Successful Multi-Store Operators Explain How They Make This Business Model Work for Them
For many laundromat owners, building a quality, reliable, and affordable staff has always been the most difficult piece to completing the small-business puzzle.
And with lingering labor shortages in many markets, restrictive labor laws, and rising minimum wages nearly everywhere, navigating the employee minefield has never been trickier.
In fact, in the most recent Coin Laundry Association Industry Survey, nearly half of store-owner respondents (43 percent) indicated that “finding and retaining reliable employees” was a major issue for their business, while 26 percent pointed to the “high cost of labor” as a big problem for the industry.
Given that, perhaps it’s not too surprising that a good portion of store owners have chosen to simply eliminate “labor” from the equation and have decided to run unattended laundromats.
According to that same CLA study, 23 percent of respondents admitted to being completely unattended. What’s more, when broken down geographically, certain segments of the U.S. boast a much higher rate of unattended stores – with 32 percent of laundromats in the Northeast running unattended and a whopping 47 percent in the western portion of the country.
This month, we sat down with five successful multi-store operators who have chosen to run their chains unattended. Our panel includes:
Kevin Beggs
BCL Inc.
Brockton, Mass.
Number of Laundromats: 9
Brian Brunckhorst
Advantage Laundry
Benbrook, Texas
Number of Laundromats: 7
Deborah Dower
Paradise Laundry
El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Number of Laundromats: 3
Andy Merendino
Suds Yer Duds
Carneys Point, N.J.
Number of Laundromats: 3
Casey Wright
Maytag Laundries
Rush City, Minn.
Number of Laundromats: 9
Why have you chosen an unattended model for your laundry business?
Casey Wright: To keep it simple. Most of our laundromats are located in smaller towns or cities, where an attended store is either not needed or not financially smart to attempt.
Kevin Beggs: My dad founded our business, acquiring his first location in 1969. But, before going into business for himself, he was the general manager of a chain of 14 full-service, coin-operated laundry and drycleaning “laundercenters.” Each location had two or three full-time attendants who cleaned the machines and processed wash-dry-fold laundry.
After a few years of spending most of his time and energy managing other people, he decided to open his own laundry business as 100 percent self-service – concentrating on maintaining the washers and dryers, and making his laundromats the cleanest and best-equipped in their markets.
Once his self-service model proved successful, he added one to two locations a year and never looked back. After 54 years in business, the company my dad founded is still running 100 percent self-service. We’ve never had a full-time attendant or done an ounce of wash-dry-fold in any location.
Brian Brunckhorst: Of our eight stores – which are split between northern California and Texas – two of the California laundromats are unattended. We chose those stores to be unattended because the revenue didn’t support hiring a part-time attendant. In today’s market on the West Coast, we’ve found it difficult to support attended stores if the gross revenue is less than $15,000 per month.
Andy Merendino: Although I believe an attended laundromat is a less risky and better customer service business model, it also requires a level of sales revenue that may not be possible in certain markets and for certain store sizes, especially if the laundry business is not doing wash-dry-fold laundry. The unattended model works for us in the three small towns in which we operate – all within 20 minutes of our home. Of course, building up your volume to afford attendants may be a good goal to work toward.
Given that, for our busiest laundromat, we’re planning to bring in attendants at peak times during the busy season. It will pay off to help keep the traffic flowing, especially since some customers tend to leave their clothes and go elsewhere – which can cause a frustrating bottleneck for waiting customers, as well as costing us money.
Deborah Dower: California labor laws, workers’ compensation costs, and an ever-increasing minimum wage were a few of the reasons we elected to run unattended. My husband and I both had managed employees in the past and weren’t anxious to deal with the headaches that can ensue. We also realized that, without an attendant, when “it” hit the fan, we would need to respond, so we identified a virtual, 30-minute drive-time radius from our home and kept our stores within this distance.
In 2014, we made an exception to this business model on a laundromat we built with the intention of flipping it in a year. It was 45- to 60-minute drive, depending on traffic. In this situation, we secured a lockbox on the exterior of the store and contracted with a local handyman. We paid him a dispatch fee whenever we needed something to be resolved quickly, such as a clogged toilet or water on the floor.
Were your unattended laundries ever attended?
