Will Owning an Un-Attended Laundry Really Work for Me

As the coin laundry business was just beginning, it was right at the end of World War II, and times were different. There was less vandalism, and crime was not really the kind of worry it seems to be for most people today. Automatic or Service laundries were staffed with attendants doing customer’s wash. Even in those days, the expense of having employees was considered too high and a cost that needed to be reduced. Unattended coin laundries started to be sold as a business investment that took little personal time or labor, which brought investor owners into the business. During that period of time, the word in the industry was ''keep it clean, well lit at night and keep your machines in good working order and you can not fail.'' We learned over the years that while this motto may be basically true, there are many other factors involved too. Over time, many owners of unattended laundries began to feel the need to offer additional services, so they added personnel to raise income and to reduce vandalism. The trend continues, and today the most accepted wisdom in the industry is that having attendants is safer and better. Today’s design for newer, larger laundries can support having employees. The population has grown used to receiving services while at the laundry. Rising costs have forced owners to add other services. So why do some laundries do well without being attended? Just as one shoe can’t fit all people, one style of laundry won’t work everywhere it’s tried. In certain locations there may be too little need for drop off laundry or dry cleaning service. The owners of such laundries, when they add employees, have to pay their wages out of the coin boxes alone. In most small operations, there’s not enough coin box cash flow to allow paying wages plus any additional expenses that are incurred by offering services. In rural areas and in less affluent, perhaps blighted, urban areas, many older laundries are too small, and too restricted in space, or too close together to be able to offer services such as drop off dry cleaning or fluff & fold. In some cases there just isn’t enough room to have an employee station, and if there is, there could be too much competition nearby to make offering those services profitable for a coin laundry. Even in cases where a laundry location could support offering services and paying wages, some owners don’t want to be bothered with the costs, paperwork and worries of having any employees at all. There are taxes to pay, and those can become complicated and for some too demanding a process. There is also a requirement for unemployment insurance and workers compensation coverage. So what’s the key to success? Successful unattended laundries all seem to have certain things in common. They are in areas that need a coin laundry. They are clean and well kept. The equipment is reliable and, while not attended, they all seem to be well managed. Someone is there frequently enough so customers learn who they are and know they can be relied on. When machines fail, and no one is there, customers know they can leave a note or fill out an out of order card and know they will get their refund. In other words, the laundry’s clientele can have confidence that they are safe, the machines will work, and even if they don’t work occasionally, a prompt refund will be forthcoming. Cleanliness, lighting and atmosphere are vital for unattended laundries. In order to draw in enough customers to make money, they have to look nicer, be better equipped and feel safer than competitive establishments in the area. Contributing to the feeling of safety and personal security is the laundry having good lighting at night and being busy enough where customers do not to feel too much alone. Over the years a feeling of security by customers has become ever more important to success. So much so that many laundry owners have found that having television security cameras in the laundry helps keep their clientele feeling secure. When they don’t feel safe, they won’t come to you, they’ll go elsewhere. The cameras also help prevent theft of clothing, and they help deter false insurance claims. Being watched keeps people on their best behavior, because no one wants to be seen and recognized trashing the premises or damaging machines. Proper instruction signs are also a must for unattended laundry owners who plan to be successful. The signs should offer instructions on how to load machines, and how to get them started. These instructions help prevent customer frustration when a washer or dryer fails to perform as the user thinks it should. Otherwise they will put an out of order tag on it and make a claim for a refund. The machine then sits idle until someone comes in to check it out. If there are proper instructions posted then there will be fewer out of order tags put on the machines, there will be fewer refund requests, and the machines won’t be unnecessarily put out of order Customers also need to know what the laundry’s obligations to them are, when and if, something goes wrong. Instructions tell customers what to do when a machine fails. They need to know how machines run safely and effectively. They also need to know that there will be a refund forthcoming when and if something does go wrong. Customers want to know how they can tell you about the problem they had. That is where good instruction signs are so valuable. Spell out the refund and notice process step by step. All of us in the industry know certain things are true. Attended coin laundries are nicer to own and operate. Running a coin laundry without personnel can create problems, but many in the coin laundry business continue to solve those problems and make money. So don’t overlook unattended laundries if an opportunity to get into a good one comes your way. Well run and properly taken care of coin or card operated laundries continue to thrive and make an excellent investment.