The effort to close perc-using drycleaning stores in residential buildings claimed its first business in November when a Manhattan store was closed by the New York City Department of Health. The action involving White Glove Cleaners followed months of pressure from residents of the building, UNITE and Greenpeace.
The closure coincided with a television program run on Nov. 20 by the local NBC-TV affiliate. The story addressed problems experienced by Dani Cleaners on the Upper Westside and White Glove Cleaners in Tribeca.
The next morning a press conference in front of White Glove Cleaners was called by UNITE and attended by city public advocate Mark Green, a city councilwoman, Greenpeace, and the tenants and their attorney. Local media was represented by cable channel NY1, WOR-TV, WCBS-AM and several community newspapers.
Neighborhood Cleaners Association International was told of the press conference and Bill Seitz, Peter Atha and Mel Bond along with Tanya Klaserner of Stuart Pearlman & Co., the NCAI public relations firm, attended. Bill Seitz offered his view of the situation, interrupted by the heckling of several of the tenants.
Shortly after the conference ended, the city health department moved in on White Glove Cleaners in Tribecca and closed the store.
According to NCAI, the health department decision was "based on perc level readings in tenant apartments exceeding their 'guideline' of 15 ppb (parts per billion)."
"The issue is perc, but not just in New York City apartments," NCAI said. "It also includes stores in shopping centers, free standing plants and garments that come back from drycleaners. The goal of Greenpeace, UNITE, Mark Green, the New York State Department of Health and all of the other environmental hard liners is pure and simple -- ban perc."
The next day, NCAI associate director Jerry Levine appeared live on the local Fox Network program "Good Day, New York," a news show. He was seen live in front of White Glove Cleaners, along with Eric Frumin of UNITE and one of the tenants.
"Needless to say, we got the industry position across. But did our comments fall on deaf ears?" Levine wondered.
In addition, NCAI said two other cleaners in New York have been shut down. One used third-generation equipment while the other had fourth-generation equipment. The Department of Health claimed perc levels in apartments above them exceeded the DOH 'guideline' of 15 ppb.
"The measurements, taken by passive air measuring devices, we believe, are flawed and suspect since they were unsupervised and would probably not stand up in a court of law," NCAI charged.
Dani Cleaners was first investigated earlier this year after complaints from tenants living above the cleaner. The Department of Health took measurements in those apartments in April and June and recorded perc levels of 2 ppm. Although it spent $20,000 to correct the problem, Dani Cleaners was shut down in September. It now operates as a drop store.
The equipment is still on premises, but NCAI said Dani may have to remove it since it is no longer being used.
In the case of White Glove Cleaners, former lofts are being converted into upscale condominiums.
The retrofitted site includes vapor barriers on the ceiling. The first-floor drycleaning plant had fourth-generation equipment installed. On April 1, it opened for business, but only after prevailing in court against a suit brought by tenants in the building.
While granting White Glove the right to open, the New York State Supreme Court advised the New York City Council and the state Division of Community and Housing Renewal to determine if the state code is more stringent than the city code regarding the mixing of residential units and drycleaning businesses in the same building.
Of note, NCAI said White Glove Cleaners did not use its drycleaning machinery for several months after it opened, but "immediately heard complaints about perc odors."
In October and November, 1996, the city department of health took measurements in the apartments above White Glove with the results showing perc readings ranging from 65 ppb to 240 ppb.
NCAI charged the "readings are flawed and inaccurate," for the same reasons it cited in the Dani Cleaners situation.
At the same time, New York City Council has the co-location issue on its agenda for consideration and hearings beginning in January. Already, one of the Manhattan Community Boards passed and sent a resolution to the New York City Council recommending that new drycleaners be forbidden to use perc if situated in a residential building.
While all this has been going on, the completion of the New York state negotiated rule making process on drycleaning rules is near. With the new regulations close to adoption, NCAI complained "we continue to be stymied in our attempts to secure comments from the peer reviewers on information regarding the 15 ppb levels. In fact, the DOH apparently directed each of the six reviewers not to release their comments."
It is Levine's belief that state DOH personnel are suppressing the information in the hope that local governments will take more restrictive action on perc use.
NCAI plans for confronting the growing problem were studied at a strategy meeting held Nov. 27 at NCAI headquarters with Stuart Pearlman & Co., association lobbyist Don Halperin, allied trade representatives, attorneys for NCAI and other industry groups and an attorney representing White Glove.
No matter what course the group decides to take, NCAI warned that "it will take money, and lots of it," to pursue a lobbying campaign.
"We know you've heard this many times before but now that the first shots have actually been fired, the war is on," NCAI special projects manager Peter Atha said. "If you think this is a New York City or New York State problem, think again."
He warned that the campaign to limit perc use "is an industry problem that not only can but will spread... perhaps slowly but certainly surely throughout the United States if it is not stopped here and now."
Thanksgiving Eve brought an unwelcome turkey into the homes of drycleaners in the form of an ABC-TV PrimeTime Live segment that left a poor impression of some cleaners' abilities to clean clothes and deal with customers.
Industry reaction to PrimeTime's "On the Spot" segment ranged from anger at the network for what seemed to be yet another media attack on the industry to dismay at cleaners whose work failed to measure up to professional standards.
Both the Neighborhood Cleaners Association International and the International Fabricare Institute said the show highlighted the need for more education and training in the industry.
The segment led off by noting that drycleaners are "one of 10 most complained about businesses nationwide," according to Better Business Bureau statistics. In an interview with James Schmidt, president of the St. Louis Better Business Bureau, PrimeTime was told that there's more to the problem than inadequate cleaning. Customers said they were angry about the way they are treated, too, Schmidt said.
"The thing that boggles my mind is that 50 percent of the customers expected an apology and only two percent got it," he said. "Now, how much does an apology cost?"
To illustrate the problem, PrimeTime correspondent Sylvia Chase set up a blind test of 15 St. Louis area drycleaners with the help of Dr. Charles Riggs at the Texas Research Center for Laundry and Drycleaning at Texas Woman's University in Denton, TX.
For the test, 15 silk blouses and 15 rayon skirts, all brand new, were stained with spaghetti sauce, Coca-Cola and ink, then dropped off at the selected cleaners.
In Dr. Riggs' post-cleaning evaluation, 10 of the 15 cleaners failed to remove the stains. In nine instances, he said, the cleaners hadn't even tried. And some of the cleaning attempts resulted in making permanent spots out of stains that were removable when the clothes were brought in.
Another set of garments with the same type of stains were also cleaned at TWU's cleaning plant. The result, according to Chase, was garments that were "immaculate. Just like new!"
Of the St. Louis cleaners "spot tested" by PrimeTime, five cleaned the blouses to the satisfaction of Dr. Riggs' inspection. Only two of the rayon skirts met his approval.
"I thought we would get more good ones back," Riggs commented to PrimeTime. "But the majority of these items we wouldn't even want to wear."
Some of the garments were damaged by the cleaners. Runs and tears were shown in the fabric in two cases. The wearability of four of the silk blouses was diminished by the fact that black buttons bled onto the white fabric. This was caused by too much moisture in the cleaning solvent, Dr. Riggs said.
When PrimeTime's Chase returned to the cleaners to give them a chance to correct the problems, only three agreed to try again. One of those successfully removed the stains, but added a new one.
When Chase pointed out the new spot to the staff at the cleaners, she was told flatly: "We do not put stains on garments." After further explaining that the stains had been placed on brand-new garments as part of the test, she was still told, "It's not our fault."
PrimeTime also interviewed several unidentified drycleaning customers who told of similar experiences.
One said that when problems are pointed out to a cleaner "it's everybody's fault but theirs." Another said "they kept on insisting they had nothing to do with the stains." And another said she was told, after pointing out stains, "I can see a pig ate while wearing these pants."
The results of the tests led Chase to question the professionalism of drycleaners.
"Stain removal takes work and not all do it or even know how," she said. "Drycleaning is a business without any required certification or training. Anyone can be a drycleaner."
In the opinion of Dr. Riggs, many who are in the business shouldn't be. "If we had standards that I would like to see involving certification and testing and evaluation, probably easily a third would be out of the business," he said.
PrimeTime Live left its audience with some words of advice for finding a good drycleaner:
"It helps if the drycleaner knows what soiled the garment," Riggs said. Some stains are impossible to get out, he noted, but all of the stains presented in the tests were removable.
A wake-up call
Responding to the program, IFI's Chief Executive Officer Bill Fisher said, "This show is a wake-up call for us."
"As an industry, we are capable of providing excellent quality service to our customers -- as demonstrated by the quality work shown by several plants, especially IFI Certified Professional Drycleaners," Fisher said. "But this program also demonstrated how far too many plants have slipped in their work, causing the image problem we have."
The way PrimeTime's Chase was treated when she pointed out the shortcomings of the cleaning is as big a concern as the fact that the clothes weren't cleaned properly to begin with, IFI said.
"Training counter personnel is essential for good customer service. If this is how drycleaners react to customer complaints on camera, we have to wonder what customer service is like in an everyday situation," said Jon Meijer, director of education at IFI. "We need to get back to the good old days of quality customer service."
IFI advised cleaners not go on the defensive when mistakes happen . "Admit there is a problem and resolve it as quickly as possible. Keeping counter personnel and spotters informed and trained can also help increase quality," IFI said.
Among the cleaners who fared well in the PrimeTime test was Colonial Cleaners, owned by former IFI board member William Frein. IFI said Frein thought the PrimeTime piece was "very slanted but could have been worse."
"There is such a need for knowledge in this industry," Frein said.
Shortcomings exposed
Bill Seitz, executive director of the Neighborhhood Cleaners Association International, said it was a combination of a lack of effort and lack of knowledge that led to the poor showing in PrimeTime's tests.
"If five cleaners could remove the spaghetti sauce and Coca Cola stains, why shouldn't the other 10 also remove the stains?" Seitz asked.
"If two cleaners could remove the ball point ink, why shouldn't the other 13 remove the ball point ink, too?"
"Because too many drycleaners don't try and because they don't know how to remove relatively easy stains," he said.
Seitz continued: "PrimeTime Live wasn't a positive upbeat presentation for our industry, but don't blame PrimeTime Live. We gave them the ammunition to blow us away. On the positive side, the show gave us an opportunity to see our shortcomings."
Cleaners can respond by continuing to complain and maintain the status quo or by getting serious about their technical skills and customer service and begin to find solutions, Seitz said.
I have eagerly been awaiting someone to divulge the intricacies of removing the three types of stains that were placed on the garments that PrimeTime Live took to the cleaners in St. Louis. (Maybe that is where the phrase comes from.)
First of all, these were not Venus or Mars types of stains that only a select few in the whole world could remove. The staining material consisted of oil, tannin staining material, perhaps a little dye from the tomato paste used in the spaghetti sauce and ink. Just plain ol' ballpoint ink.
What I could determine from watching the show, reading the responses from the Fabricare Forum and Bill Seitz's breakdown of the stains and the garments, was that you would want to be aware that the buttons on the blouse were fabric with a black dye; the rayon contained spaghetti sauce and the lining of the jacket could have been acetate.
