Setting up a laundry services business is a very profitable venture. Most people work long hours and do not have time to do certain chores such as laundry thus, setting up this kind of business is lucrative. As the middle class grows together with their disposable income, the demand for dry cleaning services and laundry services will continue increasing in the coming years. As many countries continue to develop with the urban population increasing, the demand for convenient services such as dry cleaners and laundromats will continue to rise. Nowadays, both spouses work and there are a few stay at homes parents and many people pay someone to do their home chores such as laundry or make use of laundromats. This article will outline how to set up a laundry services business as well as the laundry services business plan – PDF, Word and Excel.
If you want to set up a successful laundry business there are some important factors you need to consider. First you need to decide on the type of laundry services you need to offer, your target market and your location. The type of laundromat you set up will be based on the amount of capital you are willing to invest in the business. It is also crucial to research the market as well as the industry before you set up your business and have a good business plan for laundry services.
Location & Premises
The location and premises of your laundry business is essential because the success or failure of your business depends on it. Therefore, when choosing a location for your laundry services business consider where your target market is, the amount of road and foot traffic, as well as how accessible your facilities will be. Consider setting up your laundry services at a popular shopping centre, a mall, or somewhere close to your target market. It is also important to consider how the surrounding area will affect your business. You do not want to set up your business in a saturated place where there are a lot of similar services. Also consider the size of your premises and make sure that they are large enough for your machines, dryers and can accommodate your customers without them crowding. Parking space is also essential when considering your premises. Your customers should not have hard time when it comes to parking space if they are to come to your laundromat. Your laundromat business plan should include the costs of purchasing or leasing the premises.
Permits/Licenses, Insurance & Business Bank Account
Permits Or Licenses
Normally, a laundry business must have an operating or shop license. This is usually given by your respective local municipal authorities. In some cases this might not be necessary, especially if you are operating say, from your home. Business or company registration is necessary, especially if you want to be taken seriously. Proper registration will also make it easier to get bigger clients and to source funding if need be.
Insurance & Business Bank Account
Under normal circumstances you will be dealing with machinery. This implies that anything can go wrong any time. To prepare yourself for such scenarios you must insure your laundry business. After all, you will be dealing with people’s clothes. Insurance helps you to not bleed financially if unfortunate incidents occur. Open a business bank account to take note of, trace, and generally manage your laundry business finances. You would not want to be personally liable when things go south.
Machinery & Equipment For Laundry Services Business
For any business to run successfully it needs the right machinery & equipment. It is important to invest in quality washing machines, and dryers for example. If you are the kind of laundry service company that will travel to pick up and drop off laundry you will need to purchase a vehicle as well. Ensure that your business plan has a list of all the machines, equipment, detergents needed by your laundromat business. The kind of services you choose to provide will determine the kind of equipment and detergents you will need. The costs of purchasing the machines & equipment should be included in your laundry business plan.
Products And Services
You should have a clear picture of the kind of products and services you plan on offering. These products and services will be depend on your target market. Some of the popular services offered by other laundry service companies include washing, drying, and dry cleaning of regular clothes, beddings, blankets, carpets and curtains to name a few. There are other laundromats that have complimentary services such as shoe repairs in addition to their laundry services plus there are others that also offer garment mending. It may be profitable to offer other complimentary services in addition to the regular laundry services. However, make sure that your services are profitable and are required by your target market. You can pick up and deliver laundry, provide a self-service laundromat, or offer dry cleaning services. Whatever services you decide to provide, your laundry services business plan should clearly outline them.
Competitive Analysis
Do market research to figure out where the market gaps are. This is because it would be ideal to find a location that is underserved or not served at all. If your intended target market has other laundry businesses close by then study them. The quest is to find out how you can differentiate your laundry business. Differentiators start off with choice of location, types of services, prices, and add-ons, amongst others. Learn from the competitor laundry businesses and capitalize on their shortcomings.
Staff & Management
Your staff members have a direct effect on how successful your laundromat business will be. As such, it is important to hire people that are experienced in this kind of business and who also love doing their jobs. You will need to hire cleaners, laundry attendants, and finance & operations staff who will assist you in running your business. The number of people you hire will depend on the size of your operations as well as the services you intend on offering. Make sure that your workers know how to safely use detergents, cleaning chemicals, laundry machinery and handle delicate materials. Laundry equipment and cleaning chemicals can be dangerous thus it is important to hire experienced staff.
It is important to set up procedures and processes to make your operations efficient and simple. Ensure that your laundry attendants know how different fabrics are treated, washed, and dried. Handling people’s clothes and other belongings needs special care if you want to run a successful laundry services business. Also adhering to industry safety regulations is crucial if you want your business to be successful. Your laundromat business plan should have a clear description on who you will hire, your operational procedures as well as the salaries and operational costs of your business.
