American Coin-Op - May 2021

In an April 2020 study by Mastercard, 79% of respondents worldwide say they are now using contactless payments, citing safety and cleanliness as key drivers. Further, in 2021 Visa expects that there will be more than 300 million contactless cards in the hands of American consumers.

WHAT’S NEW IN LAUNDRY FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

Laundry facilities management is often referred to as “route operations,” a term that Scott Scarpato, president of the Multi-housing Laundry Association, thinks is outdated. The CEO and owner of Automatic Laundry Service Co. describes how the multi-housing customer service paradigm has shifted to an enriched experience.

BOOTH SALES OPEN FOR 2022 CLEAN SHOW

Exhibit space in Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center is being assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. With presales already underway for Clean 2019 exhibitors, the floor is at nearly 50% capacity, Messe Frankfurt says.

SELF-SERVICE LAUNDRY VALUATION

Determining the fair market value of a laundry business is important to the investor thinking about buying and to the store owner trying to sell. Here’s the latest on store valuation and how the pandemic may have impacted the market.

COLUMNS

14 POINTERS FROM PAULIE B: TIPS FOR SELLING YOUR ‘MAT’ WHEN IT’S TIME

Retired multi-store owner Paul Russo suggests that preparation for selling your store can actually begin at the point you agree to buy it in the first place. By taking certain steps as a buyer, you’ll make it easier on yourself when you decide the time to sell has come.

18 RETOOLING FOR PERFORMANCE, FLEXIBILITY AND CUSTOMER CONVENIENCE

When your washers and dryers are aged-out or inefficient, it’s time to retool for greater revenue and profit, says Tod Sorensen, a regional sales manager for Girbau North America. While you plan that equipment retool and compare brands, there are some questions you’ll want to answer for yourself.

(Photo: © gustavofrazao/Depositphotos)

We know the pressures involved with upgrading machines. That’s why we’re here to help alleviate stress by looking deeper into your needs and working together to craft a customized retooling plan.

At Maytag ® Commercial Laundry, it’s not just about replacing machines, it’s about rethinking ways to move your business forward. Learn more at ReplaceWithMaytag.com/Upgrade.

Beggs

WHAT’S IT ALL WORTH TO YOU?

Charles Thompson, Publisher

E-mail: cthompson@ATMags.com Phone: 312-361-1680

Donald Feinstein, Associate Publisher/ National Sales Director

E-mail: dfeinstein@ATMags.com Phone: 312-361-1682

Bruce Beggs, Editorial Director

E-mail: bbeggs@ATMags.com Phone: 312-361-1683

Mathew Pawlak, Production Manager

Nathan Frerichs, Digital Media Director

E-mail: nfrerichs@ATMags.com Phone: 312-361-1681

ADVISORY

In the market to buy a self-service laundry? Thinking about selling yours? Either way, laundry brokerage experts say because of the pandemic that affected much of 2020, it would be wise to rely more heavily on financials from prior years when determining a specific store’s value.

In my cover story, “Self-Service Laundry Valuation: What’s Your Store Worth?”, I interviewed three veterans of store ownership and brokerage services to ask about the current state of valuation and how the pandemic may have impacted it.

They examine factors that can affect a store’s valuation, offer tips for enhancing the value of your asset, and more. Check out the article beginning on page 6.

This month’s other main story looks into “What’s New in Laundry Facilities Management.” Scott Scarpato, president of the Multi-housing Laundry Association, says “route operations” is an outdated term that conjures images of a time gone by, of coin-op washers in a dingy basement. Today, laundry facilities management is about community laundry rooms packed with technology and offering an enriched customer experience, he says. Get the details starting on page 10.

Elsewhere, general booth sales for the 2022 Clean Show in Atlanta are now open; details can be found on page 12. Companies that exhibited at the 2019 show had an early opportunity to grab a spot but the remaining booth space is now open to any company. But don’t miss out—the show floor is already nearing 50% capacity.

There’s plenty more in this month’s issue but I’ll leave it to you to discover yourself. I’m confident the additional content is worth your time and attention.

Bruce Beggs Editorial Director

American Coin-Op (ISSN 0092-2811) is published monthly. Subscription prices, payment in advance: U.S., 1 year $46.00; 2 years $92.00. Foreign, 1 year $109.00; 2 years $218.00. Single copies $9.00 for U.S., $18.00 for all other countries. Published by American Trade Magazines LLC, 650 West Lake Street, Suite 320, Chicago, IL 60661. Periodicals postage paid at Chicago, IL and at additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER, Send changes of address and form 3579 to American Coin-Op, Subscription Dept., 440 Quadrangle Drive, Suite E, Bolingbrook, IL 60440. Volume 62, number 5. Editorial, executive and advertising offices are at 650 West Lake Street, Suite 320, Chicago, IL 60661. Charles Thompson, President and Publisher. American Coin-Op is distributed selectively to owners, operators and managers of chain and individually owned coin-operated laundry establishments in the United States. The publisher reserves the right to reject any advertising for any reason.