With these simple stains there was damage to several of the garments and quite a few of the stains didn't come out.
The first thing you would want to do is see what chemicals could be used on the differing fabrics and trims. Buttons are considered trims in that they decorate the costume. You should always be leery when you have a black trim on a white garment.
If you are going to attempt to wetspot in any way, including prespotting, you should first test the black with a protein spotter because it contains a lubricant, which is soap; water, which is the solvent; and ammonia or some type of pH boosting agent, which will encourage it to bleed if it has a tendency.
This can be done to the back of the fabric button in a very tiny area. After testing or prespotting with a water based chemical, the area should be dried thoroughly. This ain't no joke or just words to fill up a page.
Dry thoroughly before drycleaning.
Spaghetti sauce
Spaghetti sauce would be considered a combination stain in that it contains oils and tannin staining material. It probably also has a bit of a dye to make the spaghetti sauce look like Mama Mia's original fresh from the garden sauce.
With any combination stain, first remove the oil. This could be done in drycleaning without any prespotting. I think it is a 1 in 10 million shot that the heat of drying is going to oxidize it. So, first dryclean it, then apply a DROP of tannin stain remover, which is nothing more than soap, water and a pinch of acetic acid (vinegar).
Acids will generally set dyes, but don't push it. Work the stain gently with a bone scraper, then flush while holding the gun four inches above the fabric.
You have to realize that rayon, when wet can lose up to 80 percent of its strength. Ever notice how easily your competitors can blow a hole in rayon?
If there is still a trace of stain after those two operations, place about a match head's worth of sodium perborate on the remaining stain, then put one drop of protein spotter on it to wet it down, hold it in place and accelerate the sodium perborate.
Now, get a slight wisp of steam coming from the spotting gun and go right down on the perborate to melt it. When it has melted the stain is probably gone. Flush, dry and feather.
Coca Cola
Coke is almost a no-brainer because it is simply a tannin-type stain with a bit of dye added to give it a big, macho look and really quench that thirst.
Dryclean first to remove the garment soil, then apply a drop or two of tannin stain remover, flush, dry and feather.
If there is still a trace, add a small amount of sodium perborate and do like above.
Ink
Always assume that any jacket has an acetate lining. This will determine the chemical for removing ink. Use a prepared ink remover. There are several good ones on the market. The ones I personally use are from Jinx Ink: the regular Jinx Ink for any non-acetate or rayon garment without wild dyes, and Jinx Ink DF for rayon, acetate and loud colors. The regular Jinx Ink contains acetone while the DF is a citrus-based product. It is a little slower, but much safer.
To remove the ink from the garment described on PrimeTime, I would have applied the DF ink remover with an eye-dropper right along the line of ink and let it sit for about five minutes, then re-applied it.
After the second application it should be absorbed into a white, cotton, towel. Keep doing this until there is no more bleeding onto the towel.
Re-apply, then tamp with a spotting brush, then flush out with the steam gun.
If there is still a trace that you want to remove, apply a small amount of sodium perborate and bleach out as described above.
Stop complaining about Prime Time Live beating up on the drycleaners. Yes, there were parts that could have been better. There were remarks made that were provocative, but that is the nature of the TV Beast. Did you really expect them to be fair? TV is like newspaper and magazines. They sell their products with hype, exaggeration and showing the worst -- not the best.
Stop complaining about what Dr. Charles Riggs said or didn't say...
Dr. Riggs prepared a test that was fair and objective. You heard some of his remarks. You will never hear all of the positive things he said because they went into the garbage. But we can't deny or avoid how poorly the industry did in removing the stains and how we handled the customer when they came back with the complaint...
I have been telling the industry for at least 20 years that spotting is a dying technique. We have been sold (because we wanted to buy) simple, quick solutions. Three or four chemicals is all you need to be an expert spotter. Baloney!
The hottest selling items in our industry today are not spotting chemicals; the hot items today are T.S. tags that tells the customer "Our experts have worked on the stain and this is the best that can be done" and the customers believe you.
Then the customer wears the garment and, because the garment is no longer a special garment, it is put in their home washing machine with a little safety bleach and guess what! The garment comes out clean and free of stain.
Where is our credibility? Down the drain!
I believe the reason discount cleaners have any success even with their mediocre or poor quality is because the quality of the popular price cleaners who charge two or three times more isn't any better. The comments made by the customer service people and their lack of customer service in handling a problem customer is that it is not their fault. It is management's fault for not training, supervising and auditing their staff so that they know what to say and how to say it. I believe that if "PrimeTime Live" went to any city in the USA, the result would have been similar...
The most successful drycleaners I know throughout the USA and in the world are those drycleaners who are committed to quality and service that nobody else can do. When a consumer can do a better job in a home washing machine and a smattering of knowledge than we can do as professionals there is something wrong.
PrimeTime Live wasn't a positive upbeat presentation for our industry, but don't blame PrimeTime Live. We gave them the ammunition to blow us away. On the positive side, the show gave us an opportunity to see our shortcomings.
We have two choices:
Call me 212 967-3002 ext. 231 and I will help you find solution and in doing so will help you make your future brighter and better than ever.
Recent advances in wetcleaning equipment and chemistry have expanded the possibilities for the ages-old practice of cleaning clothes in water, but getting to the point of being able to wetclean 100 percent of the garments customers typically brought to a drycleaning plant appears to be a step or two beyond present technology.
For many cleaners, that's a chance to say "I told you so." The words of one cleaner, spoken early on in the discussions of expanding wetcleaning in professional garment care, ring true in light of the final report on the Greener Cleaner 100-percent wetcleaning demonstration project: "It's an 80 percent solution to a 100 percent problem."
Although the Greener Cleaner wet processed 100 percent of its volume during its first year in operation to the general satisfaction of customers and outside inspectors, the project overseers noted that "With the current state of technology, commercial operations relying on 100 percent wetcleaning face the challenge of maintaining cost effective, high quality performance for a small percentage of garments."
Indeed, 80 percent is the upper limit figure given by the Center for Neighborhood Technology which carefully analyzed the activities at The Greener Cleaner plant in Chicago during its first year of operation.
CNT concluded that cleaners could, at a minimum, wetclean up to 40 percent of garments -- those that have care labels that call for washing. With proper training and equipment, that wetcleaning percentage could be extended to 80 percent.
To wetclean garments not labeled as "washable" requires professional judgment by the cleaner based on understanding of fabrics, dyes and garment construction as well as familiarity with the equipment and supplies available for the job. A wider implementation of wetcleaning would also require the cooperation of textile and apparel makers and perhaps a change in care label rules that would identify garments that can be professionally wetcleaned as opposed to drycleaned.
Those issues were addressed at an EPA-sponsored conference last fall, Apparel Care and the Environment: Alternative Technologies and Labeling.
Manufacturers' view
Speaking at that conference, Kay Villa, Assistant Director of the American Textile Manufacturers Institute's (ATMI) Product Services Division, said her association supports the concept of a care label for professional wetcleaning, but only for those garments that would otherwise carry a "dryclean" care label.
Noting that the 31,000 garments that went under the wetcleaning microscope at the Greener Cleaner "are minuscule compared to the 12 billion garments that are sold the United States annually," Villa said more testing is needed before presenting professional wetcleaning as a mass-market solution.
"If the consumer has the idea that they can just take any of their clothes out of their closet and take it to a local 'greener cleaner,' we would expect to see more damage claims. We would expect to see problems including shrinkage, color loss, dye transfer, color bleeding, felting of wools, stiffness in some fabrics, and water stains and water marks," she said.
Modifying their products to accommodate wetcleaning is not something manufacturers can do overnight, Villa added. Most textile operations take six to 18 months to transfer the raw fiber to the end product that goes to the consumer, she said.
"In some cases, it might be an easy fix; it might be something the company can do within a two-month period of time to reformulate to develop a better product," she said. "But in some cases, we may never be able to find a solution that will take every single fiber, every single product and guarantee that it can be cleaned with these new technologies."
Villa also said that the environmental impact along the entire textile chain must be considered before declaring a wetclean process "greener."
"I want to emphasize that just because a product can be 'eco-cleaned' does not necessarily guarantee that the manufacturing processes that went into the development of that end product were done in an environmentally friendly manner. So we have to be able to weigh these options," she said.
Finally, Villa noted; "The other major factor that will really drive whether or not we are all successful is whether the consumer will accept the end product."
FTC on care labels
The Federal Trade Commission's position on a "professionally wetclean" care label was brought to the conference by Connie Vecellio, an attorney for the Division of Enforcement of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
The FTC is in the process of revising the care label rules, but before a wetcleaning label could be implemented, a standardized definition of professional wetcleaning must be developed so that warnings could be given if certain parts of the wetcleaning process would damage the garment, Vecellio said.
"We would also need a way of determining whether a manufacturer had a reasonable basis for placing a claim on the care label that the garment could be professionally wetcleaned," she said.
And finally, wetcleaning would have to be available to most consumers.
"We need information about how available it is before we can allow garments to be labeled simply 'professionally wetclean.' If there's no professional wetcleaner in an entire state, it's not really fair to the consumers in that state to put garments on the market labeled 'only for professional wetcleaning'."
On the general topic of care labels and professional cleaners, Vecellio had some additional comments.
"The fact that a label recommends drycleaning does not insulate the drycleaner from liability. Liability with respect to consumer claims depends on the laws of the states. And in many states, I've been told, the drycleaner is basically held liable on a theory of bailment -- he took the product, he's a professional, he's liable if something goes wrong. The rule does not insulate him against that liability."
The Center for Neighborhood Technology has issued its final report on the one year Greener Cleaner project in Chicago.
During the project period, 31,734 garments were cleaned at the plant; 43 were not accepted for cleaning and there were 28 claims filed, nine of which were for lost garments. In addition to findings reported in the adjoining article, CNT had the following general observations about the 100-percent wetcleaning project:
An executive summary of the final report is available by calling CNT, (773) 278-4800, ext. 299.
Last month we complained about the proliferation of "Not Responsible" signs in drycleaning call offices. Not long after those words were written, we got to see, on national television no less, that some cleaners really mean what they say when they put those signs on the wall. It's bad enough to have a sign declaring "We're not responsible," but when we hear the words coming from the mouth of an actual "customer service representative," saying it to a customer who has a legitimate complaint, the sign itself suddenly becomes relatively inoffensive.
When PrimeTime Live's reporter, as part of her "mystery shopping tour" of 15 St. Louis-area cleaners, returned to several of the shops to point out stains that hadn't been removed -- or in one case, to show a stain that had been added to the garment while in the cleaner's care -- the universal response was, you guessed it, "We're not responsible."
The embarrassment that this "not responsible" attitude brought to the industry before a nationwide television audience could have been avoided if the cleaners had managed to clean the clothes right the first time. But if that's asking too much, at least the worst part of this sad episode would never have taken place if, when the "mystery shopper" pointed out the inadequate cleaning work, the people at the counter had responded appropriately.
