American Drycleaner - March 2017

© Copyright 2017 American Trade Magazines All rights reserved.

® March 2017

The

Night

LANE

Serving your customers at all hours

■ TALKIN’ ’BOUT BOILERS ■ POWER-UP YOUR NETWORKING

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Visit us at the Clean Show, Booth 511

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drycleaner drycleaner A M E R I C A N

March 2017

Vol. 83, No. 11

FEATURES

16

(Composite image: Clothesline Cleaners and Ingram Publishing)

6

DEPARTMENTS

The Night Lane In the middle of the night, can your clients still do business with your drycleaning operation? Open up new revenue “river channels” and let services and partnerships flow. Serve your busy customers at all hours. “Omni channeling” your services includes apps, deals with condos, steady over-the-counter cleaning, relaible routes, or the all-night, drive-thru, drop-box and kiosk service. Make it your business to be open for business. The night lane never closes!

Tim Burke, Editor Talkin’ ’Bout Boilers Efficient, sporting a modern footprint, and better vented than ever before, boilers at drycleaning plants can, with sound maintenance, be a source of cost savings. Boilers are the heart of your plant.

Hear operators and manufacturers tell you how to keep it beating strong and be the life of your party.

Tim Burke, Editor

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American Drycleaner, March 2017

Pre-Inspection Goal Scorer

4

Management Strategies Power-Up Your Networking Skill Diana Vollmer

27

Industry Observations Ideas Do Percolate Howard Scott

32

Spotting Tips The (Spotting) World is Yours Martin Young

36

Online Buzz Dig It! Mining Social Media Susan Shalhoub

38

Around the Industry

40

Off the Cuff NEW! ‘Get to Know’ someone from your industry: this month, it’s Mike Nesbit

45

Advertiser Index

45

Classified Advertising

46

Wrinkle in Time Fresh Baked

48

NEED HELP FINDING THE HIDDEN HANGER? Scan this QR Code for help in finding the hidden hanger on this month’s cover.

Good luck!

www.americandrycleaner.com

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“Business has never been “Business has neverbetter.” been better.”

“The support from CBS was great. Even before we signed up, they were responsive and flexible in their moving approach.

They havemoving helped better. our team “We’re faster.

We’re We’re become more efficient.” moving more efficiently. That means profitability” Brent Ramenofsky Phil Landauer, Cleaners Owner of Boston Pierce Cleaners

We Speak Cleaner We Speak Cleaner 800.406.9649

800.406.9649 www.cleanerbusiness.com

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www.cleanerbusiness.com

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P RE - I N SP E CT I O N

Goal Scorer W

hen a friend over the phone asked me to describe in three words the National Hockey League today (we both follow pro hockey), I replied, “Highly-skilled, safety-minded, image-conscious.”

After hanging up, I started thinking about that question in our own fabricare “league.”

I asked a dozen drycleaning owners to describe in three words (or phrases) our drycleaning industry today. I asked all across the U.S.: East, West, and in-between.

From the East: “rapidly-changing environment,” “evolving toward eco-friendly,” and “seeking future growth for tomorrow.”

The Great Plains: “consolidating,” “fragmented,” and “challenged.”

The Rockies: “best opportunity ever,” “embrace new technology and new lifestyles,” and “dry cleaning dodged Amazon.”

On the “Left Coast”: “stagnant,” “diversification necessary to survive,” and “work harder and smarter for the same revenue.”

Some of these thoughts connect, coincidentally, with our focus this month on services and partnerships titled The Night Lane: Tim Burke Omni Channeling Your Services, serving you on page 6.

Our second feature checks out latest trends from the very heart of your plant in Talkin’ ’Bout Boilers, building steam on page 16.

Your three all-star columnists return. Diana Vollmer connects on powering-up your networking skills; Howard Scott helps you percolate with truly new ideas for your business; and Martin Young motivates you to become the go-to technical guru.

Around the Industry and Wrinkle in Time are complemented this month by Off the Cuff, a new special feature that helps you get to know someone from the industry.

Also, dig the latest Online Buzz from Susan Shalhoub.

Clean ’17 is growing larger on the horizon, and our coverage starts next issue. We’ll be in booth 2591 so make sure to drop by. But for now, think over the opinions you heard here today. Opportunity. Growth. Diversification. Are they your goals, too?

Happy March! Happy St. Paddy’s Day! ADC American Drycleaner (ISSN 0002-8258) is published monthly except Nov/Dec combined. Subscription prices, payment in advance: U.S., 1 year $46.00; 2 years $92.00. Foreign, 1 year $109.00; 2 years $218.00. Single copies $9.00 for U.S., $18.00 for all other countries. Published by American Trade Magazines LLC, 566 West Lake Street, Suite 420, Chicago, IL 60661.

Periodicals postage paid at Chicago, IL and at additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER, Send changes of address and form 3579 to American Drycleaner, Subscription Dept., 440 Quadrangle Drive, Suite E, Bolingbrook, IL 60440. Volume 83, number 11. Editorial, executive and advertising offices are at 566 West Lake Street, Suite 420, Chicago, IL 60661.

Charles Thompson, President and Publisher. American Drycleaner is distributed selectively to: qualified dry cleaning plants and distributors in the United States. The publisher reserves the right to reject any advertising for any reason. © Copyright AMERICAN TRADE MAGAZINES LLC, 2017. Printed in U.S.A. No part of this publication may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher or his representative. American Drycleaner does not endorse, recommend or guarantee any article, product, service or information found within. Opinions expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of American Drycleaner or its staff. While precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of the magazine’s contents at time of publication, neither the editors, publishers nor its agents can accept responsibility for damages or injury which may arise therefrom.

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American Drycleaner, March 2017

Publisher Charles Thompson 312-361-1680

cthompson@ATMags.com

Editorial Director Bruce Beggs 312-361-1683

bbeggs@ATMags.com

Editor Tim Burke

312-361-1684

tburke@ATMags.com

National Sales Director Donald Feinstein 312-361-1682

dfeinstein@ATMags.com

Digital Media Director Nathan Frerichs 312-361-1681

nfrerichs@ATMags.com

Production Manager Roger Napiwocki Advisory Board Mike Bleier Steven Dubinski John-Claude Hallak Mike Nesbit Herron Rowland Fred Schwarzmann Beth Shader Ellen Tuchman Rothmann Contributing Editors Howard Scott Diana Vollmer Martin Young Office Information Main: 312-361-1700 Subscriptions 630-739-0900 x100 www.american drycleaner.com

www.americandrycleaner.com

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Omni Channeling Your Services

The

Night

LANE (Image licensed by Ingram Publishing)

Revenue ‘river channels’ stream customers your way at all hours; also, forge partnerships to bump-up your crossover business

W

By Tim Burke, Editor

ell, it’s eight o’clock in Boise, Idaho I’ll find my limo driver Mister, take us to the show I’ve done made some plans for later on tonight.

I’ll find a little queen And I know I can treat her right What’s your name, little girl?

What’s your name?

You probably know well the lyrics from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s hit tune What’s Your Name.

And you can see that even the legendary Southern rock band had convenience issues. They were pressed for time. We all are.

At 8 o’clock at night in Boise, and many other places, your customers will need dry cleaning. That’s a fact!

More and more drycleaning services are becoming

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American Drycleaner, March 2017

available through many options. And that’s the name of this new game — omni channels.

Give your customers as many convenient ways as possible to make their life easier and more joyful. It happens with more channels and more partnerships to get the job done easier and faster for them.

Enter Gary McCracken, who, with wife Keh, owns Clothesline Cleaners in — where else? — Boise.

“Drop bins at the stores allow customers to drop off their cleaning after hours,” he says. “But the Metalprogetti 24/7 Garment Valet at our Meridian (Idaho) boutique location is the newest big attraction. The customers that use it love it! They even use it during business hours, opting for automation over personal service.”

He is describing the operation’s drive-up lane and kiosk system that enables customers to (continued) www.americandrycleaner.com

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Right now, it’s “eight o’clock in Boise, Idaho,” as the song goes. Today’s drycleaning operators offer customers many ways to get their cleaning needs met. (Photo: Clothesline Cleaners)

drop off and pick up their hanging orders anytime.

Convenience has always been, and will continue to be, the driving factor that brings customers into any location, McCracken says. “The more convenient we can make our service, the more likely we are to attract new business.”

But Clothesline Cleaners still has “dedicated over-thecounter traffic, as well as a very steady route business,” he adds. For over 30 years, it has been committed to providing clients with the highest quality care and finishing of garments.