© Copyright AMERICAN TRADE MAGAZINES LLC, 2021. Printed in U.S.A. No part of this publication may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher or his representative. American Coin-Op does not endorse, recommend or guarantee any article, product, service or information found within. Opinions expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of American Coin-Op or its staff. While precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of the magazine’s contents at time of publication, neither the editors, publishers nor its agents can accept responsibility for damages or injury which may arise therefrom.

Bruce

Self-Service Laundry Valuation: Whatʻs Your Store Worth

by Bruce Beggs, Editorial Director

Understanding store valuation—determining the fair market value of a self-service laundry business—is important to the investor thinking about buying and to the store owner trying to sell. American Coin-Op spoke to three experts this month about the topic, including how the coronavirus pandemic has impacted store values.

John Vassiliades is a licensed real estate and business broker, and principal of John Vassiliades & Co., based in the Chicago area. During a career spanning more than 40 years, he’s been a multistore owner as well as worked as a commercial laundry equipment distributor, manufacturer’s representative, and executive director of an industry association.

Vassiliades says there are several valuation methods, and they’re relied on by different organizations. For example, the replacement value of a business is primarily relied upon by insurance companies. The depreciated value approach is primarily relied upon by the banking industry. The market value approach is primarily relied upon by the real estate industry and is based off comparables in the market.

“We like to use the income value approach for evaluating businesses, because that really tells you what type of return you’re going to get for your investment,” he says.

Net income is annualized and then a return on investment (ROI) is calculated from the annual net income, says Carol Dang, vice president of sales and marketing for California’s Elite Business Investments, which offers coin laundry brokerage services and equipment sales. She’s worked in the laundry business since 1983.

“That figure can be anywhere from a 20% ROI to 40% ROI

or more,” says Dang, who’s also a store owner. “If the store is in need of equipment, that dollar amount may play a role in where the ROI will land.”

Larry Larsen’s more than 40 years of industry experience includes equipment sales, store development and multi-store ownership/ operation. He’s a California-based real estate broker who’s acted as appraiser and consultant in hundreds of Laundromat valuations.

Larsen believes that using a multiple of net income to determine a Laundromat’s value isn’t reliable.

“It is useful in the analysis of the purchase of residential and commercial income property, but not in the evaluation of an income flow,” he says. “Its familiarity to many investors has been adapted for use by Laundromat salesmen looking for a simple method to be used in their sales presentations, but really is not appropriate to placing value on a self-service laundry.”

Larsen offers an example: There are two Laundromats, each of which nets $10,000 a month. Owner of Store A does his own repairs and cleaning, operates 15-year-old equipment and has a 20-year lease. Owner of Store B expenses all repairs and cleaning and operates 3-year-old equipment but has a lease that expires in two years and can’t be extended. “Based on a purely net multiple, how can both stores be worth the same?” he asks.

CONTRIBUTING FACTORS

What aspects of a laundry—the lease, equipment, level of profitability, the surrounding neighborhood, something else—tend to have the greatest impact on its valuation? Or devaluation?

All play an important role in laundry valuation, Dang says.

( Photo: © gustavofrazao/Depositphotos)

HAPPIER WITH HUEBSCH®

LEAP INTO MORE PROFITS

With reliable machines that make you more money and bring you happier customers.

Take the leap with Huebsch®. Huebsch.com/leap

“The lease is extremely important, it can make or break a store. It is important to look at the length of the lease and the increases in the lease as well as [triple net] charges. Equipment is also important. However, if the store is profitable and has a good long-term lease at a reasonable rent, then replacing equipment should only add value to the location and usually will increase the profit.

“Knowing the surrounding area is very important. You should know if there are any new laundries being built. Or are there stores closing, and why? Is the community thriving, or is it a community that has some issues with gangs?”

“All of the ones you mentioned actually have an impact and are weighted in the application of the net cash flow to determine what the value is of the business,” Vassiliades says. “For example, if you’re looking at the equipment, anything newer than 10 years would impact positively on the valuation. If the lease is less than 15 years, that would be a negative. Anything more than 15 years would be a positive.”

