How to buy a drycleaning plant
hinking of buying
another plant? Thinking of going into the drycleaning business
because you are disgusted with the corporate world, and you
think that a million dollars can be made in drycleaning? If
your mind is made up, then this article is meant for you.
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I have witnessed many persons who claim
that they will revolutionize this industry through unknown
management techniques and some secret formulas. They are
confident that they will give much better quality work and
service than is being offered by the present operators.
If this is the thinking of a novice
investor, then he or she had better look into other fields of
endeavor since this has been the reason for quite a number of
failures. Remember the basic rule of a military commander:
Fight your enemy with all your might since he could be better
than you are, and know his weaknesses and strengths.
While good business management qualities
and knowledge are important to the novice investor, he or she
must realize the uniqueness of the type of workers associated
with this industry. Most important is the acquisition of experience.
You must get yourself educated in the
technical aspects of drycleaning and laundry, the basic
engineering of how the equipment works, the method of
bookkeeping unlike a merchandise business, how to market your
services successfully, how spots are removed, how garments are
pressed, how to manage the unique personnel and how to work
harder in the beginning of your tenure than you ever have
worked.
This industry is highly sophisticated, and
you had better realize that from the beginning. You should get
yourself educated at either the International Fabricare
Institute or the National Cleaners Association. Both of these
institutions offer excellent general drycleaning and management
courses, but your education does not stop there.
The next phase is equally important. You
must get on-the-job training to get exposure to the “real
world” and its everyday problems. Who knows? You may find
out that this industry is not for you.
The best place to start, however, is at
the plant that you intend to purchase. You should begin at the
customer service area.
Next you should work in the
inspection-assembly-bagging area.
Then you should work with the
cleaner/spotter to ensure that what you have learned in school
is being carried on at this plant.
Then you should work with the pressers to
compare the finishing procedures learned in school with those
at this plant.
Whether you get paid by the former owner,
or you have to work for nothing, the main point is that you are
“trying on the shoes before you buy them.” Also,
without this practical knowledge, you will be at the mercy of
your employees, and “you will get what they have always
given.”
I had a consulting assignment with a
husband and wife who had completed the general course and
management course at the International Fabricare Institute, and
had their minds made up to start a new plant from
“scratch.” After preparing an equipment layout with
installation specs, getting bids from distributors on my
equipment list, exploring all the requirements of the local
government, etc., I insisted that they get at least a few weeks
exposure to the “real world of drycleaning” at one
of the plants outside of their planned business area. They
worked only three days at this plant, and they walked out with
the decision that this industry was not for them.
The husband was a mechanical engineer,
with 20 years experience, who was fed up with constant layoffs
after completion of projects. The wife was an actuary for a
major insurance company whose mission was to work the business
with her husband. Would you believe the husband got 100 percent
on every exam in school?
If you are a present plant owner looking
to expand your operation by purchasing another plant, then you
have, hopefully, gotten over the aforementioned hurdles. Either
way, the following should be done to avoid problems and failure:
• Get verification of the past three
years of gross sales (bank statements, tax return or duplicate
deposit slips).
• Do not accept an explanation that
the profit is very small, or non-existent, due to personal
charges or non-business expenses, etc. The net profit is what
you see from a tax return or an accountant’s signed, or
on a letterhead, profit and loss statement.
• Get the P & L statement
analyzed by another accountant or qualified consultant.
• Inventory all the equipment as to
age, condition, description, etc. Get it evaluated by an
independent consultant or expert. This is critical since you
may find yourself replacing some of the equipment soon after
taking over the business.
• Know the market you are entering.
Get as much information available on your competitors: prices
charged, quality of work, attitude of customer service persons,
hours of operation, etc. Test their work by sending a family
member with some clothes that are stained and quite soiled.
Observe their pressing and packaging.
• Check the lease thoroughly. You
must have at least 10 years with an option to renew. Look for
hidden clauses that may cost you later.
• Find out if there are plans for any
future improvements or widening of the street in front of the
plant. I knew of a plant that had to forgo customer parking in
front of its customer service area due to widening of the
street. The project took several months to complete.