The president of the St. Louis Better Business Bureau commented in the program that most customers who are unhappy about a cleaner's work want an apology. Very few get one. "How much does an apology cost?" the BBB president asked. Indeed, we didn't hear one word of sympathy for the customer whose garment came back stained, dirty or damaged. On the contrary, the customer service personnel were quick to pass the buck, in some cases trying to make the customer herself feel like the guilty party. "It's your stain. You put it on there," said one.
This part of the program, the confrontations between customer and counter, was the most dramatic and memorable portion and it was the part that showed cleaners at their worst -- defending their own incompetence. How easily this part could have been avoided by simply saying, "I'm sorry. Please let us try again." And then, of course, do the job done right on the second try. Had that been the approach taken, PrimeTime, left without a story, would have found something else to focus its cameras on.
So don't ask how much an apology costs. How much is an apology worth?
The price of ignorance continues to rise. Whether it is charged in bad customer service at the front counter, poor quality textile care or "not in my back yard" resistance to perc-using drycleaning stores, the result is a less than flattering perception of the industry in the public's eye. Fortunately, there are people out there doing something to provide solutions.
Even though Neighborhood Cleaners Association International in New York City and International Fabricare Institute in Silver Spring, Maryland, have in-house training schools, it has become apparent that outreach programs are the next level in textile care continuing education. There are a growing number of trainers who are traveling to the cleaner's hometowns and as a result have redefined training program delivery. New schools are in the works, too, at various locations around the country and NCAI has offered training programs to all cleaners nationwide, wherever and whenever a group of drycleaners wants it. And the association has expanded its certified drycleaner self-study program nationwide, making it readily accessible to all textile care personnel at the individual's convenience.
In the end, it will not be regulations, proposed legislation or the battle about perc that have the greatest impact on cleaners. Consumer demands, political pressure and changes in technology will weed out those who don't adjust to the demands of the marketplace. Education, training and adaptability are the keys. Those cleaners, trainers and associations who recognize this and understand the need to change will emerge as the textile care community of the 21st century. The rest will learn the lesson of evolution -- extinction happens.
NEW YORK, NY -- The Neighborhood Cleaners Association International is making its "Environmentally Accredited Drycleaner" program available nationwide.
The program was originally conceived by Jerry Levine, NCAI's associate director, to satisfy New York State's proposed certification requirements. It was recently revised to meet the new mandatory South Carolina requirements.
The program was originally designed to be a correspondence course and includes an extensive test of true/false and multiple choice questions which are supplied to the participant two weeks after receiving the study material.
Levine said that although the exam is an "open book test," it is not easy.
The program -- both the study material and the test itself -- covers the following topics:
The cost of the program is $150. Those who receive a passing grade get an "Environmentally Accredited Drycleaner" certificate.
For more information about the certification program, contact Levine at NCAI, (212) 967-3002, ext 228.
SILVER SPRING, MD -- More than 100 cleaners from the United States and Canada passed the Intentional Fabricare Institute's Certification examinations which were given last fall.
The written examinations are given twice a year at a variety of locations.
The Certified Environmental Drycleaner program was started by IFI in 1994 and the Certified Professional Drycleaner program began in 1996.
To become a Certified Environmental, a cleaner must pass a 150-question examination that covers environmentally related subjects -- regulations, waste handling and safe operating procedures for drycleaning equipment. The test fee is $175 for IFI members and $275 for non members.
To earn the Certified Professional Drycleaner (CPD) designation, a cleaner must pass a 250-question test that covers business management, customer service, fibers and fabrics and the drycleaning process. The test fee is $295 for IFI members and $395 for non-members.
For the next round of examinations, the registration deadline is Feb. 15. The tests will be given April 5 at various sites around the United States. Registrants for the tests receive a handbook, a list of testing centers, content outline and sample questions.
The tests are administered through the Professional Testing Corp. For information, contact the company at 1211 Avenues of the Americas, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10036; or phone (212) 852-0400.
Cleaners who passed the October examinations are as follows:
Certified Environmental Drycleaners
Florida: Donald Griffin, Sebring.
Georgia: John Force, Augusts; Mark Myers, Augusta.
Illinois: Jami Gentile, Lombard; Peter Valessares, Chicago.
Kentucky: Robert Shurtleff, Pikeville.
Maryland: Edward Boorstein, Rockville.
Massachusetts: Charles Anton, Andover; David Masello, Haverhill; Jeffrey Moore, Andover; Lorraine Rohnstock, Dracut.
Missouri: Kevin Caldwell, Brandon.
North Carolina: John Goss Jr., Asheboro; Anthony Evans, Raleigh; Jamie Kelly, Cary; Joel Kilby, Winston Salem; Aaron McCoin, Greensboro; Lori Spencer, Clemmons; Robert Tober, Charlotte.
South Carolina: Diana Ardis, Charleston; James Baldwin, Georgetown; Timothy Bates, Charleston; James Becknell, Lexington; Larry Beldner, Charleston; Walter Bell, Spartanburg; Carlton Blanton, Gaffney; Sammy Brashier, Greenville; Richard Brown, Florence; Perry Bullard, Brunson; Earl Carpenter, Simpsonville; Clinton Carter, Lake City; Yong Chong, Easley; Harvey Clarke, Camden; James Freeman, Rock Hill; Marvin Gingrich, Orangeburg; John Gowan, Greenville; Kelly Hancock, Lake City; Greg Hicks, Little River; Jerry Hilton, Florence; Bill Honeycutt, Greenville; Donald Howe, Irmo; Robert Jackson, Marion; Naresh Kapadia, Spartanburg; Edward Kawasaki, Goose Creek; Larry Koester, Columbia; Henry Krysz, Summersville; Colie Livingston, Orangeburg; Wayne McCutchen, Hartsville; David Meeder, Hardeeville; Mary Mims, Holly Hill; Stephen Moore, West Union; Anil Parag, Charleston; Carl Powalie, N. Myrtle Beach; Daniel Rae, Hanahan; Gerald Riggins, Williamston; Dana Ritchie; Columbia; Redic Robinson, Columbia; Phillip Joel Sapp, Winston Salem; Julius Schwartz, Myrtle Beach; David Shaw, Columbia; Alfred Smith, Charleston; Harold Smith, Greenville; Mary Smith, Charleston; Russell Smith, Charleston; Kevin Sturgeon, Darlington; Jimmie Talbert, Mauldin; John Vukic; Myrtle Beach, Sandra Walczak, Ladson; Gergory Watson, Charleston; Larry Whitmire Jr., Anderson; Derrick Wilson, Lexington.
Tennessee: Steven Brown, Jackson; Mohamad Zarook, Nashville.
Texas: Joe Darcy, Irving; Doug Duerr, Beaumont; Howard Goldberg, El Paso; Richard Skinner, Houston.
Virginia: Emanuel Martin, Hampton.
Wisconsin: Jennifer Klinke, Madison; Richard Klinke, Madison; Susan St. Germaine, Greenfield.
Certified Professional Drycleaners
British Columbia: Gregory Erickson, Burnaby.
California: Jack Hampton, El Centro; Joel Shapiro, Newark.
Colorado: Greg Geller, Denver; Tom Johansen, Carbondale; Donna Riley, Littleton; Sharon Rombough, Littleton.
Georgia: David Shipp, Conyers.
Illinois: Todd Campbell, Galesburg; Jeff Markus, Chicago.
Indiana: John Strader, Evansville.
Kentucky: Dean Jones, Lexington.
Maine: Eric Pooler, Brewer.
Maryland: Richard Selleh, Suitland; Thomas Tanglos, Crofton.
Massachusetts: Paul Ceccarelli, Plymouth.
North Carolina: William Coltrane, High Point.
Tennessee: Barry Goss, Knoxville.
Texas: James Addison, Houston; Dana Davies, Denton; Carol Gardner, Richmond; and Steve Huckabee, Bedford.
Utah: Sharon Dutcher, Kaysville.
If new cancer risk assessment guidelines proposed by EPA are approved, the long-running debate over how perchloroethylene should be classified could end quickly.
The new guidelines would replace the current five-tier system with just three categories of carcinogens: known/likely; cannot be determined; and not likely.
The International Fabricare Institute said in a November press release that under that system, "perc could only fall into the 'known/likely carcinogen' category."
"If perc is placed in a group that includes known carcinogens, it is entirely reasonable to expect that there will be regulatory and public confusion about the chemical's precise ranking similar to that which has taken place during the past several years."
IFI supported the need for changing the cancer risk guidelines in its comments to EPA and to base risk assessments on a broader range of scientific information.
EPA's cancer risk guidelines were first issued in 1976 and updated in 1986. Efforts to revise the 1986 guidelines began in 1988. The new guidelines, proposed in April, 1996, call for using new techniques of microbiology and putting less emphasis on animal tests in determining a chemical's potential to trigger cancer.
Wide-ranging impact
The changes would affect regulatory decisions under most of the nation's main environmental laws, including rules governing standards for cleaning up toxic waste, limits on emissions into the air and discharges into the water, and methods for treating municipal drinking water.
EPA has received comments on the proposal but has not indicated its course of action.
In comments to EPA, IFI stated: "While the proposed revised guidelines are not without flaws, if applied openly and fairly, they represent a major step forward in providing a sound foundation for the Agency's human cancer risk assessments."
IFI said the revised procedure not only reflects the progress that has been made in cancer risk assessment since the original guidelines were published in 1986, it also provides more flexibility to incorporate future advances in the risk assessment process.
"Methodologies set out by the 1986 guidelines have become overly restrictive and too narrowly focused," IFI said.
The Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance, in its comments to EPA, expressed similar views: "The guidelines take an important step forward even by moving away from a single alpha-numeric hazard classification. We submit, moreover, that the proposed three categories of descriptions... are inadequate even to summarize the available biological evidence."
John D. Graham, the head of the Center for Risk Analysis at the Harvard School of Public Health and a long-time critic of what he has called overzealous efforts to reduce relatively minor environmental risks, called the changes "a modest positive step."
"The important principle that the guidelines embrace is that all carcinogens were not created equal," he said. "That is because the testing of chemicals in animals is much more relevant to humans for some chemicals than for others."
The wrong direction
The EPA plan has been strongly criticized by Steven J. Milloy in op-ed pieces in the Wall Street Journal and on his "Junk Science" World Wide Web site (http://www.junkscience.com).
Milloy, who is president of the Environmental Policy Analysis Network in Washington, DC, calls the guidelines "a giant step in the wrong direction."
"As proposed, the guidelines further enhance EPA's already virtually unfettered ability to label as cancer-causing whatever substance or condition it chooses," Milloy wrote in one of his articles.
The guidelines, he said, eliminate the need for showing statistical significance in epidemiological studies -- studies of distributions and causes of disease in actual human populations.
"Of critical importance... is the requirement that epidemiologic results be statistically significant," he wrote. "There should be some level of confidence, usually 95 percent, that observed study results did not occur by luck or chance. Study results that are not statistically significant, are deemed to be a fluke and are not suitable for concluding that a risk exists."