Larsen says the most important aspect of value is neighborhood demand or need for a Laundromat, often determined by a professional demographic study.

“Demand would be followed by the provisions and terms of the lease, adequate parking for customers (at least one unrestricted space for every 400 square feet of a store) and, finally, visibility,” he says. “Existing competition and planned competition need to be carefully included in any due diligence process.

“An often overlooked aspect of value of a Laundromat investment is potential; can the income be grown in a reasonable and likely effort?”

AMIDST THE PANDEMIC

It’s been more than a year since the coronavirus pandemic first gripped this country. Today, there’s reason for optimism as the number of U.S. residents receiving the COVID-19 vaccine grows.

Still, there’s been an impact on the laundry business, including store valuation.

Vassiliades says there’s been a “noticeable reduction in laundry volume” due to the pandemic, anywhere from 10% to 30%, depending on location. Expenses have remained the same except for a slight reduction in utilities. In order to remain open as an essential business, stores have had to increase expenses in personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies.

“All of this, including, in some cases, a reduction in operating hours, has had a negative effect on the bottom line or the ‘net cash flow’ of each laundry,” he says. “If you were to rely solely on the net cash flow of laundries for the year of 2020, there will be a reduction in the value of Laundromats due to the pandemic, if only on a temporary basis.”

Therefore, the truer value of a laundry would be better judged by placing more weight on performance and net cash flow during 2017-2019 and not relying solely on 2020 numbers.

Vassiliades has seen some buyers hesitate to act due to the pandemic, but this has been countered by an influx of investors coming from hard-hit businesses classified as “nonessential,” such as restaurants, retail stores and travel-related businesses.

“There is light at the end of the tunnel,” he says. “Many laundries, especially the better-managed ones, are reporting an uptick in their sales as more and more people become vaccinated and more children are allowed to go back to in-class learning. If vaccinations reach the levels that everyone is hoping for, there could be a

real possibility that most Laundromats will reach and maybe even exceed their 2019 income levels by fall of 2021.”

The pandemic has driven some in the industry to believe that the self-service aspect of the business is declining and the future is in providing wash-dry-fold and pickup and delivery services. Larsen isn’t among them.

“I don’t accept this premise and believe that as the pandemic declines, the self-service business will be roaring back to life and returning money to all that have been waiting for a virus-free time and better times,” he says.

Dang says the pandemic has made it difficult to value a store: “Many of the stores were severely impacted and their income was not where it was prior to (the outbreak). Since this is something we have never had to deal with before, it is very concerning. We just don’t know if the income is going to come back to where it was before.

“It is important to look at the pre-pandemic numbers along with the pandemic numbers. It is also important to look at how the store has progressed through the pandemic. Is it stable or is it on an upwards slope or is it still on a bit of a roller coaster? All these factors come into play now and the new investor or even a seasoned investor has to look carefully at what the trend is.”

MAXIMIZING STORE VALUE

The experts offered some tips and suggestions for maximizing a store’s value:

• Overall Store Condition — “Making sure that your store is clean and brightly lit and free of deferred maintenance and clutter is extremely important,” says Vassiliades. Dang suggests walking through the doors as if you’re walking in the first time: “Is your attendant friendly and greeting customers as they come in? Are all your lights on and working? How does the store look overall? Does it need a good cleaning, or painting, or new floors?”

• Equipment Condition — “You really need to make sure it’s operating in fairly good condition all the time,” Vassiliades says. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be new but it should be clean, neat and well taken care of.”

• Equipment Size — “Do you have enough larger machines? Do you have enough drying capacity?” Dang asks. “Are you in an area with large families that would benefit from having choices of the sizes of washers and dryers?”

• Vend Pricing — “Are you charging enough for your vend prices? Look at your competitors and make sure that you’re in the same range,” says Dang. Vassiliades adds, “You should always be pricing your vend price at the highest possible price to compete in your market area.”

• Lease Length — “The lease is extremely important. You really should be negotiating that lease anytime you come close to that 15-year mark,” says Vassiliades.

“If a Laundromat owner keeps their eyes on their own business, the professionalism of their staff and their equipment age and condition, the value of a store will be maximized throughout the term of ownership,” Larsen says. “It is a mistake to allow your facilities to deteriorate with an idea of a future renovation. Every month, a wise owner evaluates what needs to be done to make his Laundromat appealing.” ACO

Watch for an expanded version of this article to be posted on AmericanCoinOp.com during the month of May!

