Imagine examining thousands of garments and household textiles armed only with a set of tools that includes a microscope, chemical indicators, stain removal chemicals and ultraviolet light.
Now imagine that you have to go on the road and try to convey complex, scientific research data to a large group of people in a manner that is both interesting and comprehensible.
Well, now you have an idea of what it is like to be Chris Allsbrooks, garment analyst and popular public speaker for the International Fabricare Institute.
IFI, which houses a small team of well-trained textile experts, analyzed over 19,000 garments in 1998, and continues to study a mountain of garments daily in an effort to determine the source of fabric damage for problem garments and help understand which cleaning processes work best for each uniquely-made article of clothing.
"On a typical day, we have a line of garments -- there might be anywhere from 100 to 500 garments on the line -- those are the garments we get on a daily basis," said Allsbrooks. "We have garments for stains. We have garments for color loss. We have garments for dye transfer. We have garments for 'I don't know what happened, you tell me what happened.' You have to go through various steps to try and analyze the garments and figure out what happened. "
In the past seven years, Allsbrooks has analyzed "thousands" of garments for IFI -- each one is its own unique mystery in need of an explanation.
"A typical garment may take you anywhere from five to ten minutes to analyze, but some of them you really are stumped on," she mused. "It could take you anywhere from a half hour to 45 minutes to come up with a plausible answer. I've taken a couple of days doing things."
In addition to her laboratory duties, Chris stays quite active with a variety of other tasks. If she isn't writing a garment analysis report or a "Not In Vogue" article for Fabricare Resources, she can often be found teaching IFI courses and giving informational seminars at trade shows and conventions.
Last month she was at the "Big Show 2000" in Texas with Jane Zellers, co-presenting "Problem Garments and Customer Service," a popular lecture that features volunteers walking down a fashion runway, wearing samples of ruined garments, as Chris explains what happened to them.
Though Chris was born in Camp LeJeune, NC, in 1968, she didn't get to stay there very long; she moved to Florida when she was only three months old. Her father, Roland Pannell, was a marine (he is now retired), and the family moved around frequently. She even lived in Italy for three years, but Chris's parents decided that it would be best for her and her older brothers, Brian and Eric, if the family settled in Gaithersburg, MD.
Chris's father continued to be stationed in other cities, but her mother, Faye (a private sector administrative assistant), preferred that Chris attend the same exemplary high school that she had attended in Gaithersburg.
Fortunately for Chris, Gaithersburg High School had a fashion program. "I knew in early high school that I was going to stay within the industry. I've always been interested in clothes."
It was in the fashion program that Chris met Mrs. McDonald, a teacher who influenced her tremendously. "She was the fashion person that guided me in my life," she recalled. "After I graduated from college, I would go back to high school and talk to some fashion students every year."
After graduating from high school, Chris knew she wanted to pursue an education in fashion, but she had to decide between going to the University of Maryland or the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.
"I chose the University of Maryland because I am very family-oriented," she explained. "All my family was there. I didn't want to leave my family. My dad was in Japan at the time and that also helped me with my decision. My mom would have been by herself because my other brothers were gone."
At the University of Maryland, Chris was a cheerleader in her first year (she had been a cheerleader all through high school), but she soon had a change of heart. "It wasn't really what I wanted to do. I pledged my sorority and that was my main focus."
Like her high school fashion teacher Mrs. Douglas, Chris became a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. "We do charity functions. We have one project -- sickle cell anemia -- that's the biggest charity we deal with," she said. "We do a lot of clothing for women who are at shelters for battered women and are going back to work. We've gone and painted houses and reconstruction -- trying to get houses together for people, trying to get them out of shelters."
Before Chris received her degree in Fashion Merchandising/ Textile Marketing, she spent the summer prior to her last year of college working behind the counter for Darryl Trupp of Fashion Floor Cleaners in Gaithersburg, MD.
"Darryl would have a couple of problems with customers and he would say, 'You know what, let's send it to IFI and get it analyzed, and, whatever they say, we'll work it out from there," she recalled. "I saw him do that at least three or four times and I saw him pull out information and give it to people."
