(First published in the August 23, 2018 issue of City Pages)
Got a task you hate or don’t have the time for? There’s a new service for that.
Stacey Hoops’ personal assistant business, Wausau Area Concierge, specializes in helping people de-clutter.
The ill effects of clutter on your health and even relationships are well documented. Just Google the subject and a long list of researched articles pop up explaining what chronic disorganization can do to your brain.
Of course, most of us don’t need an expert to tell us that, which is why Stacey Hoops of Wausau Area Concierge saw an opportunity. Her new business offers to help declutter the homes and lives of her clients, one messy closet, piled up laundry room and endless to-do list at a time.
“I want to offer our clients anything to simplify their lives,” says Hoops. “Clutter causes chaos and chaos is a time thief.”
Hoops admits she looks at messes and errand lists differently than most. “I get excited about a very messy pantry.”
As a society, we pack in a lot of things into a day and Hoops believes we sacrifice what we really want to do with our time because of the feeling “that we need to do this or we need to do that,” she says. “Everybody from the stay-at-home mom or the two-person executive household—everybody deserves balance. The reality is people are just busy nowadays.”
Hoops says she will do just about any task that clients don’t have time for, and don’t want or aren’t able to do. That includes anything from writing thank you notes to running a pet to the vet or feeding it. Only a few tasks are off limits, including anything hygiene or medical related, or transporting children.
From cleaning and organizing a pantry to running errands or getting a vacation home ready, she’s actually excited to help out. Hoops, for real, likes the tasks and chores most of us look at and groan over—home organizing is her forte and passion. “It doesn’t matter how messy or cluttered your house is,” says the mother of three children. “I’ve helped people who were borderline hoarder and I realized that I enjoyed it,” she says. “For some people the thought of starting cleaning gives them anxiety. I understand and can empathize with that.”
Ever since she was young, Hoops loved finding ways to maximize time and organization. So when starting Wausau Area Concierge this spring, she made a list of tasks she enjoys doing and that’s what she offers to clients. “And the things I couldn’t do, I found somebody that could.”
Hoops starts clients with a free consultation to talk about things you don’t want to do or don’t seem to have enough time for. “We would look at how many hours a week a clients spends and how many hours a week it would take me to do it for them, and we go from there,” says Hoops. That could include one-time tasks such as de-cluttering or organizing, Hoops says.
She understands that dealing with your own stuff is hard, and that tasks won’t get accomplished because it all can feel insurmountable. Hoops says she offers her service free of judgment and keeps her business confidential. “I teach people to simplify their lives with systems that are sustainable. So, it’s not teaching somebody to organize, it’s giving them the tools to make it easier.”
Hoops provides her service by the hour or in packages of hours—the larger the package, the less cost per hour. Time is sold in 5-hour, 10-hour and 20-hour increments. “The first errand would be a minimum of an hour and then go in 30 minute increments,” she says. “I try and maximize my time. So, if I am doing your laundry, I have no problem organizing the pantry at the same time. I charge by time, not a task.”
For more information on Wausau Area Concierge contact Hoops through her website wausauconcierge.com or call 715-903-6544.