"The traditional requirement of statistical significance has long been the Achilles heel of epidemiologists and, hence, risk assessors. Because of statistical significance, epidemiologists have not been able to convincingly associate electromagnetic fields, dioxin, environmental tobacco smoke, dietary pesticide residues, and hazardous waste sites, to name a few, with cancer because the results of their epidemiologic studies often have not been statistically significant."
With no requirement of statistical significance, EPA's would have wider latitude in using epidemiologic studies to associate various substances and conditions with cancer, Milloy said.
Milloy queried William Farland, director of EPA's National Center for Environmental Assessment, about the lack of statistical significance requirements soon after EPA publicized its proposal in May 1996. In a letter he received in response last August, Milloy said that Farland denied that statistical significance had been deleted in the proposed guidelines.
Milloy is not the only one concerned about the statistical significance issue. In formal comments to EPA, others sharing that view included the American Forest and Paper Association, the Utility Health Sciences Group, the Chlorine Chemistry Council, the Edison Electric Institute, the American Automobile Manufacturers Association, and the American Water Works Association.
SILVER SPRING, MD -- The International Fabricare Institute is offering technical editorial services to its members, allied trades and the general public.
IFI said its staff will review technical publications for completeness of work, accuracy and audience appropriateness. IFI's staff expertise includes textile testing, garment analysis, equipment and technology, care labeling, legislation and regulations, and garment care for consumers.
IFI said it requests for review of materials concerning the industry will be streamlined under the new review process to ensure accurate and helpful information for authors.
For information on the service and a price list, call IFI, (800) 434-62222, ext. 122.
It's two o'clock in the morning, The telephone rings and it's one of my customers apologetically saying, "Herb, my Autoflex isn't working and K can't afford any down time. Can you help me?"
Connie, my wife, watches as I head out the door.
I'm Herb Rosenfeld and I was a customer service manager for R. R. Street & Co. Inc. for 28 years. My territory, 34, covered southern Los Angeles county.
Connie has been a large part of my success in the industry and I'm very proud of her. People have called me a workaholic and I guess it's true. I think of the countless nights when Connie kept dinner warming on a back burner because I was late coming home. And the nights when, after a bad day, I burst through the door with a curt, "Hi," went upstairs to my office, slammed the door and spend an hour or two doing paper work and returning phone calls, further delaying dinner.
She put up with it all and so much more. Connie had the largest share of raising our three children: our daughter, Terry, married to Steve Coty; our son, Alan, and his wife, Monika, and our son Marc. I remember all the conventions I attended, leaving her behind, or the conventions when she accompanied me and then had to fend for herself because I was too busy to be with her.
Connie did a large part of the paperwork involved in running my territory. Since my handwriting is unreadable, she willingly rewrote my reports when they had to be sent to Street's office. Each month she straightened out my expense book before sending it in to the office. She was the one who daily had to field innumerable phone calls from my customers. Street's recognized her contributions to the success of my territory, by awarding her a special plaque designating her as "Territory 341/2."
Three and a half years ago, Connie developed cancer. She has bravely endured treatments and surgeries ever since. For 42 years Connie has taken care of me and it is now my pleasure to return the favor. She has taught me how to do housework and cook and she even had to teach me how to make out a check!
I'm retired now, and it hasn't been easy adjusting to the inactivity, but Connie in her own special way has made the transition easier.
Connie, I want the world to know how much you mean to me. You are the greatest wife, mother, companion and best friend anyone could have. I will love you and cherish you forever.
-- Herb Rosenfeld
Family-friendliness, all but unheard of till the late '80s, got a major boost from the Family Medical Leave Act of '93 and has been on a roll ever since. At the political conventions last summer it was all the rage, with both major parties taking credit for its creation and promotion.
Yet, while the politicians prattle on about the government helping the family, the workplace has the bigger impact on family life. Wages, scheduling, benefits, job security, these are the "family-friendly" issues, and only the employment environment can address them.
Family-friendliness is more than an annual company picnic and a policy allowing employees to get married and have children. The most common practices of family-friendly employers today are: Flexible scheduling; job sharing; child care assistance; quality health care; disability income; strong pension plan; Employee Assistance Programs (EAP's); tuition reimbursement.
On the leading edge, it means: Family sick days; elder care assistance; long term care; adoption benefits; employee help line; on-site summer camps; financial planning for employees.
For those wishing to go overboard: Internet access; pet care; lawn service; (Yes, any good idea can be overdone.)
Ask yourself, "Are these programs worth it?" That depends on whether you want to be profitable. A recent study out of Cornell University says yes, they are. The study analyzed l36 companies that went public in 1988, measured their commitment to employees through tangible reward systems, and compared the companies' survival experience. Of the companies that made substantial investments in their reward programs, 92 percent survived, while the overall survival rate was 60 percent.
In fact, the study showed that how employees were valued was the major determinant for success for these 136 companies.
In addition, Business Week magazine conducted a year-long study of dozens of companies' family-friendliness policies and surveyed thousands of their employees. Ten companies with impressive family-friendliness strategies and results emerged. Four of the 10 are on Fortune Magazine's list of America's best-run companies. The top company on the list, a bank in Tennessee, experienced a 55 percent profit gain over the past two years, which they attribute directly to their aggressive family-friendly practices.
Yes, family-friendliness is a subject of substance, and every company's practices in this area will contribute to the bottom-line, one way or another.
SILVER SPRING, MD -- The International Fabricare Institute's resident courses for 1997 get underway this month with the first of eight scheduled Introduction to Drycleaning classes.
Introduction to Drycleaning is a one-week course on the basic elements of drycleaning, stain removal and finishing for employees and owners/managers with less than one year of experience. The course fee is $350 for members and $455 for non-members.
The first course this year will begin on Jan. 27. Other starting dates for the remainder of the year are March 3, April 7, May 5, July 14, Aug. 11, Sept. 15 and Oct. 13.
Each introductory course is followed by an Advanced Drycleaning course. This two-week course covers more advanced drycleaning procedures, including stain removal techniques and finishing procedures, wetcleaning, and fiber identification. Tuition is $700 for members and $910 for non-members.
The first advanced course this year begins Feb. 4 with future classes starting on March 10, April 14, May 12, July 21, Aug. 18, Sept. 22 and Oct. 20.
Both courses can be taken in consecutive sessions with the introductory courses. When taken back-to-back the tuition is $995 for IFI members and $1,295 for non-members.
One-day courses on wetcleaning are slated for Feb. 15, Aug 2 and Nov. 1. The wetcleaning course is designed for those who want to learn about various aspects of wetcleaning and using the new wetcleaning equipment and supplies. Cost of the course is $99 for members and $119 for non-members.
A March 22 wedding gown workshop will focus on how to market wedding gown services and various cleaning and packaging techniques. Cost for IFI members is $99; for non-members, $119.
IFI also plans two sessions of its Advanced Stain removal course, one of its most popular offerings last year. The three-day class delves into more advanced techniques, including using bleaches, handling antique and specialty items and removing difficult stains. Members can attend this course for $210; non-members pay $300. The course will be offered June 20-22 and Nov. 14-16.
Registration and other information about the resident classes and other education programs is available by calling the IFI education department, (800) 434-622, ext. 144.
SILVER SPRING, MD -- Frequently requested articles from the International Fabricare Institute's Fabricare magazine are now available in reprint packages.
Each package is a compilation of articles published in the magazine -- either a series of articles or a collection on related to a specific topic. Each package has from five to 15 articles.
Topics include Total Quality Management; Marketing 101; Family Business Tips; Cleaners and computers; Public Relations and Business tips; Insurance and Safety Needs; Wetcleaning; and Equipment and Chemicals.
To order or get information about prices and availability about receiving the publication, call IFI, (800) 434-6222, ext. 107 or 125.
"I was wondering if anyone was having a problem with the very brightly multi-colored shirts by Tommy Hilfiger..."
This simple query, posted to the Fabricare List e-mail forum on the Internet, brought a flurry of responses from other cleaners that could be summed up in one word: "YES!"
So what is the trouble with Tommy?
For the person who asked the question, it was "Every time I wash one of these shirts they bleed and turn the shirt pink or blue."
Another cleaner noted that a pair of Tommy Hilfiger dark green shorts faded to the point that they now have light brown wear marks after only one cleaning.
"They look like they have been processed several times instead of only once," the cleaner said.
"My customer doesn't believe that the garment is faulty since we have done other shorts and pants by Tommy Hilfiger without having this problem. The customer also believes in the Tommy Hilfiger myth: If it costs more, it has to be better made."
It turns out that cleaners have been having problems with some Tommy Hilfiger garments for some time.
And no one really has the answer. Suggestions ranged from "refuse them all" to "hand wash them all."
There seems to be no one answer because the problem itself is not consistent. Some Hilfiger shirts present no problems. Others, as one participant in the discussion noted, "bleed like a wolverine on the highway."
Speaking for himself on a Good Morning America program aired Nov. 19, Mr Hilfiger offered advice to consumers that, in the eyes of professional cleaners, was less than adequate, especially if applied to some of the problematic garments that carry his name.
For example, he advised viewers never to follow the instructions of machine wash or dryclean for wool sweaters. They should always be hand-washed in a sink, wrung it out and blocked dry, laying flat on a towel.
"It will come out like new every time," he declared.
NCAI responds
There are a few problems with this advice, as pointed out in letters sent to ABC's Good Morning America by officials of the Neighborhood Cleaners Association International (NCAI).
Ignoring the care label instruction is a bad idea, said NCAI executive director Bill Seitz.
"Clothing manufacturers put dryclean-only labels on garments for one simple reason -- it is easy to damage clothes washing them yourself," Seitz wrote. "Clothing manufacturers don't want their garments ruined any more than you do. And of course, if you do not follow the care label instructions, you have no recourse to the manufacturer if there is a problem... even one that was caused by a manufacturer defect!"
NCAI's chief garment analyst Dan Eisen, in a separate letter, took issue with Hilfiger's suggestion for hand washing, wringing out and laying flat to dry.
"Some wool sweaters, especially multi-colored sweaters, can not be put into water due to fugitive dyes. This means the dyes will run or bleed while immersed in water and transfer to other parts of the sweater," Eisen wrote.
Wringing out the wool sweater can easily cause distortion in the knit construction, both Eisen and Seitz noted. And then laying it flat to dry "may cause yellowing and dye migration if not done properly," Eisen warned.
Search for solutions
What solutions have professional cleaners come up with, short of refusing to handle Hilfiger garments?
Everett Childers, a drycleaner and educator of other drycleaners, said it's easy to pick out likely suspects due to the dyes and designs.
"We simply ask the customer if it has been laundered before. If they say no, we tell them that the batting average of this brand is pretty low... If they say they have been serviced before, then we explain that there is still the possibility of a dye run and they should be aware of it."
"Frequently we will wash them in our little Daewoo washer with cold water, neutral detergent and a fabric conditioner with no surprises," Childers said.
