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.
15 Steps to a Smooth Laundry Project
1. Make sure your site is zoned for a laundromat before you buy or start the project. Also, make sure of what size signage you can install and where you can put it. 2. Oversize your utilities – 400-amp, three-phase service. Know whether you will need a transformer on...
Slashing Through the Red Tape, Part 2
Working with Local Government and Utilities to Get Your Laundromat Project Completed on Schedule and on Budget [This is the second of a two-part feature. You can read Part 1 here.] In Part 2 of PlanetLaundry's May cover story, laundromat owners shared their thoughts...
Slashing Through the Red Tape, Part 1
Working with Local Government and Utilities to Get Your Laundromat Project Completed on Schedule and on Budget Russ Arbuckle has been involved in more than a few laundromat buildouts and retool projects through the years. And he has seen his share of horror stories...
Headlines
Aaxon Honors Industry Veteran Luis Bello
Aaxon Laundry Systems recently recognized route collector Luis Bello for 25 years with the company. Bello, who joined Aaxon in 1997, was honored for his vast technical knowledge, dedication and hard work. “I have worked with Luis Bello since the day I joined the...
EVI Completes Two Distributor Acquisitions
EVI Industries Inc. has completed the previously announced acquisitions of K&B Laundry Service LLC, Roanoke Rapids, N.C., and Aldrich Clean-Tech Equipment Corp., Worcester, Mass. K&B is a provider of installation and maintenance services to the industrial and...
Oxwash Raises Nearly $12 Million for On-Demand Laundry Service
Oxwash, a U.K.-based on-demand laundry startup, has raised £10 million (or approximately $11.5 million USD) from backers, including a Twitter co-founder. Founded by Kyle Grant, a former NASA scientist, and Tom de Wilton, Oxwash reported that it is developing a more...
The Best of Both Worlds
With a Few Equipment Tweaks, California Laundromat Owners Expand Their Business – Catering to Self-Service and Full-Service Clients Alike Shortly after purchasing an existing laundromat near Palm Springs, Calif., Keith and Jacqueline Reed decided to make a few...
CLA Names New, Re-Elected Members to 2023 Board of Directors
The Coin Laundry Association has announced five re-elected and one newly elected Board members, who will round out the organization’s 2023 Board of Directors. The Board election was ratified last month during the CLA’s annual meeting at the Clean Show in Atlanta. CLA...
Healthcare Group Offers Outreach at Philadelphia Laundromats
Philadelphia-based managed care organization Health Partners Plans is teaming up with Fabric Health for outreach at five laundromats in the city, according to a recent Philadelphia Business Journal report. Fabric Health will help Health Partners Plans members update...
Continental Creative Services Changes Name to Girbau Creative Services
Continental Creative Services, a division of Girbau North America, has changed its name to Girbau Creative Services. “We wanted to change the name to better align with our parent company, Girbau Global Laundry Solutions,” said Creative Services Manager Kim Foxcroft....
Speed Queen Laundry Franchise to Open in South Carolina
Speed Queen has announced that the first Speed Queen Laundry franchise in South Carolina is set to open in Greenville, with grand opening activities slated for September 7-14. The 2,800-square-foot location features touchscreen controls, washers with capacities...
Cents Acquires Starchup, Expands PUD Platform
Venture-backed technology company Cents has acquired Starchup, a provider of pickup and delivery, POS and drycleaning software. Through this acquisition, Cents stated it will be able to bolster its existing pickup and delivery platform by adding functionality and...
Business Partners to Open Five LaundroLab Locations in St. Petersburg Market
Laundromat franchise LaundroLab has announced it will expand its reach in Florida – with four entrepreneurs bringing five new locations to the St. Petersburg area. Carlie Canfield, Matt Denault and their spouses had been flipping single-family homes since 2019, when a...
HappyNest Expands Presence in Tennessee
Laundry pickup-and-delivery service HappyNest has expanded its availability within the Tennessee market east of Nashville through the company’s new laundromat partner, Antioch Coin Laundry. “We pride ourselves on offering unparalleled service from our staff, which...
Our Industry is Alive, Well… And Thriving
Having now had the opportunity to fully digest my time at last month’s Clean Show in Atlanta, I’m happy to report that the self-service laundry industry – as well as the residential wash-dry-fold and pickup-and-delivery segments of the business – are alive and well....
SPONSORED CONTENT
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
GNA Honors Fowler Laundry Solutions
Fowler Laundry Solutions, based in Union, N.J., has received its fifth consecutive Girbau North America Multi-Housing Distributor of the Year Award for outstanding service, sales, and support in the multi-housing laundry market. Led by Doug Fowler and founded in 1952,...
GNA Adds to Headquarters Staff
Girbau North America recently welcomed Barb Kramer as national accounts coordinator and Paige Paulick as inside sales associate. Kramer handles multiple duties in support of national accounts sales and customer relations, including order processing, assisting...
Speed Queen Adds Third Franchise Location in Dallas Market
Speed Queen has continued to expand its laundromat franchise in Dallas. The newest Speed Queen Laundry – located at 2950 Walnut Hill Lane – is the third such store in the Dallas area. “We’re excited to add another great location to the Dallas market and give these...
Wash-Dry-Fold POS Expands to All 50 States
Software provider Wash-Dry-Fold POS recently announced that it has expanded its services to all 50 states in the U.S. Since its inception in February 2016, Wash-Dry-Fold POS has grown rapidly, selling 124 systems in the state of Florida alone. The company has even...
CLA Agrees to Share Compliance Information from NJDOL to Ensure Fair Treatment for Laundromat Employees
First announced in November 2022, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development’s Wage and Hour Division recently completed a strategic enforcement initiative involving the laundromat industry, which included a comprehensive analysis of industry...
FROM YOUR FAVORITE INDUSTRY EXPERTS
Columns
The Laundry Doctor
Building a Winning Team, Part 2
How to Quickly Track a New Hire's Progress and Likelihood of Success Right from the Beginning [This is the second of a three-part series on hiring and training laundry attendants.] Last month, in the first of our series on attendants, I noted that it was important to...
The Business Mind
Understanding Our Economic Behavior
How Our Psychological Makeup Impacts Our Financial Decisions I’ve consulted with a great many laundromat owners over the years. And nearly all of them have been preoccupied with their financial decisions – either those that had been made in the past or those that the...
Wash With Wally
Wash with Wally: Installing an ATM
I just got into the laundromat business, and I’m considering installing an ATM in my store. My question is whether I’m better off buying a machine outright and installing it myself, or having an outside vendor own and install the ATM, with some type of commission...
Viewpoint
Building on Past Success… Exceeding Our Potential
Happy New Year, and welcome to 2018!I consider it an honor and a privilege to be serving as the Chairman of the Board for the Coin Laundry Association this year. Last year was historic for the CLA, as last year's chairman, Jim Whitmore, oversaw the introduction of new...
Digital Marketing
Marketing Your Multi-Store Operation
To Grow Your Vended Laundry Business, Focus on Four Key Factors Here’s a fact that shouldn’t surprise you by now: More than half of all purchases are influenced by a digital presence. You, your neighbors and the strangers across town are all Googling (and maybe...
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.
