With an egalitarian approach to leadership, Cindy Banchy is the personification of the definition of Vanguard Leader.

As we learned in The Vanguard Difference, we truly believe that the secret to our recipe for success is the relationships between our employees, franchisees and our customers. But just what is our [not so] basic recipe and what lead her to become Vanguard?

Becoming Vanguard 

As a young girl, growing up on a dairy farm in rural Wisconsin, Cindy Banchy learned early on how to work hard and how to be an entrepreneur. She learned from her father what it took to make tough decisions, plan growth and take risks in a high-cost, labor-intensive industry. Eventually, her passion for business along with her MBA would lead her to a very successful 16 year career with IBM. However, Cindy was tired of corporate politics and knew that she wanted to give others the same chance she had to better their lives and in 2005, she bought the master franchise of Vanguard Cleaning Systems covering Minnesota and Western Wisconsin.

“The Vanguard Cleaning Systems business model enables us to be a total solutions provider to our clients. We provide not only contract cleaning, but ongoing supplies (soaps, paper products and even office supplies), specialty cleaning (floor care programs, carpet extraction and restroom restoration). In addition, the ability to be flexible with our scheduling and pricing gives clients a true sense of partnership,” says Cindy.

The Vanguard Way 

Though there are many commercial cleaning companies in the market, the Vanguard franchisees are very different when it comes to communication. The Franchisees/Independent Business Owners work very hard to be as responsive as possible when issues arise so we can address them quickly and professionally. For example, if a client has an emergency, they can call the franchise owner directly without having to go through the Vanguard office first. While seemingly obvious, it is far from standard in the cleaning industry.

Vanguard franchisees are from diverse backgrounds; blue collar workers, office workers or immigrants. Cindy takes them through certifications programs. They are taught how to work with customers, manage people and providing outstanding customer service. Through the franchise, Cindy is able to give hard working individuals the opportunity to use the same work ethics she learned as a child and turn it into a successful business for themselves and their families. Vanguard franchisees offer customizable cleaning services for industries such as: general offices, medical offices, schools, churches and multi-tenant buildings. They can work as much and grow as large as they desire – working part-time to compliment a day job or have multiple employees and build their own enterprise. Cindy has 75 Vanguard franchisees who each employ between one and 70 people.

A Recipe for Success

Vanguard Cleaning Systems of Minnesota is ranked first among 65 Vanguard locations across the country for revenue growth. Cindy has also built an impressive internal team of 9 people, in the Eagan office, to support the Vanguard franchisees and their accounts throughout the Twin Cities metro area and Rochester. All of these individuals are truly the best in their fields and embody the Vanguard vision and what it means to Be Vanguard. Cindy leads by example, showing her Vanguard franchisees how important it is to know all aspects of the business. It is not uncommon to find her working on the website, taking classes or reading the latest industry magazines to ensure that Vanguard Cleaning Systems of Minnesota is on the cutting edge of everything from cleaning equipment to technology.

Cindy is married with two grown sons. She enjoys the outdoors, hiking in multiple countries and at age 51, became a Triathlete competing in multiple races including two Ironman 140.6 distances. Cindy also belongs to the Entrepreneurs’ Organization, Twin Cities Chapter of the Women Presidents Organization and has received national certification as a Women’s Business Enterprise by the Women’s Business Development Council.

Join Our Team

Interested in learning more about the benefits and opportunities that come with becoming a Vanguard franchisee?  Submit our franchisee information request form today.