Another consultant and advisor to drycleaners, Sue Armstrong of Omaha, NE, said that choosing a neutral wetcleaning detergent is critical. Detergent should be tested with pH paper. Some detergents may claim to be neutral but only testing will tell for sure, she said.
Despite precautions, things may still go awry. Corrective steps can be taken, but not always with the desired results. One cleaner said that when a striped shirt bled in a warm water wash, he dye-stripped it in and the dye bleeding was removed. But as he air-dried the shirt, it bled all over again.
Another cleaner reported success in getting the color back by soaking the garment in sodium perborate and warm water (in a bucket or sink) then running it separately in a regular wash.
Back to the store
When care labels are followed and the garments still lose their color or change to a different color, the retailer who sold it may take it back for a refund or exchange.
"May" is the operative word. Some cleaners said they have been successful getting the store to take back failed garments while others reported the opposite experience.
In one case, a cleaner returned a "Tommy" shirt to a large retailer who commented, "Gee this doesn't happen much." But a customer who was standing by jumped into the conversation to say it had happened numerous times to her husband's Tommy shirts.
So the clerk gave the cleaner a "no-hassle" refund and tossed the shirt into the trash can.
And the customer said she still buys Tommy Hilfiger shirts, despite the problems.
SILVER SPRING, MD -- The International Fabricare Institute has signed a comprehensive agreement with the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) that allows IFI to move forward with the cleanup of the WestFarm properties.
The agreement, signed Oct. 7, follows IFI's settlement of damages with WestFarm Technology Park in May, 1996. WestFarm, which owns property that adjoins IFI in Silver Spring, sued IFI in 1991 for damages to its property caused by perchloroethylene contamination.
A jury awarded $2.5 million to WestFarm in a judgment against IFI and the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) in 1993.
IFI said that with the administrative consent agreement with the MDE, it has now started the necessary steps toward installation of the cleanup system which must be operating by October, 1997. The first of three deadlines leading to installation of the system has already been met, IFI said.
IFI said in December it was in discussion with the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission over cost sharing for the cleanup.
Based on a preliminary agreement with WSSC and an estimate of $1 to $1.2 million for capital costs of the cleanup, IFI said it has "virtually all the monies needed set aside in an escrow account for its share of these capital costs."
"We are moving quickly," said Bill Fisher, IFI's chief executive officer.
"This has been a long chapter in our life. We will all be pleased once the installation is complete, the cleanup begins and the WestFarm matter is finally behind us."
Under the terms of the court award to WestFarm, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission was liable for one-half of the $3 million owed to WestFarm, a figure that included accumulated interest since the time of the court judgment.
However, as a result of a another court case, IFI won a $235,000 judgment against WSSC.
With that amount applied to the WestFarm damages award, IFI's share is $470,000 less than WSSC's. A year of negotiations with IFI insurance carriers, WestFarm, and WSSC, led to the agreement signed in May, 1996.
ATLANTA, GA -- With registration for Clean '97 beginning this month, several new services have been added to make it easier to register and get information about the upcoming international trade show.
Attendees will be able to use MasterCard or Visa credit cards to pay registration fees this year. Pre-registration for the June 2-5 show in Las Vegas, NV, is $35 per person until May 7 (or April 7 for attendees from outside the United States). After that date, registration will be on-site only and the fee will cost $60.
Registration information was scheduled to be mailed to potential attendees this month. All registrations must be sent in with a check, money order or credit card number. Credit-card registration can be sent in via a toll-free fax 800 number, found on the registration form, but telephone registrations will not be accepted.
In addition to the mailing going out to prospective attendees, the registration and hotel reservation forms, travel information, a fact sheet and a show schedule are available from a fax-on-demand service. To hook up with the service, call (800) 449-9096 or (908) 544-2846.
Information about the show will also be available on a Clean '97 World Wide Web page which should be available in February.
Riddle & Associates, managers of the show, reported that more than 220,000 net square feet of exhibit space had been contracted by the end of November. The total for the Clean '95, which was the largest Clean Show to date, was 238,230 square feet. Riddle expects the 1997 show to easily surpass all previous show records for exhibit space.
In addition to the fax-on-demand service, information about the show is also available from Riddle & Associates, (404) 876-1988 or by fax at (404) 876-5121.
Travel discounts are available through six airlines for Clean '97. Arrangements can be made through the show's official travel agency, Globetrotter Travel, which offers additional discounts of up to 30 percent on some flights.
Rental care discounts are also available. Call toll-free 888-24 CLEAN or (301) 570-0800.
If using another agency or calling the ' directly, Clean 97 discounts are available by mentioning the following ID numbers:
Reservations for Clean 97 hotels must be made through the Housing Bureau managed by ITS. Call (800) 650-6893 or (847) 940-2155. Most hotels will not accept a Saturday check-in, but a Saturday night stay is not required for discounted air fares to Las Vegas.
Drycleaners in North Carolina have had an active trade association for decades. In the past few years, their group has made several decisions which changed the way it operates. First, long-time executive director Sunny Smith retired. Then the state became an affiliate of the International Fabricare Institute, a procedure which affected everything from bookkeeping to program delivery.
When this was happening, the North Carolina Association of Launderers & Cleaners realized it needed someone who would be responsive to drycleaners, yet understood professional association management. It would be delicate, taking NCALC from being a stand-alone independent to affiliate of a national group.
Right at the start, problems cropped up. The candidate who accepted the post had a change in situation and couldn't take the job. Then the board discovered their answer right at home -- NCALC president Steve Winzeler was the person they could trust to do the job.
Winzeler's industry pedigree includes a three-generation involvement in the industry, hands-on ownership of multiple drycleaning businesses, work as a consultant with Methods for Management, vice presidency of the Cleaning and Laundering Association Executives group, frequent presentations on textile care and business management to audiences nationwide and service as NCALC executive director.
His roots in textile care go back to New York.
"My grandfather worked for the Prosperity Equipment Co. in New York, and my father built a series of drycleaning plants for Prosperity in the Midwest," Winzeler recalled. "Eventually he took them over."
This took place in Jackson, MI, where Winzeler's father "built the business into an operation of seven plants with a coin laundry location."
Winzeler was soon thrust into the management of the business due to the premature death of his father at age 47.
"I was 20 and somebody needed to take over family business," he said. "This was during the era of wash and wear, of polyester; the time in the early 1970s when drycleaning was in a down cycle."
Winzeler said he took over "when the company was not at its best but we rolled with the storm."
But by 1981, he and his wife decided they'd "had enough of Michigan weather and were ready to leave."
"We sold the family business in 1981 and moved to North Carolina with the idea we would reenter the industry," Winzeler said. His wife left her job as a newspaper reporter for the Jackson daily and off they went.
They arrived in North Carolina and "bought a location, built the location, bought some more and became real active in the association."
This, too, was a throwback to his roots when he and his father were very active with the Michigan Institute of Launderers & Cleaners.
That group "always had strong leadership and a very active board. My father had been a president of MILD, and Mike O'Neill (MILD's former executive director) was a personal friend of the family."
In North Carolina Winzeler continued the family tradition. "I got so involved, I was an officer and a committee chair. I spent less and less time at my business."
He realized that he had a choice to make. He could "not grow (his business) anymore -- it could go without me -- and become a volunteer" for NCALC and other groups. This phase included activities with his three children: swimming, basketball, soccer. Their two daughters are in college now and the 15 year old son is at home. His wife is a high school English and journalism teacher.
The extra volunteer work would lead to a fork in his career road.
"It was about four years ago when Sunny Smith announced she was going to retire from NCALC," Winzeler remembered. "We formed a search committee and got more than 200 applicants. There were a lot of qualified people. Seven candidates were interviewed and the job was offered to one of them.
"Three weeks after the offer was made and accepted, the situation changed. The person couldn't relocate." NCALC had a problem. "Sunny had already started retirement. Our choice was 'to go back through search committee.' As association president, I thought it over hastily; then took a little time and decided the job was something that would work well."
Winzeler made the board an offer, stating what he could do and how he'd do it. They accepted his pitch. In the "spring of 1993, I was state director of the association."
Leaving his family's textile care business in his staff's hands, Winzeler stepped in to keep NCALC moving forward. He had no worries about the family business. "My business runs on its own, I have good management."
"We were very new at joint state. Everything was changing," he said. "At the first, it was very good for us and the institute. Terry Burns had been hired" and everyone was optimistic.
"Things have continued to go okay, though not as we expected," he said of the affiliation. "We've managed okay."
"NCALC still has a very active board and, thanks to the North Carolina economy and the activities of our association and leadership, we've held membership," Winzeler said. "We continue to hold programs. I'm continuing as executive director."
On the last point, Winzeler noted that "they perceive value with me involved in the national front. The exposure, keeping in touch with national information and all the other things going on" bring intangible benefits to NCALC.
His whole professional world isn't the association, however. He was doing "some individual work for people I know and had in mind to begin to do some cost bureau development."
It was at an association executives meeting that he approached Deborah Rechnitz, owner and operator of Methods for Management and executive director of the Northwest Drycleaners Association.
He asked "how I might start something like a management bureau, knowing her national prominence as a bureau leader, speaker and executive. She didn't hesitate for a minute to ask me to come to work for her."
He started off with individual projects with clients of Methods for Management and then began to develop new bureaus.
The time and work is incredible, Winzeler said.
"Methods is continuing to grow," he observed. "The growth is a matter of concentrating on a variety of sizes of operations. We have nine management bureaus worldwide and two manager's bureaus."
Winzeler also speaks about the Methods program at national, state and regional associations. In addition, he's been kept busy conducting seminars.
"It has been a wonderful company to work for," Winzeler said. "Deborah is phenomenal and her staff is spectacular, keeping me going on the road and making me look good all the time. It's a great company."
The experience "also helps because it comes back here. In a very positive way it spreads information to many, many sources.
He is proud that NCALC is an active association, providing all the necessary and extra services that membership deserves.
He reassures members that he "is providing full-time availability. My administrative assistant, Janet Johns, is there now assisting members with their immediate needs."
NCALC continues to develop its own programs with the confidence that it "can offer almost any level and variety of seminar, using resources within our state. We've developed workers compensation program, environmental programs, management programs and feel that we now have everything in place that we can fill just about any needs of the drycleaners in the state. Moving ahead, that's what we want to be able to do," Winzeler declared.
Winzeler's industry education combines both practical business-based experience and association-sponsored programs.
"I did the IFI Train the Speaker seminar, and that's how I started as a speaker. Following that, I was doing some assignment work for them -- spotting and cleaning programs as well as technology," Winzeler said
All this leads to what an association must to do prove its worth.
"The membership is there, it's not impossible to grow," he said. "People want information. That's what people want. Real value received for communication, for information. You have to have your ducks in a row, know which direction you're going in."
"I've talked to the head of the local Korean association," Winzeler said. "They know what they want. You can't sell them a bunch of fluff."
