Green is Good Business

Green Operations Increasingly Important to Feed Consumer Demand When Green Laundry Lounge co-owners Pulin and Krishna Dasai got into the vended laundry industry, they wanted to change a narrative: laundromats are water and energy-intensive businesses. “The...

Leveling the Playing Field

John Um wanted to make sure small business owners could get fair pricing and access to reliable suppliers without needing to have significant buying power. As a leader whose career spanned several major retail and e-commerce companies, he had seen firsthand how hard...

Staying Fierce: Haley Gould Finds Perfect Fit in Vended Laundry

Haley Gould is the Director of Partner Success for HappyNest. She manages an internal team while leading more than 100 partners across the United States building a successful pickup and delivery operation in addition to running their laundromat business. A consummate...

Metrics That Matter

Profit, Performance, and Planning in Vended Laundry The laundromat business is like most businesses in that you need to do a lot of things right to be successful. But how do you know if it’s working? According to successful owners, you just need to look at the...

PlanetLaundry Podcast

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Been There, Done That

Aug 26, 2015

An Interview with Industry Veteran David Horton David Horton has spent his entire adult life in the commercial laundry business – selling equipment, brokering businesses and building stores – from California to the East Coast to the Central Plains, with stops in...

‘I Was Never Interested in Being Average’

Jul 28, 2015

An Interview with Tennessee Laundry Owner Kenneth Cherry Kenneth Cherry opened his first self-service laundry in 1959 in Livingston, Tenn., back when the industry was still in its infancy. Today, he owns three stores. Over the years, Mr. Cherry has always been a price...

Considering Equipment Replacement?

Jul 28, 2015

Three Multi-Store Owners Share Their Advice Whether your store's laundry equipment is 15 years old, 10 years old or was installed just a few years ago, upgrading to new, advanced machines can boost your bottom line while saving on utility costs and offering increased...

Headlines

Advantage Equipment Relocates to Larger Facility

Advantage Equipment Inc., based in Akron, Ohio, recently moved into a new facility. The 13,000-square-foot building – located at 1056 Home Ave. in Akron – is three times larger than the company’s previous headquarters. “Advantage Equipment has experienced significant...

A New ‘Spin’ on a Familiar Brand

Tide Tests the Waters of Chicago’s Wash-Dry-Fold Market A few months ago, Proctor & Gamble decided to expand its Tide brand to include a retail, wash-dry-fold model. Using the successful Tide Dry Cleaners franchises as an example of what to expect from this new...

The Laundry Doctor at the PlanetLaundry Booth at Clean ‘17

Jeff Gardner, a.k.a. “The Laundry Doctor,” will be making an appearance at the PlanetLaundry booth (Booth #811) at The Clean Show in Las Vegas on Wednesday, June 7, 2017 from 1-3 p.m. Jeff will be available to answer any of your questions regarding ensuring laundry...

Clean 2017: Las Vegas (or Silicon Valley?)

"Let's go invent tomorrow instead of worrying about what happened yesterday." – Steve Jobs Of course, the industry's largest biennial gathering is coming to Las Vegas next month. But, you would be forgiven for mistaking the acres of new equipment, products and...

Wash with Wally: Cloth Napkins, Throw Rugs and More…

I have a commercial client who wants my store to take over the cloth napkin laundry service for his Italian restaurant. I’m not sure what is required to perform a quality service for this specific account. The napkins are red and often will have oil and other food...

‘One Laundry at a Time’

Decorated War Hero Reinvents Himself as a Successful Multi-Laundry Owner It takes more than one unscrupulous shopping mall owner to rattle Bill Pederson. With more than 100 combat missions flown as a U.S. Air Force flight medic, there’s not much that civilian life –...

Getting Down to Business

A Five-Phase Approach for Developing a Profitable Commercial Laundry Service As a vended laundry owner, you outlay a lot of money in store development, permitting, construction and equipment. So why not make that investment as fruitful as possible? Fully utilize idle...

It’s Show Time: A Preview of Clean 2017

The Laundry Industry’s Largest Trade Show and Convention to Celebrate Its 40th Anniversary in Las Vegas In 1977, six professional associations got together to host a collaborative convention and trade show for the textile care industries. This inaugural event, which...

Dryers: Stop, Look and Listen

Here Are Some Simple Maintenance Tips to Keep Your Tumblers Running Smoothly… and Profitably Lint. It barely has any weight to it. Who would have thought something so seemingly innocent could be so potentially destructive? However, if left unchecked, lint can cause a...

Maximizing Your Wash Dry Fold Labor

How to Build Key Efficiencies into Your Full-Service Laundry Business In last month’s column, I wrote about the keys to partnering with your local drycleaner, which will be one of the educational topics discussed at Clean 2017 in Las Vegas. This month, I’d like to...

Down to a Science

Five Research Findings That Can Jumpstart Your Marketing Strategy As small-business owners, you most likely write your own advertising. And, if you have no formal training or experience in copywriting, I'm willing to wager that you use what is referred to as a...

Aaxon Honors Smith for 40 Years of Industry Service

Aaxon Laundry Systems, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is celebrating a special anniversary this year for Senior Vice President Edward Smith, who has been with the company for 22 years. Prior to joining Aaxon, Smith operated his own successful distributorship, which...

This Month's Issue

Get Clear to Keep it Clean: Find Focus to Maximize Your Marketing Efforts
Women In Laundry: From the Washroom to the Boardroom
Store Profile: Southern Suds Changing the Game
Member Spotlight: Hutchinson Belt Drive Systems
And More…

THE LATEST ON LAUNDROMATS

Industry News

New York Governor, National Grid Announce Lifting of Gas Service Moratorium

New York City laundromat operators and potential investors – as well as other small-business owners and area residents – have an extra reason to give thanks this holiday week. New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has announced an agreement with National Grid to...

Eastern Funding Hosts Women’s Business Leadership Conference

Eastern Funding recently hosted its inaugural Women’s Business Leadership Conference in New York City. The event, with a theme of “Empowered Leadership,” brought together academics, entrepreneurs and other business professionals with the goal of shining the spotlight...

Don’t Miss the Final CLA Connect LIVE Events of the Year

Register now to attend the last CLA Connect LIVE events planned for 2019. The events are open to current and potential store owners, as well as distributors and manufacturers. CLA Connect LIVE – Ohio December 4 in Cincinnati “Top 10 Trends in Vended Laundry,”...

Free CLA Webinar: ‘AMP’ Up Your Digital Marketing Presence

The Coin Laundry Association, in collaboration with American Marketing & Publishing LLC, will present the webinar – “2020 Visibility for Your Laundry Online: A Powerful Web Presence to Start the New Year” – on December 3, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. (CST). Ashley...

TCATA Announces New Management Appointments

The Board of Directors of the Textile Care Allied Trades Association has named Leslie Schaeffer as the organization’s new chief executive officer, effective January 1, 2020. Schaeffer, TCATA’s current president, owns BPS Communications, which publishes National...