CJ’s Cleaning Service is a labor of love for owner Silvia Tellez, who named her business after the daughter who helped start it. Cebrina Jo Tellez was 13 when she began cleaning the office at Schooner Petroleum, where Silvia Tellez worked as office manager. The young student’s goal was to raise money for a laptop.
Other sisters pitched in as Cebrina and her mother began signing up more clients through advertising, cold calling and going door to door. The name CJ was chosen to honor Cebrina’s initiative and work ethic.
Almost a year after starting the business, Cebrina was killed in a car accident. Tellez took a two-year break while she grieved for her daughter. She came back at the urging of a friend to continue her daughter’s legacy.
“It was her dream,” Tellez said. “She loved to work and to make money, and she got me started in this.”
Despite Cebrina’s drive for a laptop, Tellez said her desire to grow the business, which now has an office and clients in San Antonio, is not about the money. It’s about honoring her daughter and her dream and building a client list of happy, satisfied customers.
“When I came back into the business, I called my old customers, and a lot of them hired me back,” Tellez said. “That says a lot.”
According to Tellez, the way to keep customers satisfied is simple: You clean to their specifications and needs.
“It’s why I’m in business,” she said. “Working is my pride. My work is pride; my pride is my work. It’s not about the money.”
The entire family is involved in the business, which includes CJ’s Lawn Service, owned and operated by her husband, Joe Tellez, son, Ben Marinez, and a son-in-law. Daughters Savannah Tellez and Jessica and Tamara Wilburn work with Tellez in the cleaning business. Services include residential, commercial and construction cleanup and last-minute emergency cleaning.
Tellez has added three more goals: She wants to expand into Dallas, Galveston and Victoria.
“People have asked me if they can start a sister business, but I won’t do that,” she said. “The name is too special to me.”
As is her reputation, which she guards fiercely, demanding high-quality work from her employees.
“People tell me I’m hardcore, but this is my business,” she said. “I plan on continuing this business for myself and my family in my daughter’s memory. Cebrina Jo Tellez is the reason I’m still in business, and I love what I do. I am where I am now because of her.”
CJ’s Cleaning Service is located at 306 Osage St. in Corpus Christi and 3603 Fredericksburg Road, Suite 146, in San Antonio. For services in either location, call (361) 530-5038 or (210) 251-2314. Visit the website at cjscleaningservicetx.com