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Along the fortified walls of Old San Juan ran the imagination of a wide-eyed kid every time he held sight of them. Cherished by many, the old city by the sea never failed to enchant the young Samuel Mejía (pronounced meh-HEE-ah) during his visits with his family. As a youngster he was thrilled to see the fortresses that safeguarded the city for generations. They are the beautiful La Fortaleza and her two fearsome brothers, El Morro and Castillo San Cristóbal. Standing atop El Morro's thick battlements to view the ocean, he imagined the stories of centuries past when the city guarded the gateway to the New World against rival navies and pirate ships. Gazing over the blue waters, he envisioned cannon-fire spectacles between the stone strongholds and intruding sail ships, events that once punctuated the coastal air with flashing puffs and blasting booms. But growing up during the 1980s in Río Piedras—just outside of San Juan, Puerto Rico--you would've seen Samuel riding his bike on any given day, often doing long wheelies along his street. He loved drawing characters from his imagination, finding inspiration while listening to Van Halen on cassette or movie soundtracks on vinyl. Although the idea of running his own business never crossed his mind, it wouldn't be long before he would begin laying the blocks of customer service along his path.
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At the age of 16, his family moved to Georgia and settled in North Decatur. After graduating from Shamrock High School he studied mechanical drafting at DeKalb Technical Institute (presently GA Piedmont Technical College). He then moved to upstate New York to work as a volunteer for a nonprofit educational organization, where he spent 3 years learning the value of service and hard work. After forming a family of his own, he settled in northern New Jersey. While supporting his wife and baby girl, he learned more about customer service from two very different lines of business, each providing valuable lessons that would shape Home Clean Home's service to its clients.
In early 1996, Sam became a delivery driver for Coffee Associates, Inc., a long-established coffee roaster serving restaurants and hotels in New York City and the tri-state area. A day of work consisted of 12 to 20 stops with the busier itineraries in the Big Apple. Sam acknowledges, "I quickly learned that timely response and building rapport with customers were key to building customer satisfaction." Speed and minimal interruption to the establishment was the way to be appreciated, especially in bustling Manhattan. With street parking at a premium, he would double-park his van and deliver between 50 to 200 pounds of coffee to the restaurant's basement. The owner was generally at the register, busy with customers. After offering a brief greeting and making sure they got what they ordered, he'd collect payment, say 'thank you' and get out of their way; then run back to the van before NYPD could pin a ticket on his windshield. Of course, in less busy restaurants there was time to build more rapport with the customer. Remembering those days, Sam says, "New Yorkers love their coffee. Many restaurants and coffee shops depended on the company's coffee to keep customers coming and ordering from their menus. When a diner called saying they needed more coffee ASAP, you hoped they wouldn't run out before you arrived, or the restaurant manager would eagerly meet you in the kitchen with a few choice words—loud and clear!" Working against the clock in Manhattan traffic even sharpened his driving skills. With no GPS in those days and just a pager on his belt, the job proved a superb way for Sam to deliver satisfaction through his customer service. After two and a half years, he was promoted to Assistant Plant Manager.
In summer of 2000, Sam shifted gears when he was hired by Bell Atlantic. Weeks into his job, the company merged with GTE to form a new enterprise: Verizon. He worked in the landline division engaging with customers across several states as a consultant with the sales and service department. As landlines continued disappearing through the early 2000s, Sam's job entailed closing sales of Verizon's newly developed FiOS (fiber-optic service)—a game changer at the time—providing ultra-high speed data and crystal-clear TV across the New York metropolitan area. Although enjoying these transformative developments, Sam noticed how corporate's preoccupation with spearheading the business actually isolated it from customers, a paradox that resulted in obliviousness to some customer needs and a slower response to employee feedback. Always keen on customers' concerns, Sam learned to listen to customers, serve them and make them feel valued. He appreciates the valuable experience earned at the company while also understanding how large businesses have limitations with customer service. After 14 years at Verizon Sam says, "An important lesson I took away was how the intimacy of a small business is better suited to serve a community. I firmly realized that a business strengthens the connection to its customers when the leadership engages in handling people's concerns in a perceptive and friendly way, as opposed to solely assigning that responsibility to its workers."