Some of the day to day activities of a laundry services business include;
- Washing and drying of clothes using washing machines, dryers and handwashing
- Serving customers, taking and delivering orders,
- Advertising and marketing
- Cleaning the facilities
Market
The market for laundry services is very large. With an increasing population and more people entering the workforce very few people have time to do their laundry. Students, working parents and other professionals have very busy lifestyles with limited time on their hands. As such, the demand for laundry services is very high. The demand for laundry services in institutions such as prisons, schools, universities, and hospitals is high. Many of these organisations would rather outsource their laundry needs than buy expensive washing machines and dryers. Not everyone can afford a washing machine so setting up a laundromat close to apartments or flats to serve individuals can also be profitable.
Given the increase in the number of working professionals, the need for laundry services is likely going to go up in the coming years thus, setting up a laundry services business is profitable. Before you venture in any kind of business developing a business plan is essential. That way you can determine whether your business idea is feasible or not. With a a good laundry business plan, you can outline the risks associated with your business, ways to minimise them, your operational and financial plan.
Keys To Profitability
Strive To Score Regular And Bulk Clients
The laundry business is a game of numbers. The more clothing items you push, the more the revenue. The best way to easily achieve that is by getting regular and bulk clients. These are clients who normally need laundry done almost daily and in large quantities. Examples of such clients are health facilities, academic facilities, or hospitality facilities. Common examples of such are hospitals, schools, and hotels. Retainer arrangements with them would be great.
Provide Unbeatable Convenience
There are many ways you can do this. A good example is to offer cheap (or even free) pick-up and deliveries. The driving element in people wanting to get their laundry done is convenience. Often time clients have to walk in and drop their laundry. Then they come back later to get their clothes. Most people honestly do not enjoy or have time for that. You can step in to offer convenience by offering to do pick-ups and deliveries later on. You can charge a small almost negligible fee or you can offer these as free services. This is a good example of how you can score more clients. Ensuring the shortest possible turnaround is another way to provide convenience. This also means you must even strive to have a service where clients walk-in and wait for their clothes.
Quality Services Are The Master Key
People expect their clothes to be properly cleaned or washed. A sure way of retaining your customers is by making sure you produce quality every time. Your laundry business must be synonymous with guaranteed quality. Customers might not even be bothered if you are pricey. So long you insist on and ensure consistent quality, customer experiences will be top notch. Not only does that build customer loyalty but it generates word of mouth marketing. A quality-oriented laundry business promotes customer loyalty and drives customer acquisitions.
The laundry business wields vast business prospects in many areas around the world. There are still many places where laundry businesses are non-existent or sparsely available. Those are good indicators of why you should start the laundry business.
Pre-Written Laundry Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel): Comprehensive Version, Short Funding/Bank Loan Version and Automated Financial Statements
For an in-depth analysis of the laundry services business, we encourage you to purchase our well-researched and comprehensive laundry services business plan. We introduced the business plans after discovering that many were venturing into the laundry business without enough knowledge and understanding of how to run the business, lack of understanding of the financial side of the business, lack of understanding of : the industry, the risks involved , costs and profitability of the business; which often leads to disastrous losses.
The StartupBiz Global laundry business plan will make it easier for you to launch and run your laundry services business successfully, fully knowing what you are going into, and what’s needed to succeed in the business. This is a complete business plan for a laundry business. It will be easier to plan and budget as you will be aware of all the costs involved in setting up and running the laundry business.
Uses of the Laundry Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel)
The laundry business plan can be used for many purposes including:
- Raising capital from investors/friends/relatives
- Applying for a bank loan
- Start-up guide to launch your laundry business
- As a laundry business proposal
- Assessing profitability of the laundry business
- Finding a business partner
- Assessing the initial start-up costs so that you know how much to save
- Manual for current business owners to help in business and strategy formulation
Contents of the Laundry Services Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel)
The business plan for laundry includes, but not limited to:
- Marketing Strategy
- Financial Statements (monthly cash flow projections, income statements, cash flow statements, balance sheets, break even analysis, payback period analysis, start-up costs, financial graphs, revenue and expenses, Bank Loan Amortization)
- Industry Analysis
- Market Analysis
- Risk Analysis
- SWOT & PEST Analysis
- Operational Requirements
- Operational Strategy
- Why some people in the laundry business fail, so that you can avoid their mistakes
- Ways to raise capital to start your laundry business
The laundry services business plan package consists of 4 files
- Laundry Business Plan – PDF file (Comprehensive Version – 81 Pages)
- Laundry Business Plan – Editable Word File (Comprehensive Version – 81 Pages)
- Laundry Business Plan Funding/Bank Loan Version- Editable Word File (Short version for applying for a loan/funding – 41 pages)
- Laundry Business Plan Automated Financial Statements – (Editable Excel File)
The business plan can be used in any country and can be easily edited. The financial statements are automated. This implies that you can change eg the costs, salaries etc, and all the other financial statements will automatically adjust to reflect the change.
Click below to download the Contents Page of the Laundry Services Business Plan (PDF)
Get the Laundry Business Plan (PDF, Word And Excel)
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The Pre-written business plan package (PDF, Word, and Excel) costs $30 only!
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The business plan package is a zipped compressed file containing the PDF, Word and Excel documents. To open the package after downloading it, just right click, and select Extract All. If you have any problems in downloading and opening the files, email us on shop@startupbizglobal.com and we will assist you.
We wish you the best in your laundry services business! Check out our collection of business plans , and more business ideas.