Laundry business plans: Which one is the most successful?

October, 20 2022

Despite being traditional businesses, laundromats have recently attracted the attention of entrepreneurs, who have seen investment potential and profitability for different reasons:

  They help save detergent, energy and water.

  They guarantee maximum care and hygiene with our garments.

  They adapt to the current lifestyle and help us to optimize our time.

This has allowed this sector to reinvent itself and new innovative business plans have emerged for the laundry sector as well.

Discover how to open your own laundromat

 

Business plans for setting up a laundry business

Laundromats or dry cleaners

1. Independently owned

This is the "classic" laundry business plan.

Laundromat activity is defined as the application of textile washing processes using water as the cleaning agent.

Some laundromats also perform dry cleaning services (laundromat-dry cleaner's), a type of textile cleaning, care and maintenance that restores garments (spot removal, dry cleaning, dyeing and drying) to their original condition.

The main difference between laundromats and dry cleaner's is that the latter uses specific machines and chemical solvents as washing agents.

The requirements for setting up a laundry business are simpler than for opening a dry cleaner's.

 

2. Franchise-operated

A franchised laundry business can be much cheaper and easier to open. The franchise usually provides the know-how to the franchisee and support to make the laundry business profitable as quickly as possible.
Within the category of franchised laundry businesses, we can find another subdivision:


Offline

Franchise laundry businesses have become a popular choice for many entrepreneurs, since they have a number of advantages:

  • They offer a fast and agile service.
  • It’s easy to manage.
  • They’re equipped with the latest technology.
  • They count on the support of the franchise for employee training, image, the marketing plan, know-how, etc.

Online + Offline

An example of a franchised laundry business that combines the online and offline worlds is Mr Jeff. Here you can request the services online at home through the mobile app, but you can also go to the physical location and drop off your clothes.

In addition to the advantages of offline franchising, we also offer the advantages of online franchising.

This combination gives unparalleled flexibility to the laundry model and allows for an omnichannel business. Undoubtedly, this will be an added value as it will allow the business to adapt to change and cover a wider range of target audiences.

Download your laundromat busines plan

 

Self-service laundry

 

In recent years, especially in large cities, a new generation of laundry businesses known as "self-service laundry" have appeared.

These types of laundry businesses are aimed at a wide audience: from people who want to save money or who don't have a washing machine or dryer at home, to those who are looking for larger washing machines for certain garments (sheets, towels, carpets, etc.), tourists or students.

These laundry businesses tend to market themselves as "low cost" laundry and:

  •  Their manager isn't around while customers are doing the laundry.
  • They offer 24-hour service, or at least longer hours than a facility that attends to customers.
  • Prices are usually set per wash cycle, depending on the amount of laundry to be washed/dried.
  • The customer must do everything.
  • They are located in centrally located or densely populated neighborhoods.
  • They aren't responsible for the loss or damage of garments.

Like traditional laundry services, self-service laundries can be either independently owned or franchise-operated. Again, as mentioned before, the main difference will be in the initial investment, and in the case of the franc

 

Industrial laundry

Industrial laundry businesses offer services to entities or companies where many people work or where external support is required for the sanitation and cleaning of all types of garments and textiles (sheets, towels, table linen, curtains, etc.).

They usually provide their services to factories, hotels, restaurants, or hospitals.

They are characterized by:

  • Not usually working with individuals.
  • Carrying out large volume orders (they have equipment prepared for this purpose).
  • Sanitizing all kinds of uniforms.
  • Sorting clothing to prevent cross-contamination from occurring.
  • Having washing, drying, ironing, alterations and services for renting garments.

 

What is the most profitable business plan?

Talking about the profitability of a laundry business isn’t something universal. It depends on several factors (type of premises, location, etc.).

At Mr Jeff, we help you find the best locations, we assist you in setting up your business, and we offer you our resources for advertising, marketing, customer acquisition, etc.

Regarding which type of laundry business model is most profitable, the benchmark indicator is the internal rate of return (IRR): The higher the IRR, the higher the profitability.

In short, the laundries with the best IRR will be those where the initial investment is low, but the monthly revenues and profits are high. Therefore, although the self-service laundry has a low investment, it doesn't bring in very large profit margins. On the other hand, although the industrial laundry does have more benefits, it requires a high initial investment (especially for the machinery).

That's why we've opted for Mr Jeff's online and delivery laundry plan. Opening your own laundry business with us will require a smaller investment than for a traditional laundry, but it will pay off very quickly.

 

The Mr Jeff franchise business plan: How does it work?

Mr Jeff is a delivery laundry service. Contracting their services is simple, and can be done in just a few clicks.  We are here to revolutionize the laundry industry.

One more of the unique features of Mr Jeff is that we reduce the obstacles to enter by simplifying the business start-up process.

How? Supporting our partners with a "Smart" business plan that is linked to their own growth: We recommend our franchisees to start with the basics and then acquire machinery when their laundry is already up and running and at full capacity.

If you want to open your own laundry business but still have questions, contact us. Ready to begin?

Discover how to open your own laundromat

Edu Crovetto
WRITTEN BY
Edu Crovetto
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