Don Aslett

Don A. Aslett

Don A. Aslett
Born Donald Andrew Aslett
1935
Occupation Entrepreneur, Author
Website Don Aslett's site

Donald Andrew Aslett (born 1935) is an American entrepreneur and author who specializes in cleaning and housekeeping products, services, and techniques. He co-founded Varsity House Cleaning Company, a house cleaning service, in 1957. After having been Varsity Contractors for years, it became Varsity Facility Services, a building service contractor, in 2011. It does business in the United States and Canada.

He is considered a cleaning expert,[1][2] and has written books about how to reduce the time spent cleaning by reducing clutter, selecting and organizing the efficient cleaning tools, and creating what he calls a self-cleaning house.

In 2011, he opened the Museum of Clean in Pocatello, Idaho, a six-story building with a theater, art gallery, and collection of 6,000 artifacts. Both the museum and his house in Hawaii were designed to be low-maintenance and environmentally friendly, which resulted in an award from the state of Idaho for Aslett's efforts with the museum. The cleaning products sold by Varsity are also "green", or environmentally-friendly.

Personal life

Aslett was born in 1935.[3] His father raised wheat, beans, and potatoes.[4] Aslett was from Twin Falls, Idaho,[5] but grew up about 34 miles (55 km) to the northeast in Dietrich, Idaho.[4][6] He served a church mission for the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Hawaiian Islands as a young man.[7]

He married Barbara about 1957, when he started the cleaning business.[5] The have six children and, while they were growing up, he was a scoutmaster. The Asletts have had a ranch in McCammon, Idaho, about 25 miles (40 km) to the southeast of Pocatello, and a house in Hawaii,[8][9] which was designed for energy conservation and to be low-maintenance.[10][lower-alpha 1] The house was photographed by the U.S. army to learn ways to create housing and barracks that are easy to maintain.[10]

Aslett is a devout Mormon,[8] and was a bishop in the Marsh Creek Ward in the McCammon Idaho Stake.[7] He is on the Idaho State University Museum board.[5]

Career

Varsity Facility Services

While studying at Idaho State College (now Idaho State University),[4] Aslett formed Varsity House Cleaning Company,[5] a janitorial service in Pocatello, Idaho, with and Arlo Luke in 1957 to help pay his college tuition.[11][12] Aslett described his role as "crazy entrepreneur" and Luke as the "strong facilitator".[5] What began as a part-time business grew to employ 30 to 50 people. One of their first business clients was Mountain State Telephone and Telegraph, now CenturyLink. Before they graduated, both men had a house and four children.[5] The name of the organization became Varsity Contractors at some point.[11]

Aslett received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education from Idaho State in 1963.[8][13] He continued to operate the business,[5][12] which employed 500 people, including college students.[4][11] At that time, it operated in three states and was a janitorial, facilities services, and construction company.[4] The company also offered landscaping services.[11]

The company had 2,500 employees and operated in 14 states in 1990.[8] It was a full-service janitorial contractor with total revenues $190 million in 2006.[14] Arlo Luke, who had been the president and CEO for 28 years stepped down in 2011. Aslett was also not involved in the daily management of the organization by 2013.[5]

In 2011, the company changed its name to Varsity Facility Services.[11] Arlo's son, Eric became the company's president and CEO.[4][11] Now, it operates in the United States and Canada as a "huge building service contractor specializing in regional and national facility portfolios", according to Lisa Ridgely of CleanLink.[11] In 2013, it had offices in Canada and all 50 states and stores that sell their green products in 6 states. They employed 4,000 people at that time. Varsity is now headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.[5]

Aslett was inducted into the Idaho's Hall of Fame in 2010.[15] Three years later, both Luke and Aslett received awards from the International Sanitary Supply Association.[5][lower-alpha 2]

Author

Aslett, considered a cleaning expert,[1][2] has written 40 books on the subject,[5] which have been published in 10 languages.[2] Michael Boyer states that he is one of the most prolific writers of cleaning books, which cover a wide range of topics like removing clutter, caring for specific materials, eliminating spots, and establishing processes for cleaning. There are books for household and professional cleaning.[16]

Aslett says that the amount of time spent cleaning can be reduced 75% by if the homeowner were to reduce clutter, get the right cleaning tools, and make them accessible.[lower-alpha 3] One of his approaches is to develop a self-cleaning house, through the use of household items and flooring that are easy to maintain, and eliminating most of the dirt that comes into a house by taking one's shoes off at the door.[17] Another way to manage cleanliness is to make each person responsible for cleaning up their own mess. He says that "even if President Bush stayed at my house, he'd know where the vacuum is."[2]

He has acquired the nicknames of the Sultan of Shine, Don Juan of the John, and the Dean of Clean.[4]

Museum of Clean

In November 2011, Aslett opened the Museum of Clean in a six-story building in Pocatello, Idaho,[4] in what had been a warehouse built in 1915.[18][19] It has an art gallery, 88-seat theater, and a gift shop. The museum features 6,000 historical artifacts related to cleanliness. Some of the unique items include a horse-drawn vacuum cleaner (1902), an early washing machine (1945), and a 1,600 year old bronze toothpick. Interactive exhibits teach children how to recycle, clean their room, make their bed, and sweep.[4] In addition to teaching recycling, the museum also has information about how to reduce waste.[5] It cost $6 million to establish the museum and six years to assemble its collection.[4] It was featured in a CBS News story in its "On the Road" series in 2012.[20]

During an interview, Aslett states that "This is not a cleaning museum, it's the museum of clean." He believes that not being clean leads to depression, while removing clutter from ones' life means letting go of junk and a lifestyle of excess. He says, "nothing will change your life faster than when you throw away your junk. You have more time, you have more space, you feel better, you're healthier."[18]

