Queen of Clean Lindsay Crombie: Earned £75k from her Instagram posts

Television’s ‘Queen of Clean’ Lindsey Crombie can charge tens of thousands of pounds worth of fees for mentioning plug hole blockers and other cleaning products on social media.

But Lynsey, 43, who rose to fame in 2013 with Channel 4’s Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners, is very grateful for the money and says Donna Ferguson cleans the homes of terminally ill and elderly people for free as a way to give back. is talking to .

She and her second husband Rob, 43, live in Peterborough with their son Jake, 14, and twins Molly and Olivia, 19.

What did your parents teach you about money?

That old rule: if you don’t have the money, don’t buy. My mother never worked. Her father was a gas service engineer and brought in enough money to raise me and my brother. We were a typical middle class family. I lived in a house, had a car, and vacationed abroad every year. I went to a regular public school and I didn’t have flash, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t have any.

My father had a great work ethic. He worked every hour God sent. He told me that if I wanted a treat, I had to work for it.

Have you ever struggled to make ends meet?

yes. The worst was in the mid-2000s when I left home as a single parent at the age of 24. I had just given birth to premature twins. They were hospitalized newborns and very poor. I had no income, no job, no savings. And I had to leave my husband for reasons I didn’t want to talk about. [Lynsey discovered her first husband was a sex offender.] It’s all been reported and I don’t like dwelling on the past.

I only took from my marriage what would fit in the trunk of my car. I just wanted to get away so I let her husband have everything. But when I applied for benefits, I was turned down because I had a home with him and some money from the marriage.

My father was very kind and rented me a small apartment near my house. A few months later I started a speed dating business to feed myself. After the bills I was living on £20 a week. Looking back on it now, I don’t know how I would have dealt with it.

How could you afford to eat on 20 pounds a week?

I really lost weight. I’m 5 feet 10 inches and I’ve dropped to 8 stones. I lived on fig rolls and a cup of tea. At the end of the month, it took him five days to settle, so he paid by check at the supermarket. Luckily, my daughters were on prescription milk, so I didn’t have to buy food.

How did you become the Queen of Clean?

A friend and I started a small publishing company, printing local magazines. We sold advertising spaces and put them in people’s doors. It was about $200,000 a year.

One day I got a call from Channel 4. They were looking to hoard a new TV show dealing with an obsessive janitor and wanted to advertise in our magazine.

I remember saying on the phone, “I like cleaning.” Before I knew it, I got a call from the main producer. He asked me if I wanted to be on the show. So I did. They sent us to really dirty houses and country mansions that had to be cleaned. It was a real laugh.

I really like cleaning. I think it’s good exercise. I did 4 series and had a lot of fun. Looking back, 2013 was the luckiest year of my life. If her partner on the business had answered the phone instead of me, she would have taken the appointment and none of this would have happened.

So I pinch myself every day to do my job.

Have you ever received ridiculous money?

Yes, from a post on Instagram where my handle is @lynsey_queenofclean. In my first few years I made about £30,000 a year. Then about 3 years ago, a nice lady (now my manager) told me she wasn’t charging me enough for her sponsored posts.

She provided us with the first campaign using Plug Hole Unblocker. All I had to do was share a photo of me holding the product. I got £6,000. We now have nearly 300,000 followers and can earn more commissions.

The most lucrative deal was with a cleaning brand. For three months, at least once a week, he was paid £75,000 for mentioning their product in his feed. I am very grateful for what I earn, but I don’t take it for granted, and as a way of giving back, I clean the homes of the local terminally ill and elderly people for free.

When was the best year of your financial life?

It’s 2021. In addition to Instagram, she also earns from three books, magazine writing, radio and television including a regular appearance on This Morning, and book clubs. All in all, I made a good six-figure total, and if someone had told him 10 years ago that he could make money at his current job, a million years from now, he wouldn’t have believed it.

What’s the most expensive thing you bought for entertainment?

Gucci handbag. It cost me around £1,700 and I use it every day.

I remember standing in line for Selfridges and feeling guilty about the purchase. I know when the bubble can burst. But her husband encouraged me to treat myself.

Tidying Up: Lynsey on ITV’s This Morning

What was the best money decision you ever made?

Answering a call from Channel 4 in 2013. It changed my life.

What is your reward?

Blow dry once a week and cost £35. It sounds frivolous, but there is room for it. Also, regular massages cost him £45 and every other week he trims his nails at £30.

Are you saving for your pension?

it is. About four years ago, I started putting a lump sum into a low-risk scheme when my accountant suggested I should. I do not invest in stock markets other than pensions.

do you own any property

Yes, a 5 bedroom detached house in Peterborough with a small mortgage. I bought it 5 years ago. We put a massive extension on the back and doubled its value. I clean my house myself and it’s very clean.

If you were Prime Minister, what would you do first?

I will fund the training of cleaners, raise the salaries of cleaners working in the public sector, and raise the national minimum wage so minimum wage workers earn more.

We talk about how great doctors and nurses have been during the pandemic, but what about the cleaners who worked to keep us sterile? The work of many cleaners stands out. Pay cleaners more, give them training and certification, and they’ll probably get more respect.

Donate money to charity?

Yes, I donate to food banks and Bliss, a charity that cares for families with premature babies.

What are your number one financial priorities?

Watch your money and remember that your career could end tomorrow.