When school was about to resume in fall, Mr. Trupp asked Chris what she was going to do in the future. She told him, "I'm going to work at IFI."
Chris didn't start at IFI until a few years after she graduated, but she never gave up on the dream. "I graduated from college and went to retail, which is what a lot of people in fashion do because there are limited things for them to do with their degree," she said. You could go into designing. You could go into costuming and that kind of stuff, but that wasn't where I wanted to go."
Instead, Chris worked as a retail manager for three years at Lerner (a division of Limited) before she realized she didn't want to be in retail anymore.
Growing up, Chris's father had always offered some good advice: "My dad always told me, 'If you can't do something that you really enjoy, then you're not going to have any fun doing it and you will hate your job the rest of your life.'"
With that advice, Chris decided to apply at IFI. "I came in for an interview, got hired, and the first person that I called when I started working there was Darryl," she said, a little misty-eyed. "He would come drop clothes off there and would be like, 'You do work here!'"
Even with an extensive textiles background, Chris still had much to learn in order to be a garment analyst. "They (IFI) trained me. I had to go through the drycleaning class," she said.
"I love my job because I never do the same thing every day. I'm always learning. I learn something every day. There is always something new out there."
When it comes to garment analysis, Chris has her own method. "I stop when I think it is safe to stop. Sometimes if you go a little bit riskier, the stain will come out. One wedding dress I got in for restoration -- I was going to restore it! That was just the bottom line. I did a hyrdrogen peroxide bath on it three times. I had to work on the stains themselves and I restored it. That was the toughest one I ever did and it took a lot of time, a lot of effort."
Though Chris stays busy with analyzing, she can also be frequently found passing along her knowledge in industry seminars. Anybody who has ever heard her speak knows she begins by saying, "I talk fast. That's just the way I talk. I'm not nervous."
However, that wasn't the case when she delivered her first presentation at Clean '95. She brought her mother along to calm her nerves. "That was the only time I've ever been scared," she said, which is quite impressive since she gave a presentation in front of a thousand attendees at Clean '99.
Still, Chris doesn't let it bother her too much anymore because she enjoys having the opportunity to teach people. "I would love to answer questions all day long. That to me is the best seminar you can do because at least somebody got something out of it."
The future for Chris is mapped out pretty well. She hopes to continue spending as much time with her family as she can. It doesn't hurt that most of her family live in the same general area.
Currently, Chris literally lives across the road from IFI. "On snow days I have to go. I can't say I can't get there. They'll come get me," she joked.
However, she wants to move into a house soon and eventually start a family with her husband of three years, Robert. "I love being married," she said. "My husband and I are a good mix. We have a very solid relationship."
Part of their compatibility stems from the fact that her husband is also a "clothes hound." "One time, my husband wanted a leather jacket and it took us three years before we found a leather jacket that we both agreed on. You know... that one's got scar tissue, you can't get that. Look at the belly wrinkles there, you can't get that," she laughed.
That is precisely the reason her friends tease her that they won't shop with her -- because of her analytical fashion skills. Yet, her reputation as a fashion guru and garment inspector at IFI is quite secure.
"I am the problem garment expert at IFI, I will officially say," she said, smiling. "I'm also the Fashion Police. People come in and say, 'Chris, I just bought this dress... does it look good on me? Do these shoes go with this dress?' In fact, one year on Halloween I dressed up as the Fashion Police and issued citations to people. I had a little badge and everything."
As for her career, Chris is quite content to remain in her field, "I will always be in the industry. That is a guarantee. I love my job. IFI is a great company to work for. I don't think I will ever get bored with what I do."
Alliance Laundry Systems LLC announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the assets of Ajax, the pressing and finishing equipment division of American Laundry Machinery Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Located in Cincinnati, OH, Ajax designs and markets a full line of presses and finishers for drycleaning and industrial laundry plants.
Alliance said the acquisition of Ajax will expand its participation in the drycleaning market, which currently includes wetcleaning and shirt laundering equipment.
