All the great thriller games start with discovery and mystery… Where’s Waldo, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, Clue, Nancy Drew, and of course, Scooby Doo. All of these games have something in common, other than mystery, and that is a recognizable and lovable characters. You of course have Waldo, Carmen Sandiego, Miss Scarlet, Mrs. Peacock, Professor Plum, Nancy Drew, Scooby Doo, Shaggy and that’s just to name a few. Well at Sams, we have our own lovable character, the brilliant, vibrant yellow Sams Van!
We’ve started a game at Sams Carpet Cleaning, and at first it started out with employees and friends. We called it, “Where’s the Sams Van?”. We would have people text us pictures at a stoplight of our recognizable yellow van and say, “I found you!”, or in a parking lot, or even at someone’s house. We get a kick out of seeing these messages and love that our loveable yellow character is being spotted around St. Louis.
We’ve decided to take our game a step further, and open it up to you! So here are the rules:
• Spot a Sams Van
• Take a photo (bonus points if you get a selfie with the Sams Van and *bonus bonus* points for getting a picture with the Sams Technician)
• Share the photo on our social media
The photo with the most likes at the end of the month will win a $20 Sams Carpet Cleaning gift certificate and a $50 Lowes Gift Card!
Now, it goes without saying, but we still will, we of course want you to be safe! Please do not take a picture while driving, the last thing we want is for the Sams van to cause an accident. The winner must be residential and within our service area. You can check out services in your area HERE.
It’s that simple, all you have to do is keep your eyes peeled for the Sams van and you could be the lucky winner. Be sure to share the game with friends and families and the next time you spot a Sams van, best of luck! Snap the photo and share on our Facebook for your chance to win.
It’s always nice having your kids home for the summer, being able to spend more time together as a family, going on vacations and little road trips and having some help around the house. However… kids in the house for several months straight can mean that your house has become a disaster zone! Think about all the dirty shoes and feed tromping through the house, the snacks eaten in front of the TV and the number of times they’ve rolled around on the carpet playing with the dog. Yeah, after a summer of children in the house, there’s no better time to do a deep cleaning!
Now’s the time to treat yourself. You’ve survived the summer without any major melt downs, and that’s an accomplishment. You’ve entertained children, planned fun activities and been the mediator between sibling arguments. Buy yourself a nice pair of shoes, go to a movie you want to watch and sit back and let the professionals clean your carpets and floors. You’ve done enough this summer, let us take this task off your list!
So why is clean carpet so important? When kids go back to school, they typically get a nice, fresh haircut, a new backpack, some new shoes and clothes and are looking fresh and ready for the new school year. Why not get your house in that same, tip-top, back to school shape? Not only will your carpet look great, smell fresh and feel brand new, but you’re also protecting it and helping it last longer. Who wouldn’t want that?
As your back to school reward, give us a call today to schedule your cleaning. We look forward to helping you celebrate the new school year!
If you’ve ever worked with Sams, you probably know Leslie. Leslie is our office manager/house mom/comedian who keeps us on our toes and a smile on our face. Leslie Wright has been with Sams for 22 years, and is probably the greatest thing that has ever come from a newspaper ad. In 1994, she applied for a secretary/office position ad that she saw in the St. Louis Post Dispatch, and we believe she’s our angel. That might be dramatic, but if you know her, you know that’s true.
For this month’s employee spotlight, we thought it was time to shine a little light on this star employee. Over the years, Leslie has taken countless phone calls from angry parents, trying to clean up the mess of a surprise party thrown by a rebelling teenager, hysterical families who have experienced flood damage and happy return customers who ask for Leslie by name.
Q: Why Sams? What is it about Sams that makes us different and special?
A: We honestly CARE about our customers and put them first. They are more to us than customers. We put ourselves in their shoes and treat them like family, the way WE would want to be treated. We build long term personal and business relationships with our clients. There have been people who leave and try another company, but they consistently come back after that experience because they miss the customer service.
Q: What do you enjoy most about working at Sams?
