At Dream Eco Products, you’ll find a variety of non-toxic, eco-friendly cleaning products. Using natural ingredients and pure essential oils, this range has been created to clean your home efficiently using eco positive methods. Developed and made locally in New Zealand, the Dream Eco Products have been extensively road-tested by professional cleaners in homes and businesses and given them a seal of approval. You know you’re not just getting eco-friendly cleaning products, but also a cleaner that gets the job done, and done well. We spoke to the Dream Team founders to learn more about their business.
The passion: What inspired you to set up your business?
Initially, it was to get back into the workforce after having a child. We needed to support our children by ourselves, and so Dream Team Clean was born – a Hawke’s Bay home and businesses cleaning company. We also wanted to be able to provide a living wage and flexible employment for other solo mums, because we know how hard it is juggling children and work when you’re on your own.
Then, one day, Patrice was sitting there cleaning and she thought: “What am I doing? I’m sitting here covered in toxic cleaning chemicals! I’m cleaning people’s homes with this. There has to be a better way.” From this, Dream Eco Products was born.
We wanted to look after ourselves, our health, and our customers. We wanted to make sure we were still around for our kids.
The Launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
We had an idea to develop non-toxic cleaning products, but no idea how to create them. We worked with a well-respected naturopath to choose helpful natural ingredients. Using our knowledge as cleaners about what works to truly get things clean, we refined the products. Then, we tested the products in our cleaning business until we had a formula that worked. That’s why our products are so effective – before we released them to market they had already been used in thousands of homes!
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
Cleaners and cleaning companies are not a respected industry. We worked hard to focus on our business ethics, developing a true environmentally friendly focus, being socially aware and paying our staff a living wage, and using our natural-based products. Suddenly, we went from being “the cleaners” to being a respected company.
Cleaners and cleaning companies are not a respected industry. We worked hard to focus on our business ethics, developing a true environmentally friendly focus, being socially aware and paying our staff a living wage…
Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
The whole business has been built around our families. Our kids come into work with us at times, we can work from home, and we have a room in the office for the kids to come if they are sick – all our staff have this option. It’s incredibly difficult – being a mum is hard, for a solo mum it is sometimes impossible.
