LaundroLab has teamed up with Legacy Partners, a brokerage based in Charlotte, N.C., to help elevate the franchise’s real estate strategy and accelerate growth.
“Before we even thought about franchising LaundroLab, we knew we had to work with the best brokers available to find locations for our stores,” said Dan D’Aquisto, president and co-founder of LaundroLab. “In this industry, location is critical.”
The company enlisted Legacy Partners’ help to establish its first location in 2017. D’Aquisto worked closely with the brokerage’s senior broker, Scott Fuller, to find that initial site, which turned out to be occupied by a McDonald’s that was looking to sell.
“Buying from a national franchise is no simple task,” Fuller explained. “There are a lot of intricacies. We had to prove that we would not be selling food or otherwise competing with McDonald’s in any sense for a certain number of years. But the location was right, so we got it done.”
Since then, the LaundroLab brand has doubled down on its focus on real estate, culminating in the franchise’s official partnership with Legacy Partners.
“Laundromats generate virtually all of their revenue from customers who live within a three-mile radius,” D’Aquisto said. “That’s about as hyper-local as you can get. We are adamant about ensuring that every single franchise owner is located in the best possible spot to support their community and drive revenue.”
With Legacy Partners’ support, LaundroLab is leveraging data to identify the most lucrative sites for new franchise locations. That data includes rankings of other laundromats in the market, the number of apartments that don’t have washing machines, median income, percentage of renters, average number of vehicles per household, and number of complementary neighboring businesses that will drive foot traffic and allow customers to work LaundroLab into their existing errand routine.
Beyond site selection, Legacy Partners also offers LaundroLab support with a range of real estate concerns – from drafting letters of intent to lease negotiations to work orders, and more.
“Our real estate strategy for franchisees is truly comprehensive,” D’Aquisto noted. “Not only are we finding the best locations, we are ensuring franchise owners get the most favorable terms and the quickest, easiest and most effective path to opening. On the front end, our major points of differentiation as a brand are our next-level services and amenities, but behind the scenes, it’s our real estate strategy that really sets us apart from competitors.”