But there are challenges in offering more services.

“We have seen great success in not outsourcing our work,” McCracken says. “Alterations; leather and suede, including shoes, hats, and boots (Uggs); bridal gowns; flatwork; and feather pillows are all done in-house.”

Because there is generally little competition in those specialty areas in its region, Clothesline Cleaners can set its own price point to maximize profit, he adds.

Many streams offer customers easy paddling to your services. But are you offering them?

REACH POINTS “A customer can access cleaning services from many different channels today,” says Kyle E. Nesbit, vice 8

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president of business development at Texas’ MW Cleaners, with responsibility for brand management, marketing programs, and more.

“For example, the customer can now request cleaning services online from a desktop or mobile device, by mobile app, or by telephone, or in the traditional manner through a brick and mortar store.”

Dry cleaners, he suggests, need to realize that the experience throughout all of the channels should be seamless and integrated.

With 37 Houston area locations, MW Cleaners prides itself as a high-quality drycleaning company that specializes in wedding gown preservation, alterations and specialty cleaning, according to Nesbit.

His company opened two state-of-the-art, fully staffed, 24/7 locker stores that it calls MW Clean Closet.

A third store is in development.

At the heart of the omni channel and digital crusade is the desire to become as convenient as possible.

“We will hopefully launch our mobile on-demand app this first quarter of the year,” Nesbit says. “We’ve also finalized a contract to redesign our website to make it mobile-responsive on all devices and to integrate it with SPOT POS’ web API.” In still other channels, his company (continued) www.americandrycleaner.com

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offers locker services in office buildings.

But he notes there are challenges to finding the right mix of tenants in multitenant buildings, where casual dress, security and privacy concerns, and just the location of the lockers are all “major stumbling blocks.”

Single-tenant buildings have proven to be far more lucrative, he points out.

“Because management tends to view the locker service as both an employee benefit as well as a way to increase productivity by making work schedules more flexible, they are more prone to promoting it,” says Nesbit.

Multi-family properties can be a mix of both challenges and successes, he says. “Locations right by mailrooms have generally proven to be the most successful.”

THE ‘WOW FACTOR’ “I no longer believe that the key for traditional dry cleaners is to simply open more stores,” says Mike Bleier, owner of Greener Cleaner in Chicago, and a Keh McCracken (left) and Gary McCracken own Clothesline member of the American Drycleaner Cleaners in Boise, Idaho. (Photo: Clothesline Cleaners) Advisory Board. There are simply too many ways that the drycleaning customer can be reached, and every little bit takes morning and service occurs during normal business away from these traditional stores. hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). This pickup and delivery option “For example,” Bleier says, “we recently signed up an is free with no minimums, since the unattended pickup entire office building for a large company. It’s worked and delivery is so efficient for us to run.” great, and we now have about 50 people signed up and Bleier’s company also offers a premium, on-demand using our service from that property.” pickup and delivery service through a partnership with He started his own business, Drive Cleaning, feathe web- and platform-based firm Starchup. “With this turing free pickup and delivery, in 2004. In 2011, he service, customers simply download our app from the bought Greener Cleaner, which he says pioneered ecoGoogle Play or Apple iTunes store for free.” friendly cleaning by becoming the country’s first 100% There is no need to ever call him, he says. With the wet cleaner in 1995. app, “we get three to five signups per day that we never He’s had five different stores over the years. But speak to. This is our ‘premium’ service, because it times have changed, and he no longer thinks stores are is appointment-based; customers can pick one-hour the best return on investment for dry cleaners looking to service windows nightly.” expand.

He treats everything that comes through the app as “Our traditional route still accounts for more than 60% “specials” and turns them around in 24 hours, enabling of our operating income,” Bleier says. “This is your stancustomers to have their cleaning picked up Monday dard Monday/Thursday, Tuesday/Friday, Wednesday/ night and delivered on Tuesday night, for example.

Saturday service, with free pickup and delivery.”

“It just gives a real ‘wow factor’ for these customers,” Customers using the service have to understand that Bleier says. “This service has a $3.50 delivery fee and it is “unattended,” he says. “We do not set specific carries with it a $20 minimum each time the service is appointment times, or even time ranges. used.”

“Customers know to just leave their bags out in the (continued) Dan Miller owns Mulberrys Garment 10

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Care, based in Minneapolis, with recent expansion into the San Francisco area.

Speaking more about the revenue “river channels” of today, he weighs in: “The biggest challenge is complexity. Managing one store with set hours, as it’s been for decades in the drycleaning business, is considerably easier than managing multiple stores, lockers, kiosks, and delivery drivers,” he says.

“However, that makes the business that much more exciting and innovative.”

To Miller, it’s just the continuation of the trend of customers wanting services performed on their schedule and not the other way around.

“The businesses that recognize this will have a meaningful advantage,” he says.

When drycleaning operators marry brainstorming with partnerships that fit well, profits can be had.

Mike Bleier, at his Drive Cleaning in the Chicago area, poses next to his store van. (Photo: Tim Burke)

LET’S PARTNER, PARD Marketing channels open up and flow through partnerships.

Miller thinks partnership opportunities have always been there. It’s just a question of finding the right ones, whether it’s a grocery store or a suit maker.

“We partner with Custom Tailors, which has been great,” he says. “They get a dry cleaner that understands the needs of their clientele and we get a great referral source for future drycleaning customers.”

Bleier’s business partners with condos in Chicago.

“For us, it makes perfect sense to work directly with properties to offer our service to an entire building instead of just one customer. In exchange, we offer generous discounts to all the residents.”

He knows a lot of dry cleaners bristle at discounting, but it was really a simple math equation for him.

“For example, I was going to one building for four years for one loyal customer. We approached him and asked if he would be our advocate on his condo board to bring our service to his entire property.

“Since he loved us and happened to be on the condo board, it was a slam dunk. He now gets 25% off of his order every day, but we now have 35 customers in his building instead of just one.”

Sales volume from that building “increased by something like 1700%, even after everyone in the building gets discounted,” Bleier says. “Multiply that by 20, 30, 50, or 100 buildings, and you have yourself a very nice business.”

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Nesbit says his company is “so blessed to be part of Tailored Brands, The Men’s Wearhouse, and Jos. A. Bank. The opportunity to cross-promote with these national companies is unrivaled in the retail drycleaning industry.”

The No. 1 reason to partner with a local or national retailer, he notes, is to increase the rate of customer acquisition.

“My father, Mike Nesbit, who will become the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI) president at the Clean Show in Las Vegas this June, says that new customer acquisition, hopefully leading to increased revenue, seems to be priority No. 1 for almost every dry cleaner he speaks with.”

The younger Nesbit suggests that retail dry cleaners try to partner with high-end men’s and women’s retailers in their area.

“The partnership,” he suggests, “could be as easy as cleaning stock items at no charge and, in return, the retailer would give out an offer or promotion for your dry cleaner at the end of each transaction.”

McCracken’s business does quite a bit of partnering: “Yes, we have more strategic partnerships than ever before,” including “custom clothiers, retailers, bed ’n’ breakfasts, Ballet Idaho, Opera Idaho and other performance companies, Boise State University, local high school and junior high schools, Boise Rescue Mission and the Salvation Army.”

He says the referrals and “good press” these relation(continued) ships generate are “priceless.” www.americandrycleaner.com

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VISIT US AT THE CLEAN SHOW, BOOTH 3375 & 3377

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IT’S EIGHT O’CLOCK SOMEWHERE Entrepreneurial spirit and just good ol’ hard work factor into all of this, too, especially when dry cleaners are finding ever more convenient ways to help their clients save time.

Most of the opportunities Bleier jumped on are the result of his own efforts, he says: “If you want more business, the best thing you can do is brainstorm some good ideas, and then roll up your sleeves and go get it!

“Go meet your neighbors and find out how you can help them out.”

Given the scale of integrations that big companies like Starbucks, Chipotle and Disney are creating, Nesbit believes the omni channel endeavor may seem out of Kyle Nesbit stands outside an MW Cleaners location in the reach for smaller, private companies.

Houston area. (Photo: MW Cleaners) “But personally, I don’t think we’re that far away from a world where omni channel is accessible to brands of all sizes.”

Hey, it’s “eight o’clock in Boise, Idaho,” or Chicago, To sum up, McCracken repeats the recorded message Minneapolis, Houston, many other places, and your cuson his company’s phone line: “If it’s after business hours, tomers have to get to their show. don’t worry because you can drop off or pick up your dry Make sure all your channels are open and available cleaning using our 24-hour service bay!”

