An Interview with Laundromat Owner Frank Lambing
Frank Lambing is one of the laundromat industry’s true pioneers. He opened Lamb Launderette on his family’s farmland in Williamstown, N.J., in 1961. And he’s never looked back. Today, still in the very same location, Lambing is serving a new generation of laundry customers with no signs of slowing down.
He recently chatted with PlanetLaundry Editor Bob Nieman about the early days of the laundry industry, his advice to today’s owners, and what he enjoys most about his life in the laundromat business.
How did you first get involved in the laundromat industry? What attracted you to this business in the first place?
When I served in the Army from 1958 to 1960, I was stationed at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, and we used to go into the nearby town of Lawton to do our laundry at one of the two laundromats there. Of course, the laundromat industry was just getting started at that time. It was all very new to all of us.
In fact, I still recall the very first machines I saw in that store. There was a small washer made by Westinghouse called the “Laundromat.” It was blue and had a capacity of about 10 pounds. It wasn’t really a toploader or a frontloader – the opening for the clothes was tilted at an angle.
As I would do my laundry there, I was forming a business plan in the back of my mind for when I got out of the Army. My family owned property back home in Williamstown, N.J., and that’s where I was going to build my laundromat and give this new industry a try.
So, when I was discharged, that was the beginning of it. I built Lamb Launderette, and I’ve owned and operated just this one store the entire time.
In addition, shortly after opening the laundromat, I also began working for the local post office – after all, I certainly had some extra time, given the flexibility of the laundry business. After 34 years of doing both, I retired from the postal service, but I continued to run the laundromat, and I still am.
Are those aspects that first attracted you to the laundry industry still evident in the business today?
Absolutely. I’m still offering an important service to the public, which I’ve always done and love to do.
How would you best describe the “early days” of this industry?
Back then, all of the stores featured all toploading equipment. There were no frontloaders to speak of in those days.
Also, when I first opened up, I remember all of the customers wanting very, very hot water. I think my water temperature back then was at least 140 degrees or higher – and everyone wanted a warm-water rinse as well. Of course, that’s all changed now to cold rinses, and standard water temperatures in most laundromats is in the 120-degree range.
In addition, back in the early days, at least in my market, customers would come in with just one or two smaller loads of laundry. Today, it’s a much different story – there are much larger loads and more of them.
What are the biggest changes you’ve noticed in the industry over the years?
No doubt, toploaders are quickly becoming obsolete. Everything these days is about frontloading equipment. The manufacturers are making them bigger and better all the time – adding new features and efficiencies. And my customers love our larger machines, which go all the way up to 80-pound capacities.
Another big change that I’ve already alluded to are the larger, family-sized laundry loads going through the store now. Of course, maybe twice a year, I also get seasonal customers who come in to do their comforters, large bedding, sleeping bags and so on. So, I’ve got my weekly customers and my seasonal customers, and they all gravitate to the larger equipment.
What are the most dramatic equipment enhancements you’ve seen?
When I started, it was all small toploading washers and 50-pound dryers, which were gas hogs. Of course, natural gas was very cheap back then. Now, we’ve got frontloaders – available in much larger sizes – and 30- and 45-pound dryers in stack configurations. There also are reversing dryers, which I think have some merit.
To me, the most dramatic improvements have been the advent of frontloading machines, larger-capacity washers and stack dryers, which greatly increased drying capacity within the same square footage.
I believe the change in payment methods and options has been quite dramatic to the industry as well. Today, there are any number of ways to enable your customers to pay for their laundry. However, at my age, I’m not ready for that technology, and I plan to remain on quarters. Plus, I have some customers who actually drive past a card-operated store just to come to my laundromat.
What did your laundromat cost you back in 1961?
I had $4,000 in a savings account, and I took out a $10,000 loan from the bank. That’s what I started with, and I was scared to death that the business wouldn’t make it. But here I am today.
My parents previously had farmed that property. It’s along the highway, and I knew it was a good laundry location. Of course, there were naysayers. I remember one old timer in town telling me I was crazy to build my store where I did – he said nobody was going to come all the way out here to do their laundry. Well, I’m still here.
The original store was rather “plain Jane.” It was 1,200 square feet, with a double row of toploaders and 10 50-pound dryers. Then, a few years later, the Big Boy and Mighty Boy washers were introduced to the market. They were early versions of frontloaders, and I installed some of those in my laundromat. Of course, I’ve replaced my equipment regularly through the years.
My store has always had plenty of vended snack and beverage options, as well as cigarettes back in the day. There’s ample seating inside the laundromat, and I’m also on a good sized plot of land. This is a rural area, so many customers like to park in the back and then sit outside while their clothes are washing and enjoy the trees and fresh air.
In the 1980s, I doubled the size of the store to its current 2,400 square feet.
In what ways have laundry customers changed over the years?
I think laundry customers, basically, are still the same type of people they always were. Perhaps there’s just a different economic structure now. They’re more likely to be large families now, with much larger loads. Especially around the first of the month, they will come in with bags and bags of dirty clothes.
