After serving in the U.S. Army during the 1950s, twin brothers Gabriel (Gabe) and Marcel Desjardins joined together in business to offer garment cleaning services to the residents of Salem, NH.
“I know that they actually had owned a bunch of laundromats all over the place,” recalled Jim Desjardins, Gabe’s son and the second generation owner of Daisy Cleaners. “For some reason, my father was kind of drawn to the drycleaning and my uncle stayed in the laundry.”
The North East Fabricare Association (NEFA) recently concluded its ProfitFest 2022 conference, and it was the largest in the 14-year history of its FallFest conferences. “We’ve been doing this a long time and I continue to be amazed at the evolution of the conference,” noted NEFA Pesident Larry Fish. “It continues to grow and get better each and every year — but this year? This year really stands out. The industry support and the attendees’ involvement in the educational opportunities, coupled with the social functions, really made this a special event.”
The Drycleaning and Laundry Institute (DLI) and the National Cleaners Association (NCA) recently announced speakers for their Five Star/Brainstorming Conference, set to take place from Jan. 12 to 15, 2023, at the Secrets Royal Beach Punta Cana Resort located in the Dominican Republic.
I have completed my coverage of Clean Show 2022 and bada bing, bada boom — just like that — it’s the holiday season and time for me to write my Annual Wishlist to Santa Claus. For those of you who have been following my columns for a couple of decades, you know that, in December, I write a tongue-in-cheek letter to St. Nick with my list of things I want for drycleaners and shirt launderers. These are products that do not yet exist, but I believe they would help plant owners and managers run a better and more profitable operation.
The compressed air powering your equipment has many essential properties. Pay attention to them and you’ll be rewarded with smooth, trouble-free performance of the air compressor itself, as well as the productive machinery being powered by the compressed air. Ignore them and you’ll be leaving yourself open to lost production time, higher utility costs and more repairs.
Whenever I sit down with a new coaching client, I ask them what they think is the key to growing their business. Nine times out of ten, they tell me the same thing: “We need to spend more time and money marketing our products and services.” My response? Hogwash. Now, don’t get me wrong. Marketing is important. In fact, I love marketing. But here is the simple truth:
I read a recent article concerning a controversy over the term sizing and retexturizing. This prompted me to write and expand the concept, clarify and, hopefully, not confuse the issue. The proper term that describes agents or procedures added to fabrics to enhance their properties is called finishing agents.
Inspection
Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in 1938, establishing a minimum wage and a forty-hour workweek as the legal basis for overtime. In 1947, Congress passed the Portal-to-Portal Act, clearing up confusion over whether employers had to pay employees for commuting time and other time before the start of the workday or after the end of it.
As 2023 fast approaches, so does the inclination to reflect on the successes and failures of 2022 as it winds out its final days. Overall, the drycleaning industry certainly seems to be on much stronger ground ending the year than it was at the beginning of it. After all, when registration for Clean 2022 opened earlier this year, there was an air of uncertainty over whether a Covid variant might wreak enough havoc to prompt another postponement.
Seitz — The Fresher Company (North America) and parent company, Seitz GmbH recently noted some changes and additions to some of its positions. Matt Bizzack of Phoenix, AZ – who joined Seitz Chemical in late 2021 – will be the technical representative for Arizona, lower Nevada including Las Vegas and southern California. Matt and his wife Kim own Legend Cleaners and New Wave Equipment, both in Phoenix. Matt will be spending the majority of his time in sales and service of Seitz accounts in these southwestern states. He brings nearly 25 years of industry knowledge and understands best practices of drycleaning, wetcleaning and equipment operation and maintenance.
Recently, an international jury of independent Professional Textile Care (PTC) experts, chaired by Geert Boettger, determined the winners of CINET’s Global Best Practices Awards for 2022. Overall, 46 finalist companies competed in three categories: Industrial Textile Services (ITS); Retail Textile Cleaning (Small); and Retail Textile Cleaning (Big).