ADC (and well publicized) to get them there.

SERVICE S T A T IO N If you’re looking to add more omni services to in your drycleaning operation, and you’d like to your operation, pull right up to our “service lane” share them, e-mail tburke@atmags.com. (no waiting, always open). Here’s a quick recap of Here’s hoping our service station fills your tank ideas to consider: with plenty of ideas. Come again!

ADC • App-Based Services • Assembly Systems • Automated Garment Delivery Systems • Drop Boxes • Kiosks • Lockers • Material-Handling Systems • Website Hosting and Development Services Several of these categories can be found in February’s Buyer’s Guide issue. In the Night Lane spirit, they’re always available online at www.americandrycleaner. com; click on “Directories” near the top of the home page.

If you’ve found other types of (Photo: 24/7 Dry Cleaners) services or partnerships successful

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www.americandrycleaner.com

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Talkin’

’Bout Boilers Boilers today are more efficient than ever at getting all the steam you need to your presses when you need it

By Tim Burke, Editor

“S

o this boiler goes into a bar …”

Describe the back-of-thehouse workhorse of your drycleaning plant at your next cocktail party.

You love ’em, sure. We get that. In the drycleaning business, they are the heart of your plant’s operation.

“It seems like there are more and more boiler issues than ever,” says Brian Cass, who, along with brother Dave Cass, co-owns Martinizing Metro Milwaukee, a second-generation company that has been in the drycleaning industry 50 years. (continued)

Brian Cass (left) and David Cass are co-owners of Martinizing Metro Milwaukee. They recently installed a new 125-horsepower boiler in their plant.

(Photo: Martinizing Metro Milwaukee)

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www.americandrycleaner.com

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Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

The best machine for the best solvents.

Union Drycleaning Products, USA 1900 Meredith Park Drive McDonough, GA 30253 1-800-433-9401 fax 404-361-2454 www.uniondc.com America’s Best Selling Brand of Dry Cleaning Machines ADC_Full Page.indd 1

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(Photo: Tim Burke)

Their operation consists of two package plants, a main central plant, 14 drop stores, five routes, and a restoration business within the Certified Restoration Drycleaning Network (CRDN).

“We just had one of our 50-horsepower boilers go down permanently and the second was close behind,” Brian Cass relates. “They were both about 8 years old.

We replaced them with a 125-horsepower boiler.”

The brothers take their family business personally, and every cost is critical, including, and especially, the big ones like replacing a boiler. It’s likely the same with any drycleaning business owner.

“

We have neglected our feed tank and float valve ... when that valve gets stuck and the water runs out, we essentially pour money down the drain...

”

— Brian Cass, co-owner, Martinizing Metro Milwaukee “We just finished installing our new boiler. Additionally, we have had two other cleaners reach out to us recently saying their boilers had problems,” Cass says.

“I don’t know if it is the conditions some of these boilers are exposed to, or just less care being taken with them by us cleaners but they don’t seem to last as long.

When we were all package plants, each store had a 10- to 15-horsepower horizontal boiler. Other than replacing tubes sometimes, they seemed to last forever.”

The brothers’ boiler challenges fell into two basic areas, according to Cass: traps that had stopped working, and the feed tank’s float valve.

“We recently began using an outside firm that provides trap testing. We used several methods ourselves and found six or eight bad traps. Then we called this outside testing company in and they found 20 more,” he says.

In Wisconsin, the state will provide free trap testing once a year, according to Cass, but then “charge a plant like ours, with 100 or more traps, about $400 to come again, which I plan on doing as soon as we get the last 18

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couple of traps replaced.”

The State of Wisconsin also provides money toward buying the traps, so there really wasn’t any reason for the brothers to let it get as bad as it did, he admits.

“We have neglected our feed tank and float valve, that is part of it. In doing so, when that valve gets stuck and the water runs out, we essentially pour money down the drain in the form of wasted labor while we wait to build up pressure again in our boilers.

“We have a new feedwater system and hopefully that addresses our second issue.”

AS THE INDUSTRY CHANGES...

For the last 31 years, Michael Leeming has been national sales and marketing manager for Los Angelesbased Parker Boiler Co. The company founded in 1946 manufactures industrial and commercial steam boilers from 1.5 horsepower to 150 horsepower.

According to Leeming, there are ways to improve on efficiency, not only testing steam traps more often for proper operation, but adding items to existing boilers such as economizers.

They “capture the waste heat on boiler flue and either pre-heat the makeup water to the boiler or supplement the laundry water needed,” he notes.

“This is free energy, not like a unit that cools condensate, which you then also have to use fuel to put that energy back into feedwater.”

In a drycleaning industry that is changing, boilers must change, too.

“The trend now is more drop stations, and larger production plants,” Leeming says. “The landlords don’t like a plant on their strip mall locations because of environmental concerns with any solvent, so a nice industrial property that the dry cleaner owns has been a good solution for them.”

He further indicates that more people are wearing their dry-cleaned clothes more than once, dressing down, or “buying clothing that do not require dry cleaning, so there is not as much of a market as there was 20 years ago.”

To keep up with the changing fabricare world we live in, two words affect drycleaning plants. They (continued) are “efficiencies” and “advancements.” www.americandrycleaner.com

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Youngs LDE Co. 2194 Edison Avenue, Suite E San Leandro, CA 94577 Hyung Kim Phone: 510-774-0357 Email: youngkim5819@gmail.com

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(Photo: Tim Burke)

And boilers are in their sights.

HOW EFFICIENT? HOW ADVANCED? Boilers have a new champion. It’s called “efficiency.”

To explain, enter Monika Manter, vice president at Balfurd Cleaners in State College, Pa. It’s a full-service dry cleaner in its 90th year of business, and also part of CRDN. “Like all things, boilers are becoming more technologically advanced. At our linen plant, we have a brand-new boiler with trackable components to more easily see the boiler’s functionality and diagnose problems.”

She says the new system has created a huge efficiency savings because it’s able to function based on the plant’s demand and doesn’t ramp up and down.

But she admits that Balfurd would “love to get all these bells and whistles in a smaller footprint for our drycleaning facility” at some point.

“The biggest challenge we face, since we’re not in a big city, is getting a boiler repair company here when we have an issue. Like many rural cleaners, our closest option is two hours away, which means when we’re down, it’s always for two-plus hours. Servicing is a huge problem for us.”

Water in central Pennsylvania is extremely hard, Manter points out, so her business is forced to soften its water, which costs money.

Have a reputable, knowledgeable service organization check the boiler/burner setup at least once per year, suggests Steve Junge, president of Lattner Boiler Manufacturing Co. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. With 40 years of service with Lattner under his belt, he represents the fourth generation of family ownership.

“It’s good for the pocketbook, and it’s good for the environment,” Junge notes. “Even though fuel costs are relatively stable right now, I would like to see plant operators be more conscientious about the operating efficiency of their boilers.”

“An issue we’re facing is that our return water to our condensate tank is too hot and (is) wearing out our condensate pump,” Manter explains.

“For us, this is a double-edge sword in that we want our return water to be hot enough in order to keep the boiler running at its most efficient level, but we also 20

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“

All our boilers in Los Angeles County have to have a Low NOx add-on package, which is yet another mechanism that has to be dealt with...

”

— Sajid Veera, owner, Door To Door Valet Cleaners want our pumps functioning for their entire estimated lifespan.”

It’s hard to determine which is more cost-effective: keeping water temperature high or having the pumps last longer, she says. “We’re currently looking into different avenues to fix this issue.”

Most drycleaning operators look at cost first, especially with the advancements in today’s boiler systems.

“Boiler technology is growing and becoming more advanced, but the needs of the fabricare industry have changed little over the years,” says Mike McLean, national sales manager in the Laundry and Drycleaning Division at Fulton Boiler Works in Pulaski, N.Y. McLean has been in the industry for 23 years, all with Fulton. During that time, he’s worked in all facets of the business, including equipment sales, management, technical support and more.

“A compact, cost-effective, and reliable product is still the primary need for dry cleaners,” he says. “Avoiding overengineered products, and finding boilers that operate safely and reliably at a reasonable cost are still the toughest boxes to check.”

While the drycleaning industry has been shrinking over the last few years, the boiler business has remained fairly constant, according to McLean.

He identifies a trend today: “We are seeing a larger number of industrial laundries. Larger boilers and bigger plants are still the majority of installations, but they are increasing in number and becoming a larger part of our business.”

The boiler is the key to successful drycleaning operation. That’s why it’s your plant’s true (continued) www.americandrycleaner.com

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heart. As it goes, so goes the business.