Brunckhorst: One of our stores was attended when we first opened. However, for several reasons, we transitioned to an unattended business model.
Originally, the store had a problem with the homeless hanging out there all day. By making the laundromat fully attended, we were able to address that issue and establish a positive “neighborhood culture” for the business. It also helped to educate the customers on how the equipment is used and how to get help if nobody was there.
But, eventually, we changed it to an unattended laundromat, mainly as a matter of economics. There are significant costs associated with having a store even partially attended, and this move has helped the store stay competitive within the market.
What are your current store hours, and why do those seem to work best for your business?
Wright: Our laundries are open from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily – 365 days a year. Our doors lock and unlock automatically at the appropriate times each day.
Our customers are allowed to start their laundry up until the time the doors lock – and, once they leave, they’re unable to get back into the building. In addition, we leave the interior lights on 24 hours a day for security.
We used to be open 24 hours, but we discovered that most of our issues with security and vandalism occurred between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. Our saying is that “nothing good happens after 10:00 p.m.”
Beggs: We operate from 5:00 a.m. to midnight at all locations. Since we’re self-service, we can keep our stores open longer, offering our service to more customers when it’s convenient for them – early or late. We close at midnight because some of our laundromats are in residential areas or strip malls, where outside lighting is turned off after midnight.
Brunckhorst: One of our unattended stores is open from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and the other is open 24 hours. The hours depend on the neighborhood in which the store is servicing. For the 24-hour store, it’s in a safe neighborhood, with a lot of traffic at all hours of the day. The other laundry is in more of a bedroom community, which sees most of the traffic die down after dinner.
Merendino: Our laundries are open 4:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily.
Dower: Each store has different hours of operation. We typically set our store hours based on the activity/hours of the other tenants in the center. It’s also important to select hours based on your demographics. One store is near a senior complex, and they tend to get up early so that laundromat opens at 5:00 a.m.
How do you handle restroom access in your laundromats?
Wright: In the past, our restrooms were always open to the public. However, we recently began installing card systems in our stores. Three of our nine laundromats are now card-operated – with three more converting to cards by July.
For these stores, a customer must have one of our laundry cards to access the restroom. There’s no charge, but access is now limited to card-carrying customers.
Beggs: If we’re there, customers are welcome to use the restroom. If we’re not there, the restroom is unavailable. Restrooms are the one thing we don’t offer that some customers occasionally ask for.
Open restrooms with no monitor around would present extra – and possibly serious – problems. Instead, we put the square feet we save – since we only need one employee restroom, not two ADA-accessible ones – and the cleaning time we save into more and cleaner washers and dryers. Our regular customers know this and manage their visits to the laundromat accordingly, perhaps with a short trip to a local or neighboring convenience store.
Brunckhorst: Neither of our unattended laundromats are large enough to have a restroom. However, we’ve partnered with other businesses nearby so that our customers can use their restrooms if they need to.
Dower: Our restroom doors have keypad entry, and we change the code monthly. Not all keypad locks are created equal, it needs to be one that has a privacy lock that disables the keypad when occupied. A sign on the door instructs customers to call for the code, and once we confirm they are a customer, we provide the code. With only one store, I would answer the calls and look on the camera to see who is requesting the code. However, with multiple stores, it isn’t feasible to answer every call, so we now use Grasshopper call management.
How do you handle opening and closing the stores?
Wright: Opening and closing the laundromats is automated. We have magnetic door locks and electronic Intermatic timers. To leave the business after hours, we’ve installed motion sensors that unlock the out-swinging door, as we have dual doors at each entrance. We also have a button customers can push in case the motion sensor doesn’t work.
Beggs: We use time clocks. Our doors automatically open at 5:00 a.m. and lock at midnight. Customers using the laundromat at midnight can stay as late as they need to, using a turn-to-leave handle to leave when they’re done.
We use Intermatic time clocks that adjust automatically for daylight saving time. In addition, we’re currently looking into adding a Wi-Fi switch to the time clock to handle the couple of times a year when late-night customers accidentally lock themselves out; it would provide a way to remotely open a door to let those customers back in.
Brunckhorst: For our store that is not open 24 hours, we use a magnetic door lock, which opens up the business every morning. We also use a Wi-Fi power switch as the timer. This allows us to open the doors remotely if needed, and it automatically adjusts for time changes – so we don’t need to make a special trip to the store to set the time twice a year. And the best part of all is that the switches cost less than $15.
