The Business of Laundry: Models That Work

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

Green is Good Business 

Green Operations Increasingly Important to Feed Consumer Demand  When Green Laundry Lounge co-owners Pulin and Krishna Dasai got into the vended laundry industry, they wanted to change a narrative: laundromats are water and energy-intensive businesses.   “The...

Metrics That Matter 

Profit, Performance, and Planning in Vended Laundry  The laundromat business is like most businesses in that you need to do a lot of things right to be successful. But how do you know if it’s working? According to successful owners, you just need to look at the...

Safety First, Last… Always

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

PlanetLaundry Podcast

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

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

Grease is the Word

Originally posted - Mar 07, 2014 During a recent webinar I conducted for the Coin Laundry Association, one of the questions that came up from several of the attendees was how to handle tough kitchen grease stains – either in a residential wash-dry-fold load or a...

The 4 Most Common (and Costly) Mistakes Laundromat Newbies Make

The 4 Most Common (and Costly) Mistakes Laundromat Newbies Make

"Some of us learn from other people's mistakes; the rest of us have to be the other people." – Zig Ziglar Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or someone looking to be their own boss for the very first time, the self-service laundry business has many fundamental...

Your Store

Avoiding ‘Dogs with Fleas' Take Advantage of Key Data in the CLA's New Quarterly Reports to Better Run Your Laundry Business By Tom Rhodes In May 2008, I purchased a rundown laundromat for $25,000 from a part-time operator who wasn't reinvesting in the store. The plan...

Headlines

What’s In It for Me?

Originally posted - Jun 18, 2012 For the majority of small-business owners, many of the aspects of running their operations just come naturally. However, in most cases, writing technically correct advertising copy simply isn't one of them. In a nutshell, what I mean...

Say What?

Originally posted - Oct 21, 2014 In past columns, I've mentioned that communication is controlled by the receiver – not by the sender. And it is so true. People hear and interpret what others say through a series of built-in personal filters, which include their age,...

Think Big

Originally posted - Nov 14, 2012 As we all know, big businesses have big marketing budgets on which they spend big dollars and, often times, achieve big results. So, here's the big question: can a small business – like your coin laundry – use big-business marketing...

10 Ways to Irritate Your Customers… Guaranteed!

Originally posted - Jan 04, 2012 The coin laundry business is a volume-driven business. In other words, the more customers the better – and your machines don't get tired, don't take vacations, don't complain and never refuse to wash and dry a load of clothes....

It’s the Law!

Originally posted - Nov 26, 2012 The paramount universal truism of business is that all customers are people. Therefore, it's logical to assume that, if we become proficient at understanding the psychology of the human organism, we should end up as improved marketers....

Take a Chance

Originally posted - Apr 12, 2013 "If we listened to our intellect, we'd never go into business because we'd be too cynical. Well, that's nonsense. You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down." - Annie Dillard, American author and...

10 Years….10 Lessons

Originally posted - May 06, 2013 I've been in the laundry business for the last 28 years, both as a distributor and a coin laundry owner. And, along the way, I've kept lists of the things I've learned. Some people collect stamps or coins or baseball cards. However, I...

Toughen Up!

Originally posted - Jun 27, 2014 I once read that "the ability to find energy and power from what we can't know or control provides an immense competitive advantage." Of course, as self-service laundry owners, we can only know so much about our businesses, the...

The Cost of Being Wrong

Originally posted - May 29, 2012 A fellow hands me a bag containing six marbles - five of the marbles of white and one is black - and he asks me to blindly draw a marble from the bag. If it's white, he says he'll pay me $20; however, if the marble is black, I must pay...

Stay Tuned

Originally posted - Jan 03, 2013 In a recent column, I discussed a relatively new field called neuromarketing, which combines neuroscience and marketing strategies, and is creating off-the-charts excitement and credibility in several business sectors around the world....

The Path to S-U-C-C-E-S-S

Originally posted - Aug 10, 2012 As coin laundry owners, sometimes we're simply too close to our businesses to actually see what we are doing wrong or the mistakes we are repeatedly making. Because most people are creatures of habit, we can easily get into the habit...

Crossing Paths

Originally posted - May 07, 2012 Those of you familiar with comedian Steven Wright have probably heard his hilarious one-liner about a man who asks a parachutist if he ever finds it frightening to jump out of airplanes - to which the parachutist deadpans: "I'm not...

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September Magazine Issue

This Month's Issue

 

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

THE LATEST ON LAUNDROMATS

Industry News

Southern Automatic Grows Sales Team

Southern Automatic Machinery Co. recently added Lane Young to its sales team. Young has more than 20 years of experience in outside sales - nine of which were spent at EcoLab. When asked to describe his sales approach, Young quotes Douglas Adams: "To give real...

Spynr Creates New Technology Division, Nicoletta Joins the Company

Spynr, Inc. has announced the creation of Spynr Technologies, Inc., a new technology division of the company, developed by Spynr President Dennis Diaz and industry veteran JP Nicoletta. Spynr Technologies was created to complement the company's mission of helping...

Clean 2017: Industry Leaders to Appear at PlanetLaundry Booth

Next month in Las Vegas, while making your rounds of the exhibit floor at Clean 2017 and checking out the latest and greatest products the industry has to offer, be sure not to miss your opportunity to meet and chat with three of the laundry business’s leading...

Retail Design Expert to Speak at Clean 2017

The Coin Laundry Association has announced that Brian Dyches, a leading authority on interior design strategies for retail environments, will be speaking at this year's Clean Show in Las Vegas. Mr. Dyches' presentation - "Leading by Design: What Laundromats Can Learn...

FROM YOUR FAVORITE INDUSTRY EXPERTS

Columns

The Laundry Doctor

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The Business Mind

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Wash With Wally

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Viewpoint

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Digital Marketing

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Strategic Corporate Allies Program

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

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