PlanetLaundry Podcast
America’s #1 Resource for Vended Laundry News & Info
PlanetLaundry is the official publication of CLA and is trusted by thousands of laundry professionals to deliver the latest news and industry-specific topics.
Member Spotlight: Redefining Utility Access for the Modern Laundromat
On a busy Sunday afternoon, laundromat owner Paul Pettefer found himself facing a problem all too familiar to operators: a leak behind the washers. In a rush to shut off the water, he attempted to leap onto the machines to get over the traditional bulkhead and reach...
Southern Suds Laundromat Brings High-Tech, Family-Friendly Laundry Experience to Small Market
Southern Suds Laundromat is doing more than just washing clothes — it’s reshaping what a community laundry experience can look like. The 2,400-square-foot facility is combining high-tech convenience with small-town charm. Tucked in a region not known for innovation in...
Get Clear to Keep it Clean: Digital Marketing Trends for Laundromat Operators
Marketing has never been more difficult. With customers endlessly scrolling, algorithms constantly shifting, and more distractions than ever, cutting through the noise to reach more customers is tough. For laundromat owners that means one big thing: if your message...
Headlines
Member Spotlight: Redefining Utility Access for the Modern Laundromat
On a busy Sunday afternoon, laundromat owner Paul Pettefer found himself facing a problem all too familiar to operators: a leak behind the washers. In a rush to shut off the water, he attempted to leap onto the machines to get over the traditional bulkhead and reach...
In Memory of Jerry Giangrasso: A Legacy of Leadership, Loyalty and Heart
The commercial laundry industry mourns the loss of one of its most respected and beloved figures, Jerry Giangrasso, who passed away after an extraordinary 65-year career. Known affectionately by friends, colleagues and loyal customers as “Uncle Jerry,” his presence...
Wash With Wally: Color-Safe Bleach Alternatives & Washing Silk Shirts
Wash With Wally I offer a wash-dry-fold service at my laundromat, and I was wondering if there is any product we could use in place of chlorine bleach. The problem we occasionally run into is that my attendants will mistakenly use the chlorine bleach on colored...
Southern Suds Laundromat Brings High-Tech, Family-Friendly Laundry Experience to Small Market
Southern Suds Laundromat is doing more than just washing clothes — it’s reshaping what a community laundry experience can look like. The 2,400-square-foot facility is combining high-tech convenience with small-town charm. Tucked in a region not known for innovation in...
Hutchinson Belt Drive Systems Brings Focus on Safety and Sustainability to Laundry Industry
Hutchinson Belt Drive Systems, a division of the global Hutchinson Group, has quietly become a key player behind the scenes in the laundry equipment sector. The company, known for its belt drive technologies and mechanical components, works with appliance...
Get Clear to Keep it Clean: Digital Marketing Trends for Laundromat Operators
Marketing has never been more difficult. With customers endlessly scrolling, algorithms constantly shifting, and more distractions than ever, cutting through the noise to reach more customers is tough. For laundromat owners that means one big thing: if your message...
Future-Proofing Your Laundry Business
Why documented processes, HR systems, and talent retention build long-term value. By Rich Cruz, MS, SHRM-CP Organizational Consultant | Co-Founder, Harmonious Workplaces When I worked in lockstep with the laundry business community between 2017 and 2021, I met...
From the Washroom to the Boardroom: Supporting Women’s Growth in the Laundry Business
By Aubrey Pollesch The laundry industry is evolving, and so is the face of its leadership. At LaundryLux, we’re proud to be part of a growing movement to elevate women at every level of the business, from internal leadership roles to laundromat ownership and...
Good Marketing Feels Like a Warm Welcome
If you want customers to keep coming back – whether they’re folding socks, dropping off towels or scheduling delivery – you need more than ads. You need to make them feel like they belong. I love throwing dinner parties. Not the stuffy kind with assigned seating and...
How Vended Laundries Might Solicit Commercial Laundry Services
Many vended laundries successfully offer commercial laundry pickup and delivery service to a variety of businesses — from small hotels to medical clinics and dry cleaners — for big gains in store revenue and profit. Moving into this sector makes good sense because it...
SpyderWash Unveils New All-in-One Payment and POS Solutions
SpyderWash, a trusted leader in laundry payment innovation for nearly 60 years, introduced a suite of groundbreaking products at The Clean Show 2025—delivering operators a true all-in-one platform for laundry payments, wash-dry-fold (WDF), and pickup-and-delivery...