Dower: All of our stores use an automated locking/unlocking system on timers. When we acquired one store, it had a pin type lock; however, if the door wasn’t lined up exactly, it wouldn’t lock. We switched the pin mechanism to a magnetic lock that engages as long as they are in close proximity.
Over the years, we’ve had electrical issues with the mag lock touch bar and the need to have an override button. Most recently, we’ve switched to strike-plate technology. Unfortunately the auto locking presents another issue, because customers don’t always read signs and inevitably will leave and become locked out before they have completed their laundry. A smart relay added to the door’s electrical allows me to use my iPhone to unlock the door remotely and let them go back inside to retrieve their items.
What specific types of precautions do you take for the security of your store, and the safety of your customers?
Wright: We have a high-quality DW Cube camera system, which can actually read the license plates on the vehicles in our parking lot. We can monitor and review footage from our phones, tablets, or any computer.
Beggs: We keep our LED lights on all night, inside & out. Plus, we design our laundromats with good visibility from the street, and have full-coverage video with up to 12 cameras at each location.
Brunckhorst: All of our locations feature monitored alarm systems, which cost as little as $100 a year, and security cameras. We even have a button customers can use if they need to speak to someone right away.
Merendino: Security is always a constant concern, which is the only reason we lock up nightly, versus staying open 24/7. We have our laundromats covered with cameras that we can view from any device anywhere we may be. In fact, our camera records have helped resolve many customer complaints; find lost items; report suspicious individuals, thefts, and vandalism; and even helped local police solve crimes in the area. You definitely don’t want to be without a quality camera system.
Dower: One of our stores was open 24 hours, and we had a security company that would make three random walkthroughs and bathroom checks each night between midnight and 6:00 a.m. The presence of security gave comfort to our customers and discouraged any wrongdoers.
What is your cleaning schedule?
Wright: Every store varies. We allow our cleaning people to clean at whatever times work best for them, as long as the laundromat’s gets cleaned regularly.
Also, all of our cleaners are company employees. We have no independent contractors.
Beggs: The laundromats are fully cleaned early in the morning, or else late the night before, so that they’re clean for the start of each day. A cleaning person will come back in the mid- to late-afternoon to sweep up, empty the wastebaskets, and make sure everything looks good for the early evening, when the stores tend to get busy again.
We have one part-time employee in each location, who comes in twice a day, seven days a week – and averages about 17 hours per week.
Brunckhorst: The unattended laundries are cleaned twice a day – once around noon and then again at closing.
We have independent contractors providing our cleaning service. It’s important to note that, when hiring someone to be a contractor, you must make certain they provide all of their own cleaning supplies and are not tied to a specific schedule. It’s also best if they clean for more than one company, and all of our locations are their own company.
Merendino: We have part-time cleaner/closer employees for the last two to three hours of the day. These staff members ensure that everyone is out by 11:00 p.m., the doors are locked, and the store is clean and ready for automatic opening the next morning.
Dower: We have a janitorial company that cleans each store twice a day. Every day, they come through to do a quick clean. They check the restroom, wipe up spills, sweep, and empty trash.
We stagger our store’s closing times – one store closes at 9:00 p.m., another closes at 10:00 p.m., and the third one closes at 11:00 p.m. At night, they clean top to bottom – scrub and disinfect the restrooms, stock supplies, empty the lint trays, wipe down the machines, remove any fingerprints on the glass, and mop the floors.
How is equipment maintenance and repair scheduled and handled?
Wright: We try to handle at least 95 percent of the equipment repairs ourselves. Of course, for some of the large bearing jobs, we’ll have our distributor’s technicians come in to take care of it.
Additionally, all of our doors feature a keypad entry system so that any vendors or contractors can be provided their own codes to enter our utility rooms without us needing to be there to let them in. This also is true for the local fire and police departments in every town we serve – they have a code to get into the building after hours.
Beggs: We complete a “route” twice a week, or just once a week for our two lower-volume locations. During this time, we’ll conduct a manager visit and service any equipment that might be down. For any urgent matters or problems that come up between our scheduled trips, we have a technician on call and available seven days a week.