He's also vice president of the Cleaning & Laundry Association Executives group -- "a wonderful group to be with and still have it be work, he said. "CLAE, as far as a national group of people, is as important anything because it goes way above IFI or NCAI. It touches everything."
Winzeler's record thus far proves that when you have a method, you find the way.
The label for textile wearing apparel must have either a washing instruction or a drycleaning instruction. If the product can be washed and drycleaned, the label need have only one of these instructions. If the product cannot be washed or drycleaned, the label must say: "Do not wash. Do not dryclean."
It is recommended, but not required, that the terms defined in the glossary be used when applicable (see end of this article). Symbols that communicate care procedures may be used in addition to words, but the words must fulfill the requirements of the rule. The alternate process must be forbidden, otherwise it can be assumed authorized.
Washing instructions
Washing. The label must say whether the product should be washed by hand or by machine. The label must also state a water temperature setting if regular use of hot water will harm the product.
Examples
Machine Wash, Warm
Use washing machine warm setting. (Hot water should not be used.)
Hand Wash, Cold
Wash by hand in cold water. (Machine washing, warm or hot water should not be used.)
Bleaching. If all commercially available bleaches can be used on a regular basis, the label need not mention bleach. If chlorine bleach would harm the product when used on a regular basis, but regular use of a non-chlorine bleach would not, then the label must say: "Only non-chlorine bleach when needed."
If all commercially available bleaches would harm the product when used on a regular basis, then the label must say "No bleach" or "Do not bleach."
Examples
Machine wash, Warm
When bleach is not mentioned, all commercially available bleaches can safely be used when needed.
Hand wash, cold Only non chlorine bleach when needed.Non-chlorine bleach can safely be used. (Regular use of chlorine bleach would harm the product.
Drying. The label must say whether the product should be dried by machine or by some other method. Unless regular use of high temperature will harm the product when machine dried, no temperature setting need be indicated.
Examples
Machine wash warm
Hot medium or low dryer temperature setting can safely be used.
Machine wash, warm
Tumble dry medium
Medium or low dryer temperature settings can safely be used. (The hot setting should not be used.)
Ironing. Ironing information must be given on a care label if ironing will be needed on a regular basis. If regular use of a hot iron will not harm a product, then no temperature setting need be mentioned.
Examples
machine wash warm, tumble dry, medium, warm iron
Iron on a medium temperature setting. (The highest setting should not be used.)
Warnings. If the consumer may be expected to use a washing procedure that would harm the product, the label must contain a warning, such as "Do not..." or "No..." or "Only..." or some other clear wording to warn against the harmful procedure.
For example, even though ironing is not regularly needed and should not be used, the label should state: "Do not iron" if the customer can be expected to occasionally "touch up" the garment.
If a care procedure on one product could cause harm to another product being washed with it, then a warning must be given. For example, if an item, is not colorfast (stable), the label must say: "Wash with like colors" or "Wash separately."
Warnings are not necessary for alternative procedures that may be harmful. For example, if the instructions state "dry flat," it is not necessary to give the warning: "Do not tumble dry."
Drycleaning instructions
If all commercially available types of solvent can be used, then the label need not mention any type of solvent of one or more solvents would harm the product, then a solvent that is safe to use must be mentioned.
Examples
Dryclean
Item can be drycleaned by any commercial method that uses any of the available drycleaning solvents.
Professionally Dryclean
Petroleum
Item can be drycleaned by any commercial establishment using petroleum. (Perchloroethylene solvent should not be used.)
Warnings. Any part of the drycleaning process that will harm the product must have warning on the label: "Do not... "No..." or "Only..." or other clear wording must be used.
Examples
Professional dryclean
Reduced moisture
Moisture addition to solvent should be reduced to decrease the solvent's relative humidity. (Do no use moisture addition to solvent up to 75 percent relative humidity.)
Professionally dryclean
Cabinet dry warm
No steam
Cabinet dry at a temperature up to 120 degreesF. (Do not tumble dry.) No steam should be used in pressing, steam cabinets or wands.
Author's Note: Since no separate dry cabinet can be used (and none is being manufactured or ever has) for perc; and transfer units are now forbidden except those using less than 140 gallons of perc per year and "grandfathered" (and must use a refrigerated condenser on the recovery tumbler with door exhaust), the label, therefore forbids use of perc and allows only petroleum.If a perc drycleaner wanted to "cabinet dry," he would need to hang the garment from one of the cylinder's holes at the top and run on the dry/reclaim/cool-down cycles without the cylinder moving. Of course the machine must have that feature of being operated completely without the cylinder moving.
Also, shouldn't the label say "Only"?
1. Washing, Machine Methods
A. Machine Wash: A process by which soil may be removed from products of specimens through the use of water, detergent of soap, agitation and a machine designed for this purpose. When no temperature is given, e.g., "Warm" or "Cold" hot water up to 150 degreesF (66 degreesC) can be regularly used.
B. Warm: Initial water temperature setting of 90 degreesF to 110 degreesF (32 degrees to 43 degreesC), i.e., hand comfortable.
C. Cold: Initial water temperature setting same as cold water tap up to 85 degreesF (29 degreesC).
D. Do not have commercially laundered: Do not employ a laundry which uses special formulations, sour rinses, extremely large loads or extremely high temperatures or which otherwise is employed for commercial, industrial or institutional use. Employ laundering methods designed for residential use or use in a self-service establishment.
E. Small load: Smaller than normal washing load.
F. Delicate cycle or gentle cycle: Slow agitation and reduced time.
G. Durable press cycle or permanent press cycle: cool down rinse or cold rinse before reduced spinning.
H. Separately: Alone.
I. With like colors: With colors of similar hue and intensity.
J. Wash inside out: Turn product inside out to protect face of fabric.
K. Warm rinse: Initial water temperature setting of 90 degreesF to 120 degreesF (32 degrees to 43 degreesC).
L. Cold rinse: Initial water temperature wetting same as cold water tap up to 85 degreesF (29 degreesC).
M. Rinse thoroughly: Rinse several times to remove detergent, soap and bleach.
N. No spin or Do Not Spin: remove material at start of final spin cycle.
O. No wring or Do not Wring: Do not use a roller wringer or wring by hand.
2. Washing, Hand Methods
A. Hand Wash: A process by which soil may be manually removed from products or specimens through the use of water, detergent or soap, and gentle squeezing action. When no temperature is given e.g., warm or cold, hot water up to 150 degreesF (66 degreesC) can be regularly used.
B. Warm. Initial water temperature of 90 degreesF to 110 degreesF (32 degreesC to 43 degreesC), i.e., hand comfortable.
C. Cold: Initial water temperature same as cold water tap up to 85 degreesF (29 degrees C).
D. Separately: Alone.
E. With like colors: With colors of similar hue and intensity.
F. No wring or twist: Handle to avoid wrinkles and distortion.
G. Rinse thoroughly: Rinse several time to remove detergent, soap, and bleach.
H. Damp wipe only: Surface clean with damp cloth or sponge.
3. Drying, all methods
A. Tumble dry: Use a machine dryer. When no temperature setting is given, machine drying at a hot setting may be regularly used.
B. Medium: Set dryer at medium heat.
C. Low: Set dryer at low heat.
D. Durable press or permanent press: Set dryer at permanent press setting.
E. No heat: Set dryer to operate without heat.
F. Remove promptly: When items are dry, remove immediately to prevent wrinkling.
G. Drip dry: Hang dripping wet with or without hand shaping and smoothing.
H. Line dry: hang damp from line or bar in or out of doors.
I. Line dry in shade: Dry away from sun.
J. Line dry away from heat: Dry away from heat.
K. Dry flat: Lay out horizontally for drying.
L. Block to dry: Reshape to original dimensions while drying.
M. Smooth by hand. By hand, while wet, remove wrinkles, straighten seams and facings.
4. Ironing and Pressing
A. Iron: Ironing is needed. When no temperature is given, iron at the highest temperature setting may be regularly used.
B. Warm iron: Medium temperature setting.
C. Cool iron: Lowest temperature setting.
D. Do not iron: Item not to be smoothed or finished with an iron.
E. Iron wrong side only: Article turned inside out for ironing or pressing.
F. No steam or Do not steam: Steam in any form not to be used.
G. Steam only: Steaming without contact pressure.
H. Steam press or steam iron: use iron at steam setting.
I. Iron Damp: Articles to be ironed should feel moist.
J.Use press cloth: Use a dry or damp cloth between iron and fabric.
5. Bleaching
A. Bleach when needed: All bleaches may be used when necessary.
B. No bleach or Do not bleach: No bleaches may be used.
C. Only non-chlorine bleach when needed: Only the specified bleach may be used when necessary. Chlorine bleach may not be used.
6. Washing or drycleaning:
A. Wash or dryclean, any normal method: Can be machine washed in hot water; can be machine dried at a high temperature setting; can be ironed at a hot setting; can be bleached with all commercially available bleaches; and can be drycleaned with all commercially available solvents.
7. Drycleaning, all procedures
A. Dryclean: A process by which soil may be removed from products or specimens in a machine which uses any common organic solvent (for example, petroleum or perchloroethylene) located in any commercial establishment. The process may include moisture addition to solvent up to 75 percent relative humidity, hot tumble drying up to 160 degreesF (71 degreesC) and restoration be steam press or steam-air finishing.
B. Professionally dryclean: Use the drycleaning process but modified to ensure optimum results either by a drycleaning attendant or through the use of a drycleaning machine that permits such modifications, or both. Such modifications or special; warnings must be included in the care instructions.
C. Petroleum or perchloroethylene: Employ the solvents specified to dryclean the item.
D. Short cycle: Reduced or minimum cleaning time, depending upon the solvent used.
E. Minimum extraction: Least possible extraction time.
F. Reduced moisture or low moisture: Decreased relative humidity.
G. No tumble or Do not tumble: Do not tumble dry.
H. Tumble warm: Tumble dry up to 120 degreesF (49 degreesC).
I. Tumble cool: Tumble dry at room temperature.
J. Cabinet dry warm: Cabinet dry up to 120 degreesF (49 degreesC).
K. Cabinet dry cool: Cabinet dry at room temperature.
L. Steam only: employ no contact pressure when steaming.
M. No steam, or Do not steam: Do not use steam in pressing, finishing, steam cabinets or wands.
8.Leather and suede cleaning
A. Leather clean: Have cleaned only by a professional cleaner who uses special leather or suede care methods.
It seems drycleaners can never determine just why they are successful.
Oh, they have lots of very obvious reasons, but no exact way of being certain, what with all the variables of promotions, location, poor competitors and local economic changes influencing the direct results of quality and service.
Without a doubt, there is a consensus of opinion that if your call office runs smoothly and with very competent managerial control, your entire volume and profit will reflect that degree of success, month after month, quarter after quarter.
Since your counter sales personnel are the direct extension of your policies and the image you wish to project, it stands to reason that their performance should have the highest priority you can muster if you want to secure and protect your investment.
