,” said James Harlow.
“Working with them, and seeing them do those things and grow, it’s priceless. I love it,” added their dad, Russ.