The vision behind Cleaning Express
We founded Cleaning Express in 2015 with a simple idea: to provide excellent cleaning while building a company that values the people who form it.
From the beginning, we have invested in training, supported our cleaners, listened to customers and continued improving how we operate.
The early years
Cleaning Express was founded by Ana after she had spent several years cleaning homes around Greenwich and Blackheath.
As recommendations spread by word of mouth, so did demand. It quickly became clear that growth depended not only on winning new customers, but also on finding and supporting good-quality cleaners.
Between 2015 and 2018, Cleaning Express built successful relationships with a number of estate agents, providing both regular and one-off cleaning services for managed properties and tenancies.
One of the decisions that shaped the company early on was opening our own office in 2016. While many cleaning companies operated from home, we wanted our administration and management teams working side by side, helping us solve problems quickly, share ideas, and build a stronger team culture.
From the beginning, we also chose to build Cleaning Express as a directly managed cleaning business rather than a franchise, marketplace, or online. For us, the traditional, personal approach was the most important thing.
A new stage of development
In 2019, Michael Bogoyavlenskiy joined Cleaning Express as CEO, focusing initially on commercial cleaning, marketing, and finance.
Michael brought more than 12 years of experience in finance management and financial control within IT companies, as a qualified accountant, together with a strong interest in systems, technology, and operational improvement.
His approach has often been to immerse himself directly in areas that need improvement, working alongside teams across cleaning supervision, customer service, finance, recruitment, and marketing. This has helped him understand processes in detail, identify limitations, and introduce better systems.
COVID-19 and recovery
With the arrival of COVID-19, our focus changed almost overnight. During the first lockdown, approximately two-thirds of our customers temporarily stopped their cleaning service, and our priority became supporting customers and cleaners through cancellations, service suspensions, and changing restrictions.
As restrictions eased, customers gradually returned and, by the end of 2020, most had resumed their services.
Growing and improving
From 2021 onwards, Cleaning Express grew considerably. While many businesses reduced their office presence after COVID, we took the opposite approach and expanded ours. Not only did we still value collaborative, in-person working, but we also wanted to continue investing in our growth in meaningful ways.
But this also increased the complexity of the business, with constant changes to schedules, customer communications, cleaner availability, and service requirements. We continued investing in software and reviewing processes to find simpler and more efficient ways of working.
Our commercial cleaning operation also developed significantly, with Cleaning Express increasingly supporting larger organisations, multi-site customers, and clients with more complex requirements.
Technology and customer experience
Of course, we’ve never forgotten about our domestic customers, who have new ways to arrange and manage their cleaning. Customers can now receive instant quotes across London, many straightforward bookings are now automated, and we manage property portfolios for landlords, property management companies, and relocation businesses.
In August 2026, we launched the Cleaning Express house cleaning app for iOS and Android, and we continue to develop and improve its features.
Supporting our community
The war in Ukraine had a very personal impact on Cleaning Express. Both Ana and Michael have close family members who lived near the front line.
As Ukrainian refugees arrived in the UK, we provided practical support through advice, training, and employment opportunities. More than 100 Ukrainians subsequently became part of the Cleaning Express team.