A: We have fun every day. We are family, we support each other and we have a good time. We joke and clown around, but we also have each other’s backs. When I started at Sams, I was a single mom. Jeff and Susan were always understanding and flexible, allowing me to stay at home with a sick kid or work with my schedule so I could attend their events. Family is a core factor here. Sure, we sometimes fight like family, but we are a team and we will support one another.
Q: What is your favorite part of the job?
A: I LOVE TALKING! I love meeting clients, hearing their stories and building relationships with them. When I get to solve their problem and help them out, that brings me joy. And we have some AWESOME clients, so I can’t help but love what I do.
Q: What are some of your favorite memories from over the years at Sams?
A: Celebrating my 20 years with Sams was a really amazing experience. The team went above and beyond to make me feel special and I felt the love. We recently had a 30 year celebration for Dennis, and I love looking around the room and seeing the longevity of the employees. You don’t see that at every business, but at Sams, our employees stick around because we are family and we work for a great company.
Q: What is your favorite client story? Any funny or memorable ones?
A: I don’t even know where to begin… there have been too many! Of course there are countless times kids are frantically calling us to clean the carpets before their parents get home and find out they had a party. We honestly get those calls weekly! I just love hearing from repeat customers who ask for me by name because they had a great experience and they know they can trust us. That is truly one of the best feelings.
A big thank you to Leslie for her years of dedication and amazing customer service! We couldn’t be happier that she answered our newspaper ad 22 years ago and chose Sams Carpet Cleaning & Repair.
Stay tuned for the next employee spotlight highlighting our wonderful and talented employees!
Dennis Mierkowski has been a part of the Sams Carpet Cleaning Family for 30 years. That’s right, you read that correctly. He has been with us from the beginning, when Sams Carpet Cleaning & Repairs started out of Jeff Sams parent’s home, and has been with us every step of the way. He shows passion, integrity, exceptional work ethic and dedication with everything he does, and we feel honored to have him as a part of our team. Having an employee like Dennis is truly a blessing. Every day he walks into work with a smile on his face and a greeting for everyone around him. To celebrate his 30th anniversary with the company, we wanted to highlight Dennis and hear his experience and memories with Sams over the years.
Dennis is a carpet technician who has known Jeff and his family most of his life, and when he saw Jeff starting Sams and needing employees, he stepped up to help. 30 years ago when he started at Sams, he became hooked. Here’s a little Q&A we had with Dennis to learn more about his years with Sams and some of his favorite stories.
Q: Why Sams? What makes Sams different and special?
A: To be happy you have to like what you do, and I LOVE what I do at Sams. I love the people I work with, I love working with Jeff and seeing his passion and dedication to customer satisfaction, which is something that is important to me. I can’t explain to you that amazing feeling when a customer recommends a friend or family member to us. It takes a lot of trust and confidence to allow someone into your home, and that trust is something I want to build with each and every customer. When I leave a home, I know I am leaving behind a clean environment, and that is something I can be proud of. It’s important to me for a customer to be happy and to call back for future service.
Q: What is something you are most proud of from your years with Sams?
A: There have been many times we’ve been called and the customer said they thought it was time to replace their carpet, but first they wanted to try cleaning them to see if that would help. After cleaning the carpet, the customers are thrilled and said that it’ll save them from replacing the carpet! That’s our goal, to provide quality service and help customers with whatever they might need.
Q: Any funny stories?
A: I don’t know about funny, but something I think is the longevity of many of my clients. Some of my long standing client’s children are now calling me to come clean their homes! It’s always fun to hear, “I remember you cleaning my parent’s floors when I was a child and now I need mine cleaned!”
Q: Do you have any memorable experiences with Sams?
A: Probably 15 years ago or more, we received a phone call from Nelly. He had just purchased a house in Lake St. Louis and he wanted to get his carpets and floors cleaned before MTV Cribs came out to film. I knew who Nelly was, but didn’t really know him. I went out to his house and talked to him for awhile, but didn’t realize he was Nelly until after he left and I was talking to his mom! It was a pretty crazy experience to sit with my friends watching his episode of MTV Cribs and say, “that’s my work, I cleaned that, that’s also my work!”