Booth Sales Open for DL Expo 2026
Drycleaning & Laundry Industry Gears Up for Major 2026 Event in Texas The Southwest Drycleaners Association (SDA) and the California Cleaners Association (CCA) are pleased to announce that booth sales are open for the Drycleaning & Laundry Expo West (DL Expo...
SPONSORED CONTENT
SPONSORED CONTENT
Scaling Wash & Fold Operations
Learn how to grow your wash & fold from an offering into a money-making operation.
This Month's Issue
- Tech on the Rise: How Operators Are Using Innovation to Run Smarter, Faster Laundromats: From AI phone systems to real-time data tracking, operators and suppliers share how technology is reshaping the modern laundry business and what’s coming next.
- Business Profile: Delivering a Superior
Laundry Experience - Member Spotlight: Rick Rome –
Innovating Laundry, One Customer at a Time - Guest Column: How AI Changed Google Reviews (What Laundromat Owners Need to Know)
- And More…
THE LATEST ON LAUNDROMATS
Industry News
Member Spotlight: Redefining Utility Access for the Modern Laundromat
On a busy Sunday afternoon, laundromat owner Paul Pettefer found himself facing a problem all too familiar to operators: a leak behind the washers. In a rush to shut off the water, he attempted to leap onto the machines to get over the traditional bulkhead and reach...
In Memory of Jerry Giangrasso: A Legacy of Leadership, Loyalty and Heart
The commercial laundry industry mourns the loss of one of its most respected and beloved figures, Jerry Giangrasso, who passed away after an extraordinary 65-year career. Known affectionately by friends, colleagues and loyal customers as “Uncle Jerry,” his presence...
Hutchinson Belt Drive Systems Brings Focus on Safety and Sustainability to Laundry Industry
Hutchinson Belt Drive Systems, a division of the global Hutchinson Group, has quietly become a key player behind the scenes in the laundry equipment sector. The company, known for its belt drive technologies and mechanical components, works with appliance...
Future-Proofing Your Laundry Business
Why documented processes, HR systems, and talent retention build long-term value. By Rich Cruz, MS, SHRM-CP Organizational Consultant | Co-Founder, Harmonious Workplaces When I worked in lockstep with the laundry business community between 2017 and 2021, I met...
From the Washroom to the Boardroom: Supporting Women’s Growth in the Laundry Business
By Aubrey Pollesch The laundry industry is evolving, and so is the face of its leadership. At LaundryLux, we’re proud to be part of a growing movement to elevate women at every level of the business, from internal leadership roles to laundromat ownership and...
FROM YOUR FAVORITE INDUSTRY EXPERTS
Columns
The Laundry Doctor
Productive, Efficient and Motivated
Three Keys to Building a Strong Wash-Dry-Fold Team With both the post-COVID-19 era and the laundry outsourcing revolution upon us, many store owners I speak with are seeing their wash-dry-fold businesses growing rapidly. Given that, how do we – as employers, without...
The Business Mind
Future-Proofing Your Laundry Business
Why documented processes, HR systems, and talent retention build long-term value. By Rich Cruz, MS, SHRM-CP Organizational Consultant | Co-Founder, Harmonious Workplaces When I worked in lockstep with the laundry business community between 2017 and 2021, I met...
Wash With Wally
Wash With Wally: Color-Safe Bleach Alternatives & Washing Silk Shirts
Wash With Wally I offer a wash-dry-fold service at my laundromat, and I was wondering if there is any product we could use in place of chlorine bleach. The problem we occasionally run into is that my attendants will mistakenly use the chlorine bleach on colored...
Viewpoint
It’s Gotta be the Shoes … Right?
Spike Lee’s famous Nike ads with Michael Jordan were always talking about shoes as if the shoes made the magic. But we know that the shoes are just part of the equation and the real magic comes from the person wearing them. Bob Nieman spent more than two decades...
Digital Marketing
Get Clear to Keep it Clean: Digital Marketing Trends for Laundromat Operators
Marketing has never been more difficult. With customers endlessly scrolling, algorithms constantly shifting, and more distractions than ever, cutting through the noise to reach more customers is tough. For laundromat owners that means one big thing: if your message...
Strategic Corporate Allies Program
Our Strategic Corporate Allies support CLA’s mission through advocacy, education, and innovation to strengthen the industry, advance our members’ businesses, and prepare the next generation of laundry professionals for the future.
Interested in becoming a Strategic Corporate Ally of CLA? Contact President & CEO, Brian Wallace via email at [email protected] or call (630) 491-0499.