• Have the ground tested, or
certified, as free from contamination if the solvent used in
the past was perchloroethylene or petroleum (Class II)
solvents. Be aware that contamination can be caused, also, by
pouring spotting chemicals and other products down the drain,
whether it be a storm drain or toilet drain. You could very
well be held liable for cleanup cost that was caused many years
ago if the property is suddenly inspected.
• Make sure that the seller has
maintained all the required logs, documents and files as
required by local and federal governments. See that the
required inspections have been performed and logged if the
solvent used was perchloroethlyene. If perchloroethylene is
used, check the hazardous waste removal procedures and
documents.
• Devise a strategic marketing plan
and don’t depend exclusively on “word of
mouth” advertising.
• If you are a novice, employ a
qualified consultant to help you verify all of the above,
especially the real value of all the equipment. Know how to
determine the true goodwill, if there is goodwill.
Note: My spotting video, “The
Caplan Method of Stain Removal,” which includes my
comprehensive text (edited by Hal Horning) and handy spotting
board reference, is available in English, Spanish and Korean
(video only in Korean). A lecture and demonstration are
presented similar to my classes over the years at IFI and SDA
schools. This video and text are ideal for training
inexperienced spotters as well as a good review for experienced
spotters. Digesting, bleaching, oxidized oil stains and
caramelized sugar stains are discussed and demonstrated. An
article on “Removing Spots in the Cleaning
Machine”(for perc and petroleum) is included in the text
book.
Also available is my video on step-by-step
shirt finishing which includes my comprehensive text in
loose-leaf form outlining each procedure for single operator
and two-operator cabinet shirt unit using a cabinet sleeve
press. Proper forming of the collar using heated collar formers
is demonstrated. Each lay is demonstrated for top quality and
production with very little effort. Attractive detailing and
packaging of the hung shirt, padding, steam pressures and
timing are all discussed. A unique wash formula for whiter
whites and brighter colors and removal of grease and body oils
is included in the textbook.
Note: My spotting video, “The
Caplan Method of Stain Removal,” which includes my
comprehensive text and handy spotting board reference available
in English, Spanish and Korean (video only in Korean) from the
Golomb Group, c/o Dennis McCrory, 7664 Plaza Court,
Willowbrook, IL 60521, phone (800) 679-5856. A lecture and
demonstration are presented similar to my classes over the
years at IFI and SDA. This video and text are ideal for
training inexperienced spotters as well as a good review for
experienced spotters. Digesting with enzymes, bleaching,
oxidized oil stains and caramelized sugar stains are discussed
and demonstrated. An article on “Removing Spots in the
Cleaning Machine” and an article on “How to
Increase Production in the Spotting Department” are
included in the comprehensive text book.
Also available from the Golomb Group, in
English and Spanish, is my video on step-by-step shirt
finishing which includes my comprehensive text in loose-leaf
form outlining each procedure for single-operator and
two-operator cabinet shirt unit using a cabinet sleeve press.
Proper forming of the collar using heated collar formers is
demonstrated. Each lay is demonstrated for top quality with
very little effort by the operators. Attractive detailing and
packaging of the hangered shirt, padding, steam pressures and
timing are all discussed. A unique wash formula for whiter
whites and brighter colors and removal of grease and body oils
is included in the loose-leaf text book.
My experience with shirts spans over 55
years with US Army as a principal laundry and dry-cleaning
concessionaire at Ft. Meade, MD, where average shirt volume was
approximately 10,000 per day. We were constantly
“sampled” for excellent quality in both finishing
and washing in laundry and drycleaning and in tailoring.
We operated our own 40,000-sq.-ft. plant
for over 35 years.
Stan Caplan has over 35 years experience
in his own high volume dry-cleaning, laundry and tailoring
plant and two package plants with adjoining coin-operated
laundry and drycleaning. Stan is the former chief instructor at
the International Fabricare Institute, the Southwest
Drycleaners Association and various other trade
association-sponsored schools throughout the US and courses in
Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Singapore and Hong Kong. Stan
offers consulting, training and engineering services in all
areas from customer service area to the boiler room since 1981.
His complete system withtotal quality management will produce
maximum efficiency, economy and product excellent quality. Stan
can be reached at 7341 Amberly Lane, Suite 310, Delray Beach,
FL 33446, phone/fax (561) 496-2548. His e-mail address is stancap100@aol.com.
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