Thank you to Dennis not only for his YEARS of service and amazing attitude, but for taking the time to be interviewed for our first employee spotlight! Stay tuned for future blogs highlighting our wonderful employees.
*We’re exciting to announce that we are growing! We are looking to add new members to our Sams Carpet Cleaning and Repair family. If you are interested, check out our careers page HERE.*
It’s officially Spring, and with Easter right around the corner, this is a time to spiritually reflect on families gathering and spiritual awareness in our lives during the Easter season. For us, it’s a time to gather with our families and remember the meaning of Easter. At Sams, we clean for many churches, including all religious denominations and affiliations, but we recently cleaned for Grace Church in Maryland Heights, which is always a wonderful experience, with the nicest staff.
A church the size of Grace Church has thousands of visitors each week between their Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday services, worship groups and prayer meetings, bible studies and activities, which means that their floors need some attention. That’s where we come in! We cleaned the church, office space and guest house to ensure the carpets and tiles were clean, shining bright and healthy.
Grace Church is all about the community. Their congregation is made up of countless small groups that meet with different agendas but one mission, to build each other up. It is our mission to provide a service for these people and to help them to enjoy their space and maintain its pristine condition.
If your church, worship space, office or building is in need of a cleaning (from carpets to tiles to air ducts to water restoration, stain removal and more), we would be happy to help! Give us a call today to schedule your appointment or to learn more about our services.
Look down! That’s what your customers tend to do when they enter your business. Studies have shown this to be true, so when they look down, what are they seeing? Is it sparkling tile that’s free from debris and residue, or has your tile seen better, cleaner days? Remember when you built your business, and you took time and great care to choose just the right tile, design and color? It’s probably pretty important to you that it stay that way, and the Sams team can help you out!
Have the dingy days arrived?
Chances are, you have many feet touching your floors on a daily basis, and traffic in your business can be pretty hectic at certain times of the day. Spills can happen quickly. Muddy shoes can bring the outside in. You name it, it probably has happened on your tile floor. But why does it get so dingy looking? There are a few common reasons for this:
Tile and grout are very porous, meaning dirt is absorbed easily. As people walk on it, dirt can get even more ground in, and discoloration follows. Your once ivory tiles are now 50 shades of something dirty.
Routine floor cleaning, particularly sweeping and mopping, will remove surface soils, but as time passes, this process will leave residue that becomes embedded into the tile and grout. While this step is important to perform on a daily basis, it’s not enough for the long-term life and beauty of your tile floors.
It’s a fact that commercial buildings see a lot of footprints, which leads to dirt, wear and tear. High traffic areas will be the first to reveal their dirty side, and when it comes to restrooms, you know what kind of spillage may happen there!
It’s true – to make your tile and grout sparkle, you’ll need more than just a sponge. How we tackle it, and how frequently you’ll need us, depends on many factors, so we’ll help you determine what’s best for your particular situation.
The Sams process involves a thorough procedure which penetrates deeply into the surface of your tile and grout to eliminate dirt, mildew, and other contaminants. But before any machinery touches your floors, we’ll perform an inspection to identify any damage we may need to address, or any areas of special concern you may have. We’ll sweep and vacuum to remove loose dirt and dust, and then apply a pre-conditioner to break down oils and stains. That’s something a mop and sponge – or even consumer grade floor cleaners – can’t do!
Here’s where the muscle comes in. Your floors are scrubbed with high-powered brushes to remove stains and even get rid of traffic patterns that appear in the tile over time. You know, like that “track” of dirt you can see going down the hallway. Everybody gets them, and Sams can take care of it! Finally, we perform a pressure cleaning process with a rotary hot water extractor. This leaves the area clean, fresh, and something you can be proud of! We can even apply sealant to help prevent future stains.
