Cleaning with a conscience in North Central Wisconsin

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – Gabrielle “Gabi” Reber – owner of Willow & Fern Cleaning Company, said a clean home shouldn’t come at the expense of your health or the health of the planet.
 

This – coupled with her own years-long health journey – Reber said, served as the impetus for the start of Willow & Fern.
 

A long journey

More than a decade ago, Reber said she began having some significant health issues. 
 

“I was very sick,” she said. “I couldn’t walk for a couple of months. I lost the vision in my left eye for a significant period of time. I ended up with meningitis. A lot of conventional doctors really didn’t know what was going on.” 
 

After spending thousands of dollars on tests, including neurological ones, trying to get to the bottom of things, Reber said she was diagnosed with late-stage Lyme disease in 2012.
 

She said she was later diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), a connective tissue disorder that affects a person’s bones, skin, blood vessels and other organs. 
 

During her own health journey, Reber said she worked providing vocational rehab services to people with disabilities.
 

Though she said she found the work rewarding, it involved sitting behind a desk for several hours a day – which made it harder and harder to do.
 

“Sitting all day just wasn’t something that was good for my particular body,” she said, explaining why she left that job.
 

Reber said she’d been cleaning for people as a side job for 10 years or more, but had never thought about turning it into a business until she left her vocational rehab job.
 

The decision, she said, inspired her to take a leap of faith and turn her love of cleaning into a business – thus the start of Willow & Fern.  
 

Not just a passion, but a mission

Following her diagnoses, Reber said she has to revamp everything in her life.
 

“I had to cut everything bad out of my diet, I had to get rid of all the chemicals, I had to do a complete overhaul of my entire house and my entire system,” she said. “It was the only thing that fixed my body.”

Launching a company that does this same thing in terms of cleaning products and processes, she said, gave her an opportunity to share those with others.
 

“(We use) clean products that are non-toxic to people, pets and kids – (which) is very important to me in my own life,” she said. “I want to share that message with other people.”
 

Several cleaning products on the market today, Reber said, have labels that make it look like they’re green and good for the environment.
 

The marketing and messaging, she said, however, don’t always match with reality.
 

“You really have to read the labels to know what you’re getting into,” she said. “I take that out of people’s hands, at least when it comes to their cleaning products.”
 

When she first goes into someone’s home to do an estimate – something she does for free – Reber said she talks to them about cleaning products that are safe to use in the home and products that aren’t. 
 

“For example, if you mix bleach with rubbing alcohol it makes chloroform,” she said. “People with lung and respiratory issues – such as asthma and COPD – shouldn’t be using some of these dangerous products.”

Reber said some toxins are brought about by consumers themselves, unbeknownst to them.
 

“Someone might use something to get rust off of a tub,” she said. “If that doesn’t work, they may throw something else on top of it, and then something else and before you know it (and without even realizing it), you’ve got a really noxious bathroom that you can hardly walk into.”
 

Some of the chemicals in cleaning products today, Reber said, can also cause dermatitis or aggravate skin problems, such as eczema.
 

“People may be coughing at night and not even know why,” she said. “A lot of it may have to do with the cleaners they’re using in their homes.”
 

Reber said she loves helping educate people when she discusses a prospective client’s cleaning needs – which is a natural byproduct of her finding out if they have allergies to certain things or aversions to certain scents.
 

“For example, some people don’t like lavender,” she said. “I have lots of other scents or cleaners that I can use for that person… If a customer comes home after I’m done cleaning and they don’t like the way their place smells, or there’s something else they’d like done differently, I am totally open to suggestions. I take constructive criticism very well. And the next time I clean, I’ll do that differently.”
 

Reber said Willow & Fern Cleaning Company uses only eco-friendly, non-toxic cleaners made from all-natural ingredients.
 

A variety of cleaning services

Reber said her customer base includes residential and small commercial clients, such as businesses and offices. 
 

Willow & Fern’s basic cleaning services include wiping down counters, cleaning stove tops and microwaves, dusting, vacuuming (including stairs), mopping floors, cleaning floorboards, cleaning entire bathrooms, wiping window sills, sanitizing and making beds – including changing sheets, if needed. 
 

“I will also do specialized services, like spot cleaning windows – but I don’t get on ladders and clean entire windows – occasional oven cleaning or laundry, but the client must provide their own laundry detergent,” she said. “For one lady, I wash all of her dishes, because she just can’t do it. So there are extra services I’ll provide, but I do charge extra for them.” 
 

Reber said she also offers deep cleaning services, minus carpet cleaning.

Though she does do periodic cleaning for some clients, she said she prefers to have recurring customers who she can set up on a rotating schedule, either biweekly, weekly or monthly. 
 

“I like to keep a fairly rotating schedule because I’m splitting my time between Stevens Point, Wisconsin Rapids and Rome/Neekoosa,” she said. “So I tend to put certain customers on certain days where it makes sense for me, and I don’t have to charge customers extra for mileage.”
 

Reber said her rates are based on the square footage of someone’s home and the services the client wants done – but said every house is different, and that matters, too. 
 

For example, she said one house might have a lot of clutter, making cleaning a little more challenging or time-consuming.
 

Or, Reber said, if a person has pets, it might take longer to vacuum than a place that doesn’t have pets.
 

Looking to the future

Reber said she may want to hire a few people at some point, should the workload demand it, but that’s not on her radar right now.
 

“I have a couple of people on the side who I know well and who I can rely on if I really need the help, but I don’t necessarily want to go that direction because I want to deliver quality work,” she said.
 

Reber said she may develop her own line of cleaning products at some point – noting she already does some of that.
 

“The few things I’m making right now use basic, natural ingredients like vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice – that kind of thing,” she said. “Essential oils are also a big part of it, too. I really appreciate the healing powers of essential oils. The oils support the body rather than work against it, so they’re working for the betterment of your overall health. But like everything else I use, the essential oils are all safe for people, pets and plants, as would be any product I developed.”
 

With her business just getting started, Reber said the decision on potentially developing a product line is one for the future and will come when she’s more established.
 

“But because I’ve been through such a journey with my health, it’s something that I truly believe in,” she said. “And I’ve finally gotten to turn what I believe in – at least a part of it anyway – into a business where I can help others.” 
 

Reber said she’s currently taking an herbalism-related class so that if she does make that jump, she’ll know more about plants and such.
 

To learn more, visit Willow & Fern Cleaning Company’s Facebook page.