In preparation for its opening, the building was renovated to be environmentally friendly. During the renovation, 80% of the materials that were removed were recycled. The landscaping was designed to require little water. The museum has non-reflective windows and exterior LED lights, which are energy-saving. Its electric bill is about 25% of what it would have been without the modifications.[19] A rainwater collection system supplies water for landscaping and toilets and some of the building's energy is supplied from its passive solar system.[18] In 2013, he received the Pollution Prevention Champion Award from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality for the environmental-friendly building.[19]

Due to a grant from Monsanto, and in partnership with the Pocatello High School, a hydroponic greenhouse will be installed on the roof of the museum by 2017. It will teach students about green energy and how plants grow. Wind turbines and solar panels will generate power, such as to provide electricity for lights during the nighttime.[21]

Other

By the mid-1990s, Aslett appeared on a number of television shows, like The Oprah Winfrey Show, and made 5,000 appearances to talk about cleaning. To make his talks interesting, he seeks to entertain and covered topics like "Make Your House Do the Housework" and "Clean in a Minute".[4][10] He has also served as a motivational speaker.[4]

Notes

  1. ↑ For instance, everything is suspended or built-in in the house in Hawaii. There are no table or chair legs in the house that need to be moved for cleaning. In the bathrooms, the toilets are wall-mounted, the sinks are deep to avoid splashing, and there are no shower curtains. He worked with his daughter who is an interior decorator on the project.[10]
  2. ↑ Aslett received the Industry Service Award for Excellence in Sustainability, and Luke received the organization's highest honor, the Jack D. Ramaley Award for Distinguished Service, which had never been given to a building service contractor. Aslett said that what is remarkable is that two college friends established an international business from Pocatello, and "put class in cleaning". Luke said, "Don and I managed to build a fun, innovative and creative culture and we did it right here in Pocatello."[5]
  3. ↑ Kathy Witt analyzed cleaning approaches from books written by several cleaning experts. She states that Aslett has found that one of the best ways to keep a house clean is to remove the clutter, otherwise the cleaning process is more about "shuffling junk from one clutter zone to another" and not about actual scrubbing or cleaning. He has a four step process for most household cleaning: eliminate, saturate, dissolve, and remove. In addition, it is not about finding the right product, but having the right approach, which can reduce the amount of time spent cleaning by 75%.[1] For instance, most people take 5 minutes to gather their supplies to clean the bathroom, when it should just take 5 minutes to do the entire job if a bucket is maintained that includes the necessary cleaning supplies and professional tools.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Witt, Kathy (April 1995). "Clean Reading". Cincinnati Magazine. Emmis Communications. pp. 70–71. ISSN 0746-8210.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Home Improvement: Key to Faster, Better Cleaning Is Getting a System, Experts Say". The Los Angeles Times. March 2, 1991. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Don Aslett (American businessman and writer)". ISNI. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Bonner, Jessie L. (January 1, 2012). "Museum of Clean a shrine to life’s work of Pocatello man". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Bryce, Debbie (December 7, 2013). "Varsity Facility Services founders honored by cleaning industry". Idaho State Journal. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Distance from Dietrich, ID to Twin Falls, ID". Distance Between Cities. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  7. 1 2 Haddock, Sharon (December 31, 2009). "Stop cleaning, cooking for your missionary". Deseret News. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Kahn, Toby (April 23, 1990). "Don Aslett, the Man to Call When There's Dust on the Moosehead, Shares His Secrets". People. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Distance from McCammon, ID to Pocatello, ID". Distance Between Cities. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Rosencrans, Joyce (September 14, 1996). "King of Clean (At home)". Cincinnati Post. Retrieved December 15, 2016 – via HighBeam Research. (Subscription required (help)).
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ridgely, Lisa (March 7, 2012). "Varsity Facility Services: Like Father, Like Son". CleanLink. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  12. 1 2 Monêt, Grace (March 22, 2004). Mama's in Heaven—Delayed Reactions. PublishAmerica. p. 100. ISBN 978-1-62772-493-7.
  13. ↑ "Idaho State University Magazine, Spring 2012". May 15, 2012. p. 33. Retrieved December 15, 2016 – via Issu.
  14. ↑ "Varsity Contractors, Inc.". National Service Alliance. 2006. Archived from the original on November 14, 2007. Retrieved December 31, 2007.
  15. ↑ "Idaho's Hall of Fame - Don Aslett". Idaho's Hall of Fame. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  16. ↑ Boyer, Michael (October 1, 2015). Every Landlord's Guide to Managing Property: Best Practices, From Move-In to Move-Out. Nolo. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-4133-2215-6.
  17. ↑ Tako, Barbara (May 11, 2010). Clutter Clearing Choices: Clear Clutter. John Hunt Publishing. p. 85. ISBN 978-1-84694-628-8.
  18. 1 2 3 Robinson, Jessica (July 10, 2013). "Idaho's 'Museum Of Clean' Built As Monument To Way Of Life". NW News Network. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  19. 1 2 3 O’Donnell, Michael H. (October 8, 2013). "Museum clean — and green: State environmental agency recognizes entrepreneur Don Aslett". Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  20. ↑ Martin, Claire; Special to the Denver Post (November 12, 2015). "On the road in Idaho, getting swept up in the Museum of Clean". Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  21. ↑ Coffin, Deanne (September 27, 2016). "Monsanto Awards Pocatello $15,000 Grant". EastIdahoNews. KPVI. Retrieved December 15, 2016.

Further reading

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