In what ways have the laundromats themselves changed?
Beyond the changes in equipment that we’ve already discussed, the stores themselves are larger. There are a lot of bigger ones now. In my opinion, some of these stores are too large for the areas they serve. However, that seems to be the way things are going.
Again, many of the stores today are quite different with regard to the payment options they provide their customers as well.
Do you think laundry owners have changed over the years?
To my way of thinking, if you’re going to be successful in the laundromat business, you’ve got to know how to handle a wrench and a screwdriver. I understand that some will disagree with this. However, there are a lot of little things that can go wrong at a laundromat, and you can’t hire a mechanic to come in and take care of every little issue. It will cut into your margins, and you’ll be done for. In that sense, laundry ownership hasn’t changed.
With that said, I know there has been an influx of professionals in this industry in recent years – those who may have been downsized from corporate America or who are looking for a solid business investment. The industry has big investors today, and some corporations are buying up stores and rebranding them. In this sense, ownership is changing.
But I think there are still quite a few mom-and-pop operations doing well out there. Of course, you can’t just sit back and let things go. You’ve got to stay on top of your business. You need to reinvest and upgrade – and be there.
Cleanliness and maintenance have always been the keys to success. I constantly tell my staff, “The store is only as clean as our dirtiest customer.” People will come in and make a mess. Our operation is at the mercy of that dirtiest person.
When you first got into this business, what did you charge for a load of laundry? What do you charge today?
In the beginning, I charged 25 cents for a 12-pound washing machine, and 10 cents for 10 minutes for a 50-pound dryer. Today, that same sized washer is $3.00, and my 30-pound stack dryers vend for a quarter for six minutes.
Let’s talk about your current activities within the industry. What is your day-to-day like? Take me through a “typical” day for you.
The laundromat is located on one street, and my house is on a parallel street, with my property running straight through. Needless to say, I’m in and out of the store every day. I’m not there all day long, and my attendants never know when I’m coming in. I like to arrive unannounced to keep an eye on things, especially cleanliness.
I also have a camera system, so I can watch my laundry business from my house.
In addition, I’m the director of a community bank, so I’m involved with that operation. And I’m in my 63rd year as a volunteer fireman. I no longer “eat smoke,” as we say, but I’m involved at the executive end. I’m still around the firehouse regularly. So – between the laundromat, the bank and the firehouse – those all are parts of my typical day. There’s no grass growing under my feet.
What has been the biggest mistake you’ve made in this business?
I’ve always thought I should have made the laundromat larger at the very beginning. I was only 23 years old at the time. And, in taking on that loan, I was thinking, “How am I ever going to pay this back?” But, as I look back, I should have made the store bigger. All in all, what I did was successful.
As I mentioned, I ended up expanding in 1987. Right before that, a salesman was trying to convince me to put a pizza shop alongside the laundromat. But I went to the Clean Show that year, and it was there that I decided against the pizza business. I came home, proceeded to knock a hole in the wall at my store, and just went from there. Of course, I went into the new space with all new equipment.
What’s been the most gratifying aspect of your life in the laundry business?
The most gratifying aspect has been meeting people and developing lasting relationships with the customers – it’s having them know me by my first name. Some customers will tell me how they were here years ago when their mothers would bring them to do the family laundry. And now they’re back as customers themselves. Those kinds of stories make me feel good. There are a couple of generations of laundry customers that have been through this store.
In fact, I recently bought a new pickup truck, and the salesperson told me he used to go to the laundromat with his grandmother and run around the back of my building. And, just the other day, I was at the local Walmart, and someone came up to me and said, “Hi, Mr. Frank, love your store!” And that’s music to my ears.
More interesting is the fact that my parents owned a small grocery store in Williamstown. It was on the same block as the laundromat is now, and my mother ran that store for 40 years. I’ve had the laundry for 60 years, so between us, the Lambing family has operated businesses in this town for 100 years. Our name is known here. My mother treated people well, and so have I. And they’ve treated us well.
What business lessons did you learn from your parents?
When you have a store like they did, you’re in it seven days a week. It’s not a 40-hour-a-week job. Giving service is the key – having a good product and providing excellent service. So, in essence, I’ve been in retail all my life.
In general, what’s the key to longevity in this industry?
It goes back to maintenance and cleanliness. Always.
What advice do you have for those considering getting into the business?
The best advice is to know your market area and the neighborhood in which you plan to open your business. In fact, I can point to a few particular laundromats that are overbuilt in certain areas – and I know those owners are having a rough time of it. So, always do your due diligence when it comes to site selection. Know who your customers are going to be.
Also, I’ll never forget my mother’s words to me. She said, “Frankie, when you’re in business, you’ve got to spend money to make money.” It’s a common saying, but it’s so true. You have to stay on your toes, continually improve your laundromat and keep looking at the business in this way. You can’t just keep old equipment running and assume it will be “good enough.” You’ve got to constantly enhance the experience – so spend money wisely to make money.
What keeps you active and enthused about this business after all these years?
Simply, I enjoy it.