Managing issues such as moisture, water use and maintenance are critically important to owners.

combustion from the burner flame.

“All our boilers in Los Angeles Boilers aren’t always County have to have a Low NOx conversation starters add-on package, which is yet another mechanism that has to be dealt with at parties. But the OUT OF THE DARK in addition to just the regular boiler boilers of today are One thing is pretty clear. Boilers parts.” part of your “business have come a long way.

As mentioned, water savings is Their physical footprint has been paramount. conversation.” reduced, their moisture control is “The price of water in Manhattan more technologically advanced, and Beach, where our previous plant was the need for regularly scheduled located, is set to quadruple in the next maintenance is all too obvious. three years. This was a factor in us moving our main “The boiler room is the dark, sometimes damp, area production plant inland about four miles away from that seems to get forgotten about,” says Cass.

Manhattan Beach to Hawthorne.”

He shares this tale: “In our case, we just built a new Veera has a boiler tip for an owner planning to build a boiler room next to the old one, but our new feed tank new plant or remodel an existing one: “Do not put your was not ready, so we used the old one in its old location. compressor and vacuum in the boiler room!” The heat “We took down the old boiler room walls and put an from the boiler puts extra wear and tear on other equipoverhead door in where the old wall vents were. We ment, he explains. quickly realized how bad the ‘blow by’ of the steam “We visited probably about 15 plants nationwide traps was by the amount of moisture in our plant. when we were designing our plant, and we were sur“I didn’t put it high on the priority list to take care prised to see that a lot of dry cleaners still have their of, and what a mistake that was. Once we fixed our trap compressors and vacuums in the heat of the boiler problem, our moisture problem went away. What a lesroom.” son it was.”

Not to forget the importance of maintaining the boiler, In Southern California, rain can be scarce, Sajid Manter shares a final observation: “We are fortunate in Veera, owner of Los Angeles-based Door To Door Valet that we have a maintenance person who is very knowlCleaners, says he has to watch water bills closely. edgeable about boilers and does consistent preventative “After doing a lot of research on water and gas conmaintenance on ours. It’s tough to find those people.” sumption, we settled on buying a 48-horsepower (boiler) Boilers aren’t always conversation starters at parties. and a 25-horsepower boiler for our new plant, built in But the boilers of today are part of your “business conver2014.” sation” — and of maintaining your profitable bottom line.

His operation focuses on pickup and delivery from So what happened when the boiler went into the bar? client homes. In addition to the routes, his business opThe bartender asked, “Blowing off steam?” To which erates 10 retail locations in greater Los Angeles. the boiler replied, “Only just exactly the right amount, Veera notes that the challenges he faces also come ’cause I’m feeling great.” from “Strict rules from the Environmental Protection “The industry seems to be on a bit of an upswing,” Agency (EPA) and California’s South Coast Air Quality says Junge, “and there is certainly more interest in replacing those out-of-date presses, drycleaning machines Management District (SCAQMD), which according to and boilers than there was even three years ago.” its website, is the air pollution control agency for all of Cass has the final word for dry cleaners: “Efficiency Orange County.” definitely is important to us. Our plant is pretty big and we These agencies, he explains, dictate the amount of nineed all the steam getting to the presses that we can.” ADC trogen oxide (NOx) that can be exhausted in the air after 22

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M A N A G E M E NT S T RAT E G I E S

Power-Up Your Networking Skill You’re the messenger at first, then everyone else is as well

A

s business owners and managers, you are somewhat aware of the power of networking in building your sales.

This column will expand on that concept as well as delineate additional areas that networking can add value to your company by putting your network to work for you.

Networking is commonly linked to marketing, but all of the management items mentioned here can benefit from leveraging your network Diana Vollmer on behalf of your business.

A review of the impact of networking is in order.

What follows is a simple example of the growth of the

value of one penny, doubled daily for 30 days: The value increases from $.01 on day one to $10,737,418.24 by day 30.

That’s well over $10 million in a month — from a single penny.

The same can happen with other items, including leadership traits and customers. This exponential growth all starts with you and your outreach networking.

For example, assume that, on day one, you share a key concept with two of your team members. Then, on day two, they each share the same concept with two others.

And so on.

Referencing the penny example, how many days would it take to share that key concept with your entire (continued) team?

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M A N A G E M E N T ST RAT E G IES

For most among my readership, it would take less than a week.

Even the largest fabricare companies would have shared it with everyone in the organization by midmonth! That is the power of effective networking.

Before you balk at this concept and call it hypothetical, consider the case of Susan Boyle’s audition singing I Dreamed a Dream on the television show Britain’s Got Talent.

Her performance became one of the biggest viral video phenomenons, and has been viewed more than 200 million times, and viewership is still growing.

Psy’s Gangnam Style is the most watched video on YouTube, with over 2.77 billion views at last check.

These examples are most easily processed when considering marketing and revenue generation, so let’s begin with that category.

GENERATOR If everyone in your organization was charged with bringing in business, your reach would expand exponentially.

So how does your shirt finisher bring in business?

Everyone has friends, family and/or acquaintances whom they see in person or communicate with remotely.

Again, using the “each one tells two” concept, your message gets out quickly to a huge audience.

Although not everyone is a natural drycleaning customer, the vast majority of the population owns at least one thing that needs professional textile care.

It might be that once-in-alifetime-occasion type of garment, such as a wedding gown, letter jacket or military uniform.

Or it might be everyday wear that needs wash-and-fold services due to lack of access or desire to do home laundry.

Perhaps it is the home furnishings before a big holiday, 28

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or the boat interior right before the summer season on the water.

It just takes a small effort to identify a need and share with your audience that you can fulfill that need. This message is easy to carry or send anywhere in your market.

Make everyone a messenger, and their recipients will become messengers.

Of course, members of your sales team will be more aggressive in their outreach networking within highly focused target prospect groups.

Beyond sales, networking is incredibly valuable to gain expertise and effectiveness.

NETCASTER Networking with peers who have similar responsibilities can provide insight (related to both what did work and what didn’t) and expertise that can be shared and transported into your company.

Peer groups are plentiful through industry associations of all types. An hour away from the facility every month can reap tremendous benefits in leapfrog learning.

Some simple places to begin are listed for each category, as follows: (continued) Expense Control — The Society of

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M A N AG E ME N T ST RAT E G IES

Cost Management (SCM) (http:// and influence.

A weekly costmgmt.org) is a good place to find Manufacturing and Throughput — breakfast group professionals in this field and to access The National Association of Manufaccan be invaluable current best practices and benchmarks. turers (www.nam.org) is a broad-based for gathering Facilities Management — Real association of manufacturing and market intelligence efficiency professionals in a wide range estate-related groups are located in every market, big and small. Continual of industries represented in all states. that will be improvement in efficiency and expense The member companies range from actionable. control is a key topic of discussion at small to large in terms of volume and every meeting. Let your team utilize this facility size. expertise to improve your facilities manLeadership Training — The Ameriagement. can Management Association (AMA) (www.amanet.org) Financial Issues — Continuing education classes are is a good source, with various resources available. Also, offered by professional accounting associations throughrefer again to Dale Carnegie courses. out the country and are open to non-accountants as well.

Mechanical and Physical Maintenance — A reTake advantage of this valuable local resource. source for maintenance engineers is the Association Not only are the classes informative, but the contacts for Facilities Engineering (AFE) (http://afe.org), which made will be invaluable as regulations change. American provides trade-craft-related supervisory and management Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (www.aipb.org) is certification and technical information. a place to access events and members.

TAKE ACTION Human Resources — The Society for Human ReEncourage your team to explore the opportunities to source Management (https://shrm.org) is an active source network both inside and outside the organization to imof education, information, members and networking prove their skills and leadership capabilities as well as events about all things human resources-related. increase visibility and sales for your company.

Distribution Channels — The National Retail FederChallenge: Go through your own list of contacts from ation (https://nrf.com) provides many useful resources to all sources and think of ways you can mutually benefit managers involved in the distribution channels of goods each other. Then start making those contacts valuable to and services. your company.

Technology — Depending upon the technology and/ If you don’t regularly meet with other businesspeople or automation in question, the POS providers usually ofin your market, start doing it now. A weekly breakfast fer webinars and group interactive training that can be group can be invaluable for gathering market intelligence invaluable for IT efficiency and effectiveness within a that will be actionable. cleaning company.

