National Clothesline

Comet Cleaners held its biannual convention Oct 1-3 at the Hilton Hotel in Allen, TX, with exhibitors coming from around the country to show their equipment, products and services to this drycleaning chain of 300-plus stores.

Vendors included Marvel, Forenta, R.R. Street & Co. Inc., Adco, Caled, Covers Etc, B&G Lieberman, UNX, Intuit, A.L. Wilson, Computer Connection, Iowa Techniques, Dallas Tailor, Dexter & Company, Telecheck/CSI, Madison’s Bag, Goscin Sales and Rawhide Leather.

Guest speakers during the convention included Andy Stanley, executive director of the Southwest Drycleaners Association; John Gesek, former team member of the Dallas Cowboys; and Laurie Godfrey McReynolds and Jack Godfrey, Jr., corporate executives of Jack Godfrey & Sons, Inc.

Jack Godfrey & Sons has specialized in the distribution of drycleaning and laundry equipment since the 1920s. Comet Cleaners began its franchise program in the 1950s and is one of the larger drycleaning franchises in the United States.

Comet locations now offer drive-through windows, audio-visual displays, and state-of-the art drycleaning equipment designed by Jack Godfrey, Jr.

Comet Cleaners corporate office is located in Arlington, TX, and can be reached by phone at (817) 461-3555 or on the web at www.cometcleaners.com.

“Quality Cleaning: How Do You Measure Up?” will be a question IFI Garment Analyst Chris Allsbrooks poses to attendees at the Southwest Drycleaners Association’s 2005 convention in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The event will take place from March 3-6.

The Saturday morning seminar will comprehensively cover customer expectations and what factors cleaners should consider when they decide whether or not to process a problem garment.

Allsbrooks, who holds a bachelor’s degree in fashion merchandising and textile marketing from the University of Maryland, College Park, will cater her discussion to include group exercises involving attendee participation.

Also on the educational tap will be a seminar entitled “State & Federal Regulations in SDA’s Eight States.” The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality will be on hand Friday evening to examine every regulation that affects SDA members, including issues concerning the Environmental Protection Agency and key contacts relevant to each member state.

After the seminar will be a welcome reception hosted by SDA.

Throughout the weekend, the association has scheduled many other fun activities to help cleaners “Pass a Good Time,” the theme of this year’s show.

On Saturday, SDA has planned an Antique Village tour to Denham Springs where over 110 quality antique dealers located in a two block area reside.

Other events on the agenda include the association’s annual membership meeting and a tour of Nottoway Plantation, one of the largest and grandest old plantations in the south. Both will also take place on Saturday.

Golfers may prefer to spend the day on the fairways at the legendary Bluffs on Thompson Creek course, designed by Arnold Palmer.

Later in the evening, SDA will present a tour of the wetlands habitat, Alligator Bayou, where there will be Zydeco music and plenty of Jambalaya and bread pudding to eat.

For more information, contact SDA at (210) 826-4684 or visit www.sda-dryclean.com.

If you know how to spot clean and press cloth garments, then you are capable of drycleaning and wetcleaning suede, leathers and furs, as well.

Cleaners who wish to learn exactly how may want to reserve spacing for one of the upcoming course dates at the Royaltone Leather Cleaning Academy in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Two-day classes will take place on February 3 and 4, and May 12 and 13 of 2005.

The training will consist of both classroom and in-plant, hands-on sessions taught by the school’s chief instructor Frank Lucenta.

Enrollment for each class is limited to seven plant owners or managers, so early registration is highly recommended.

The cost of the program is $400 per attendee. However, there are discounts of up to 50% available for those who sign up early with multiple attendees from the same plant.

For more information, contact the Royaltone Leather Cleaning Academy by calling (800) 331-5506. The school also has a web site at www.royaltone.com.