Domestic Aide changes ownership

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Bob Dresner has sold Domestic Aide Home and Office Cleaning. It's "time to turn the page and get on with the next chapter of our lives," he said of the decision to sell the enterprise he and his wife Karen owned and operated for 10 years. The sale of the business was final May 8; he would not disclose the sale price.|ret||ret||tab|

Dresner cited "good chemistry" between new owner Karl Kime and the business as a strength of the sale. |ret||ret||tab|

"We felt good about turning over the reins of the business, which is all about people" and putting Domestic Aide's client base into "qualified" hands, he added.|ret||ret||tab|

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Cleaning house|ret||ret||tab|

In the acquisition of the business at 607 N. Jefferson Ave., Kime gained an inventory of carpet and vacuum cleaners, shop vacs, floor polishers, scrubbers, sundry cleaning supplies and a 1990 Chevy Lumina van. He is leasing 1,000 square feet of space including office and storage space, and a laundering area from Dresner. |ret||ret||tab|

With a client base of "probably 500 different customers," Kime and his 34 employees will continue the company's work of providing commercial and residential service to Springfield and the immediate area. |ret||ret||tab|

While dividing his time over the last eight years as an operations manager for Roadway Express Inc. and later as a sales representative for Overnite Transportation Co., Kime searched for a business to acquire in the service area. He linked up with Domestic Aide through Business Brokers Unlimited LLC, the company Dresner utilized to locate potential buyers.|ret||ret||tab|

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Dust to dollars|ret||ret||tab|

Kime said annual revenues for the company approached a half million dollars with the core of its business generated from commercial cleaning versus residential. |ret||ret||tab|

Domestic Aide was part of a franchise until about 1990, Dresner said. When he purchased it, the business was located on Sunshine Street east of Highway 65. He moved it from there to Glenstone Gardens at Glenstone Avenue and Bennett Street. In 1995, he bought the 100-year-old building where it's now located, which he continues to own.|ret||ret||tab|

"The original franchise was just cleaning homes," Dresner said. After repeated calls from prospective clients requesting commercial cleaning services, Dresner made a business decision. "For two weeks we said, No,' and then realized that was the wrong answer." More than half of its business today comes from office cleaning, he added.|ret||ret||tab|

"Right now we are pretty much limited to residential and office cleaning, and some new construction cleaning," Kime said. He hopes to expand business revenues by increasing its commercial carpet cleaning and adding outdoor cleaning sites, like parking lots. He also said introducing flood- or fire-damage restoration as another company service would help grow Domestic Aide's business.|ret||ret||tab|

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