Longtime Laundromat Owner on 23 Years of Service, Challenges, Community Impact

For more than two decades, Lee Ann Geurts has been a steady force in her Brooklyn Park community in Minnesota, running three laundromats that have become known not just for clean clothes, but for connection, comfort, and care. What began as a business venture for her...

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...

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.

Finding Your Dream Laundromat

Finding Your Dream Laundromat

Industry Experts Share the Leading Characteristics of a Winning Laundry Location “Location, location, location.” You’ve heard it hundreds of times. It’s the key to retail success. It’s your magic wand to laundromat riches. Just find that ideal location. But what makes...

Safeguarding Your Investment

Safeguarding Your Investment

Here Are Three Key Insurance Coverages to Keep Your Eyes on During Today’s Challenging Market Conditions The last few years have been challenging both for businesses and the insurance industry. After years of stability, a confluence of factors has led insurance...

Playing the Numbers Game

Playing the Numbers Game

A Closer Look at the Operational Metrics and Key Data Laundromat Owners Should Monitor to Stay on Track for Success In the February issue of PlanetLaundry, some of the most successful laundromat operators in the U.S. shared the key performance indicators they use to...

Headlines

Whirlpool Named One of the Top Companies for Multicultural Women

Whirlpool Corp. recently was recognized as one of Seramount’s 2022 Best Companies for Multicultural Women. The award recognizes companies that create and use the best hiring practices while retaining and promoting multicultural women in the United States. “Inclusion...

Life of a Salesman

An Interview with Bryan Maxwell of Western State Design Bryan Maxwell is the senior laundry specialist for Western State Design, a major laundry equipment distributor, headquartered in Hayward, Calif. Maxwell began with Western State in 1988 – selling industrial OPL...

EVI Industries to Acquire Aldrich Clean-Tech Equipment Corp.

EVI Industries Inc. has announced that it executed a definitive agreement to acquire Aldrich Clean-Tech Equipment Corp., a commercial laundry distributor headquartered in Worcester, Mass. The acquisition will expand EVI’s sales and service presence within the...

Speed Queen Recognizes Star Distributing with Top Honor

Speed Queen recently honored its top distributors at an evening reception held in Atlanta, prior to this year’s Clean Show. “It was certainly an inspiring evening to have the whole Speed Queen commercial family in one room again and to celebrate their collective...

Word to the Wise, Part 2

Laundromat Owners Share Best Practices for Long-Term Success [This is the second of the two-part feature article. Read Part 1 here.] Several leading laundromat owners share their best business and operational advice, tips and strategies for new store operators and...

CLA Update: Meetings, Meetings… And More Meetings

CLA Boasts a Packed Lineup of Educational and Networking Opportunities for Laundromat Owners This Fall The Coin Laundry Association has a full schedule of meetings – both in-person and virtual – lined up for the rest of 2022. On the heels of this summer’s hugely...

Mr Jeff Laundry Franchise Expands Internationally

Spanish startup Jeff has announced plans to open 10 new Mr Jeff laundry service franchises in the Philippines in 2022. “We feel very confident about the rest of 2022, and we are already helping our partner entrepreneurs to find the best locations and build their shops...

LG, Diversey Announce Partnership

Diversey Europe Operations B.V. – a provider of hygiene, infection prevention and cleaning solutions – and LG Electronics have entered into an exclusive distribution agreement for LG’s commercial washers and dryers in the U.K. and Ireland markets. “This partnership...

HappyNest Expands Within Denver Market

Laundry pickup-and-delivery service HappyNest has expanded its availability to northeast Denver through its new partner, Crystal Dry Cleaners & Laundry. Based in Wheat Ridge, the facility serves local residents and businesses in Denver and Aurora. “We have an...

GNA Grows Sales Team

Girbau North America has appointed Muzi Sitshela to the position of inside sales associate. In his new role, Sitshela interfaces with GNA staff, distributors and customers on a daily basis; manages the company’s lead qualification process; and handles inside sales and...

EVI to Acquire K&B Laundry Service

EVI Industries Inc. has executed a definitive agreement to acquire K&B Laundry Service, a provider of installation and maintenance services to the industrial and on-premises laundry segments based in North Carolina. With this acquisition, EVI will add 15...

Word to the Wise, Part 1

Laundromat Owners Share Best Practices for Long-Term Success [This is the first of a two-part feature on best practices for new laundromat owners.] Starting a business – any business – can be stressful. It can feel like there are 1,000 things to think about and work...

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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

Service Taxes: An Update on State Sales Tax Expansion

State legislators continue to express ongoing interest in expanding the sales tax to new services, according to MultiState Associates, a government relations firm headquartered in Alexandria, Va. Here’s a look at where those efforts stand: Income tax...

Wash Day Offering WDF Services at Walmart Locations in Delaware

Wash-dry-fold and drycleaning services are now available at three Walmart Supercenters in Delaware. Through a new company called Wash Day, customers can drop off their laundry at the local Walmart and receive a text message when the clothes are ready to be picked up....

Alliance Laundry Systems Distribution Expands West

Alliance Laundry Systems has acquired the distribution assets of Taylor Houseman, based in Pittsburg, Calif. Taylor Houseman boasts more than two decades of experience providing commercial laundry solutions throughout northern California. “This acquisition further...

Cents Unveils New Marketing Tool for Laundry Owners

Laundromat technology provider Cents has launched an integrated marketing suite called Cents Accelerate – which provides the company’s customers with a website, email, and SMS marketing tools developed exclusively for laundry business owners. Created to enable laundry...

DOE Proposes New Energy Standards for Residential Washers

The U.S. Department of Energy has proposed new energy-efficiency standards for clothes washers and refrigerators, in a move aimed at lowering household energy costs and reducing pollution. It should be noted that the products covered by the proposed rules include...

FROM YOUR FAVORITE INDUSTRY EXPERTS

Columns

The Laundry Doctor

Building a Winning Team

Here's How to Improve Your Chances of Hiring Quality Attendants - And Starting Them Off of the Right Foot [This is the first of a three-part series on hiring and training laundry attendants.] To me, employee training actually starts with the hiring process. And that...

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The Business Mind

What’s on My Bookshelf?

What’s on My Bookshelf?

The ‘Best of the Best’ from the Author’s Own Personal Business Library I’ve had the same office in the same building for the last 15 years – from which my brother, Fred, and I run our laundry machinery distributorship. As with most repetitive actions, when I arrive to...

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Wash With Wally

Wash with Wally: Preventing Dryer Fires

Wash with Wally: Preventing Dryer Fires

I own three self-service laundries, and I’ve been plagued with dryer fires. I have the ductwork cleaned every three years. What can I do to prevent these fires? What am I missing? One of the problems I notice in a lot of laundries is that the ductwork has been...

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Viewpoint

Something New is Afoot

If you're reading this, you are – simply by virtue of doing so – among the cream of the crop. You are someone who is willing to dig deep to find every little nugget that can further reinforce your commitment to your chosen place in our industry. More importantly, it...

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Digital Marketing

Marketing Trends to Adopt in 2019

Marketing Trends to Adopt in 2019

These Four Growing Technologies and Promotional Methods Deserve Your Attention The marketing industry is relentless, and it likes to think big. Every year, new technologies and marketing methods emerge that seek to make it easier for businesses like yours win new...

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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.