Get out of your comfort zone and include professionals Marketing and Advertising — The American Marwith different but compatible skills and knowledge, e.g., keting Association (www.ama.org) provides events, a banker, an attorney, a car dealer, a real estate broker, a research, case studies, statistics and networking oppormarketing professional. tunities, as well as access to freelance marketing profesYou will soon look forward to these off-site networksionals who will work for you on a project basis. ing events, and they will become uniquely essential to They will provide portfolios of their work for your your operation.

ADC decision-making process and will supplement your inhouse team as needed.

Diana Vollmer is a managing director for Methods for ManCommunications: Internal/External — The Dale agement, which has served dry cleaners and launderers with Carnegie courses continue to be proven for successful affordable management expertise and improved profitability communication training. The friendships made during since 1953. For assistance brainstorming how to leverage your the courses are also great sources of future networking network, e-mail dvollmer@mfmi.com or call 415-577-6544.

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I N D U S T RY OB S E RVAT I O NS

Ideas Do Percolate Like the aroma of fresh coffee brewing, let new ideas fill the air

N

ew ideas in dry cleaning are few and far between.

I suppose that’s because the work is viewed as so repetitive. It’s the same, day after day, so management just focuses on workload.

Consider the Laundromat industry. In 1983, Phil Akin opened the first Duds ’N Suds in Iowa. The concept was to change a Laundromat from being a grungy chore to being a fun experience, where people would be able to do their laundry as they drank beer at the bar.

The concept grew to 121 outlets, and then the economy did the concept in. But we must admire Phil Akin for creating a new idea in a related industry.

In honor of new ideas, here are three. They aren’t big concepts.

They won’t revolutionize the drycleaning industry, as Akin did to the Laundromat world.

But they aren’t currently in practice, as far as I know. They are worth Howard Scott considering to improve your customer interaction. All are geared toward strengthening the customer bond.

IDEA #1: CUSTOMER OF THE MONTH Set up a station in your counter area to honor a Customer of the Month. It could be on a wall or on a stand, but all customers entering your shop should see it.

Use a foam core board to make the presentation. Include a blown-up photo of the person. Have a headline.

Then the body comment.

This will take a little creativity and artistic inspiration, but you can do it. Make it colorful. Use large letters.

Keep the copy to a minimum of three lines. In these presentations, less is always more.

Who should be chosen? Suggestions include someone who...

• Carries on well. A single mother who raised two children, the oldest of which is now entering college.

• Does good deeds. A person who helps out in the local food pantry one day a week.

• Reaches a milestone. A person who turned 85 and still

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lives on his/her own.

• Is charitable. A grandfather who pays for all his grandchildrens’ first semesters in college.

• Is a local hero. The individual witnessed a robbery and took down the getaway car’s license plate number.

• Has simply been “steady.” The person who celebrates 30 years of employment with the same company, or the couple who have been married 40 years.

• Has an interesting hobby.

How do you locate these people? Peruse the local newspaper. Talk to customers coming into your store.

Check in with community leaders, clubs, and organizations that use volunteers.

After you scratch the surface, you will always be able to find people who are willing to have their good deeds and accomplishments made known.

After a while, customers will enter your store and read the current Customer of the Month post with interest.

They will be appreciative that someone was cited for being an unsung hero.

These viewers might be inclined to send a (continued)

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I N D U S T RY OB S E RVAT I ONS

letter of congratulations to the person.

Such recognition will anoint your shop with a bit of humanity. And it will certainly boost customers’ good feelings for you. You have gained a customer for life.

Let ideas brew.

Choose the ones that are feasible and that could entice customers and prospects.

IDEA #2: FREE DRY CLEANING Have a monthly drawing for $100 worth of dry cleaning. Why would you give away your services for free when you don’t have to? Because it promotes customer goodwill.

Also, it generates some interest in your store, it might get non-customers to sign up, and it shows you are willing to be different.

Set up the parameters. All the customers who purchased $30 worth of dry cleaning over the last three months are included in the drawing. It is a good idea to have this limiting condition. Otherwise, one-time customers might win the prize.

Your computer can easily spit out the candidates. Using a paper cutter, you can gang-cut these lists. Put the slips of paper into a large bowl and draw out the winning entry. Another option is to have customers fill out slips when they come into the store. It gives you an opportunity to promote the offering.

Make a ceremony of the event. For instance, the drawing might run at noon on the first Saturday of the month, and everyone is welcome to come in and see if they are the winner.

This monthly activity will generate excitement. Everyone wants to win, and many will come to the event.

You might say, after the drawing, “OK, you didn’t win this month, but you might be the winner next month. You never know.”

In time, you’ll become known as the dry cleaner who likes to create excitement. Yes, you are giving away something, but, in time, you will be surprised at how much more comes back to you.

IDEA #3: NEW CUSTOMER MEET-UP New customers are the heartbeat of your business. You want to celebrate them. So every three months or so, invite them to come to your shop and meet fellow newbies.

Label it “Welcome, new friends.”

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Perhaps run the event from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on a weeknight or 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on a Saturday. Have a few snacks.

Introduce the new customers to each other. Try to find a connection between them, so that they have something to talk about.

What this effort shows is that you care about new accounts. These new clients will appreciate the thought whether they come or not. And those new residents who drop by will be interested in meeting other new residents.

If nothing else, you can shake hands and say, “Thank you for becoming a new customer. We are now a family.”

SOMETHING’S BREWING These three customer-focused ideas can make your dry cleaner stand out among the competition. I’m sure you can think of your own ideas. Ask yourself: What creates a bit of excitement?

At your office desk (or wherever you’re most comfortable), with a paper pad (or laptop) in front of you, start to cogitate.

Let ideas brew. Choose the ones that are feasible and that could entice customers and prospects.

Another approach to developing ideas is to brainstorm with your key people. After work one day, spend an hour trying to generate thoughts.

When you come up with events, always promote them.

Post signs in the store, place signs around town, and push out e-mail announcements. Get local newspaper coverage to publicize the event. And invite prospects to show them what you offer.

Doing a good job cleaning clothes is your main task.

But that alone is not enough. You must make your store stand out in the community as an innovator, a doer, and a progressive dry cleaner. Employing these ideas will do the trick.

Go out there and percolate with innovative ideas. ADC Howard Scott is a longtime industry writer and drycleaning consultant. He welcomes questions and comments, and can be reached by writing him at Dancing Hill, Pembroke, MA 02359, by calling 781-293-9027, or via e-mail at dancinghill@gmail.com. www.americandrycleaner.com

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S P OT T I N G T I PS

The (Spotting) World is Yours Be that go-to technical guru with the know-how to get stains out

T

here is no chemical tool on the market today that can overcome a lack of technical knowledge on the part of the cleaner/spotter.

However, I continue to find plants where all the expertise remains with the supply representative. Unfortunately, this institutional memory is not readily available. In many cases, the sales calls are two to three weeks apart.

The cell phone is a great resource, but advice is often “hit or miss” when one is not able to actually see the problem.

Many owners lack the foundation of technical knowledge to assess the quality of the cleaning and supplemental stain removal in their operation.

Martin Young The owner must take the word of the employee that the stain cannot be removed, forcing the owner to continue to order “Sorry” tags, instead of asking the employee to try again.

I know of few owners who allow finishers to inspect and pass-up their own work. This is never a reliable policy and almost always leads to a decline in quality. It should be no different with the cleaning department.

Someone in the plant must have realistic expectations of cleaning quality and how to achieve a quality end result.

It has always troubled me to find an owner of a dry cleaner that lacks even basic knowledge of the technical side of the industry.

If that same owner lacks a general manager with technical knowledge and corresponding expectations, there is no one on-site to critique the output.

Never forget that the customer is the next inspector.

There are trade associations, both regional and international, providing training in every aspect of the cleaning industry.

For a small fee, one can get a half day or full day of exposure to focused information that will allow the owner to carry on a technical conversation and establish job performance standards for the employees.

It is not within an employee’s job description to determine performance standards related to their job. A lack of

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knowledge has the potential to allow an employee to hold the owner or manager hostage.

There are occasions when it seems trouble cannot be avoided. One of the more common but easily corrected problems I see is a pH color change due to action by the consumer or the cleaner/spotter.

Having the knowledge to immediately take action to neutralize the pH can and will save you a potential claim.

At the first sign of a color change, quickly begin flushing the area over the vacuum nose of the spotting board.

Alcohol is a moderate alkali and contact with a garment will often result in a discoloration of the original pigment color.

Protein formula is an alkali, and if you fail to test an inside seam before applying either an acid or alkali chemical tool, you could create this same color alteration.

