You're making a difference! Your purchase of this book helps benefit cancer research. Read below for more details.
"Rags to riches to rags" - that saying has endured for centuries through many cultures because family success, whether fame, fortune, or otherwise, rarely survives through the third generation. In the United States, only 30 percent of family businesses make it through the second generation, while only 12 percent make it through the third.
You Can't Spend Pride tells the story of one family business, Mister Kleen, that has defied the odds. Not only are three generations of the family working in the company, but Mister Kleen has grown to be a multi-million-dollar operation that ranks among the top 10 percent of businesses in its industry.
Narrated as a first-person account by the co-founder, Mary Ann Clark, and her son and current company president, Ernie Clark Jr., You Can't Spend Pride tells the improbable story of how the family built their business from cleaning one client's office in the evenings to maintaining millions of square feet of high-security and commercial space throughout the Washington, D.C. area.
And success certainly didn't happen overnight. The family fought through financial challenges, health issues, and many bad economic times over the course of decades to get the business on solid ground-now employing more than 400 people.
You Can't Spend Pride is a must-read for anyone looking to start their own company, having difficulty growing their current company, and most certainly for anyone running a family business. Filled with stories and solid entrepreneurial advice, you'll find yourself immersed in the inspirational history of Mister Kleen as it rises from a home-based business in 1976 to the trusted leader in high-security and commercial cleaning in the Nation's Capital.
All proceeds from the sale of this book go to the Cancer Research Institute
For a minimum of one year, beginning May 20, 2014, Mister Kleen will donate to the Cancer Research Institute 100 percent of the proceeds ($3.53 for each paperback copy, $2.40 for each Kindle copy) of You Can't Spend Pride sold on Amazon.com. Your purchase of this book is making a difference by providing funding to one of the most significant organizations in the fight against cancer.
The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) is the world's only nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to harnessing the immune system's power to conquer all cancers.
This important work has led to a promising new class of cancer treatments called cancer immunotherapy. These treatments mobilize, strengthen, and sustain the immune system's natural ability to destroy cancer cells, wherever they are in the body. CRI awards research grants and fellowships to support scientists at leading research universities and clinics around the world.
To accomplish this, CRI relies on generous support from individuals, corporations, and foundations who have a desire to become partners in their effort to conquer cancer through immunology.
Learn more at CancerResearch.org.
Ernie Clark Jr., CBSE, is the president of Mister Kleen Maintenance Co., a leading provider of contract cleaning services to commercial and high-security facilities in the Washington, D.C., area. He has been active in the family business since his parents started it in 1976, working from the entry level up to his current position.
An industry leader in establishing best practices, Clark is actively involved in many business groups and has been the recipient of numerous community-service and industry awards. He holds the highest professional designation in his field, Certified Building Service Executive, and is past president of both Building Service Contractors Association International and Capital Association of Building Service Contractors.
Clark lives in Northern Virginia with his wife of more than two decades, Danyelle, and their daughter Lexi.
Mary Ann Clark is the co-founder of Mister Kleen and remains involved in the business nearly four decades later. She lives in Northern Virginia, still residing in the house where the business was started.
Mona Kuljurgis is a writer and editor living in the Washington, D.C. area who specializes in collaborating with business professionals and entrepreneurs on their books.
