For 30 years, Slates Cleaning was Glenis Slater’s business.
Now, a year into the handover, it’s Jodie’s — and the thing she’s proudest of is how little has actually changed.
“Mum built this business on hard work and genuine care for the people we work for. That’s not something you update — you just keep doing it,” Jodie said.
Based on Bosworth Road in Bairnsdale, Slates has grown from Glenis’s one-person operation in 1995 into a team of around 30, servicing close to 200 regular clients across Bairnsdale and the surrounding region — Paynesville, Eagle Point, Lucknow, Wy Yung and beyond.
The business now handles close to 450 hours of cleaning a week, across homes, offices and commercial premises.
Stepping into the top job hasn’t meant reinventing anything, Jodie says — it’s meant protecting what already worked.
“Customer service manager Ange and our operations manager Tammy have been alongside me the whole way.
Between us we’ve kept the same standards Mum set — fully insured, fully vetted staff, and a team that treats every home and business like it’s their own,” Jodie said.
That consistency is what keeps clients coming back, some for decades.
“We still get calls from people who’ve been with us since the ’90s. That kind of loyalty isn’t something you can advertise your way into — you earn it, job by job.”
Looking ahead, Jodie’s focus is on making sure that same reliability holds as the business keeps growing — faster response times and no drop in the personal touch that’s always set Slates apart.
“We’re not trying to be the biggest cleaning company in Gippsland.
We’re trying to be the one people trust without having to think about it,” Jodie said.
For trusted, professional cleaning across Bairnsdale and surrounding areas, see Slates.
