Stain Erasers: a startup with Florida roots and Wisconsin wings

McDonald’ s founder Ray Kroc succinctly stated the appeal of the franchise business model when he explained that being a franchisee meant being “in business for yourself, but not by yourself.”

Ryan Sellars and Todd Riggs are working together to create that same franchise owner opportunity with the newly launched Stain Erasers, an eco-friendly exterior cleaning company that has already found success in Florida.

Stain Erasers was launched in 2024, but its startup story began almost two decades ago when Joe Macomber created Citra-Shield, a cleaning product that changed the way he ran his power washing company.

Macomber’s power washing methods were successful in removing mold, mildew and fungus from exterior surfaces, but the practice used a lot of water, and the biological materials he removed with his pressure washer always returned. Through research, he discovered “stain-causing fungus were actually alive and had taken root on the surface. And while pressure cleaning removed the surface stains, the water actually promoted more growth. Just like watering your plants.”

Macomber did not want to use harsh chemicals, like bleach, to clean, because it was harmful to the environment and damaged the surfaces he was being paid to clean.

In search of a solution, Macomber developed Citra-Shield, a biodegradable exterior surface cleaner that does not harm surfaces- and eliminates the need for pressure cleaning. Because the cleaner is killing biological matter at its root, it simply needs to be reapplied at a regular interval to prevent regrowth, rather than waiting for the growth to return.

The product was such a hit in his home state of Florida, he decided to launch his product nationally. To do that, he contacted Ryan Sellars. If that name is familiar to you, it is likely because he spent decades of his career working for Milwaukee-based Sellars Absorbent Materials, a cleaning supply business launched in 1985.

“Joe Macomber came to me asking for us to help him sell his chemical called Citrus-Shield. Quickly, I realized that the opportunity wasn’t selling the chemical itself, but the actual service,” Sellars said. “Joe and I agreed on coming together and forming this greater entity.”

Soon after, Stain Eraser was launched by founders Ryan Sellars, Joe Macomber, Joey Macomber and Aaron Virnig. The company raised $450,000 of seed funding from undisclosed investors in July.

“Our whole goal is to change people’s perspective on cleaning,” Sellars explained.  “You don’t need to wait for something to get incredibly dirty to clean it. After the very first time you apply the product, you just have to apply a maintenance application to create another barrier to organic growth. Then we come once a year in the northern climates and down in Florida, we come to your property twice a year.”

“We let Mother Nature do its thing,” he continued. “We apply it, let it dry, and then let the rain and the wind clean it off. The very first time you use our service; it takes time because you’re relying on Mother Nature. But, as time goes on, every subsequent trip that we make to your property, it’s always going to be clean. We can offer a year-round-clean guarantee, and we are sustainable and eco-friendly. Our competitors aren’t offering that.”

According to Sellars, the cost of Stain Erasers is competitive with traditional power washing service, particularly when you take into account the savings in labor and water costs associated with the use of Citra-Shield.

Company CEO, Todd Riggs, worked with Sellars for more than 20 years. Riggs has an intimate knowledge of the needs of franchise owners; he grew up in a franchisee family.

“With my dad, I saw first-hand how a passionate entrepreneur can get plugged into a bigger business system and get some guardrails. I grew up in that and it’s really my passion. I’m not naturally an entrepreneur. I’m originally an engineer, so I’m a little too risk-averse, but boy, I can recognize a good idea when I see it,” Riggs said.

“I believe in the product. It is amazing,” Riggs said. “I’m a good team builder and team player and feel that together we have what it takes to take this unique product and make a great business around it.”

To learn more about this emerging business and follow its growth, connect with Stain Erasers here.