I got a call recently from one of my suppliers. He works with a school on the north side of Brisbane. Over the last 18 months, they’ve switched their toilet paper and hand towel supplier three times.
Every time, it’s the same story:
Why? The cheaper option always ends up costing them more.
He said to me:
“I don’t even argue anymore. When they tell me they’re switching, I just say, ‘Thanks for letting me know.’ Because I know I’ll hear from them again in three months.”
That’s what a “just because” decision looks like. It’s familiar. It looks cheaper.
And it’s easy … well, until it isn’t.
The thing is, this kind of “just because” thinking shows up everywhere. Maybe you’re not changing anything at all, just because it’s what you’ve always done. Maybe you’ve been with the same commercial cleaner for years. Maybe you’ve got products or processes you never stop to question. Not because they’re the best. Not because they’re strategic. But just because it’s easier to leave it.
Of course, I get it. I do, too.
For instance, I use Morning Fresh dishwashing liquid. Why? Because my mum used it. I’ve never thought twice about it. It’s just what I buy.
📊 Case Study: Car Dealership Achieves $480,000 ROI, 11% Productivity Gain with In-Tec
That kind of “just because” doesn’t really hurt me. But when it comes to your commercial cleaning partner, it’s a different story. Now, the conversation is deeper. Now, we’re asking ourselves how your workplace is being maintained, what’s going on your surfaces, what your team is breathing in, and what it’s all costing you?
That’s where “just because” starts to get expensive.
Let’s talk bleach.
A lot of cleaners still use it. Why? Just because it’s what they’ve always used. Same goes for acid-based toilet cleaners and ammonia-based window sprays. But those chemicals don’t just clean; they damage. Acid eats into porcelain and makes it porous over time. Bleach can stain bench tops. Ammonia ruins window tint.
And if your cleaners are using those harsh, corrosive chemicals for every clean, you might not notice the damage right away (it’s all clean, right?), but it adds up. Then one day you’re looking at a maintenance bill (or perhaps an invoice for a full replacement) and wondering why the hell it’s so high. That’s the cost of “just because.”
🔎 Related: 8 Critical Questions to Ask Potential Commercial Cleaners (+ Examples)
Same story with cheaper vacuums. Sure, they’re easy on the budget, but what they save in cost, they lose in power. Less suction. More dust kicked up. Lower air quality. And if your team’s spending all day in that space, that’s not just uncomfortable, that’s unhealthy. Poor air quality means:
You might not see it on a line item, but it shows up in your people, and you’ll feel it long before it hits the balance sheet.
This is precisely why we use PacVac backpack vacuums on our client sites. Not because they’re the cheapest; they’re not. But because we’ve tested the alternatives, and they don’t measure up. We’ve used i-Mops for over a decade for the same reason. They just work. They last. And they do the job better.
That’s the difference. As a commercial cleaning partner dedicated to delivering excellence to our clients, we don’t do things “just because.” We test. We evaluate. We keep improving.
Even when it’s uncomfortable.
We’ve had pushback before. I remember speaking with a supplier who distributes Tersano, a chemical-free cleaning solution. He said his clients’ cleaners keep resisting it. Why? Because it looks like water. Mentally, they don’t believe it works. Never mind the fact that it disinfects 1,000 times more effectively than bleach, without the damage. Never mind that it’s safer for everyone and leaves no chemical residue. It’s different, so they push back.
🔎 Related: The Promises We Make (+ Keep) to You at In-Tec Commercial Cleaning
That’s what “just because” does. It convinces us to keep doing something we know isn’t ideal, just because it feels easier than changing.
Here’s the thing though. Some “just because” choices are totally fine, as long as they’ve earned their place. Our vacuums? Earned. The cleaning solutions we trust? Earned. We’ve tested them. Compared them. Put them up against the alternatives. And they held their ground.
But a lot of cleaning companies don’t do that. They don’t bring you new ideas. They don’t review their product choices. They don’t look at what’s safer, smarter, or more sustainable. They just keep doing what they’ve always done, and they hope you don’t ask questions.
So ask them.
And if they don’t have an answer?
Well, then you’ve got yours.
My goal is not to encourage you to switch your commercial cleaning partner tomorrow. That’s not what this is about. But you should expect your cleaning partner to be looking ahead. Bringing new ideas. Making things better.
🔎 Related: 6 Commercial Cleaning Cost Factors That Influence Pricing (+ Examples)
Because if they’re not? You’re not paying for innovation. You’re paying for maintenance. And maintenance might keep the floors shiny, but it won’t move your business forward.
And when it comes to cleaning your workplace, “just because” isn’t a good enough reason.
Subscribe to the In-Tec email newsletter. In it, I share what’s really going on in this industry, from how we work at In-Tec to the questions more businesses should be asking their cleaners. It’s practical, honest, and written to help you make better decisions.