Regular Care for your Tile and Grout
Ongoing activities such as daily vacuuming, sweeping and mopping, as well as quick attention to spills and stains will help extend the life and looks of your tile floors. But there’s only so far you can go with a broom and scrub brush. Sealing the tile grout is great for keeping moisture and dirt from penetrating into the floor. You will be so amazed at how much easier it is to clean spills off your floors once the grout has been sealed. Let Sams do the dirty work for you! Not only will you get a beautifully clean floor, you’ll get the Sams experience of the best technicians, the highest quality cleaning products and processes, and service you can count on. We appreciate an opportunity to be welcomed into your business!
If you haven’t seen our Discover St. Charles video, grab a cup of coffee or a bowl of popcorn, and get to know us! We had a wonderful time with Discover St. Charles and we appreciate the opportunity to highlight our business.
Now, we know it’s a long video and not everyone has 23 minutes to spare, so we decided to highlight some of the key topics discussed in the video. Here are the areas: Our Start, Services, Water Restoration, Oriental Rugs, Air Quality, Story Time and the St. Charles and St. Louis Community. Let’s dive in!
The Making of Sams:
First of all, a questions we are often asked: how did you get your start?
It all started in 1985, a year after Jeff got out of school. He saw a need for the carpet cleaning business and took it upon himself to make it happen! He rented a machine and started cleaning the houses of friends, family and neighbors. He saw a big difference and the happiness and joy he saw on the faces of customers, that’s when he was hooked. Jeff became interested in learning more about carpets and the carpet cleaning business. He went out and got certified, became an expert on cleaning carpets and the construction of carpets. After a couple years, Jeff was able to purchase a truck mounted system.
In the beginning, it was just Jeff, his mom and dad! You can definitely say it has always been, and will always be, a family business. At that point, he started hiring great employees who helped him to build the company and continue to grow.
Jeff and Susan met in 1985 and got married in 1990. When they first met, Susan was going to school to get her bachelor’s degree and was gaining experience in the corporate world. As the family business continued to grow, Susan and Jeff decided to take a risk and for Susan to join the Sams team, full time. She was able to bring her knowledge and skills to the company through marketing and the management side of the business. Susan loves networking and going out into the community, talking to customers, speaking at events, etc., and was a major asset to the team.
“When Susan joined the business, she began networking and made a massive improvement in the company. She was out there every day promoting, and is still out in the community promoting Sams Carpet! She has assisted with marketing and growing the company. Thanks to her, we have grown our business to the next level,” said Jeff.
We are now up to 32 employees with different roles, ranging from carpet repairs, carpet cleaning, office managers, operations managers, and more. Without them, we wouldn’t be as strong, and we feel incredibly lucky to work with such a talented group.
Over the years, the needs and wants of the St. Charles and St. Louis community have changed, and it was important to us as a business to grow and meet those needs. We have added services over the years to best serve our clients and we will continue to grow in order to provide the best for the community.
Our Services:
We service throughout the St. Louis metropolitan area, and we treat our customers so that they can be part of our family as well. After all, it means a lot to us that you opened up your doors and homes to us and we want to treat you like family. We are open 24/7, 365 days a year. We are here when they customer needs us. They don’t need us a month from now, they need us yesterday and that’s why we built this company to provide those services when an emergency or situation comes up.
This is one of our services that many people don’t know we offer! In case of water damage, we should be your first call. So what does the process look like?
After giving us a call, we send a technician out, within minutes, to your house or business. The technician will get inside, assess the severity of the situation and get a crew out to begin work.
The sooner we get the carpet and furniture dry, the better chance we have of saving your belongings. We will set up drying equipment to help dry out the space and then we will run testing, including moisture readings, to find out exactly how much moisture is in the air and in the walls so we know where the place the equipment and how much equipment is needed. Once we set everything up, we come back on a daily basis to monitor the equipment and ensure we get everything dry.
Once everything is completely dry, we put back the carpets, the furniture, replace the drywall, re-stretch the carpets, clean the carpets, etc. The quicker we get everything dried out, the best chance you have of no mold or serious damage.
Water restoration is something you hope to never deal with, but in case a disaster occurs, now you know who to call!