WHAT’S NEW IN Laundry Facilities Management

Customer service paradigm has shifted from ‘route operations’

by Bruce Beggs, Editorial Director

Just as retail self-service laundry owners endeavor to best serve their walk-in and drop-off customers, multi-housing laundry operators combine best practices with hard work in an effort to serve their contracted community area laundry rooms in places such as apartment buildings, condominiums and public housing.

And like their retail counterparts, those overseeing multi-housing laundries have adapted to providing service in a pandemic environment, with its need for enhanced facilities cleaning and social distancing, but are looking forward to the day when things get back to something approaching normal.

Scott Scarpato is CEO and owner of Automatic Laundry Service Co., based in West Newton, Mass., and currently the president of the Multi-housing Laundry Association (MLA), the North American trade association of operator and supplier companies providing professional laundry services for the multi-housing industry.

Scarpato’s father started Automatic Laundry in Massachusetts in 1963 and Scarpato has been working in the business since he was a little boy. He started as a repairman and learned the business through and through before going full-time in 1981. Automatic Laundry has expanded into New England and today serves the Northeast.

“I think it connotes a time gone by, the coin-op washers down in a dingy basement. Today, it’s extremely different. There’s a lot of technology packed into our community laundry rooms. The way we interface with our customers is very different. The whole customer service paradigm has shifted to an enriched experience.”

— Scott Scarpato, on term “route operations”

“If we’re not the largest, we’re one of the largest closely held … laundry facilities management companies in the industry and we just do our business,” Scarpato says. “Nothing fancy. We just go about our blocking and tackling every day.”

Laundry facilities management is often referred to as “route operations,” a term that Scarpato thinks is outdated.

“I think it connotes a time gone by, the coin-op washers down in a dingy basement,” he says. “Today, it’s extremely different. There’s a lot of technology packed into our community laundry rooms. The way we interface with our customers is very different. The whole customer service paradigm has shifted to an enriched experience.”

A laundry facilities management firm enters into an agreement with a multi-housing facility to provide and maintain a common laundry area on the premises, according to Scarpato.

“A building owner, a condominium association, university or college housing department will reach out to a company like ours and we’d go look at the community laundry facility,” he explains. “We would ▼

submit a proposal on how to best run that. Ownership of the property … would review the proposal and if they liked the terms, they’d accept them and we would enter into a long-term agreement whereby we install and retain ownership of the washers and dryers.

“We maintain the equipment and we remit, in the form of a rent, a percentage of the receipts to cover the cost, for the building owners, for their utilities and everything. The utilities are supplied to us by the building.”

There are some differences between the equipment in a common laundry room and the equipment found in a typical Laundromat.

“Some of your big high-rises are going to have equipment that’s very similar to what you see in a public Laundromat. You’re going to see tumbling dryers. You’re going to see multi-load washerextractors. Other facilities are mainly small chassis, so you’re going to have 22-pound-capacity front loaders … and single-load dryers, stack dryers.”

When the pandemic emergency was declared, laundry facilities managers like Automatic Laundry kept plugging along.

“Many of us were deemed essential,” says Scarpato of the country’s laundry facilities management firms. “In the case of our company, we never shut down, we never stopped working. In fact, we got busier. The pressure was on to keep things running; the CDC said that washing clothes was very important.”

Immediate challenges were keeping workers safe and the laundry equipment clean and usable.

“But I would say the biggest thing that happened was that it accelerated the contactless payment systems,” he says.

His company had been utilizing an app-based system for a few years when the pandemic hit last year.

“People didn’t want to have to touch … and it was harder to get coins or money. The resident customers of ours adopted (using) digital payments much faster. So, our phone-based app just blew up.”

How else has technology influenced laundry facilities management?

“Over time, companies … have developed real-time systems that can tell you exactly to the second where a washer or dryer is in status,” Scarpato says. “Those were a front-facing technology so

the resident could … monitor when the laundry room was open, when washers and dryers were available, and receive notifications when their load of laundry was done.”

But Scarpato says the real value in such a system is that the machines now have the capability to alert facility managers when a machine has malfunctioned or is in need of maintenance. Through two-way communication, managers often can remotely clear errors and start a new machine for the resident who encounters a problem.

Not all multi-housing adopts the common laundry approach. Some developers of high-rise apartment buildings have moved toward installing laundry equipment in each residential unit.

“It’s absolutely true that the adoption of in-unit washers and dryers has been a popular movement,” Scarpato says. “However, there still are buildings being built with community laundry rooms because of several factors.”

Having laundry equipment in-unit means losing a portion of the apartment’s livable space, he says. Also, a study has shown that residents with in-unit laundry equipment will use considerably more water than if they would use larger, more efficient commercial laundry equipment.

What are the biggest tests that lie ahead for laundry facilities management?

