Since opening last summer, Super Clean Laundromat in Akron, Ohio, has been working with local organizations to help those experiencing hardship access laundry services.
Owners Raj and Savita Verma – a couple from Punjab, India – moved to the U.S. 12 years ago and opened their 5,000-square-foot store last July.
Since then, the Vermas have encouraged local nonprofits, ministries, schools, resettlement agencies and other organizations to reach out to them directly to coordinate free monthly laundry days for those who cannot afford to do their laundry.
“We like to work within the society,” said Raj Verma, in a recent interview with the Akron Beacon Journal. “For anybody who is a new immigrant to this area, we are open to working together with any organization, resettlement agency, nonprofit or church – if they think somebody is in need or going through a hardship in life, and needing to use the laundromat.”
The couple recently worked with the local fire department to support an Akron-area woman whose home had caught on fire.
“Her house had a fire, so all her clothes had a smoke smell in them,” he said. “If that kind of situation happens, I will do all their laundry for free. I am willing to work with them. I want to help the society.
“If someone needs help with a job interview, for instance, and needs clean clothes, he or she can come and use my laundry, free of charge.”
The Bhutanese Community Association of Akron currently rents space in the back of the building, and the Vermas said they plan to open a small cafe and ice cream shop within the business by this summer so that customers can enjoy a cup of tea or coffee while waiting for their laundry.
Prior to opening Super Clean, the Vermas had owned a discount store adjacent to their current laundry business.
“We see a big need in this area, and it will be our honor to help anybody in the society,” Verma said. “That’s why this is our biggest calling.”
