I began my career in the commercial laundry industry in 1980 as a regional sales manager for one of the major equipment manufacturers. Since then, I’ve held various sales and management positions, owned a finance company focused on the laundromat industry, served as a distributor, and owned stores as well.
Thanks to my varied professional background over the last 41 years, I’ve been privileged to visit laundromats all across North America and Europe. I have seen the good, the bad – and everything in between.
I’ve witnessed owners who have built laundromats that offered the latest equipment and services on the market. As a result, these operators invariably enjoyed higher profits, satisfied customers and typically were always on the lookout to build more stores. It’s because of these owners that our business continues to grow after more than 50 years.
On the other hand, I’ve also run across owners who couldn’t care less about their customers, clinging to the tired philosophy that “they have to come here.” No doubt, these operators don’t keep their stores very clean, don’t upgrade their equipment and systems nearly often enough – and, as a direct result, constantly complain about their customers and the business in general.
When I first joined the industry, most laundromats were small, “mom-and-pop” affairs. For the most part, they featured strictly toploading washers, except for a few “big” machines in the back “for rugs.” Most machines were quarters-only, and some even accepted dimes.
As time passed, the economic realities demanded operational changes, increased profits and evermore customer service. Rents, utility rates and construction costs all began to rise, as profit margins started to tighten.
Along the way, manufacturers introduced more frontloading options to the mix. These machines boasted a longer lifecycle than traditional toploaders, used considerably less water and, in turn, increased store owners’ revenue per square foot.
Almost in tandem, stack dryers were unveiled as the answer to the bottlenecks occurring during the drying phase all across the country. It wasn’t unusual to walk into a laundromat and find washers open, but all the dryers in use. Stack dryers doubled the number of dryer pockets, thus increasing throughput, as well as boosting business substantially.
The next industry advancement was in the payment sector. Although still the main payment option, quarters have steadily been giving ground to credit/debit card acceptance and mobile app alternatives, enabling laundromat owners to charge and increase prices by pennies at a time – making vend price increases easier and with less pushback from the customers.
Additionally, with rising vend prices, it’s much quicker to swipe a card reader than to pump 40 quarters into a $10 washer.
Although some owners still assume that any form of payment beyond coins is too advanced or simply won’t work in their markets, my experience is that this notion is totally false. For the most part, all laundromat customers have embraced technology and use it to get their laundry done faster and more efficiently.
Along with added technology, laundromats have gotten progressively larger and more expensive. Over the years, our business has mimicked the evolution of other industries – the corner grocery store has evolved into a supermarket, the local hardware store has become a big-box home improvement retailer, and so on.
I’ve seen more investors wisely relying on professional research prior to building their stores – paying careful attention to the demographics, competition and cash flow forecasts before spending six- or seven-figure money. Overall, today’s owners approach the business in a more professional manner than in years past.
I’ve touched on a lot of areas with some very broad brush strokes. Each one could be examined in much further detail.
But let me leave you with this… if the last year and a half has taught us anything, it’s that everything evolves and the only constant in life is change. The pandemic has forced so many businesses to close their doors – some probably forever. But laundromats, by their very nature, provide essential services to their communities. As such, the industry has survived, and in some cases, the owners who have learned to adapt have actually grown their operations.
It’s really no surprise. After all, long before COVID-19, laundromat owners who chose to embrace change, regularly upgraded their stores and fully understood they are in the customer service business have always reaped the greatest rewards.
