One thing that has been brought up over and again here is is that it isn’t all that difficult to keep house these days, what with modern appliances and all. This is true — without children keeping house is a pretty simple affair. Even with them it isn’t anywhere near as difficult as it used to be. Still, a lot of guys can’t be bothered, and a lot of these men are single. However, an amazing fact is that most maids are employed by wives (or so they call themselves) who simply can’t be bothered. Not all that many men actually contract housekeeping services because they simply haven’t grown accustomed to the idea.

This is an opportunity that is ripe for the picking. When men go into any business that is traditionally the provenance of women, they generally clean up. Think of the wholesale replacement of wifely industry by the industrialization of spinning, weaving, etc. There are legions of men who have made fortunes by taking advantage of the inefficiency of the housewife of yore. Wives no longer sew, mend or spin, but rather shop and enrich the men who have made their jobs redundant. These days, wives don’t even cook, instead simply opening boxes and reading instructions written at the elementary school level. Put two cups of mix in bowl, add egg and milk, stir with fork— That’s it.

Given modern social norms, it’s time to eliminate the wife from the household picture altogether. And considering the fact that modern appliances make a good scrubdown little more than an afterthought, the amount of labor required to keep a place in good shape is minimal. So, even paying a higher than average hourly fee – say $20/hr – for low-skill work such as housekeeping is reasonable. For your typical childless man, two hours a week is probably more than enough to take care of the details he’d rather not bother with. Add ten bucks for transportation/gas money and that comes out to only $50/week. For that, a man could have a thoroughly clean domicile without any of the trouble that comes along with a girlfriend/wife performing such basic labor, who would surely complain and make compensatory demands anyway. Sure, he’d have to wash his dishes and buy groceries, but scrubbing the bathroom and kitchen, doing the windows and mopping and vacuuming would all be taken care of. Also, the woman (or man) doing the work would be discreet, respectful and fast.

If I were to start this kind of business, I would market exclusively to men — women are always intrigued by what men are doing and would find it on their own, so female clients would appear without any extra effort. I would treat employees with the humanity and consideration that men generally bring to the table regarding employees, and exercise quality control based on my male clients’ feedback (women are prone to complaining and petty retribution, so I’d place less weight on their opinions). Furthermore, I’d challenge the female-run maid services, which comprise the majority, head-on and beat them badly and without mercy.