The Business of Laundry: Models That Work

In today’s laundromat industry, one truth holds across every market, model and mission: success requires more than just machines. Today’s operators must choose business models strategically, execute consistently, and lead with intention. Some lean into simple,...

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...

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...

Safety First, Last… Always

The Laundromat Owner’s Guide to Preventing Accidents, Protecting Your Business, and Controlling Your Insurance Costs As more and more entrepreneurs are discovering, running a laundromat can be a hugely rewarding business. But it also comes with its own set of risks...

PlanetLaundry Podcast

America’s #1 Resource for Vended Laundry News & Info

PlanetLaundry is the official publication of CLA and is trusted by thousands of laundry professionals to deliver the latest news and industry-specific topics.

All You Need is ‘Luv’

All You Need is ‘Luv’

Texas Laundromat Chain Champions the LaundryCares Message The LaundryCares Foundation’s early childhood literacy initiative – and its accompanying Family Read, Play & Learn Centers – seem tailor-made for Laundry Luv. In fact, the Texas-based company with...

Laundromat Safety is No Accident, Part 2

Laundromat Safety is No Accident, Part 2

Here’s How to Keep Your Employees and Customers Safe – And Your Business Compliant with Today’s OSHA Regulations [This is the second of a two-part feature on workplace safety in the laundromat. You can read Part 1 here.] There are some measures that don’t necessarily...

Getting Paid, Part 2

Getting Paid, Part 2

Payment Options and Considerations for Today’s Laundromat Owners This is the second of a two-part feature on payment acceptance options for laundromat owners. You can read Part 1 here.] Several laundromat operators share their thoughts on the payment methods they...

Headlines

Clean Rite Hosts Financial Literacy Graduation

More than 50 people representing nine nationalities recently participated in a free, eight-week virtual financial education session, which was led by Qualitas of Life, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving Hispanic family financial security. On December 10,...

CLA Promotes Thomas

The Coin Laundry Association has named Nika Thomas as the organization’s director of advertising and sponsorship sales. Thomas, who joined the CLA in August 2013, will lead all advertising sales for PlanetLaundry, as well as all sponsorship sales for the CLA’s...

States Upping the Minimum Wage in 2023

In 2023, 27 states will increase their minimum wages – with most of these hikes taking effect on January 1. California will have the highest minimum wage rate at $15.50, up from the $15 it set in 2022. Only Washington D.C. has a higher minimum wage of $16.10. D.C.’s...

Cleantie, Paystri Announce Payments Partnership

Cleantie – a cloud-based POS system developed for the laundromat, drycleaning, clothes alteration, and shoe repair industries – recently announced a partnership with payment processing company Paystri. The integrated payments partnership makes payment acceptance...

CLA Launches Virtual ‘Marketing Bootcamp’

The Coin Laundry Association is kicking off 2023 with the launch of a virtual “marketing bootcamp,” which has been developed to help laundromat owners grow their customer base and boost their revenue. Attend both online programs in January to develop a marketing plan...

Wash with Wally: The Advantage of Hot-Water Washing

I’ve received a number of inquiries about the overall ability and effectiveness of laundry detergents to clean clothes in cold water. In other words, is there a substantial advantage to using warm or hot water when washing? There is a definite advantage to using hot...

‘Tell Your Friends and Family!’

Here’s How to Transform Your Laundry Business – One Customer Referral at a Time “If you provide a great customer experience to current patrons, they will tell others about it.” – Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon As every entrepreneur knows (or should know) that there are...

Managing Your Fleet, Part 1

A Look at One of the Most Critical Aspects for Successfully Scaling a Pickup-and-Delivery Service [This is the first of a three-part feature article on managing a fleet of laundry delivery vehicles.] Matt Simmons of Super Suds Laundromat in Long Beach, Calif., likes...

Whirlpool Named to 2022 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index

Whirlpool Corp. has been named to the 2022 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, in recognition of the company’s ongoing focus on responsible and ethical business practices. In addition, the manufacturer was included on the DJSI North America Index for the 16th year....

Maytag Washers Complete 60,000-Cycle Lab Test

Maytag Commercial Laundry recently announced that company engineers has just finished a seven-year lab test on the Commercial Laundry MHN33 frontload washers – a test of the DuraCore Drive System that started in 2015 with 10 machines running daily. Throughout the...

The Anatomy of a Successful Landing Page

Follow These Guidelines to Help Grow Your Pickup-and-Delivery Laundry Service Managing your fleet of vehicles is an important part of building a winning pickup-and-delivery service. But it’s just one piece to the puzzle. The question I always like to ask laundry...

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Scaling Wash & Fold Operations

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September Magazine Issue

This Month's Issue

 

  • Tech on the Rise: How Operators Are Using Innovation to Run Smarter, Faster Laundromats: From AI phone systems to real-time data tracking, operators and suppliers share how technology is reshaping the modern laundry business and what’s coming next.
  • Business Profile: Delivering a Superior
    Laundry Experience
  • Member Spotlight: Rick Rome –
    Innovating Laundry, One Customer at a Time
  • Guest Column: How AI Changed Google Reviews (What Laundromat Owners Need to Know)
  • And More…

THE LATEST ON LAUNDROMATS

Industry News

Star Distributing Celebrates 65 Years of Industry Service

Established in 1958 by Durwood R. Davis Jr., Star Distributing – headquartered in Nashville, Tenn. – this year celebrates 65 years of serving the laundry industry. A long-time full-service distributor, Star has provided laundromat owners in the Southeast with sales,...

EVI Reports Record Growth

EVI Industries Inc. recently reported record results in key financial metrics for the fourth fiscal quarter and the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023. The company also announced that its board of directors has declared a special cash dividend on the company’s common...

Tide Opens Third Chicago Laundromat Location

Tide Laundromat has announced the opening of its third Chicago location in the city’s North Riverside neighborhood. To celebrate the grand opening, the community was invited for a Free Wash Weekend on October 14-15. “We are thrilled to open our third location in the...

FROM YOUR FAVORITE INDUSTRY EXPERTS

Columns

The Laundry Doctor

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...

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The Business Mind

What, Me Worry?

What, Me Worry?

You’ll Never Eliminate Anxiety from Your Business Life, But Here’s How to Control It “Stop worrying about what can go wrong, and get excited about what can go right.” I’m confident you’ll agree that owning a business such as (but not limited to) a laundromat can be,...

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Wash With Wally

Viewpoint

Open for Business

Open for Business

For the grand opening of its Canadian flagship location, Lululemon – the popular yoga-inspired athletic apparel company – offered free merchandise to the first 30 people to run naked through its new retail outlet. As you can imagine, the media was all over this...

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Digital Marketing

Looking Forward by Looking Back

Looking Forward by Looking Back

Why Marketing Your Laundry Business is Only Going to Get Better The world has changed quite a bit over the last three decades. Heck, it has changed a lot just in 2020 alone. But let’s not go into that here. If you were to take a time machine back to 1990, you wouldn’t...

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Strategic Corporate Allies Program

Our Strategic Corporate Allies support CLA’s mission through advocacy, education, and innovation to strengthen the industry, advance our members’ businesses, and prepare the next generation of laundry professionals for the future.

Interested in becoming a Strategic Corporate Ally of CLA? Contact President & CEO, Brian Wallace via email at [email protected] or call (630) 491-0499.