Nowadays, people spend most of their time outside their home either working or travelling. Their daily hectic schedule leads to lack of time to complete their household chores. Out of which one of the most important household chores is laundry. To overcome this burden people tend to get their clothes washed/cleaned by the local laundry store. The concept of laundry service has originated from the western culture in which people can go to the store and get their clothes washed by using the washing machine and detergent, themselves.
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Importance of Laundry Service
Laundry service is a big stress reliever in today’s fast running lives of working class people. It saves the individual’s time and relieves their stress so that they can concentrate well on their work. Laundry services work to clean the fabric on a large scale where the personal washing machine is not enough. These services are widely used by hotels, restaurants, hospitals and many other places where regular cleaning of fabrics is required.
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How to Establish a Laundry Shop/Laundromat?
Laundry business can be effective in gaining profits by providing laundry solutions to the people, if done right. Some of the key points to follow are listed below:
1. Understanding the Laundry Business
For any kind of business plan, the first and foremost step is to have some basic knowledge and to understand the purpose of the field of business. Laundry businesses are retail shops that provide the services of cleaning fabrics for their customers and these businesses are widely functional. It is one of those businesses which would continue to exist and its services are requested by many as it makes their life easier.
2. Budget Planning
Starting up a business requires budgeted capital amount, and this amount depends on the working scale of the business. To set up a laundry business, investment is required for all type of resources along with permits/registrations which would be required for running the laundry. But planning it beforehand is always advisable because there are many factors which can affect businesses because of poor budget planning. If performed efficiently, the results shall be positive with decent profits.
3. Setting up of services
While this may seem obvious, it is really important to understand the services you are going to offer to the community. Based on the services provided, the customers are going to review and spread the word of your work; it is an important factor for every business. To understand the needs of the potential customers, market research and demographic check must be done; to deliver exactly what the community requires. Maintaining the quality of services increases customer satisfaction, and it should be the top priority.
4. Hiring a Team
For the proper workflow, setting up a team for various departments is necessary. However, a normal laundry shop requires limited human resources
5. Working staff
This includes the staff members who work in the laundry shop. They will take care of washing, ironing and other services provided by your business. It also includes the manager and the cashier who are going to handle the customers at the counter
6. Strategists
A team for strategy making can be handy, as they can analyze the market and give advice in the course of action in times of crisis
7. Marketing Strategies
Like any business, laundry shops also require the need for marketing. Once the laundry is operational, you would require customers who are going to avail, the services your business provides; but for that to happen, you have to reach the customers and let them know about your business. Advertising plays a prominent role as it helps in attracting customers. Social media platforms, Advertisements, Banners, colorful fliers, etc. are the effective ways of promoting your business. Along with these offering attractive discounts and running schemes occasionally can keep the customers become regular to your service.
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Market Research and Analysis
- Most of the customers opt to make payments through UPI, cash or credit cards
- The capital required for buying commercial laundry equipment is very low, hence the profit margin increases
- Only a few staff members are required to run the Laundromat/laundry shop
- Demographics research shows that most of the people taking the benefits of Laundromat are both part-time and full-time employees
- Customers who buy expensive clothes give directives to the staff to pay more attention and care for cleaning the garments; hence profits are made through professional class customers
- Competition in the laundry business is not that fierce. Research shows that the laundry business which offers door-to-door service is likely to attract more potential customers
Important Points to Remember:
- Laundry business is not season dependent, it doesn’t matter what the weather is, doing laundry is an important task and hence there are no fluctuations in customers due to seasonal change
- Flexible financing options are available, but still, a large upfront cost is needed
- Fees for permit and registration would be required
- Proper maintenance of all the equipment should be done regularly
- The utilities and rent are some of the considerable hurdles and expenses
- Business owners shall have to be ready for disagreement with unruly customers