Ericka Sanchez, the president and owner of Menomonee Falls-based MaidBrite, is the winner of the Vistage Wisconsin Lifetime Achievement Award.
The business leadership organization’s lifetime achievement awards are given to members with 10 or more years of tenure with Vistage.
A native of Costa Rica, Sanchez ran a clothing store for women and children for 16 years before coming to the United States and founding MaidBrite, a cleaning service serving the Milwaukee area. The business has more than 300 residential and commercial cleaning customers and employs about 30 people, most of which are Hispanic women.
“I grew up in a home of entrepreneurs, both my parents owned their own businesses, so it was always a lifestyle that I knew,” Sanchez said. “My first company was when I was 17. I have owned a high-end clothing boutique for women and little girls, a bed and breakfast, and an import-export company for goods to-from Costa Rica with exclusive distribution rights of some products from Mexico to grocery stores in Costa Rica.
“In 2000, I had my first baby and it was equally important to be a mom and be in business. I was looking into business options that would allow me to stay at home, with no traveling. In the international market, you have to travel a lot to succeed and I didn’t want to do that anymore. So, I started looking into service industry businesses. I started MaidBrite in 2002 with one client. My parents thought I was crazy for wanting to own a cleaning business, but 400 clients and 30 employees later, I found a way to make a cleaning service a profitable business. We have both residential and commercial clients. Now that my kids are older, I am starting to look for opportunities to start another new business.”
Jeannie Deml, the president and CEO of Medford-based Enerquip LLC, received the Vistage Wisconsin Leadership Award, given to a member with 3 or more years of tenure. The company manufactures heat exchanger and process equipment.
Dr. Andrew Campbell, CEO and founder of Quintessa Aesthetic Medical Centers, received the Vistage Wisconsin Impact Award, given to a member with 1-3 years of experience. Quintessa Aesthetic Center is a surgical and non-surgical cosmetic facility with locations in Delafield, Mequon, Middleton and Sheboygan.
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