Every business and industry struggles with the continuous problems of delivery, service and quality. The drycleaner facing a multitude of fabrics and stains subject to heat and distortion is no exception.
That's where the human element comes in -- to make each customer feel special in his or her experience with your firm. Quite a task, when you think about it.
How much counter sales experience do you require before you hire? How much training do you offer at the start of employment? Do you provide an on-going training program to keep up with the dynamic changes in fabrics and label comprehension to your very important counter personnel? (Send $5 to me at the address below for a counter sales personality test.)
Dealing with the public is no easy task, but it can be fun for the trained individual who is a "people person." The genuine concern comes through the moment a customer enters your establishment.
The first impression
Visualize, if you will, how a face will light up when it meets a warm smile and a friendly greeting. The start and beginning of that meeting rings out: "How are you?" And "Thanks for your business."
Then the efficiency takes over and a professional impression assures that a high standard of quality has been set, the order will be ready when promised and, in general, doing business is a pleasant experience.
Is your operation the opposite of the above?
I will never forget the unkempt and shabby call office and the seemingly busy attendant, who, without a greeting or a smile, handled the order in a gruff manner. The only words spoken were "When do you want 'em?"
It has been said your quality can only be as good as your final inspection. The true "final inspector" is really your customer!
Armed with this knowledge, we can start the first personality check program using the "Mystery Shopper." I recently saw an ad in the local "Help Wanted" section for hiring "Mystery Shopper." More and more smart business people see the need for this unbiased type of counter evaluation.
This "Mystery Shopper" could be anyone. They are hired at random to test the service and quality of a vast number of service businesses, from chain operations to small independently owned businesses, such as pharmacies, supermarkets and drycleaners.
Taking the test
Here's how it works.
1. You carefully instruct your counter sales people in what you expect in courtesy, attitude and performance with your policies and standards of excellence.
2. All counter sales people will wear a jacket or smock with a name tag.
3. Let them know that in the coming weeks you expect them all to remember a steady customer's name. It's easy. It just takes practice and the association with the face, and the name. It could be their clothes, or their car -- whatever, connect the two!
Remembering names is the difference between a professional sales person and a dull order taker.
4. SMILE. It's important! Some say it proves there's a light on in your heart To everyone it says, "Welcome, I'm pleased to see you!"
A smile is universal wherever you go. It disarms us and immediately sets a mood of cooperation. It subtly says, "I'm a total stranger. How can I be helpful?"
Now for the "Mystery Shopper." You let the staff know that in the coming weeks someone will enter your store and will be dealing with you for perhaps the first time. That person might be inquiring about your hours or a services or the prices. The "customer" could be male or female.
Afterwards, the "customer" will report to the owner on the time and hour of the store visit and with whom they were dealing and how they treated.
Most reports are sent to the owner's home or private Post Office box. Was the "Mystery Shopper" informed about your new water repellency service? Box storage? Drapery removal and rehanging special? Or anything other promotions in effect at that time?
Since these individuals are trained in customer relationships (airlines, car rentals and all heavily competitive businesses use them all the time), they are masters of observation and the subtle body language that tells much more than we would like to reveal, such as enthusiasm, boredom and impatience.
Credit where it's due
A record will be kept. Personal cleanliness will be noted along with general housekeeping in the call office, etc.
The report is of course "confidential," but a prize will be awarded to the top individual, maybe a picture and recognition in the local papers as "Counter Sales Person of the Month." However it is handled, be assured the evaluation has taken place and the "Mystery Shopper" is an on-going service.
We believe "It's up front where it counts." And you never get a second chance for a first impression!
Leather trimming is once again becoming popular fashion from garment manufacturers. Manufacturers can produce imitation leather that has a close resemblance to real leather. The imitation leather is less expensive than real leather and provides manufacturers with an unlimited source of trimming.
Imitation leather is produced in two types of plastic -- vinyl and polyurethane. The coating is applied to a base fabric that has been coated with an adhesive binder. The use of rollers, pressure, heat and curing is necessary in applying the coating.
The plastic can be dyed any color and can be made with varied grain effects.
Imitation leather can be made to imitate grained leather, lizard, alligator and snake skin. Imitation leather can be found as trimming in all types of garments, including the most expensive designer suits, dresses, coats, jackets, blouses and raincoats.
Fabric problems
Vinyl coating in imitation leather stiffens in perchloroethylene and it loses pliability in petroleum solvents.
Vinyl facing depends on chemical additives known as plasticizers for its suppleness. When the plasticizer is dissolved during the drycleaning cycle, the vinyl becomes stiff, cracked and boardy. Commercial plasticizers used to soften the trimmings are no longer being produced.
Polyurethane facing in imitation leather is drycleanable but it is sometimes unserviceable because the manufacturer has neglected or failed to preshrink the backing fabric. When not preshrunk, it puckers and bubbles in drycleaning.
Another failure of polyurethane facing occurs when the manufacturer has used a solvent-soluble adhesive or has not properly "heat set" the adhesive binder that holds together the facing and backing fabric. This results in fabric separation.
Identification
To identify imitation leather, look at the reverse side of the material, if possible. Genuine leather will appear as animal hide on both sides. Imitation leather has a fabric backing.
Look for sewn-in labels that give drycleaning instructions. Ask the customer for a hang tag which came with the garment if there is no sewn-in label.
An additional test for differentiating imitation and real leather in dark colors is to dampen a Q-Tip with solvent and wipe an unexposed area of trimming. If dye transfers to the Q-Tip, it is real leather. Imitation leather usually does not bleed.
Polyurethane and leather trimmed garments require a customer's signed release. No matter what the care label may say, vinyl is not drycleanable.
Drycleaning
Polyurethane trimmed garments should be drycleaned in cool solvent, three to four minutes. Extract and dry at 120 degreesF.
Spotting
Vinyl facing. Use wetside spotting chemicals only. Dryside chemicals may stiffen vinyl facing imitation leather
Polyurethane facing. Same as for vinyl. Dryside may cause coating to peel.
Wetcleaning
Vinyl and polyurethane facing. Wetclean if lining, fabric trimming and ornamentation will withstand water. Soak in cool water (90 degreesF) with a mild detergent. Agitate by hand. Rinse and hang to dry.
Finishing
Vinyl and polyurethane facing. Limit the use of steam and pressure to avoid shrinkage and separation.
About 17 years ago, I asked the advice of a good and very wise friend. I wanted to know if he thought I could create a group for drycleaners who would be willing to pay for marketing advice.
He said it sounded like a good idea but he wondered what I could say, without repeating myself, after a few months.
Well, it's now 17 years later and not only have I not run out of things to say, but I have become educated in so many phases of drycleaning that I could not live long enough to deal with all the important subjects I would like to discuss.
The Golomb Group members and the industry provide me with an endless number of subjects. Now, with the drycleaner's forum on the Internet, I have all I can do to keep up with my personal correspondence with the drycleaners on the net.
But I'm learning so much that it's now becoming a problem of priorities. All this to tell you about a fantastic find I made while surfing the net.
I came across a connection called, "Small Business Survival Committee."
Those of you who have access to the Internet can reach this base by typing in http://townhall.com/ and you will find very valuable information and will be able to relate to a large group of small businesses.
To make my point, I picked up a News Release titled:
News Release Small Business Group Documents Superfund As Highly Toxic For Entrepreneurs and Business December 7, 1995 Contact: Renee Stikes (202) 785-0238
Washington, DC -- The Small Business Survival Committee (SBSC) a 40,000-member small business advocacy group that promotes a free market, pro entrepreneur agenda, released a report today highly critical of the federal government Superfund program. "Highly Toxic: The Superfund Assault on Common Sense, Business and Entrepreneurship" was written by SBSC Chief Economist Raymond J. Keating.
U.S. Representative Bill Zeliff (R-NH), a leader in Superfund reform efforts and Chairman of the Small Business Survival Caucus, wrote the foreword to the report.
"Highly Toxic" documents some of the history, the massive costs and egregious inefficiencies of the Superfund program, which was designed to help clean up hazardous waste sites across the country. Instead, according to the report, a mere 18 percent of the worst waste sites have been cleaned up at a combined government/private sector cost of approximately $90 billion.
Keating declares: "Superfund unleashed the bloated bureaucracy and gross inefficiencies of the federal government on often unsuspecting individuals and businesses; turned essentially local or, at most, state problems into national woes; set arbitrary and unattainable criteria for compliance; sent legal costs skyrocketing; forced many businesses to close their doors; reduced capital available for investment in certain industries; restrained job growth; and damaged U.S. international competitiveness."
"Highly Toxic" fully explains and offers examples of each of these Superfund consequences.
"Superfund is riddled with problems," Keating notes, "but worst of all is its liability scheme. Under Superfund's strict, retroactive, and joint and several liability, if a business disposed of waste, toxic or nontoxic, large or insignificant amounts in good conscience and in complete accordance with the law, it can still be held liable for the costs of cleaning up the disposal site if it later became a Superfund site.
Notions of responsibility and fairness mean absolutely nothing under Superfund."
"Highly Toxic" suggests phasing in a three-step reform process for Superfund:
1) Repeal retroactive liability for all actions taken before 1987, eliminating litigation at an estimated 80 percent of Superfund sites, use science-based risk assessment and cost-benefit analysis to determine required clean up remedies, and cap the number of Superfund sites to gain some control over costs.
2) In the name of fairness and common sense, repeal the strict, retroactive, and joint and several liability schemes altogether, and only assign liability to individuals and businesses who broke the law, who were negligent, fraudulent, deceptive, etc.
3) Eventually put an end to Superfund waste sites that are local or, at most, state issues, not federal.
Keating concludes: "At the very least, Superfund must be completely overhauled.
As things currently stand, no one wins under the Superfund scenario of high costs and few clean ups."
Stan Golomb's special notation
After studying this news release, I decided to highlight certain sections. Although it shouldn't be necessary to do that since every sentence and every paragraph is pertinent.
All I can ask you to do is to please read this entire report again and be sure you don't miss a word. Just realize that there is an organization of a multitude of small businesses that have a very strong interest in an overhaul of Superfund.
Your federal government caused this problem and it's up to them, with a push from us, to solve the problem and use some common sense and repeal this regulation.
With the start of a new year, the progression to more environmentally friendly methods of processing suede and leather garments has spotlighted wetcleaning and captured the attention of drycleaners.
Can suedes and leathers really be washed in water like a shirt? Can any drycleaner or launderer wash suedes and leathers without hurting them?
The answer to these questions is yes, if the drycleaner or launderer will follow these instructions.
Wetcleaning or washing suedes and leathers can be successfully accomplished by the following procedure:
There is no need for a pre-wash treatment or a special final rinse with this method.
Prespotting
Prespotting suede and leather is different from prespotting cloth in three important ways.
First of all, live steam is never used when spotting suede or leather.
Second, crusty spots and stains are removed from suede by abrasion.
Third, spot removers used on cloth are not to be used on suede or leather as they can cause color loss and damage. Use only spot removers formulated specifically for suede and leather.