The 2022 offering of EXPOdetergo International, the international exhibition dedicated to machinery, services and products for laundry, ironing and textile cleaning, closed with 17,144 operators, 40% from 106 countries. The event attracted the presence of companies from all over the world. Of the 250 exhibitors, one-third of them were foreign coming from 22 countries, and all of the leading associations of the Italian market – Assofornitori, Assosistema, Assosecco, CNA and Confartigianato – who chose to bring their know-how to the fair.
UNX-Christeyns welcomed James Basier to its team as a new territory manager. Like many, he started his career learning what it meant to work hard. He spent years serving others doing social work before entering this industry.
Since 1998, the city of Modesto, California, has engaged in a series of lawsuits against Dow Chemical and PPG Industries for selling tetrachloroethylene (perc) to drycleaners across the city – a product attributed to causing the contamination of the soil and groundwater at 23 former plant locations. In mid-October, the 24-year-old case took a step forward when a 12-member jury hit Dow Chemicals and PPG Industries with a $4 million verdict in damages to Modesto for cleanup costs of one site at 409 Seventh St.
Exhibitors still have until the end of the year to reserve a booth price at 20% off for the Southwest Drycleaners Association’s (SDA) Cleaners Showcase, which will take place at the Irving Convention Center in Irving, TX, from April 28 to 30, 2023.
The third quarter of the year has proven to be a busy one for the consulting firm Methods for Management (MfM). The group recently hosted August meetings in Ft. Worth, TX, and Omaha, NE, as well as a meeting last month in Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada.
Zips Cleaners, a nationally expanding chain of nearly 70 locations, annouced that it will add two new locations in Washington, DC, by the end of next year, which would double its presence in that market.
Drycleaning & Laundry Institute officials swore in DLI’s 2022-2023 Board of Directors at its Summer 2022 Board Meeting in Atlanta. DLI’s Board is comprised of fabricare business owners and operators from eight regions around the U.S., an Executive Committee, and Allied Trades representatives. All Board members volunteer their time and energy to guide the Institute toward providing the best benefit to DLI member cleaning professionals.
During Clean ’22, Poseidon Textile Care Systems® (Poseidon) showcased its complete product offering of textile care equipment and solutions. Drawing crowds were live demonstrations of the new Poseidon Genius Series Wet Cleaning Machines – touting the largest touchscreen user interface in the industry; Poseidon new-technology dryers, which safely dry even the most delicate fabrics; and Poseidon Flatwork Ironers, which quickly iron bed and table linens. Several end-user promotions, new and innovative custom finance options, and extended factory Platinum Warranties were also introduced.
Carousel Cleaners and Fletchers Fabricare have both received notification of their official national certification as Affiliates of America’s Best Cleaners, the dry cleaning industry’s most highly-respected certification agency.
Servicing Vancouver since 1950, Carousel Cleaners has been a staple in their community for over 70 years. Through the years, their willingness to embrace emerging technologies has kept them ahead of their competitors and has helped them maintain uncompromising standards for customer service and carbon footprint reduction. They are actively engaged with their community and are frequent contributors to charitable organizations in their area.
LAVATEC unveiled new energy efficient equipment at The Clean Show in Atlanta, and the response from attendees during and after the show has been very positive. Company President Mark Thrasher says reactions to the LAVACascade drying system were highly favorable, and interest in the massive LAVAPress ULTRA 597S 60-bar extraction press exceeded expectations.
The Western States Drycleaners and Launderers Association (WSDLA) will join forces and merge with the Southwest Drycleaners Association (SDA).
Equity firm Greybull Stewardship in Jackson, WY, announced that it had purchased GreenEarth Cleaning, the Kansas City, MO-based company that produces the popular alternative solvent of the same name.
Nearly 15,000 cleaners and their suppliers throughout the United States and around the world read Clothesline
