Now, if you’ve just stumbled on this page without seeing that review, you might be wondering why I’m bringing it up — especially in a blog post on our website.
The answer is simple: Genevieve’s comment opened the door to a conversation we rarely get to have in public, one about why professional carpet cleaning prices can vary so much, and why we’ll never aim to be the cheapest.
What follows isn’t a defence or a counterattack. It’s a story about what goes into our work, the hidden costs of doing it right, and why “expensive” might be the fairest word you could use about us.
Now and then, a piece of feedback like this lands that makes you stop, think… and, if you’re honest, feel many things.
On the surface, that sort of comment stings. My first reaction? A mix of disappointment, frustration, even a flicker of anger. My team felt it too. They work incredibly hard, and no one likes to see their efforts reduced to a number on a price tag.
But after a few days of mulling it over, something shifted. I realised Genevieve, had done us, and our community, a favour.
The Rug in Thaxted That Made Me Agree
Two weeks before that review, I found myself in our rug cleaning studio in Chittering, Cambridge, rolling and wrapping a freshly cleaned medium to large rug for delivery back to its owner in Thaxted.
I glanced at the record:
£348 for the clean.
Multiple deep cleans logged to get best result.
Before-and-after photos have been filed, showing a transformation we are proud of.
I’ll admit, I thought: “That’s a lot for a rug clean!”
But then I looked deeper…
The True Cost of Doing It Right
Here’s what that single rug entailed:
Travel: 48 minutes each way to collect and deliver — that’s 1.5 hours total.
Labour: 1 hours 48 minutes of actual cleaning time.
Facilities: Hanging in our heated, dehumidified drying room for 8 days (with rent, rates, and electricity to match).
Insurance: Every item we touch is covered.
Specialist equipment: Far from a supermarket rental machine, our kit is industrial-grade and maintained for peak performance.
Marketing: This client found us through a leaflet drop — 1,000 printed and delivered for £105, which on average generates just one job.
By the time I’d factored in fuel, wages, marketing, and overheads, admin time the profit was… let’s say way smaller than most people would guess.
This made me think whether we need to raise prices, not lower them.
The Unspoken Truth About Carpet Cleaning
Here’s something most homeowners don’t realise: carpet and upholstery cleaning in the UK is totally unregulated.
That means anyone can start a carpet cleaning and an upholstery cleaning business tomorrow with no training, no insurance, and a second-hand machine bought off eBay.
The price they charge often has more to do with their level of desperation than their level of skill.
And yes, some of them will offer bargain rates that look irresistible, right up until you see the results (or lack of them), or until you realise the “clean” only lasted a few weeks before the stains reappeared or the carpet, rug, or upholstery starts to re-soil prematurely.
Price Is Just One Number in the Story
If you’re looking for the cheapest price, you will find it. And in some situations, that’s fine.
But many of our clients choose us because they want something different:
Carpets cleaned to the highest standard possible. – Guaranteed
Trained and Insured Staff
Safer, healthier homes for their children and pets.
Long-lasting results that protect their investment in their flooring.
A service experience where they feel valued, respected, and cared for.
The Sauerkraut and Citroën Test
Let’s borrow two analogies to explain this best.
Sauerkraut: In one supermarket, you ask for fresh sauerkraut and the assistant stops what they’re doing, walks you to the fridge, and recommends the best brand, even suggesting what it pairs well with. You leave feeling helped and valued.
In the budget store, if you’re lucky, someone points vaguely towards an aisle. If it’s not there, tough. Same product name. Vastly different experience.
Cars: If price alone ruled the world, we’d all drive Citroën Amis — a perfectly functional little car that costs just £7,695 brand new. And yet, we don’t. Because people value comfort, performance, safety, style… things you can’t measure on a price tag alone.
Why Genevieve Helped Us
By pointing out that we’re expensive, Genevieve gave us the chance to be transparent about what “expensive” really means in our world.
She reminded us that our ideal clients aren’t just buying a clean — they’re buying trust, care, and long-term peace of mind.
If you’re looking for the cheapest quote, we may not be the best option for you. However, if you want it done properly, to a standard you’ll see and feel every day, then we’d be delighted to help.
Final Thought
Price is the easiest thing to compare, but rarely the most important. The real question isn’t “How much does it cost?” but “What will it give me when it’s done right?” and “What will I sacrifice (many times un-knowingly) if I buy it at the cheapest possible price”?
If you want the peace of mind that comes from a job done properly, get a free, no-obligation quote here.
Not in our catchment, that’s okay… check out the NCCA website where they have a database of all carpet cleaning companies across the UK.
