Menu
Expat.com
Search
Magazine
Search

Gardening maintenance service in BG

knobworx

Just had a thought..... (dangerous I know...) Would there be any call for a mobile gardening  /  maintenance service for expats or for locals for that matter?

Mainly aimed at expats who need  to make sure that their gardens are kept down when they are not in BG.

As we all know, when we get back over to BG the gardens and the Triffids tend to have taken over and it takes a fair bit of effort to get it back under control.

To start with I would mainly be looking at work around the North East of BG and then if the client list allowed it spread further afield.

I don't live over in BG yet so it would tend to be on a month in BG then a month back in UK. However I may be able to split the work with a friend of mine and work every month between us etc

Thoughts please?

See also

Living in Bulgaria: the expat guideBulgarian returning permanently to BulgariaThinking of moving to BulgariaBuying a house in BulgariaThe War Has Started!Registering with water company (General Toshevo)First time buying
JimJ

There will probably be a demand but you'll also very likely have trouble getting clients who'll pay much over the BG minimum wage (or even less), which is currently 6.5 leva/hour. Realistically, for a day's work - and supplying your own tools - you can ask around 100 leva, as that's what most village folk would jump at. If you're okay with that kind of money - or can find foreigners who'd pay more - then you're probably in business.

SimCityAT

The North-Eastern region consists of 4 districts: Varna, Dobrich, Turgovishte and Shoumen. It has 30 towns and 689 villages with an Area Size of 19923.4km².


I guess it could work if you did your homework and knew where to get the word out and knew where the demand was.

janemulberry

Jim's estimate of a viable cost is about right, though you may be able to charge more to a non-local who will find it easier to deal with an English-speaker. 


You probably want to check who is already offering such a service. There's a Brit based in Dobrich who posts in the Facebook groups, acting as an agent selling ex-expat properties and also offering property maintenance. No idea what he charges. Our "spare" block of land had become a jungle, a bit too much for me to stay on top of when I only have a week at a time to work renovating the house and keeping the main house garden weed-free. I was desperate enough to be willing to pay Brit prices, and he never got back to me!


Since then I found a local who would do the most important part of it for me. Our neighbour said to pay him 50 leva, but when I went to pay him he said it was too much and he'd only accept 25 leva. (Our village is blessed with some very honest people!) We agreed he'd do it again the following month to make up the 50 leva.


But many Brit property owners won't have such helpful neighbours or be able to arrange it themselves in Bulgarian, so there should be a market. I think the main challenge could be getting the service known. It's probably not actual expats living in Bg who would be the main customers but those who own a house but don't live in it. There are a couple of beautifully renovated foreign-owned houses in my village that never get visited and the gardens are overgrown. Or the people who have a house but only come over for a few weeks a year and don't want to spend all that time weed-whacking. Those are probably your target audience, who'd pay for someone to go in monthly to keep the weeds down and make sure no windows have broken or tiles slipped.


But I'm not sure how one would promote the service to that group. They might be lurking on forums like this one or the FB groups. Local agents selling houses and mainly targeting the Brit market may be willing to promote the service for a reasonable fee. The Bulgarian language FB groups might be a place to promote, too, as that's where I'd look for local services.


It's potentially a viable business, especially along the coast and in Varna region. Probably less so in the more rural areas where the less-wealthy expats (like us!) buy. But it depends on the demand for the service, the competition, and how you can promote it.

knobworx

The North-Eastern region consists of 4 districts: Varna, Dobrich, Turgovishte and Shoumen. It has 30 towns and 689 villages with an Area Size of 19923.4km².
I guess it could work if you did your homework and knew where to get the word out and knew where the demand was. - @SimCityAT

Plus the municipalities of Razgrad, Ruse Veliko Tarnavo and Silistra