“I think the challenges are going to be keeping pace with our users’ wants,” Scarpato says. “How do they want to pay for something? How do they want to use something? What products and features do washers and dryers offer that meet their needs?”

While millennials are familiar with the new technologies in use, there’s an aging population among facility residents who aren’t and will need assistance as things evolve.

“In the old days, people called you when they had a service problem,” Scarpato says. “Today, they’re emailing, they’re texting, they’re tweeting. There are so many inbound ways to reach us and so many outbound ways for us to contact these people that it creates a very different experience.

“The challenge, to me, is the laundry facility management companies have to continually grow and use technology to better interact with their customers, because they’re changing.” ACO

BOOTH SALES OPEN FOR 2022 CLEAN SHOW

General booth sales have officially opened for the upcoming edition of The Clean Show, scheduled for July 30-August 2, 2022, at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center.

Exhibit space is assigned on a firstcome, first-served basis. With pre-sales already underway for all 2019 Clean Show exhibitors, the floor is at nearly 50% capacity, reports show organizer Messe Frankfurt. Companies interested in exhibiting are encouraged to act fast to secure their location on the show floor.

The next edition of The Clean Show was to have been held in June of this

year but the continued global impacts of COVID-19 prompted organizers to push it to 2022. Atlanta last hosted The Clean Show in 2015.

All exhibitor information can be found on the show’s website, www.cleanshow. com. With the online Exhibitor Prospectus, companies interested in exhibiting can view the floor plan, select sponsorship opportunities for additional exposure, explore rules and regulations, and download the contract.

Recognized as North America’s largest textile care exposition, The Clean Show attracts store owners, plant operators, technicians, institutional laundry manag-

ers, distributors, consultants, buyers, and other industry professionals to see the newest and most technologically advanced products the industry has to offer.

Besides the exhibits, the show offers educational seminars on technology, business management, sustainability, and other topics.

The Clean Show is organized in collaboration with five industry associations: Association for Linen Management (ALM), Coin Laundry Association (CLA), Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI), Textile Care Allied Trades Association (TCATA), and the Textile Rental Services Association of America (TRSA). ACO

TIPS FOR SELLING YOUR ‘MAT’ WHEN IT’S TIME

The most important thing I learned from buying and selling my mats was to start early. By that I mean develop an exit strategy before you even buy your mat.

If you own the building, you can choose to sell only the mat. You can offer a tempting lease that can greatly enhance the selling price of your mat. You receive the sales proceeds from the mat as well as the ability to collect rent as landlord for years of future income.

As the building owner, you’ll understand the needs of the buyer, so you can attract more buyers. Due to the capital-intensive nature of our business, buyers need long leases to be willing to pull the trigger on buying a mat.

Anything less than 10 years is not attractive to most buyers; some buyers want a minimum of 15. In some less desirable markets, landlords may be willing to lock in a buyer by offering a lease of 20, 25 or even 30 years, with options.

Smart commercial landlords will give a fairly decent lease in the beginning. When it becomes time to renew, that’s when the attitude changes. Landlords think years down the road, and so should you.

At one of my locations, I got a long lease, fixed up the mat, and business was great! However, as time went by, the demand for empty stores in that area grew. Landlords grew arrogant, knowing that if a tenant didn’t agree to their new term, they’d just get another tenant.

My landlord began offering me only five-year renewals, inviting me to “get out” if I didn’t like it. I wanted an anti-demolition clause added to the lease at one time to protect my store if he decided to knock the building down for a new one. Same thing: “Get out then. Nobody tells me what I do with my properties.”

He promised, but not in writing, that he “will help (me) out when (I) eventually sell.” I always renegotiated leases years before they were to end but this landlord refused to extend until the last two months. His “helping out” was simply giving me a 7-year lease to sell. The short renewals also prevented me from upgrading the store with new equipment.

So, if you can, buy the building!

You may be able to put together an investment group to buy a building or shopping center, with your mat paying the going rate and, through written agreement, receiving some kind of major benefit that doesn’t hurt the group. For instance, as long as you own the mat, you’ll always be able to renew your lease for 15-20 years at a

time at the going market rate. You can offer to be the “superintendent” for the entire shopping center in return.

If you decide to buy a mat that offers a lease only, make sure the agreement is “sales-friendly” when it’s your time to sell. Canvass the stores in your target shopping area to find out how the landlord operates.

DON’T FORGET THE CURB APPEAL

Just like selling a home, you want curb appeal to help your store. Many homeowners have their houses fixed up to “stage” them for selling. In the same vein, you want to wow anyone who’s interested in buying as soon as they lay eyes on it.

