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Clean India Journal in conversation with Christopher Blessing, MD, Caere
With a passionate approach towards facility management since 1999, Caere’s journey is nothing short of resilience and dedication. From humble beginnings of 12-15 employees to now serving 200 cities with 9000 employees, the company has exponentially grown without a sales and marketing department, fueled only by a commitment to excellence.
In this episode
Building a facility management business from scratch without any sales or marketing team, driven purely by word-of-mouth growth
Early-stage hustle: starting with petrol pumps, night operations, and a four-member team including differently-abled workers
Identifying opportunity gaps in India’s cleaning and maintenance ecosystem
Creating differentiation through training, processes, and professional presentation (uniforms, equipment, standards)
How global exposure influenced service quality and operational approach in India
Scaling through client referrals across retail, manufacturing, and large facilities
Expansion from a single city to 200+ cities with 9,000+ workforce
Challenges of a manpower-driven industry, including wage limitations and workforce perception
Transition from business growth to purpose-driven leadership: transforming spaces and improving lives
Focus on upskilling, multi-skilling, and increasing earning potential for frontline workforce
This episode highlights how operational discipline, consistency in service delivery, and long-term thinking can build a large-scale facility management business without traditional sales structures.
