Almost nothing is certain in life, except death, taxes – and perhaps chores. In all walks of life, errands such as grocery and gift shopping, or waiting for deliveries and repairmen, may be an extra burden on already busy days. Yet for Windsor resident Cece Schoen, running errands has become a business.
Equipped with a Kia Sorento, a knack for shopping and a penchant for organization, Schoen recently debuted a personal concierge business called Endless Errands, which serves Windsor, Healdsburg, Larkfield-Wikiup and Fountaingrove, as well as other locations on a case-by-case basis.
A lifelong resident of Sonoma County, Schoen’s background includes professional experience in customer service and supervision, as well as time spent as a stay-at-home mom. The idea to start Endless Errands came from her own experience juggling commitments in her personal life, she said.
“I’m part of the sandwich generation, which means caring for older family members while at the same time you’re raising your own children,” Schoen said. “So through my own personal experiences, I felt there was a need for something like this in our community.”
Now that her children are older, Schoen said that starting Endless Errands felt like a natural progression suited to her personal strengths. “People that have known me through the years, like friends and family, have always said, ‘you’re so organized, you’re able to multitask, you should really do something like this for a living,’” she said. “And combined with the need, now that my kids are older, I decided this would be a good time to do this.”
Schoen added that effective time management has become a widespread, even national, problem. “In today’s world, everybody is overwhelmed,” she said. “It’s so hard to find a balance between your family life, or personal life, and your work life and I have been able to manage my own busy life and I just felt like I’d like to be able to give the gift of time back to other people.”
In 2013, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Better Life Index ranked the U.S. as the 26th among 36 included nations in the “work-life balance” category. As of late, personal concierge services have also expanded considerably, Schoen said, with the International Concierge and Errand Association estimating that personal concierges have become a $1 billion industry worldwide.
“Definitely in the last five years, it’s really expanded all across the country,” Schoen said. “Like you can go online, and people are doing this. You can find it in little towns, you can find it in big cities… I think the demand just necessitated this kind of business.” Yet Schoen said she saw room for expansion in the relatively untapped local area.
Endless Errands’ services include grocery shopping and gift selection; pharmacy and dry-cleaning pick-ups and drop-offs; banking and waiting services and more. The work, Schoen said, is well suited to her personality and love of productivity. “I’m someone who likes working with people, I like helping others,” she said, “and I get satisfaction, literally, from crossing things off my own to-do list. And I feel like if I can do that for somebody who is overwhelmed, then that would make me happy and them happy.”
Clients that could benefit from personal concierge services, Schoen said, vary from businesses that may offer Endless Errands services to employees as a perk, to working professionals and busy families. “And then for another segment of the population, like senior citizens, they may have more time, but maybe they’re finding themselves in a position where they can’t get out and do the things they were once able to do,” she said. “For them it’s more like a helping hand.”
Seniors receive a 10 percent discount on Endless Errands’ hourly service rate, and currently Schoen said she is offering a $10 discount to first-time clients.
For more information on rates, services and scheduling, visit www.endlesserrands4you.com or call (707) 687-9244.
