LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — When we talk about the ripple effects of the war in Iran being felt here at home in the Northwest Valley, there's a lot of focus on gas prices — rightfully so, as our average gas price has eclipsed $5 per gallon in Southern Nevada.
However, there are other products affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, too, and it's some stuff you might not think about: flooring, pharmaceuticals, computer chips and more.
One of the things seeing delays and price hikes are household cleaning supplies internationally, so I caught up with a local cleaning company based in Northwest Las Vegas to see how all of this is impacting their business.
WATCH | Local cleaning business managing effects of Iran war on gas prices, supplies
"The most direct [impact] is, like you mentioned, the materials — a lot of the cleaning supplies that we use," said Kevin Gamboa.
Gamboa owns Centennial Home Cleaning, which opened their doors two years ago, focusing on residential cleaning jobs.
"And you're a local, family owned business here in the Northwest, right?" I asked Gamboa on Thursday afternoon.
"Yep! We're based in the Northwest, but we serve all of Las Vegas," he replied.
Gamboa tells me they — thankfully — haven't had any issues with their cleaning product supply yet.
"We have back stock of a lot of our supplies, so we haven't gone shopping for anything yet," Gamboa said. "Will that happen in the future? It's a possibility. I mean — after what I've been seeing — it's a real possibility that we might feel that."
More than anything right now, though, Gamboa says he and his team are feeling the effects of our sky-high gas prices.
"It's not cheap to drive to, let's say, Henderson for example," Gamboa explained. "If our provider is here in Centennial, it's 50 minutes one way and 50 minutes back, and gas prices have basically doubled it feels like — that's a fixed cost."
Centennial Home Cleaning has gotten around that by taking a closer look at the routes they assign their cleaners — keeping them closer to their neighborhoods and limiting their driving distance — but Gamboa tells me there are also less jobs coming in right now overall as customers re-evaluate their budgets.
"While we didn't raise our prices, everything else has," Gamboa said. "We've had a few of our recurring customers — who are kind of like friends and family at this point — come to us and say 'times are tough.'"
Gamboa says they're doing the best they can to work with their customers and be flexible given the circumstances, while staying ready for whatever comes next.
"The best way to tackle that is to do as we've been doing — stay prepared, and buy in bulk when you can," Gamboa said.
For more information on Centennial Home Cleaning, visit their website by clicking here.
As we continue to cover issues like this affecting us here at home in the Northwest Valley, if there's something you think I should know about, please send me an email at Guy.Tannenbaum@KTNV.com, or by filling out the contact form below.