Apply the opposite-pH chemical tool—tannin on protein or protein on tannin—while continuing to flush the area with steam. Done in a timely manner, the pH color change is usually neutralized in four out of five cases.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS Your customer enters your plant with some form of preconceived expectation of the results they should receive.

Most customers expect to have their garment returned without any stain residue and without any type of odor.

If you have conditioned your regular customers that

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2/21/17 10:32 AM

mediocrity is the standard at your plant, then that is what they expect.

But, most customers are looking to have the red wine removed from their cream silk dress or the blood removed from a cashmere blazer. No amount of effort without having the technical knowledge to apply that effort is going to meet the customer’s expectations.

Adhering to a routine set of steps to begin wet-side spotting will go a long way to successful supplemental stain removal.

Flush the stain with steam over the vacuum nose of the spotting board. Move over the solid portion of the board and apply neutral synthetic detergent and light mechanical action. Move back over the vacuum nose and flush with steam.

This will break the surface tension on the garment. It will penetrate the stain, expand the fibers, and it will heat the area to enhance the action of any chemical tool needed afterward.

The next steps remain the same.

The difference is, you use a tannin chemical tool on fruit and vegetable, or a protein chemical tool on stains that originated with an animal.

Everyone is looking for a way to leverage themselves in the marketplace. A diversified income flow is one way to fill in the gaps when the garment count is less than budgeted.

Unfortunately, most cleaners are basing the charges for their service on a phone call to the guy down the street.

This owner may well be the third owner in the last five years, but you see fit to empower him to make business decisions, as if he is on your board of directors. Time is money.

That does not mean that your attitude should be to spend as little time as possible on each garment.

When extra time is required for supplemental stain removal, do it.

Make the commitment to educate yourself and your employees, set yourself apart in the marketplace, and moderate your overall pricing structure to reflect your new position on quality. No more “Me, too” business models. www.americandrycleaner.com

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Once you have sharpened your technical skill and established a new reputation for being the go-to cleaner, you may want to include the concept of time and materials for those items that require a much greater level of time and knowledge, due to the stain content or quantity.

Nothing that you ever learn can be taken away from you.

ADC Martin L. Young Jr. has been an industry consultant and trainer for 20 years, and a member of various stakeholder groups on environmental issues. He grew up in his parents’ plant in Concord, N.C., Young Cleaners, which he operates to this day. Phone: 704-786-3011, e-mail: mayoung@vnet.net.

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ONLINE BUZZ

Dig It!

Mining Social Media

Tips for dry cleaners on how to dig for content ideas

(Images licensed by Ingram Publishing)

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www.americandrycleaner.com

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By Susan Shalhoub

H

ow many times have you hopped onto a business Facebook or Twitter page, only to see that the company’s last post was in 2012? You’re left wondering if the company is still in business or not — whether it’s a restaurant or a bike shop!

You’re not sure if you should patronize that particular establishment — or if it will result in a dead end.

The more likely story is that the business owner has been too busy to post consistently. This could be because he or she is struggling to come up with ideas for content; with a business to run, the brainstorming tends to get put off.

He or she may feel as if they have posted about the same topics over and over again, due to a lack of inspiration.

In the world of content writing for social media, it’s important you offer customers timely and relevant information.

Here are some tips to do this: • Play off topics in the news. Work those current events into your post messaging. For instance, there may be a bridal expo in your city. Offer information on it, a photo, and remind folks that your drycleaning establishment cleans and preserves wedding dresses.

• Explore National or International Days. There is a day to celebrate everything now. Google “National Days” and you will see tons of options for every day of the year. (Did you know March 20th is National Ravioli Day? The most-messiest of foods surely lends itself to a need for dry cleaning.)

• Think about the time of year or the weather. The key here is not to sell to the customer, but to offer useful information. For example, around a holiday, you could offer readers a tip on how to treat a wine stain on a rug before they bring it in for professional cleaning. Also, when it’s time for spring cleaning, let folks know how often they should be dry-cleaning their comforters.

• Don’t underestimate the power of a strong image.

Remember that “before” and “after” photos of tough drycleaning jobs speak volumes. Post them on social media with a brief caption.

With these ideas, drycleaning owners can develop new, creative ways of thinking about social media and have the tools they need to get it done consistently in 2017.

ADC Susan Shalhoub is the owner of Plum Editorial (www. plumeditorial.com), a content writing and editing company based in Orlando, Fla. www.americandrycleaner.com

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A R O U N D T H E I N D U S T RY

Mulberrys acquires San Francisco-based GreenStreets Cleaners Mulberrys, the self-described artisan laundry and drycleaning service, recently expanded to the West Coast through its acquisition of San Francisco-based GreenStreets Cleaners, reports Mulberrys.

Mulberrys indicates it will provide environmentally friendly laundry detergents; biodegradable and recycled packaging; online on-demand pickup and delivery, and much more.

“Sustainability and technology merge together into Mulberrys app and that’s pretty cool,” says Mulberrys founder and CEO Dan Miller. “Signing up is quick, and our pickup service fast.”

Mulberrys will own and operate 10 GreenStreets store-

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Bright, Clean, Expansive! A Mulberrys store in Minneapolis. The company has now acquired 10 GreenStreets Cleaners in the San Francisco Bay Area, raising its store total to 16. (Photo: Mulberrys)

front locations and two proprietary Cleaning Labs in the San Francisco Bay Area, the company notes.

The firm says it will provide the same toxin-free drycleaning service and bespoke customer experience that

2/10/17 11:01 AM

www.americandrycleaner.com

2/21/17 9:30 AM

has made it popular in Minnesota’s Twin Cities region. design, manufacturing and marketing rights to all MBH “Mulberrys is on a mission to establish the first nationRope Tie products, including MBH Rope Ties™, MBH Zip al garment care brand,” says Miller. “San Francisco and Ties™, and MBH J-Hooks™,” says David H. Brown, presiSilicon Valley are among the most discerning consumer dent of EzProducts International, Inc. markets in the U.S. and we are thrilled to build upon Brown notes that his firm will manufacture and distribute GreenStreets’ local success.”

“Genuine” MBH Rope Ties.

GreenStreets was founded in 2007 by Kevin Kneafsey “MBH Rope Tie products is a good acquisition for us,” and Glenn Gilmore, who built the business into a local he says. “EzProducts is very well known in the drycleaning favorite, winning several “Best of San Francisco” awards industry for its high-quality and reliable EzPress®, PopUpfrom publications like the San Francisco Chronicle and Press®, AirPress® and TrackIt® Labels, that help dry cleanSF Weekly. ers save time and money.” (continued) “We really admire Mulberrys’ vision for the future MBH Industries is similarly well of garment care and are excited to take these next steps together,” says Kneafsey. “GreenStreets was able to leap-frog several years by tying our brand to Mulberrys. Rather than try and reinvent the wheel, we Celebrating Manufacturing Excellence for Almost 100 Years! joined forces with Dan Miller to take advantage of his very innovative operational techniques and platform for offering best-in-class customer experience.”

The new Mulberrys Bay Area locations include 10 stores in San Francisco, Mission Bay, South Beach, Marina/Cow Hollow, BelInnovative Serviceable Shape: mont, Burlingame, San Carlos and Now You Can Make Your Steam Palo Alto. They will be staffed by Easier and Faster; 65 local employees.

Compact & Cooler With the GreenStreets acquisiSteam 9.5-50 HP, tion, Mulberrys now operates 16 Natural or LP Gas stores throughout the U.S., with more locations coming soon, the firm notes.

• Four-Pass High Efficiency Power Burner; Miller describes the first day of Up to 150 PSIG; 328 to 1725 LBS/Steam/ the expansion: “There was lots of Hr@2120 F traffic and lots of excitement. We • For Dry Cleaning, Laundry Apparel; are offering a great user experiHumidification; Sterilization ence.”

EzProducts acquires MBH Rope Ties EzProducts International Inc. recently acquired MBH Rope Ties from MBH Enterprises, EzProducts reports.

“We have purchased the exclusive www.americandrycleaner.com

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Manufacturing & Commercial Processes; Health & Excercise Clubs; Steam Rooms; Food Preparation & Processing

Visit us at Booth 3717 at the Clean Show 2017 Lattner Boiler Manufacturing Co. 1411 9th St. S.W. Box 1527 Cedar Rapids, IA 51406 800-345-1527 • 319-366-0778 FAX 319-366-0770 www.lattner.com • e-mail: info@lattner.com

Safe • Sure • Simple

American Drycleaner, March 2017

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A R O U N D T H E I N D U S T RY

Pictured are David H. Brown (left), president of EzProducts International Inc., and Milton B. Heilweil, president of MBH Enterprises. EzProducts acquired MBH in the fall and will manufacture and distribute rope tie products. (Photo: EzProducts International Inc.)

known for its high-quality and reliable rope ties and zip ties that also help dry cleaners save time and money, says Brown.

