The Freedom Formula Podcast: Achieving Financial, Location and Time Freedom 125. Running a $100K/Mo Local Biz Remotely From Japan with Chris Schwab of Think Maids and Inova Local
Nov 29, 2023
Chris Schwab, founder of Think Maids and Inova Local who runs a remote cleaning empire from Japan and trains VAs for local businesses. He recounts building a cleaning business on a shoestring and surviving the industry’s “valley of despair.” He explains hiring and training virtual assistants, building automated marketing and sales funnels, and systemizing local service operations for remote scale.
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Bootstrapping Think Maids With $700
- Chris started Think Maids with $700 from freelance SEO and built a basic website plus paid Craigslist and Thumbtack ads to get first teams and customers.
- That quick bootstrap went from zero to $20K/month recurring within ~90 days and launched his cleaning business journey.
Halloween Cancellations Forced A Remote Pivot
- Chris hit the cleaning 'valley of despair' at ~$15–30K/month where he was too busy wearing all hats but not profitable enough to hire full-time help.
- A Halloween staffing collapse pushed him to hire a VA, test a week in Japan, and realize remote operation was possible.
When To Hire A Virtual Assistant
- If you have outside income hire a VA from day one to delay drawing salary and accelerate growth; if money is tight grind 6–9 months to learn operations before hiring.
- Chris warns inexperienced owners often pay for more VA hours than they need because operations aren't optimized.