Air Quality:
Not only do we want to take care of your carpets, but we also want to take care of the entire living environment inside your home or business. We often receive phone calls from people with allergies who are looking to improve their air quality. We come in and not only clean the air ducts, returns and vents, but clean the entire system, which will greatly improve the air quality. At Sams, we have a great, high quality brush system that runs through our truck and goes through your system to extract everything. It brings it outside so that we are not generation anymore dust or allergens inside your home.
After doing construction or remodeling your home, you should consider having your air ducts cleaned out. All that dust and building material has found a way into the system and will build up, causing problems. Even for new build houses, this is an important step to improve the air quality.
Fine Rug and Area Rug Cleaning:
French Town Rug Cleaning Company is a division of Sams Carpet Cleaning & Repair that focuses on the proper care and maintenance of your fine rugs. We know that your rugs are exposed to wear and tear, and over time, spot cleaning and vacuuming is just not enough. That’s where we come in!
FrenchTown Rug Cleaning is one of the few fine and area rug cleaning companies certified as a Master Rug Cleaner, which is the gold standard in training and certification for rug cleaning professionals. We have a rug cleaning plant here, in house, so we will treat each and every rug by hand, with care. From $200-$20,000+ rugs, we clean them all!
So what’s the process to cleaning a fine rug? First, we determine what kind of rug it is so we can determine the best course of action for cleaning it. Depending on the type of fibers and how well it’s put together, we will determine the best cleaning method. It’s a process, each and every rug is hand cleaned, which takes longer because of the care behind cleaning them.
After cleaning, we send them to our drying room, then wrap them up and deliver them back to our customers. We offer pickup and delivery of the rugs, or you can drop them off to our store, whatever works best for you! We have a 10-15 day turnaround on rug cleanings.
Not only are these rugs usually expensive, but they can also be antiques, handed down from generation from generation. We’ve had rugs that people have told us the family history. “I’ve had this rug my entire life, and I’m going to now pass it on to my son. We want to wrap it up and send it to New York.” The history and story behind each piece is truly amazing!
Storytime:
Speaking of stories and history, over our 30 years in business, we have heard many funny, and horrible stories. We often receive the panicked phone call when a bottle of wine has been spilled on the carpet, when a can of paint falls down the stairs or a dog tearing up the house.
One of the phone calls we receive the most often is from kids who call us to clean up the carpets before their parents come home from out of town. Looks like they hosted a real wild party and are looking to cover their tracks!
Restoration stories always stick out to us. We once received a call from someone who came home from being out of town, and when they pulled into their driveway, they could see water pouring out from under the front door. The washing machine on their second floor broke, and water was rushing throughout the house. When we get those phone calls, the panicked, emergency situations, our first goal is to calm the customer and reassure them that they will be taken care of.
St. Charles and St. Louis Community:
We LOVE our community! It has been amazing over the years to see the support the community has given to us as a small, local business, and we look to help other local businesses to grow. Susan is a member of the Greater St. Charles Chamber of Commerce, and was previously the Chairman of the Board. As our business continues to grow, we want to help our community. Participating and volunteering our time is important to not only us, but also to many of our employees.
Business relationships are important to us. We have built a great relationship over the years with local businesses like Lindenwood University, the Peabody Opera House, Scottrade Center, and more.
We hope you enjoyed getting to know us on a more personal level and allow us the opportunity to dive deeper into a few of our service areas. Interested in learning more or scheduling an appointment? Give us a call! And don’t forget to check out our current specials.
When you invest in your furniture do you consider the future? Whether your pieces are expensive or not, the goal is to expand the life of the furniture, particularly your upholstered pieces. Wear and tear contribute to the diminishing of the appearance and quality of these items. The secret to enhancing the life of upholstery modern furniture is preventative maintenance and professional assistance. Of course, Sams has suggestions to make your furniture last. However, upholstery collects dirt, fade colors and look worn over time with use. It doesn’t matter how well you take care of it, daily routine will still wear on your pieces. What matters is the preventative measures you take and the assistance you utilize for proper upkeep. Sams understands that all furniture is different and some pieces come with different types of fabric, colors and construction techniques. With that in mind, we’re giving you the secrets to saving your upholstery.