Prespotting suede is accomplished by two methods:
Prespotting leather is accomplished by dissolving spots with specially formulated liquid spot removers. Abrasives are never used on smooth leathers.
Abrasive spot removers commonly used to abrade crusty spots and surface stains include the following: The abrasive strip and the abrasive block. They are for use on suedes only and then only with care.
Liquid spot removers used to dissolve and loosen spots, stains and soil from suede and leather fall into two types: wet spot removers and dry spot removers.
The wet spot remover Leather Magic is specially formulated for use on suede and leather where needed to remove water soluble spots, stains and soil without removing color or hardening the skin. It breaks up embedded water soluble stains and loosens ground-in soil.
The Spot Magic and Ink Magic dry spot removers are specially formulated for use in wetcleaning suede and leather to remove oily spots, stains, inks, paint and soil without removing color, hardening the skin or leaving oily rings.
The liquid spot remover's effectiveness may be enhanced by applying mechanical action on the spotting board utilizing a bone or metal scraper or spatula and by the use of special suede and leather Spotting Brushes.
Spotting agents other than those mentioned above may cause color loss and damage the skin if used on suede and leather.
Finishing
After wetcleaning and drying, suede and leather garments should be pressed to look their very best.
Pressing includes: pressing on a press; ironing with a hand iron; and forming on a form finisher.
The cardinal rules to remember when finishing wetcleaned suede and leather garments are:
The reason is that two things are bad for leather: (1) wetting the skin and (2) then applying heat to it.
The result of doing these two things is that the skin will almost always draw up and shrink unevenly.
So the first rule is: Be sure the item is thoroughly dry and never use live steam when pressing leather and suede on a press.
The same is true when ironing suede or leather with a hand iron. Be sure the garment is dry and use no steam.
Now when using a form finisher, you can safely use some steam to blow out a suede or leather.
However, care should be exercised to be sure it is fully dried and then not get too much steam on soft suedes or painted leather coats.
By taking these precautions, you will be able to press most suedes and leathers without problems.
Note: Prosuede-Wet, Spot Magic and Ink Magic are registered trademarks of Royaltone Co., Inc.The International Fabricare Institute has a high-quality national survey of consumer attitudes towards drycleaners and the service that drycleaners give. However, nothing can be as beneficial to making your business "customer driven" as a survey of your own customers' opinions.
The idea of market research scares many people. It sounds too formal, too complex, costly, and unnecessary.
"I already know what my customers think" and "If I did everything my customers wanted, I'd go broke" are the most common protests against learning about customers and what motivates them to do business with us.
What many business owners fear is that by listening to the customer they will learn some unpleasant things about themselves and the way they are running their businesses.
No one wants to hear unpleasantries or negatives about their businesses. The resulting reality is that market research is simply not going to be done to any significant degree. Here are some short-cuts for quickly getting a feel for your customers.
An extremely effective way to learn how customers really feel about the services you are providing is to call a few of them and ask questions. Because you are "having a conversation" rather than doing "market research," you get a much more candid appraisal of your particular services than a national market survey can produce.
In fact, when making this type of call, you should never say you are doing market research. Instead say: "I know you have been using XYZ Cleaners. I would like to ask you a few questions about your experiences."
People are usually glad to be asked their opinions because that makes them feel important. This approach makes them feel as if they are being singled out from among thousands, rather than just a random sample on a survey list.
How many people must you interview? Amazingly, five or six customers per location can give you a pretty good feel for what's important about your services and what customers' main concern might be.
Naturally, trained market researchers will criticize this as unscientific and claim the results could not be reliable. But for small businesses, whose trade area is usually a one- to three-mile radius, this may be all that's needed to help you steer a new customer-driven course.
What should you ask them? Anything you want to know. But don't be closed-minded. The purpose of the informal telephone survey is discovery. By having an open-ended conversation with the customer, you discover things about your services that you would not learn if you were going strictly by a script. If a customer brings up a point not on your list of questions, feel free to deviate and explore it.
Survey by mail
Another means of finding out how to motivate and satisfy customers is through a questionnaire that can be mailed to customers and prospects alike.
Your questionnaire should be typed, single-spaced on two sides of a letter or legal-size sheet of white paper. Leave plenty of room for answers. The reader should be able to indicate answers by checking a box or writing a brief reply in the space provided.
Questions should be numbered. At the bottom of the last page, you should give the reader the option of filling in his or her name and address, in case you want to contact them for follow-up (make sure filling in name and address is clearly optional).
Send out the questionnaire with a cover letter indicating that you are asking the recipient for a favor. A good opening line is, "I have a favor to ask of you."
Offer an incentive
Also, provide a reason for complying. For example, by completing the survey about the customer's drycleaning and laundry likes and dislikes, your cleaners will be able to give them the clothes-care service they enjoy most.
One incentive technique is to affix a quarter or dollar bill to each letter. This increases replies because it makes readers feel guilty about accepting your money and then not cooperating with your survey.
Another technique is to offer a "surprise bonus gift" as a reward for completing and returning the survey. The gift might be a discount coupon for your cleaning services.
What to ask in the survey? Again, ask anything you want to know.
Here are some of the things you might ask:
The number of surveys necessary for a good sampling will depend on the size of your market and your budget. A good rule of thumb would be to mail out to 100 customers and 100 non-customers (prospects).
The advantage of telephoning is that you can prompt the customer for additional information if a reply is too brief or not informative.
On the other hand, telephoning can be more time-consuming than mail surveys. With the mail, you can send out and get back many more surveys. This is why it's often best to use a combination of the two.
Editor's Note: This column originally was published in the August 1994 edition of National Clothesline. In light of the recent PrimeTime Live segment on drycleaners, we are republishing it this month to show that it should not be necessary to watch television to find out what customers think of their drycleaner.On Thanksgiving Eve, PrimeTime Live, the ABC Television newsmagazine aired a consumer interest segment about drycleaners.
As you may already know, on this show the PrimeTime staff brought 15 white silk blouses and 15 rayon skirts to 15 drycleaners in St. Louis, MO. Each blouse and skirt were stained in exactly the same way. The drycleaners were given four days to clean these items.
The end result was that five of the blouses were cleaned correctly and two of the skirts were cleaned correctly. That is five of 15, or 33 percent of the blouses were cleaned and 67 percent were not cleaned. As for the skirts, 13 percent were cleaned and 87 percent were not cleaned. Hmmm... respect?
Since the airing of this television show I have listened to and read a bunch of opinions from a whole bunch of drycleaners. These opinions include such things as; "Why does the media always pick on us?" and "We need to train our counter people better." and "The solution is certification."
I don't think there are any legitimate arguments against training counter people or becoming certified but these ideas will not correct the real problem which is that 77 percent of those 30 garments were not cleaned. That represents a 77 percent failure rate -- yes, failure rate!
When you hang out a sign saying that you are a drycleaner you are implying/making three promises to your customers...
Point #1
When a customer brings an item to the drycleaners to be cleaned, what do you think they expect? Give this some serious thought. You've spent a lot of time and money trying to get them into your store... and now that they are here - isn't it your job to fulfill their expectations? If your customers didn't want their clothes cleaned they would be somewhere else.
Point #2
If you don't know how to properly clean clothes... if you don't like the business... if you're in it just to "make a buck"... it's time for you to sell the business!
Point #3
Pricing! Could it be that this is the real problem? On the PrimeTime show they mentioned four prices for drycleaning the white silk blouses. The first price was $1.69, the second was $14.30, the third was $4.80 and the fourth was $1.75.
This price discrepancy is outrageous! I don't know of another industry where there is such a spread in price... $1.69 to $14.50. At least the drycleaner who is charging $14.50 can afford to replace the customer's white silk blouse if it gets ruined.
At $1.69, it's not hard to believe that:
I have been told by some very smart people that you can make a profit and charge $1.75 for a short piece. That I don't doubt... but can you charge $1.75, make a profit and also meet your customers expectations? I haven't seen it yet!
Case in point... I have two counter computer cost/management groups. One is a group using the DCCS system and one group uses the MAX computer system -- these computers provide a tremendous amount of accurate and valuable information.
How low can you go?
The question here is "How low can you drop your price, make a profit and still earn some respect from your customers by meeting or exceeding their expectations?"
I am going to compare the numbers from two group members. In these groups I only show percentages when comparing member costs but we also compare average price per piece.
The two members I am using in this example have many similarities. Both drycleaners have two drop stores and one route; do a good job cleaning their customers clothes; and they treat their employees well.
Each is doing close to the same dollar volume in sales. The difference between these two drycleaners is in pricing, their labor cost as a percentage of sales, their bottom line and, most important, the amount of time the owners spend at work and the amount of time they spend doing production work. Do you own and manage a business or do you own a job?
Let's look at some actual numbers:
Client # 1 Client # 2
Average price per DC piece:
$4.82 $3.35
Average price per shirt
$1.38 $1.04
Drycleaning Pieces
124,100 171,500
Number of shirts
136,600 199,500
Labor costs
39.8% 53.2%
Bottom Line
14.5% 0.9%
In the above example, Client # 1 charges his customers 30 percent more for drycleaning and 25 percent more for shirts. Now let's look at their labor costs.
To determine the average price and average labor cost per piece I am going to add drycleaning and shirt sales together and divide the sales total by the total number of drycleaning and shirt pieces.
Client #1 = $786,670/260,700 = $3.02 (average piece price)
The average piece price times 39.8% labor cost = $1.20 per piece.
Client #2 = $782,005/371,000 = $2.11 (average piece price)
The average piece price times 53.2% labor cost = $1.12 per piece.
The difference in piece cost is $1.20 minus $1.12 = .08, or a 6.7% difference.
Now it is time to pay attention. In this example we have two drycleaners who have a 25 to 30 percent spread in pricing but less than a seven percent spread in their labor costs.
Remember, these two drycleaners are keeping their promise to clean their customers clothes correctly. What this means to me is that there is a minimum price point below which you cannot go and do the job right and still stay in business.
The drycleaner with the average piece price of $3.35 is bouncing along at break-even. I know his plant well enough to know that he can't cut his labor costs any more without dramatically reducing the quality of work. The PrimeTime piece showed a 77 percent failure rate -- a rate which is directly related to pricing.
Doing the job right means you must invest time inspecting each garment all the way through the plant -- starting at the counter.
Next, you must invest the time necessary to remove the stains your customers put into their own clothes (at this point they are your stains). This is what you promised to do when you hung out the sign that says you are a drycleaner.
The last step in this whole process is getting paid for the time you invested in cleaning your customers clothes properly.
The drycleaning industry is a labor-intense industry and it takes time to do the job right. If you are not willing or able to properly clean clothes -- you are in the wrong industry.
For drycleaners to improve their image with the general public, the first thing they must do is meet their customers' expectations in terms of their ability to clean the customers' clothes.
Every survey ever conducted proves that drycleaning customers are more concerned with convenience, the quality of service and the quality of the work than they are with price.
Yes, it is a fact that 80 percent of drycleaning customers who use drycleaners on a regular basis rank price as th