Alliance's chairman and CEO, Tom L'Esperance, stated, "We are very pleased with the purchase. The addition of Ajax's product line broadens and strengthens our ability to serve the drycleaning market. Our products compliment each other extremely well, especially with our recent developments in environmentally friendly drycleaning equipment."
Alliance previewed a prototype liquid carbon dioxide drycleaning machine at Clean '99 in Orlando, FL, and is one of several companies that have agreements with Global Technologies for building liquid carbon dioxide machines.
Alliance has signed a lease to continue to operate the Ajax factory at its current location. Alliance also has manufacturing facilities in Ripon, WI, Madisonville, KY, and Marianna, FL, where it produces laundry equipment under the Speed Queen, UniMac and Huebsch brand names.
The company was founded several years ago by the senior management team of Raytheon Commercial Laundry and Bain Capital Inc. of Boston, a private equity firm. In 1998 the company completed its acquisition of Raytheon Commercial Laundry, the commercial laundry equipment manufacturing business of Raytheon Co. The sale essentially completed Raytheon's divestiture of its appliance business units.
American Laundry Machinery Inc. will continue to serve textile mills and garment manufacturers through its affiliates American Textile Processing LLC and American Textile Solutions, Inc.
Anton's Cleaners announced the appointment of Charles A. Anton as president and chief executive officer and his brother, Arthur C. Anton Jr., as executive vice president and chief operating officer. The family-run business has 39 garment care stores in eastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire.
The two men are the third generation of the family to be involved in the business that was started in 1913 by their grandfather. Both have played major roles in the operation of the business since the early 1980s.
Their father, Arthur C. Anton Sr., assumes the role of chairman of the board, while Socrates Anton, their uncle, is vice chairman and executive vice president. Both are actively involved in the day-to-day operations of the business.
"Arthur and I have been fortunate to work with my father and uncle for the past 20 years," said Charles Anton. "Their high standards are reflected in the way our company does business, and we will maintain this tradition."
That tradition includes involvement in the local community, including sponsorship of Coats for Kids, a program through which unused coats and jackets are donated to locate Anton's stores, which cleans all of the coats at no charge before they are distributed by the Salvation Army. Over the past five years, 61,000 coats have been donated to those in need through the program.
The Antons also plan to stay on the cutting edge of clothing care in terms of cleaning equipment and processes.
"Our chemical-free guarantee is a measure of our dedication to the highest standards for our customers," said Charles Anton. "We have always been on the forefront of being environmentally safe and environmentally friendly.
Through Anton's Cleaners web site, www.antons.com, Arthur Anton Jr., answers customers' questions on issues ranging from service to the finer points of clothing care. He responds personally to each inquiry.
The Antons said they will continue to search for opportunities to expand their store into new markets.
Charles A. Anton is a 1979 graduate of Tufts University. He received a law degree from Boston University School of Law in 1982 and an MBA from the Boston University Graduate School of Management. He and his wife, Tami, have three children.
Arthur Anton Jr. is a 1981 graduate of Harvard University. He and his wife, Nina, have two children.
Washburn Machinery of Arlington Heights, IL, has joined the distribution network of Realstar drycleaning machines.
Washburn has been established for more than 30 years and maintains a staff of sales, technical service, installation and administrative personnel.
Jeff Fox and Bob Funk are co-owners of Washburn Machinery. Realstar will be their primary line of drycleaning machines, which includes perc and hydrocarbon systems.
Realstar machines are sold exclusively through authorized distributors in the United States and Canada. Washburn Machinery is located at 3110 N. Arlington Heights Rd., Arlington Heights, IL, 60006; phone (847) 670-9844.
Brad Clement has been named business manager, PerSec and Pentachlorophenol, for Vulcan Chemicals. Clement will be responsible for providing business leadership for Vulcan's pentachlorophenol wood preservative product and PerSec, Vulcan's perchloroethylene sold to the drycleaning industry. He replaces Gene Meyer who was recently named to lead Vulcan's e-commerce development efforts.
