City Wide Facility Solutions is celebrating 60 years in business; a milestone the company plans to celebrate all year long.
Formerly known as City Wide Maintenance Company, the newly rebranded City Wide Facility Solutions was founded by Frank Oddo in 1961 in Kansas City, Missouri as a traditional janitorial service. In 1998, the company transitioned to managing facility solutions for clients through the use of independent contractors and expanded to providing single-source solutions for 20+ interior and exterior services. Now, it has grown to nearly 70 locations across the United States and Canada, employs more than 900 people throughout its Home Office and franchise locations and manages janitorial services for more than 400 million square feet every night.
“It has been extremely rewarding to see how much City Wide has changed and grown since my dad began this company in 1961,” said Jeff Oddo, CEO and owner of City Wide Facility Solutions. “I am very grateful to everyone who has been a part of the City Wide team over the years – each person involved has contributed to the building blocks of City Wide. Most importantly, I’m thankful to our clients who have allowed us to be an extension of their teams for 60 years.”
The company has remained headquartered in the Kansas City area since 1961 and has continued to be a family affair. Jeff Oddo, son of Frank Oddo, stepped into the role of president and CEO in 1996. Since then, City Wide has continued to evolve and adapt with the times in order to remain “The First Choice” for its clients, employees, franchise owners, independent contractors and vendors.
There is another milestone to celebrate this year – City Wide Franchise, the franchisor counterpart of the company, was founded 20 years ago, in 2001. Over the past 18 months, City Wide Franchise touts several notable recognitions from Entrepreneur, Inc. 5000 and Franchise Times; opened its first franchise location in Canada; hit more than $390 million in systemwide revenue; moved into a new 28,000 square foot Home Office in Lenexa, Kansas; and updated its branding to reflect its look towards the future.
With Jeff Oddo’s leadership, City Wide Facility Solutions has put a strong emphasis on its philosophy of positively impacting the communities it serves so its “Ripple Effect” is felt far and wide. Each year, the Home Office sets a volunteer goal for its employees, and increases that goal every year. City Wide franchise locations are also heavily involved with charities, food banks, mentorship programs and have provided free disinfecting services to schools, nonprofits and fire departments in their local communities.
Growth remains a major focus as the company moves towards the future. Through the years, City Wide’s business model has proven to be resilient and capable of handling growth in both the United States and Canada.
“We’re continuing to remain driven to answer the question, ‘what’s next for City Wide?’, whether it be in how we manage facility services for clients, expand our franchising efforts, simplify workflows for our franchisees or give back to our local communities,” added Troy Hartman, COO of City Wide. “I look forward to seeing how the rest of City Wide’s story unfolds in the years ahead.”
The company has many initiatives planned to commemorate its 60th anniversary – including an in-person celebration for the Kansas City-based team, once it is safe to celebrate together.