While the curb appeal principle is similar, I would wonder why a mat owner didn’t keep curb appeal at a high all along. Nothing boosts curb appeal more than having a clean, beautiful storefront and sign, with automatic entrance doors.

STORE CONDITION

How do you wow a buyer? Fix your mat up at least six months, or even a year, before the sale, so you can have time to boost your revenue and get a higher selling price.

While your income goes up in that six-month period, the sale price will be magnified by the sales multiple, which is usually somewhere between three and five times your EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization).

If you let your mat get even just a little run-down, it’s now or never to clean it up. I’m not saying you must buy new equipment in order to sell your mat, but I’ve seen it done. Most people would prefer some kind of turn-key operation, combined with an agreed period of time when you would advise them to help them succeed.

If you’re trying to sell a run-down store, will offer no other help and demand cash, you increase the odds that your buyer will back out … and he just may decide it’s better for him to build a brand-new mat near yours.

FINDING BUYERS

Asians frequently bought mats in New York City. I advertised in the World Journal, which was the mostread newspaper among NYC’s Chinese residents. Doing that brought more serious buyers and not many “tirekickers.” Advertise your stores for sale in the media that makes the most sense for you and your area.

If your attendants know you are selling, ask them

Paul Russo

to take notes on anyone who inquires about your store. (Most store owners don’t want staff to know they are selling because they’re afraid the crew will quit.)

If you have a regular detergent supplier, ask them if they know of anyone looking to buy. Same goes for your distributor. Maybe other retailers in your shopping center have been eyeing your space for years.

Note: A buyer should first prove that they can afford your mat, so they don’t waste your time.

LAWYER UP

You’ll want a good commercial lawyer when you buy to advise and protect you so that you’ll have better conditions when you sell. This attorney would assist you with contract language regarding lease length, craft fair options for extensions, and assign the lease to your buyer.

You can frame extension options with parameters, such as an increase of not less than 2% but not more than 5%.

The lease assignment allows you to transfer your lease to a buyer. If not worded well, it may give the landlord a couple of loopholes to pressure you at selling time.

When you decide to sell your mat, have every person who requests information about your mat sign a non-disclosure agreement so they can’t share your mat’s private info with others. There are boilerplate versions online but your lawyer should draft one specifically for you.

SELLER FINANCING, DEALING WITH TAXES

You should already have a good, qualified tax accountant who knows your business. He/she is your best guide. There are too many tax, depreciation and profitand-loss strategies. For instance, by issuing promissory notes—a document promising payment to the note bearer at a specified date or on demand—you may save on taxes.

If you found a good, qualified buyer who you think can do well with your business but is shy on how much money they can put down, you both can benefit from seller financing.

The length of the agreement is also open to negotiation; for your part, the longer the term, the higher the interest rate. Of course, if the buyer fails to make the payments, you can repossess the mat.

Taxes are another issue that you should

deal with before you even decide to sell. For example, promissory notes can save you taxes because your income from the sale will be spread over the term of the loan.

Not everyone knows that an S corporation, sole proprietorship or a limited liability corporation will lower taxes at sale time compared to a C corporation. They are called pass-through entities, meaning your mat’s taxes (and losses) will pass through directly to you, so you’re only taxed once.

You will have to pay a capital gains tax on the difference between the sale price of your mat minus the amount you originally paid.

If you have a C corporation, you’ll be taxed twice: the business will pay capital gains taxes, then you’ll be taxed personally.

Remember, getting an early start strategizing your exit will help things go smoothly when you decide it’s time to sell. ACO

Paul Russo owned and operated multiple Laundromats in New York City for more than 40 years before retiring in 2018. You’re welcome to direct any questions or comments for Russo to Editor Bruce Beggs at bbeggs@atmags.com.

Tod Sorensen

RETOOLING FOR PERFORMANCE, FLEXIBILITY AND CUSTOMER CONVENIENCE

When your washers and dryers are aged-out or inefficient, it’s time to retool for greater revenue and profit. While planning that equipment retool and comparing brands, ask yourself the following:

• Will the new equipment set your laundry apart from the competition?

• Will it attract and serve more self-service customers?

• Will it increase customer turnover for more paying customers per day?

• Will it deliver the flexibility and features you need today and into the future?

In a nutshell, look for equipment offering performance, flexibility and customer convenience.

EQUIPMENT PERFORMANCE

This is measured by reliability, efficiency and productivity. Choose equipment that offers a quicker wash and dry for more rapid customer turnover, while saving

water, electricity and natural gas.