“I am very pleased with the acquisition,” Heilweil adds.

“I have exhibited near EzProducts at many drycleaner trade shows and have observed their customer service and attention to detail that they give to the drycleaning industry.

Now that I am retired, it gives me great pleasure to turn over a product that I have developed to a company that cares. I am sure that all of my drycleaner customers and distributors will be very happy with EzProducts.”

Rope tie products are designed to speed washer loading/ unloading, to eliminate tangled sleeves and time-consuming shake-out, to produce cleaner shirts through increased mechanical action, and more.

In Memoriam: Sidney Tuchman, Tuchman Training Systems Sidney (Sid) Tuchman, former owner of drycleaning consulting firm Tuchman Training Systems, died peacefully at his home Jan. 7 at age 92, says his daughter, Ellen Tuchman Rothmann. He was also the owner of Tuchman Cleaners in Indianapolis.

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Clothing Draped: With over 35 stores, Sid Tuchman could afford to run weekly TV advertisements.

(Photo: Courtesy Tuchman Advisory Group)

Tuchman was born in Indianapolis and lived there until 1988 when he and wife Charlene began splitting their time between there and San Francisco.

In a Life & Times in the Industry piece honoring American Drycleaner’s 75th anniversary in 2009, Tuchman reflected on his career: “Tuchman Cleaners started as a tiny family business consisting of my brother (cleaner and manager), my father (the best tailor in town), a spotter, a finisher and a route man. My brother was drafted into the Army in 1941 (WWII, “The Good War”), and I was picked to replace him. I was 16-and-a-half. I hated it.

“In 1943, I was drafted again — this time by the U.S. Army. At the end of the war [and a brief acting career in Hollywood], my brother and I entered into a partnership to build a ‘different’ kind of drycleaning company.

“I returned to Indianapolis still star-crazy, and called every celebrity that came through to offer them free cleaning in exchange for allowing me to use their picture in an ad saying, ‘When I’m in Indianapolis, I always bring my best clothes, because I know that Tuchman Cleaners knows how to take care of them.’”

“Sid Tuchman met his wife, Charlene, on a blind (continued) date one Saturday, and they were www.americandrycleaner.com

2/21/17 9:30 AM

It’s not just print anymore. © Copyright 2017 American Trade Magazines All rights reserved.

® February 2017

■ HOW’S YOUR WORKERS’ COMP? ■ FIVE STAR WRAP-UP

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1/23/17 7:35 AM

American Drycleaner can now be viewed on tablets and other mobile devices – great ways to stay on top of the latest industry news and updates. www.americandrycleaner.com

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A R O U N D T H E I N D U S T RY

Surviving Tuchman are his wife, Charlene; three children, Mitch, Ellen and Kathy; and seven grandchildren.

There was a funeral service for Sid Tuchman on Jan. 11 at Congregation Emanu-El (Martin Meyer Sanctuary) in San Francisco.

At the Plant: A promotional genius, Tuchman always had creative ways to drive traffic to his locations.

(Photo: Courtesy Tuchman Advisory Group)

engaged a week later,” reflects his daughter, Tuchman Rothmann, who now owns Tuchman Advisory Group (formerly Tuchman Training Systems) and serves on the American Drycleaner Advisory Board.

“This past May,” she notes, “they celebrated 61 years of happiness together and raising three children, each of whom are happily married.”

He loved to vacation with his entire clan, she continues, and particularly enjoyed the Tuchman Family Olympics, when grandparents, parents and grandchildren separate into teams to compete in various games.

“Although Sid felt his greatest accomplishment was his family, he also was a proud businessman,” Tuchman Rothmann says. “He made each and every person he met feel special because he knew how to listen and to connect from the heart.”

He dressed with great flair and in only the finest clothes, she adds. “He loved to gather friends and family around his Steinway grand piano and sing Broadway show tunes and had an infectious smile on his face every day of his life. It felt great just to be around him.”

Tuchman Cleaners grew into one of the largest cleaning organizations in America, with 35 operating plants and stores, Tuchman Rothmann says. While in business, Sid Tuchman loved helping, mentoring and finding ways to have an impact on others’ lives.

In 2011, he received the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute’s most prestigious honor, the Diamond Achievement Award. The award “recognizes an individual who, through his or her efforts, has raised the professionalism of the drycleaning industry.”

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‘New look’ DLI logo celebrates drycleaning entrepreneurs To commemorate the milestone of the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI) foundation turning 110 years old, the Institute commissioned BeCreative360, an industry marketing and design firm, to create a new logo, DLI reports.

In 2007, the International Fabricare Institute changed its name to the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute. Ten years on, DLI leaders decided it was time for a new look.

“We are very proud to represent drycleaning entrepreneurs in the United States and around the world,” DLI CEO Mary Scalco says. “With 110 years behind us, we are working to build a bright future for our industry.”

The purpose of the redesign is to exemplify what DLI does in a glance, the Institute writes.

The four boxes represent the work of the industry and DLI’s global nature. Changing from a black membership decal to white logo will make DLI affiliation more visible to customers, the organization adds.

“The DLI in the far left box says who we are and helps reinforce our short name, DLI. The cleaning machine shows what we do. The hanger shows what our members do, and the stylized globe illustrates the scope of the Institute’s reach.”

Along with this rebranding effort, members will receive new window-cling membership decals, DLI notes.

ADC www.americandrycleaner.com

2/21/17 9:30 AM

O FF T HE C U F F

Get to Know....

Mike Nesbit W

e’re talking to different people from the fabricare industry so you can connect with someone new.

Get to know.... Mike Nesbit, president, MW Cleaners (and member of the American Drycleaner Advisory Board).

Tell us where you were born, grew up, and reside?

“I am a fifth-generation Texan, born in Houston, and grew up in Spring, Texas (suburb of Houston). Today, I live on Lake Conroe, which is just north of Houston.”

Hobbies (that you’ll admit to)?

“I love to boat and jet ski, but, most of all, ride motorcycles. As I tell my son, ‘I was born to ride!’ My father taught me how to ride at a very young age. This year I rode a motorcycle to the Arctic Circle, Alaska, as well as the Natchez Trace (also known as the Trail of Tears). The Trace starts in Nashville and ends in Baton Rouge.”

What gets you excited at work?

A.L. Wilson Chemical Co. . . . . . . . . . .1 Air World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 Ally Equipment Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 Cleaner Business Systems. . . . . . . . . . .3 Cleaner’s Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Clean Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Columbia/ILSA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Commercial Coils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Dajisoft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 DLT Electric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 EzProducts International . . . . . . . . . . .47 Fabricare Management Systems . . . . . .9

Mike Nesbit (left) poses with a friend and his twin brother. (Photo: Mike Nesbit)

“Continuing to evolve how to improve the customer experience.”

Lastly, tell us a secret (keep it clean) nobody knows about you?

“I have an identical twin brother. So the next time you ADC meet me, it may be him!”

(Readers: Do you want to take part, or know someone who does? E-mail tburke@atmags.com.)

ADVERTISER INDEX

Firbimatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Garment Management Systems . . . . .21 Global Business Systems . . . . . . . . . .38 Hamilton Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Iowa Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 ITSUMI USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Kleen-Rite Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Lattner Boiler Mfg.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 Leonard Automatics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Luetzow Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Magicool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Maineline Computer Systems . . . . . .IFC

Keep COOL with our Top-Quality Chillers

Mustang Enterprises . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Newhouse Specialty Co. . . . . . . . . . . .47 Northern Hanger Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Parker Boiler Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBC PROS Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Realstar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 ScanQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 SMRT Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-26 SPOT Business Systems . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Union Drycleaning Products . . . . . . . .17

KRProductsInc.com •Economical •Factory Load Tested •Control Circuit 24,

110, 220 VAC

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2-75 ton sizes available

Insulated Water Tanks

•Electrical & Refrigerant

Control Safeties

•Ambient Fan Cycling Standard 2/3/17 11:40 AM

American Drycleaner, March 2017

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BROKER SERVICES

COMPUTER SYSTEMS

READY TO SELL YOUR BUSINESS?

Western Wonder Touch POS Systems For Dry Cleaners $990 (refurb) + Free New Cash Drawer Commercial-grade touchscreens (not Dell) Perfect for small to medium cleaners www.westernDCcomputer.com 773-878-0150 westernk@msn.com

Our brokers have extensive experience in the industry as operators, equipment and chemical sales.

