SCORE assists carpet cleaning business expansion amid pandemic – buckscountyherald.com

Prior to launching Bal Arisi, Theresa worked a full-time job and helped her husband with minor rug repairs for his circa 1989 business, McCartin’s Carpet Cleaning Service. Their new area rug cleaning and repair venture aimed to fill a void in the Central Bucks area.

“Oriental rug repair is a fine art that is done by hand,” Theresa McCartin said. “It requires meticulous attention to the rug’s woven characteristics as well as fiber identification.”

She honed her repair and fiber dyeing skills with years of apprenticeships and classes, having traveled all over the U.S. to learn from some of the most skilled artisans in the industry who brought their skills from Turkey, Iran and Armenia.

She found repair work enjoyable and satisfying, and the demand for it was growing just as fervently as the area rug washing service.

By 2018, the couple purchased a separate building to house the equipment needed for this specialized service. The company’s name, Bal Arisi, is a Turkish word for honey bee which symbolizes the essential detailed work necessary to maintain oriental and area rugs.

Amid the pandemic, Bal Arisi also expanded its services to include outdoor furniture cushion cleaning and winter storage.

Adding new services and improving the company’s online experience have been some of the ways Kelly and Morris have served as sounding boards for Mrs. McCartin.

“Karen has been helping me to prioritize and focus on the important elements of running a business,” she said. “That is something that I found hard. I am probably not alone in this struggle; when you are a small business owner you wear a lot of hats. You can get lost in the weeds dealing with the minutia.”

SCORE mentors are available to offer insight and guidance through every step of business ownership. To learn more and find a mentor, visit buckscounty.score.org/content/find-mentor-161.