Don’t confuse high-performing, freestanding softmount washers with the homestyle, domestic front-load washers found in appliance stores. While both hard- and soft-mount washers are efficient, soft-mount washers deliver more advantages to positively impact profits.

• Long-Term Operational Savings: While the cost of a soft-mount washer is a bit more than a hard-mount washer, soft-mounts will lower operational costs. Soft-mounts generate and sustain extract speeds up to 400-plus G-force compared to traditional hardmount machines and their extraction speeds of 100200 G-force. Thus, they remove much more moisture from a load, slashing dry time by up to 50%. Softmounts will also reduce operational time, extending equipment longevity and cutting natural gas costs.

• Improve Customer Turnover: A laundry with softmount washers can serve more paying customers

per day compared to a store equipped with hard-mount washers. Customers can get in and out in less than 60 minutes, saving time. Customer satisfaction? Check!

• Installation Without Bolt-down: Softmounts can be placed in the same area as replaced hard-mounts without the added expense of reinforced concrete foundations of 8 to 14 inches.

EQUIPMENT FLEXIBILITY

Machines should offer features that bring flexibility to how you operate your laundry. Look for a highly programmable control and the ability to integrate ozone or automatically inject chemistry into the wash cycle to provide sanitization.

• Programmable Control: A quality control allows owners to program virtually any variable of a wash cycle, so it’s simple to shorten or extend wash/rinse times and to control water temperatures, extract speeds and vend prices. It will also interface with payment systems to allow quick and complete control over your machines and laundry.

• Control Upgrades: Do you have the

ability to upgrade your control if needed in the future?

• Sanitization-Capable: Offering customers a sanitized wash is a great way to stand apart, especially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. You can sanitize laundry using ozone or chemistry, so be certain the machines you choose are ozone-compatible or offer automatic chemical injection.

• Monetizing Simplicity: Be sure the washer control offers a way to monetize sanitization or an extra wash or spin. When customers select one of these options, they’re automatically charged a bit more in vend price.

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

Machines should bring an extra measure of customer convenience and satisfaction to the table. Choosing soft-mount washers with extra wash options, selecting large capacities, offering sanitization and providing automatic chemical injection will help set your store apart.

• Soft-mount washers allow customers to complete laundry in 60 minutes or less.

• Washer controls with extra wash

options give customers more control over how their laundry is processed.

• Laundry sanitization makes customers feel safe.

• Big machines allow customers to quickly wash bulky items and family-sized loads.

• Automatic injection of chemicals in big machines eliminates the need to lug and load detergent while providing greater customer turnover during busy times.

A retool is about generating more revenue and profit, so remember that the equipment buying decision you make today will impact your store for the next dozen years or more. Utilities are a vended laundry’s greatest uncontrolled expense, so do your research and retool with machinery that delivers now and into the future. ACO

Tod Sorensen is a regional sales manager at Girbau North America (GNA) and vice president of distributor Continental Girbau West, based in Southern California. He has more than 20 years of experience in vended laundry development and market analysis. He can be reached at tsorensen@ cgilaundry.com, 866-950-2449.

IN MEMORIAM: ADAM WEBER, IRVING WEBER ASSOCIATES

Adam Weber, the third-generation president of insurance company Irving Weber Associates (IWA), died March 18 after a long, courageous battle with cancer, IWA announced. He was 57.

Weber’s grandfather Irving and father Dennis started IWA, a specialized insurance provider for the drycleaning and commercial laundry industry, and Adam took over the reins in 1986.

During his tenure, he was crucial to realizing IWA’s dream to become the largest insurer of dry cleaners in the country, plus a full-fledged corporation that has branched out into other categories of insurance, the company says.

Weber was an exceptional entrepreneur and mentor, IWA adds, and will be remembered for his vision, generosity and friendship.

He is survived by his wife Jodi and sons Parker, Harrison and Griffin.

In lieu of flowers, donations for Pediatric Cancer Research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center may be made in his memory. The link follows: https://secure2.convio.net/mskcc/site/ TR/GivingPages/LeadershipGiving?px=4787457&pg=personal& fr_id=3636.

LAUNDROLAB FRANCHISE LAUNCHES

The team behind venture-backed 2ULaundry has launched LaundroLab, a modern Laundromat franchise concept that it says provides a safe, welcoming and convenient customer experience while creating new business opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Alex Smereczniak and Dan D’Aquisto founded on-demand laundry service 2ULaundry in 2016 to cater to busy professionals and families. Within two years, 2ULaundry had expanded beyond Charlotte, N.C., across the Southeast, serving thousands of customers and employing hundreds of clothing care professionals.