Brunckhorst: We have a repair person visit the stores once every other week to fix machines as necessary. They also perform routine maintenance as well.
Dower: We handle most of the maintenance and repairs, such as cleaning coin drops, replacing belts, and maintaining drain valves and water valves. For larger jobs, we have three excellent maintenance repair technicians in our area.
What type of remote monitoring systems do you utilize?
Beggs: We can check our store video remotely from a computer or phone – and our card systems also are remotely accessible, which lets us offer on-the-spot refunds or help with other card-related issues or questions, if a customer calls our 24-hour live answering service with an immediate problem.
We try to respond within five minutes from the time our answering service sends out the call. Responding as soon as possible helps when a customer has a problem and is wondering when – or if – someone will call back.
Brunckhorst: All of our locations have alternative payment systems, and our change machines are connected to the internet to alert us if any of these units runs out of money. Additionally, the machines will text us once they become full, and our payment systems keep track of how full the machines are so that we can plan our collections accordingly.
Dower: We knew the lack of on-site personnel meant we’d need to invest in technology to automate many of the tasks an employee would perform. Here are a few examples of how technology enables us to remain unattended:
With our change machines, I receive a text message if there is a bill held/tamper, an acceptor error, a stacker error, or if a changer goes out of service. Every night, I receive an email report of bills taken in and coins dispersed. This lets me know if we are at risk of running out of coins before the next collection, or if one side is not working.
We have sensors on the water heater out line that alerts us to any temperature dips below a set point, indicating a problem with the boiler. Also, there are sensors in the swamp cooler registers, which alert us if they’re not blowing at optimal efficiency and need attention. We even have sensors behind the dryers to measure ambient temperature and alert us if it exceeds a specific threshold.
All of our washers and dryers feature cloud-based remote management. Although the upfront cost was significant, we knew over the long term that the functionality would enhance the customer experience. It enables me to resolve customer satisfaction issues via my cell phone. For example, if a customer’s $10 bill is held captive in the change machine and the clothes are already in the washer, I can issue a free vend to any machine as reimbursement. Of course, I check the overhead camera to verify the customer’s claim.
Additionally, each store has a 16-channel network video recorder with at least 14 cameras. We have one camera directly above the change machine. This view enables us to verify the bill denomination when a customer makes a refund claim. And our exterior cameras can capture license plates, which is really the only way to track down a thief or vandal.
How often are you personally in your laundromats?
Wright: We try to be in every store at least three times a week, but it usually ends up being more like four times a week.
Beggs: A manager is in each store at least twice a week, and more often than that if any extra work or maintenance needs to be done.
Brunckhorst: Owning as many stores as we do and operating them in both California and Texas, we’ve had to put a lot of systems in place to run the stores in a more remote fashion. I’m in our California stores at least once every two weeks, and I’m in our Texas locations weekly. I travel more than most, and now have the ability to be away for as long as a month.
Merendino: We monitor our laundromats closely, and visit them twice daily to clean and fix whatever may be required.
Also, we have our contact number posted, and encourage customers to call to report any problems – such as water leaks, dirty restrooms, and failed machines, as well as to request refunds. Often, I’ll run right over to the store to help a customer, if I’m nearby. When customers call, I always answer, and we always find a remedy to their problems. Sometimes, that remedy may be delayed, but we always “make it right” with the customer.
Dower: I’m there two to three times a week.
What do you see as the main advantages of an unattended laundry model?
Wright: It’s the KISS principle – “Keep It Simple, Stupid.” We’ve got less employees and less employee payroll.
Beggs: Running self-service laundromats lets us put all of our energy into cleaning and maintenance, which are our two top priorities. And it also allows for extended business hours, which lets us provide laundry services to customers when it’s most convenient for them.
What’s more, in the post-COVID era, people have become more accustomed to talking to someone who is responding remotely. So having an on-call staff member handle a laundromat issue is no big deal.
We saw similar acceptance when grocery stores and retail chains like The Home Depot began installing self-service checkout lanes. Consumers became more familiar with touchscreens and processing transactions themselves – so using a touchscreen at the local laundromat to add value to a loyalty card is no problem.
In other words, self-service laundries have benefitted from the current trend toward remote working and self-service options at other retail businesses.