Vulcan Chemicals, a business unit of Vulcan Materials Co. based in Birmingham, AL, manufactures and markets basic industrial chemicals.
John Brooks has joined Methods for Management Inc. as a staff management consultant. Brooks is a business consultant who specializes in organization analysis and evaluation, developing strategic and action plans and facilitating teams to complement process management.
He will provide services throughout the United States and Canada for MFM, an independent consulting firm that has worked in the drycleaning laundry industry for more than 45 years. Brooks has been involved in plant maintenances and facilities project management for more than 20 years and has led work process improvement initiatives with emphasis on financial and workforce assessments, performance measurements and bench-marking. In addition to his consulting experience, he has served as an administrator of an energy management program , a facilities operations manager and plant maintenance manager.
Headquartered in Gig Harbor, WA, MFM provides planning, finance, personnel, marketing and production expertise through its staff of consultants. MFM also operates 13 management bureaus throughout the United States, Canada and Australia in which business owners share ideas with other successful owners.
More information is available by calling MFM, (253) 851-6327 or visiting the MFM web site, www.mfmi.com.
Sydney Smidt of Jupiter, FL, has been appointed Southeastern Operations Manager for DynaClean Worldwide Inc., manufacturer of azeotropic distillation systems for the drycleaning industry.
Smidt brings extensive knowledge in chemicals and reclamation processes to the company. He also has experience in Superfund negotiations and litigation. He will be developing business in Florida and Georgia. He can be reached at (561) 630-8305.
Foster-Stephens has promoted Kathy Daniels to general manager. She has been with the company for four years in the position of office manager. In her new position, she will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company, distributor development, marketing and customer sales and support.
Foster-Stephens makes wedding gown preservation chests and advertising materiels. Daniels can be reached at (800) 279-8269, ext. 100.
COIT marks 50th year in business by adding new services
COIT Services Inc. is celebrating both 50 years in the cleaning business and 35 years of franchising.
Known primarily for pioneering a safe drapery cleaning process, the company offers its customers other cleaning services that include carpets, upholstery, draperies, blinds, air ducts, and hardwood floor restoration and maintenance.
COIT CEO Robert Kern said that the company became a force in the industry due to its "innovative and superior marketing strategies."
"If it wasn't for additional cleaning services that COIT offers its customers, COIT could not have become the powerful brand name it is today," he added.
The company recently entered the stone, tile and marble floor maintenance industry and is launching this new service to the franchise organization this spring. The service will be offered under the FloorRenew brand name that currently houses COIT's hardwood floor maintenance service.
"Staying on the cutting edge of the specialty cleaning industry and introducing new services and cleaning techniques will allow COIT to maintain its status as the industry leader for many years to come," Kern said.
With headquarters in Burlingame, CA, COIT Services Inc. has 11 company-owned facilities and 56 franchised locations with new franchises opening in Boise, ID, and Cumberland, MD, this year.
COIT seeks individuals who can manage a multi-track, multi-profit center operation in large franchise territories.
"We are currently seeking potential COIT franchisees who share our vision of hard work and exemplary service," said Nick Granato, vice president of Franchise Services.
Information about COIT franchises is available from Craig Ratkovich, director of franchise development, (800) 243-8797, ext. 122 or via e-mail at craig@coit.com. Information about the company is also available on its website, www.coit.com.
Geoff Hannam is the new chairman of the Fabric Care Research Association, an industry trade association based in the United Kingdom.
Hannam has served on the FCRA board since 1996 and has strong links with FCRA's predecessor the Dyers and Cleaners Research Organisation (DCRO). He began working in the family drycleaning business, Denbigh's of Doncaster, while still in school, eventually going full-time and staying with the business for more than 20 years. He has also worked in several sectors of the laundry industry, including machinery supply and a stint as a representative for Kreussler the chemical supplier.
He has held managerial positions in hospital laundering before returning to the supply side where is responsible for sales and technical support for Aquafilm.
During his career, he has been active in the Guild of Cleaners and Launderers and the Society of Hospital Linen Service and Laundry Managers.
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