Pre-Treat
As far as we consider maintenance, this is at the top of our list. As part of our steam cleaning process, not only will we pre-treat and clean the fabric, but we will protect your piece with the appropriate fabric protector. Our detailed process ensures you that we will apply fabric protection where it’s appropriate. Sure, there are several products out there for furniture protection, however, you should consult with a trained technician about which products can be used for the best results. We would like to make sure your small spills don’t turn into big problems in the future.
Vacuum
The kids crashing on the couches and leaving crumbs behind can cause damage and create stains. We recommend vacuuming for fabrics that can’t be exposed to water, particularly with pet hair. Since upholstery has to be handled with care, regular maintenance is very important to us. Set a schedule for vacuuming (or make an appointment with us) to prolong the life of your pieces for your kids play parties. We utilize particular methods that allow our technicians to pay special attention to the given problem areas with your furniture so we are assured the best removal techniques.
Professional Assistance
Just like many things in the world, Sams understand when it comes to upholstery all products aren’t created equal. In minutes, our service technicians can have your furniture looking just as sleek when you first saw it. To make sure of this, we like to first inspect your furniture to determine the appropriate method that will serve the best benefit. After choosing the method, we move forward with a detail process to clean your furniture. Preventative products can be purchased, but without proper consultation or knowledge of materials you may not achieve quality results. Our proven process includes everything from color testing to dry cleaning with oil based solvents, assuring our customer of real results.
We care about our customers, and we only want to see the quality and life of your furniture reach its highest potential. If those furniture accidents ever happen in the future, remember that our intent is not only to satisfy our community and customers, but it’s to restore, repair and refinish your pieces.
If you’re ready to repair that dusty and dingy couch, please feel free to contact us.
You might notice on our website that it says that we are “insured and bonded, and a Certificate of Insurance is available upon request.” Sounds like a bunch of mumbo jumbo, right? Wrong. It’s important, even though it might just sound like some fancy, legal fluff. Here’s why.
You are inviting people into your home or business. You want to protect yourself, correct? You have car insurance in case you’re in an accident, you have home owner’s insurance in case of a fire or break in, and you have health insurance in case of medical emergencies. It’s all about protecting yourself, your family and what’s most important to you. So naturally, why wouldn’t you want to hire someone who is insured?
When hiring a company to come into your home or business, be sure to ask them if they are insured and if they can provide a Certificate of Insurance. Not only will a reputable company be happy to provide the Certificate, but they will also feel good knowing you’ve done your research and know what to look for in a good company. All parties can feel a sense of relief knowing they are protected.
Whether you’re looking to have the carpets cleaned at your house, carpet repairs at your office, pet damage cleanup or water damage cleanup/repair, rest assured that we have your back and will take care of you. We love cleaning and repairing carpet, fine rugs, tile and grout, air ducts and more, but most of all, we love doing it well. You’ll feel the pride in our work and the joy we find in serving you.
Give us a call to learn more or to schedule an appointment. We look forward to hearing from you, and serving you!
It’s official, we were voted the Best Carpet Cleaning Company in St. Charles for the 20th year in a row!
TWENTY YEARS! Can you believe it? We’re still in shock. That is 2 decades!
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support and votes! We wouldn’t have won this honor if it wasn’t for your support.
We attend the Best of St. Charles County event at the Foundry Art Centre on December 13th and what a wonderful event! It was a great opportunity to socialize with other award winning companies and meet businesses in the St. Charles Community. Thank you to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Suburban Journal for putting on this great event.
You can see the full Best of St. Charles County list HERE.
Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for your support year after year, for jumping online to vote for us, for recommending our services to your friends and families and for being such great customers. It means so much to us to build relationships with our customers, and we consider each and every one of you our friend.
FrenchTown Rug Cleaning Co. recognizes different fibers, constructions, and types of rugs. We apply custom cleaning techniques and procedures that minimize concerned areas in all types of specialty rugs, while returning them to a clean and refresh condition.
