At a glance
Most shoe cleaning shops start with one price. "Cleaning, $40." Then a customer brings in yellowed soles, another wants protection spray, someone needs them by tomorrow, and the counter starts making up prices on the spot. Two customers pay different amounts for the same work, and the extra work often goes unpaid.
A short, clear service menu fixes that. It makes pricing the same for every customer and every staff member, and it raises your average ticket without needing more customers walking in.
Start With Three Cleans
Three tiers cover almost every shoe that comes through the door:
- Quick clean: lightly worn shoes. Brush, wipe-down, laces. About 60% of your deep clean price.
- Deep clean: the one most people should pick. Full clean inside and out. This is your anchor price.
- Restoration: the worst shoes. Deep clean plus midsole work, crease care and conditioning. About 170% of your deep clean price.
At a $45 deep clean that gives $25, $45 and $75. The quick clean catches price-shoppers, the restoration makes the deep clean look like good value, and most customers land in the middle.
Not sure what your deep clean should cost? Work it out from your time and supplies with the free price calculator first.
Add-Ons That Sit on Top of a Clean
Add-ons are small jobs you only do on shoes that are already in for a clean. That rule matters: it keeps add-ons quick, because the shoe is already on your table, and it stops customers from booking a $10 deodorize on its own.
A good starting list, priced from the same $45 deep clean:
- Water and stain protection, $15. Easy to offer on light suede, canvas and white leather.
- Sole whitening, $20. For yellowed or grey midsoles. Customers can see the before and after.
- Deodorize, $10. Gym shoes and daily runners.
- New laces, $5. Worn or dirty laces make a clean shoe look unfinished.
- Rush, same day, $25. Only if your queue can take it. See the rush jobs guide below.
You can build this whole menu from your own deep clean price, pick which add-ons to offer, and copy it for your counter with the free service menu builder.
Offer One Add-On at the Counter, Based on the Shoe
Upselling feels pushy when it is a script. It feels helpful when it comes from the shoe in front of you. At intake, while you look the shoe over and take your photos, point at one thing and offer one fix:
- "The soles have yellowed a bit. Sole whitening is $20 and brings them back close to white."
- "This is light suede. Protection is $15 and helps the clean last."
- "These laces are pretty far gone. New ones are $5."
One suggestion, tied to what the customer can see, with the price said out loud. If they say no, write nothing and move on. Do not offer the whole list.
Put the Add-On on the Ticket
An add-on that lives in someone's head gets forgotten. Then either the work gets done and not charged, or it gets charged and not done, and the second one turns into a remake. Write every add-on on the ticket at intake, next to the clean it goes with, so the workshop sees it and the price is in the total before the customer leaves the counter.
The Math: Why Add-Ons Matter More Than New Customers
If 30% of your customers add one add-on and your add-ons average $15, every 100 deep cleans bring in $450 more. Your average ticket goes from $45 to $49.50. That is the same as finding 10 extra deep clean customers, without any extra marketing.
Push the add-on rate to 40% with good counter habits and the same 100 cleans bring in $600 more. Add-ons also take less time than a full clean, so most of that extra money is margin.
Keep the Menu Short and the Same Everywhere
- Three cleans and four or five add-ons. More than that and customers stall at the counter.
- Use the same names and prices on your counter sign, your booking page, your social posts and your tickets.
- Round to the nearest $5. Prices like $47.50 slow people down.
- Check the menu every few months. If nobody picks an add-on, drop it. If you do something often for free, add it.
FAQ
What should be on a shoe cleaning service menu?
Three cleans (quick, deep and restoration) and a short list of add-ons like protection, sole whitening, deodorize, new laces and rush service. That covers most shoes without slowing down the counter.
How much should shoe cleaning add-ons cost?
Price them from your deep clean. At a $45 deep clean, protection around $15, sole whitening around $20, deodorize around $10 and new laces around $5 is a common starting point. Adjust for your supplies and your area.
How do I upsell add-ons without being pushy?
Offer one add-on at intake, based on something the customer can see on their shoe, and say the price out loud. One suggestion tied to the shoe feels like advice. A list read from a script feels like a sales pitch.
Should add-ons be sold on their own?
Usually no. Add-ons are quickest when the shoe is already in for a clean, so most shops only sell them on top of a clean.
Related reading for your shop
- How to Handle Rush Jobs Without Breaking the Queue
- How to Take Intake Photos That Prevent Damage Disputes
- How to Handle Remakes and Redos Without Killing Margin
CleaningPOS keeps your services and add-ons with their prices. Add-ons can be set to only go on top of a clean, staff pick them at intake, and the ticket adds up the same every time. Flat $79 USD/mo per shop, 0% platform fee, 14-day free trial with no card required. See pricing and start your free trial