Edwards Entrepreneur Expands Cleaning Empire to Denver Airport

Aspen —The air in Edwards carries a specific weight on Tuesday mornings, thick with the scent of pine and the low hum of traffic moving between the I-70 corridor and the mountain resorts. For Alba Padilla, that hum is not background noise; it is the sound of a business plan unfolding in real time. She stands at the center of this rhythm, having arrived in the valley over two decades ago with her husband, Reynaldo, and their two children, carrying nothing but the "American dream" and a willingness to say yes to almost any opportunity.

Her journey began in the practical, unglamorous work of cleaning houses, a foundation that provided both capital and clarity. After five years working in a boutique in Beaver Creek, where the Dominguez family gave her the chance to learn the intricacies of exotic furs, Padilla identified a gap in the market. In 2010, she and Reynaldo opened Alba’s Boutique in Edwards, a venture that ran successfully for three years. Yet, as she observed the steady growth of her cleaning services — spurred by a comadre who left her three initial houses — she realized that the cleaning sector offered greater scalability.

That insight led to the birth of Alba’s Organics, now located in Edwards. What started as residential services has expanded into substantial commercial contracts, including work for CMC on the Edwards and Breckenridge campuses, government offices, and facilities at Santa Maria in Eagle and Santa Clara in Edwards. But her most demanding contract lies far from the mountains: the cleaning of Concourse C at Denver International Airport.

“La sala C tiene un tráfico aproximado de 15,000 pasajeros al día, se puede pensar que es algo fácil pero no lo es, es mucho” Padilla explained. “Fue difícil en un principio pero tengo un gran equipo que me ayuda mucho.”

The scale of that contract, extending for the next three years, requires navigating complex relationships with unions, airport authorities, and other contractors. Padilla noted that while she isn’t certain who recommended them initially, the opportunity was one they actively sought. “Ellos nos hablaron,” she said, “no sabemos quien nos recomendó, pero es algo que quisimos hacer.”

Today, Alba’s Organics maintains a healthy balance between its residential and commercial branches. “Organic creció por recomendaciones, ahorita estamos en unas 150 casas,” she noted with evident pride. Yet, for Padilla, the numbers are secondary to the people who make them possible. “Tenemos un gran equipo, les ofrecemos,” she added, emphasizing that her staff is one of her highest priorities.

If you look closely at the storefronts along Edwards’ main strip, you can see the result of that philosophy. It is not just a boutique or a cleaning service; it reflects the steady, textured growth that defines life in the valley. The light filters through the windows of Alba’s Organics, illuminating a space where history and hard work intersect.