After widowing, Sam needed to focus on his daughter, although it took him some time to realize it. He sought support to do so and, in the process, rediscovered his daughter as well as himself. To pursue new opportunities, he returned to Decatur with his daughter in 2014. After contemplating the idea of starting a low-tech service that busy people could seek, he established Home Clean Home in 2016. Besides managing the business, he chooses to participate in the cleaning work. This leading style helps him to better understand the workers' perspective and provide knowledgeable guidance that they can appreciate.
Having served for over 25 years in nonprofit and businesses small and large, Sam is happy to serve Atlanta's communities, bringing satisfaction to his clients with the help of the Home Clean Home team, a group of hard-working friends that are like family. His years of customer service helps to provide Atlantans with a quality home cleaning service that offers good value to his clients. Sam has learned that quality customer service is built—like a fortified city—one block at a time. When built solidly and carefully, he knows it will make people feel cared for and even drawn to cherish it.
In early 1996, Sam became a delivery driver for Coffee Associates, Inc., a long-established coffee roaster serving restaurants and hotels in New York City and the tri-state area. A day of work consisted of 12 to 20 stops with the busier itineraries in the Big Apple. Sam acknowledges, "I quickly learned that timely response and building rapport with customers were key to building customer satisfaction." Speed and minimal interruption to the establishment was the way to be appreciated, especially in bustling Manhattan. With street parking at a premium, he would double-park his van and deliver between 50 to 200 pounds of coffee to the restaurant's basement. The owner was generally at the register, busy with customers. After offering a brief greeting and making sure they got what they ordered, he'd collect payment, say 'thank you' and get out of their way; then run back to the van before NYPD could pin a ticket on his windshield. Of course, in less busy restaurants there was time to build more rapport with the customer. Remembering those days, Sam says, "New Yorkers love their coffee. Many restaurants and coffee shops depended on the company's coffee to keep customers coming and ordering from their menus. When a diner called saying they needed more coffee ASAP, you hoped they wouldn't run out before you arrived, or the restaurant manager would eagerly meet you in the kitchen with a few choice words—loud and clear!" Working against the clock in Manhattan traffic even sharpened his driving skills. With no GPS in those days and just a pager on his belt, the job proved a superb way for Sam to deliver satisfaction through his customer service. After two and a half years, he was promoted to Assistant Plant Manager.
In summer of 2000, Sam shifted gears when he was hired by Bell Atlantic. Weeks into his job, the company merged with GTE to form a new enterprise: Verizon. He worked in the landline division engaging with customers across several states as a consultant with the sales and service department. As landlines continued disappearing through the early 2000s, Sam's job entailed closing sales of Verizon's newly developed FiOS (fiber-optic service)—a game changer at the time—providing ultra-high speed data and crystal-clear TV across the New York metropolitan area. Although enjoying these transformative developments, Sam noticed how corporate's preoccupation with spearheading the business actually isolated it from customers, a paradox that resulted in obliviousness to some customer needs and a slower response to employee feedback. Always keen on customers' concerns, Sam learned to listen to customers, serve them and make them feel valued. He appreciates the valuable experience earned at the company while also understanding how large businesses have limitations with customer service. After 14 years at Verizon Sam says, "An important lesson I took away was how the intimacy of a small business is better suited to serve a community. I firmly realized that a business strengthens the connection to its customers when the leadership engages in handling people's concerns in a perceptive and friendly way, as opposed to solely assigning that responsibility to its workers."
After widowing, Sam needed to focus on his daughter, although it took him some time to realize it. He sought support to do so and, in the process, rediscovered his daughter as well as himself. To pursue new opportunities, he returned to Decatur with his daughter in 2014. After contemplating the idea of starting a low-tech service that busy people could seek, he established Home Clean Home in 2016. Besides managing the business, he chooses to participate in the cleaning work. This leading style helps him to better understand the workers' perspective and provide knowledgeable guidance that they can appreciate.
Having served for over 25 years in nonprofit and businesses small and large, Sam is happy to serve Atlanta's communities, bringing satisfaction to his clients with the help of the Home Clean Home team, a group of hard-working friends that are like family. His years of customer service helps to provide Atlantans with a quality home cleaning service that offers good value to his clients. Sam has learned that quality customer service is built—like a fortified city—one block at a time. When built solidly and carefully, he knows it will make people feel cared for and even drawn to cherish it.
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