Brunckhorst: The main advantages are expenses. Without the payroll overhead, you can operate the stores for less. You also don’t have the employee hiring, scheduling, and training headaches. The business is simpler to run as well, because of the lack of any ancillary businesses.
Dower: There are no payroll costs, which means a higher monthly net income. And there’s less stress, because we don’t have to worry about covering a shift if someone calls in sick.
By contrast, what are the disadvantages or limitations of your unattended laundry operation?
Wright: No doubt, some customers will want help with every aspect of the process; they want someone to walk them through every step of using your store’s equipment.
Also, being on call is a big disadvantage.
Beggs: One inconvenience is that our customers have to manage their trips to the laundromat around any restroom needs, which they do.
Otherwise, these days – with remote video, reliable card systems that help customers “through the process” with audio and video prompting, and an answering service to handle customer calls (typically one or two per week per location) – we feel self-service laundromats can run just as well and successfully as those with a full-time attendant.
Brunckhorst: The main disadvantages include cleanliness and customer service. If you have an extremely busy store, it’s going to get dirty, and having someone there all of the time is probably a must. Also, the customer experience should be better in an attended laundry, because well-trained attendants are there to help show customers how to use the equipment and to assist them with any issues that may arise.
Merendino: You have to be willing to tolerate a certain amount of customer disrespect and abuse to your laundromat. In addition, it can be demanding at times. Personally, getting out of town for more than a couple of days at a time has been challenging. The hands-on, small-business lifestyle is not for everyone.
Dower: Dealing with homeless population in our market has been challenging, especially during the rainy season. They try to put their rain-soaked clothes and sleeping bags in the dryers without washing them first.
What are the biggest mistakes to avoid when running an unattended laundromat?
Wright: The biggest mistake is not stopping by in person as often as you should and not being a truly responsible business owner. You can’t just collect the money and leave. Keep the business updated, stay in touch with your customer base, and try to stop by and visit with the customers at different times throughout the week.
Beggs: The biggest mistake is thinking that a self-service laundromat will just “run itself.” Self-service stores still need someone paying attention to the details and caring about the customers, even if there is little to no face-to-face interaction.
Last year, we began improving our online presence, which was long overdue. And, this year, we’re focusing on customer service – trying to make some small improvements, such as offering charging stations for customers’ cell phones, improving in-store signage, and focusing on some cosmetic issues. With nine locations, there’s always a to-do list.
Brunckhorst: The biggest mistakes would occur when stores are neglected. Being unattended doesn’t mean being not clean. Cleanliness is so important in this business. Likewise, unattended doesn’t mean unwatched. You or someone at your company should be monitoring the business through your cameras. The beauty is that it can be done remotely. And, lastly, if you choose to hire an independent contractor to clean, be sure you’re following all of the rules with regard to this type of worker – or you could face some rather hefty fines.
Merendino: “Unattended” is not synonymous with “neglected.” Unfortunately, that seems to be the biggest mistake many unattended owners make.
Dower: Not monitoring your store’s digital presence. It’s imperative to always send refunds promptly and to reply to all reviews.
Please finish the following sentence: “If you’re not going to have laundry attendants working in your store, you better be sure to have…”
Wright: Quality cleaning people, and always have someone on call and available to go to the store – whether it’s you or a store manager. If a changer suddenly goes down or the laundromat floods or whatever the case may be, someone needs to get there quickly.
Beggs: A real commitment to excellence – in keeping your laundromat clean and well-maintained, and in providing first-class “more than expected” customer service.
If there’s no one at the store, few customers will call or reach out for assistance when they have a question or a problem. However, when they do, if an owner or on-call employee responds quickly and effectively, taking care of that customer’s issue in a genuinely caring and helpful way, the customer is going to remember that visit to the laundromat as a good experience.
Customers appreciate clean laundromats and machines that work. We hear that over and over. And adding “a little extra” for customers who call, who need help, or who may have left something behind at the store, will set your laundromat apart from the competition – attended or not. In our experience, once we make sure we do that, we know our laundromats will provide an important and essential service that our customers will value and support – week after week. And that’s what keeps us going.
Brunckhorst: Some way for your customers to get hold of you if they need help. Lack of customer service will ruin your business.
Dower: A great customer experience!