By 2018, 2ULaundry needed a new kind of facility to manage the thousands of pounds of laundry being managed daily in Charlotte. The service worked with Electrolux to create The Laundry Room, designed to bring innovation to Laundromats.

LaundroLab franchisees will receive a business playbook, technology assets, education and support from a team with a long track record, and a well-regarded brand to build their business, the principals say.

“We’re excited to open up the opportunity to take part in our growth by providing franchisees with a playbook and bespoke model to become a successful ‘Laundropreneur,’” says D’Aquisto.

STARCHUP, DROP LOCKER REACH LICENSING AGREEMENT

Starchup and Laundry Locker Inc., doing business as Drop Locker, have entered into a strategic agreement to license Drop Locker’s patents and other intellectual property related to the storage, pickup and delivery of laundry, drycleaning and household items to lockers and secured locations.

Under the agreement, Starchup may integrate the locker-based delivery tools into the Starchup point of sale (POS). It also extends the rights to Starchup customers through software use.

Drop Locker will become the exclusive locker supplier to Starchup and be named the preferred locker supplier to Starchup’s POS users. This includes the patented “Angled Locker” design that maximizes hanging spaces in lockers and preserves the finish on hanged items.

Further details of the agreement were not made public.

“Starchup customers have been interested in locker-based delivery for a while,” says Nick Chapleau, CEO and co-founder of Starchup. “That interest deepened through the COVID-19 pandemic as contactless delivery solutions became necessary.

“As an industry innovator ourselves, Starchup appreciates and respects IP rights and worked with the team at Drop Locker to provide these best-in-class solutions to our customers. We see this partnership as a win-win.”

SPEED QUEEN WELCOMES ALLIANCE LAUNDRY EQUIPMENT TO NETWORK

Speed Queen reports it has added Alliance Laundry Equipment, headquartered in Salt Lake City, to its distributor network.

Alliance Laundry Equipment will represent the Speed Queen brand’s Laundromat and on-premises laundry equipment lines throughout Utah and Colorado, as well as parts of Nevada, Idaho and Wyoming.

“Speed Queen customers expect more than just high-quality products; they want industry-leading service as well. Alliance Laundry Equipment delivers exactly that,” says Kathryn Rowen, general manager of the Laundromat segment for Alliance Laundry Systems, parent company of Speed Queen. “Alliance (Laundry Equipment) has everything we look for in a distribution partner – integrity, reputation and an overall focus on exceptional customer care.”

Alliance Laundry Equipment has served the commercial laundry needs of Mountain West states since 1955. From new investors and veteran Laundromat owners to managers of on-premises laundries serving a variety of markets, an array of customers rely on the expertise of Alliance staff to improve efficiency and profitability.

LAUNDRY LITERACY COALITION CONSULTANT MCCHESNEY HONORED Elizabeth (Liz) McChesney is the 2021 recipient of the Association for Library Service to Children’s (ALSC) Distinguished Service Award. The prestigious award honors an individual who has made significant contributions to library service to children and to ALSC.

McChesney is the Outreach and Partnership consultant for the Laundry Literacy Coalition and the previous director of Children’s Services and Family Engagement at Chicago Public Libraries, where she was known for pioneering inclusive practices for children and families on the Autism Spectrum. She serves as adviser to the Urban Libraries Council and as the library adviser to the National Summer Learning Association.

The Laundry Literacy Coalition is an alliance between the Coin Laundry Association’s LaundryCares Foundation and the Clinton Foundation’s Too Small to Fail initiative that promotes early literacy by delivering tools and resources directly into local self-service Laundromats in underserved communities. ACO

McChesney

Weber

THE PERFECT SOLUTION FOR DRIVING PROFIT STURDY

& LONG LIFE CYCLE

LG Commercial Washers and Dryers are built for constant use and long life cycle. Drive profit with durability.

Premium Powder Coating

Our powder coated finish creates the same durability as it does when painting a car. It ensures longevity and provides an easy to clean exterior.

Inverter Direct Drive™

Unlike the traditional belt and pulley system, the LG commercial laundry drum is directly attached to the motor, providing superior durability and reliability. Fewer parts equals fewer repairs.

Multi Heat Treatment

To ensure superior performance, LG heat-treats the shaft which connects our drums and motors. This protects against gradual wear and tear.

Gyro Balancing System

LG Gyro Balancing System provides optimized performance through an advanced algorithm, which allows for errorless spin entry and on-time cycle completion.

Success starts with LG. Contact us at 800-256-1073 to get started with LG.

gnalaundry.com/lg