How to Operate a Laundromat
Home > Laundromat Articles > How to Operate a Laundromat
Even though the laundromat business is self-service, it doesn’t run by itself. There are several things a laundromat owner will need to take into consideration in order to ensure the business is operating efficiently and effectively. Below are a few factors as it pertains to operating a laundromat business.
Employees
Consider whether or not the laundromat will be attended or not attended. Some laundromats do not have an attendant present. Others have someone on-site to clean the store, assist the customer if she or he has a problem, or manage a fluff and fold service. If the laundromat will have an attendant, then you’ll want to consider whether or not the business operations can support an employee (part-time or full-time). After all, the goal of owning a business is not to buy yourself another job.
This is one of the most important areas for a laundromat owner. Why? Marketing is one of the most important activities that can not only bring in new customers, it can also increase existing laundromat customer loyalty. Typical marketing activities could include special coupons to residents in the area, promotional contests in the store for prizes, incentives for customer referrals, co-operative advertising with other nearby retail businesses, and just about anything else you can imagine.
Security and Surveillance
The safety of your business and your customers is of paramount importance. It is for this reason, I equip all my laundromats with a surveillance equipment. I want to make sure I record whatever happens inside my stores. A surveillance system will help you monitor any potential criminal activities such as someone who is looking to steal the money out of your change machine. In addition, you want to make sure your customers feel safe and comfortable in your store. A surveillance system is one way to provide the customer with peace of mind.
Laundromat Equipment
A critical part of business operations is making sure your laundromat equipment is operating at peak performance. The commercial washing machines and dryers need to work. On this note, here’s a tip. Most people new to the laundromat business think they need to service the machines themselves. Sure, you could learn how to do this and save some money. However, I like to ask myself, “How much is my time worth?” Once I go through this exercise, I know it is actually cheaper for me to hire a professional to service the laundromat equipment because they can complete the work order in less time than it would take me (and cost less when factoring how much my time is worth).
Bookkeeping
This is another area where most laundromat owners fall short. They fail to keep an accurate set of financial records since this business is an all cash business. As a business owner, you must keep good records so you know if your business is profitable or not. If you’re not comfortable maintaining this kind of information, get help from a professional bookkeeper. This will also help you when it comes time to prepare your business tax returns too!
Amenities
This is one area where you can differentiate yourself from other laundromats in the area. Personally, I like to offer my customers free wireless Internet service. Other amenities include ATM service, a fluff and fold service, and vending machines, which also offer ancillary income for a laundromat business.
———————————————–
About Brian Brunckhorst
Brian Brunckhorst is one of the top experts on laundromats. He is dedicated to teaching entrepreneurs how to find, evaluate, analyze, and buy a coin laundromat. Brian is also the author of the best-selling eBook, “Secrets of Buying and Owning Laundromats”, and the Laundromat Teleseminar System.
Coin Laundromat Business – 3 Tips to Increase Value
Home > Laundromat Articles > Coin Laundromat Business – 3 Tips to Increase Value
I’m going to let you in on a few insider secrets that determine the value of a coin laundromat business. These few tips can dramatically increase the your wealth and income whether you own an existing coin laundromat or interested in owning one.
Tip #1 – Store Multiplier
A coin laundromat business is valued based on a multiple of the net income. If you can find a way to increase the income and/or reduce expenses, the value of the store goes up. So, what are some ways you can increase the income? Some ancillary income ideas include vending machines or adding a fluff and fold service if one is not offered yet.
If you’re looking at the expense side of the equation, take a close look at the rent you’re paying if the space is leased. Even if you’ve already signed a lease agreement, there is nothing to prevent you from approaching the landlord or property owner to renegotiate the lease or request a reduction.
As you can see, these few ideas will not only add immediate income to your bottom line, they will also increase the value of your coin laundromat if you ever decide to sell your laundromat business.
Tip #2 – Financing
The caveat here is this tip must make sense for your individual situation. In other words, you’ll have to compare the financials yourself to determine if financing will give you a better return on your investment. After all, the store must generate sufficient profits to cover all expenses including the loan and have some extra to add to your bank account.
I can only speak for myself, but financing the purchase of our coin laundromats allowed me to improve my cash on cash return, pay down the note over time, and increase our equity in the business. This strategy also allowed us to eventually expand our laundromat business from one store to multiple stores.
Tip #3 – Buy a Laundromat
It is much cheaper to buy an existing laundromat for sale than building one from scratch. Think about the capital investment required to build a store from scratch. You’ll have the cost of new equipment, construction, permit fees, sewage hook up fees, and operating capital once the business opens.
To this day, I have not built one store from scratch. Instead, I look for underperforming coin laundromats for sale and look for ways I can increase the value. In fact, one of my favorite strategies is to install new laundromat equipment. Why?
- The income generated from the new equipment will far exceed the cost of debt on the equipment. Yes, I don’t purchase new laundromat equipment in full cash either.
- I can usually pay off the loan on the new equipment in seven years. The useful life of the laundromat equipment if maintained will be 15 – 20 years.
- New equipment will help you market your laundromat business. Not only with your existing customers be happy, the new laundromat equipment will attract new customers. Keep in mind the top two things that keep customers coming back to your coin laundromat is a clean, well lit store and newer equipment.
——————————————–
About Brian Brunckhorst
Brian Brunckhorst is one of the top experts on laundromats. He is dedicated to teaching entrepreneurs how to find, evaluate, analyze, and buy a coin laundromat. Brian is also the author of the best-selling eBook, “Secrets of Buying and Owning Laundromats”, and the Laundromat Teleseminar System.
Laundromat Equipment – Interview with Brian Brunckhorst
The Coin Laundry Association just released their August issue of “The Journal”. If you look carefully, the cover photograph is a picture of my coin laundromat in Hayward, California.
Also on the cover, the association features an article is called, “It’s a Remote Possibility”. The article discusses how laundromat owners with multiple stores use high-tech laundromat equipment to manage store operations remotely (also referred to as absentee ownership).
I was one of the contributors to this article. In the article, I discuss different aspects of remote management such as:
- Working on my laundromat part-time from my home office.
- Connecting coin laundromats to high-tech remote video surveillance camera systems.
- Using attendants so you don’t have to manage the store full-time.
Read the rest of the article to get the full details. I bet it will change the way you think about the traditional laundromat business.
————————————————–
About Brian Brunckhorst
Brian Brunckhorst is one of the top experts on laundromats. He is dedicated to teaching entrepreneurs how to find, evaluate, analyze, and buy a coin laundromat. Brian is also the author of the best-selling eBook, “Secrets of Buying and Owning Laundromats”, and the Laundromat Teleseminar System.
Laundromat Equipment – Speed Queen Quantum Gold Solution
Home > Laundromat Articles > Laundromat Equipment – Speed Queen Quantum Gold Solution
Recently, my friends at Speed Queen invited me to tape a customer testimonial for their laundromat equipment. The video below shows how I use their Quantum Gold remote management capabilities to increase productivity and profitability in my stores.
Some of the cool features I like the most about the Quantum Gold solution include the ability to manage vending prices and water settings remotely. In addition, I receive email alerts whenever my laundromat equipment require servicing. All of the these features help me increase customer loyalty at my stores.
Click the graphic below to play the movie.