Trust your business sale to a company that knows your industry inside and out.

Buyer? Contact us for active listings National Coverage Marc Lazarus • ML@Tworld.com 201-370-9600

BUSINESS LIQUIDATION GOING OUT-OF BUSINESS SALE Liquidating everything: Fur and Leather Inventory Equipment and Furnishings Supplies and Chemicals Florida Fur & Leather St. Petersburg, Florida Call Tom: 727-822-3653

Presses Built to Last.

EQUIPMENT FOR SALE We know we can’t make all the cooling towers, so...

We Just Make the Best • Stainless Steel or Galvanized Steel

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PARTS FOR SALE

• 7 to 175 Nominal tons

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES Own Your Own Drycleaners—Managers, Spotters, Tailors, Pressers! 100% Financing. Plant or Drop, location of your choice. Call 1-561-302-5031 or 1-888-275-6637.

EQUIPMENT FOR SALE

MAGICOOL

2003 E. Perkins Ave., Sandusky, OH 44870

Call 419-625-0539 for details.

CONVEYORS NEW UNIPRESS EQUIPMENT FOR SALE AT 5% OVER DEALER COST FOB Detroit, MI Since 1954 Railex has been designing and manufacturing garment handling conveyors, slick-rail, and equipment for use in storage, retrieval and sorting of GOH, for use in commercial laundries, dry cleaners, distribution centers, department stores, manufacturers and coat checks.

Complete systems or replacement parts to overhaul your existing system are available. Receive $25 off your next order and a free T-shirt if you mention this ad when ordering. Phone: 718-845-5454.

E-mail: railex@railexcorp.com

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• HS2 – Hurricane Double Buck Shirt Press, w/Trap Set • F3T – Collar & Cuff Press • DC46S – Double Legger Press, w/Iron Stand • ATT – Tensioning Pant Topper • 45RX – Utility Press, w/Iron Stand Contact: John Curtis, Curtis Equipment Co. E-mail: john@curtisequipmentco.com Phone: (616) 299-1614

www.AmericanDrycleaner.com

American Drycleaner, March 2017

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AERO 7DT7 $350

SHIPS SAME DAY

Call: 815-666-4655 Sales@DLTElectric.com Serviceable at 160 EASA Repair Stations!

202 West Main street, Plano, il 60545 WWW.Dltelectric.coM

www.americandrycleaner.com

2/21/17 2:43 PM

PLANTS FOR SALE

REWEAVING SERVICES

Retiring Owners Motivated to SELL

WITHOUT-A-TRACE WEAVERS—More than 50 years’ experience. We are the experts in silks, knits, French weaving and piece weaving. Reasonable prices. Send garments for estimate to: 3344 W. Bryn Mawr, Chicago, IL 60659; 800-475-4922; www.withoutatrace.com.

• Profitable, Mature & Diversified Businesses • Long term Training & Support Available • Creative Financing for Qualified Buyers • Plant Real Estate Available Options • Large Operations/Strong Market Share: • Suburban Charlotte, NC • Suburban Chicago, IL • Annapolis, MD • Mont. Co. MD - Hi-Price Cleaner Contact: Richard Ehrenreich, CED Ehrenreich & Associates, LLC Consultant, Coach and/or Broker 301-924-9247 Richard@Ehrenassoc.com SELL OR BUY A DRYCLEANER. WE HAVE BUYERS!!!

PATRIOT BUSINESS ADVISORS SPECIALIZES IN SELLING DRYCLEANERS IN NJ, PA, DE & MD. CALL LILIANE AT 267-391-7642.

SUPPLIES

SUEDE & LEATHER SERVICE LEATHER-RICH INC. • High quality cleaning, refinishing & repair Leather, Suede and Fur; • Free shipping in USA and rewards program FOR MORE INFORMATION: www.leatherrich.com E-mail: leatherrich@att.net Call 800-236-6996 Route Service in Upper Midwest

SUPPLIES

Laundry/Dry Cleaning Coils

Well established plant, revenue streams of counter, routes and hotel valet routes.

Older equipment well maintained, all in good operating condition. Newer delivery vehicles. New dry-cleaning machine will be needed. Excellent building lease terms available, building and land also available for sale. Owner considering retiring. Located in four season midwest city, excellent demographics.

Steam Or Water Replacements Large Inventory • FAST Delivery

800-532-2645 www.comcoil.com

GENUINE MBH ROPE-TIES from EzProducts International Inc.

Serious inquiries only, only qualified buyers will be considered. Confidentiality agreement required.

Reply to : encouraging1@sbcglobal.net

Stop Shaking Out Shirts.

Save time. Save money.

Don’t be fooled by cheap inferior ones!

Toll Free

877.906.1818

www.ezpi.us

TO PLACE YOUR AD CONTACT:

www.AmericanDrycleaner.com www.americandrycleaner.com

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classifieds@ atmags.com

American Drycleaner, March 2017

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W R I N KL E I N T I M E

Fresh Baked 10 YEARS AGO. Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke was upbeat last month in front of the Senate Banking Committee, saying he expects economic growth to strengthen somewhat “as the drag from housing diminishes.” Bernanke went on to predict that the gross domestic product (GDP) will increase 2.5% to 3% this year with only moderate inflation, calming investor fears. … Colder weather fueled winter clothing sales in January. With temperatures dropping 40 degrees and heavy snowstorms in many areas, shoppers shoveled out cash for sweaters and long johns. Purchases including holiday gift-card redemptions gave retailers an unexpected boost, making up for lackluster December sales.

35 YEARS AGO. Today’s consumers are unpredictable, skeptical, and not easy to please, said two experts at a recent marketing institute in New Jersey. A third speaker, Geraldine Rhoads, editor-in-chief of Woman’s Day magazine, said there’s no price resistance evident for expensive goods and services, but drastically cut spending for many low-priced articles and very purposeful buying, in general, among middle-income consumers. She said her fashion editor reports they’re buying “less but better” clothing and accessories. … Silks again, in 1981, as in 1980, took first place among the categories of problems observed by analysis at the Neighborhood Cleaners Association. Because of poor dye fastness, customers complained of their silk garments’ discoloration and fading — due to exposure to strong light and air pollution, but often covered by soil until after dry cleaning. Other silk-garment damages noted were yarn shifting and fiber degeneration.

50 YEARS AGO. New approach in an ad on permanent press: Little girl in a very smooth new dress is saying: “Aunt Rose, I heard Mrs. Morton say that if you had your face baked like my dresses are, maybe you wouldn’t get any more wrinkles.” Some space and then in a much smaller type: “Why are you crying, Aunt Rose?” This full-page ad was for Mary Jane, “the world’s largest producer of

To read more of American Drycleaner’s chronicling of the industry over the years, visit www.americandrycleaner.com.

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American Drycleaner, March 2017

the most beautiful, ovenbaked permanent press dresses.” Shown the ad, a cleaner remarked, “Remember the days when it was bread that was oven-baked, not clothes?” … Hallmark cards is adding its first “flower fantasy” dress to matched party accessories: tallies, scorepads, tablecloths, napkins, cups, plates.

The dress is a shift, 93% March 1967 cellulose and 7% nylon, to be sold at some of the more than 10,000 outlets for the Hallmark party line of paper goods. The dress can be washed or dry-cleaned, lasts through “six to ten” wearings, and stays fire-resistant until it’s dry-cleaned. Teen and college gals may prove the best users of the dress for beach and summer wear.

75 YEARS AGO. People in Fresno, Calif., were greeted by some unusual billboards just put up by a cleaner. The signs carried the heading “Finer ’n Frog Hair.” The startling appearance of a large green frog with a bumper crop of red hair completed the impression. The cleaner who was responsible for the idea wanted to tell the people of Fresno that his company did fine cleaning, and he wanted them to remember it. Judging by the response just three days after the new billboards were put up, the cleaner reports he is more than satisfied. … A customer in Fort Worth, Texas, recently sent a cleaner three dresses and a coat which he hurriedly checked-in. Inside the coat, he found an old pair of faded socks. Thinking the customer meant to throw them away, he tossed them into the wastebasket. Three days later, he received a frantic phone call from a woman asking about the old pair of socks. She said they contained $114. The cleaner rushed to the wastebasket, then breathed easier. The socks were still there and, sure enough, knotted in them was $114.

P.S. Someone just asked us how often that cleaner cleans ADC out his wastebasket.

— Compiled by Tim Burke, Editor www.americandrycleaner.com

2/21/17 9:27 AM

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