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July 19, 2012
White Wine and Word of Mouth

CONCORD, N.C. — Swearing about cleaning results instead of swearing at cleaner

CONCORD, N.C. — This is the story of a dress, but not your normal dress. Cleaning this dress is the way to get your customers talking and to set yourself apart from the “me too” operators.

This dress will get the customer talking to her friends and neighbors and make her your customer for life. This dress is also a wonderful way to review the stain-removal process. Here is the story of what it takes to get a customer swearing about the results instead of swearing at the cleaner.

The floor-length maroon silk dress featured a mixture of clear and silver sequins on its bodice. The care label read simply Dry Clean Only. The mother of the groom had worn it for the first time to the wedding ceremony and the reception that followed. There, someone had bumped her elbow, causing her to spill a full glass of white wine down the front of her new dress.

May 22, 2012
Making the Solvent Decision (Part 1 of 2)

SAN FRANCISCO — Weigh these factors to determine the future of your solvent choice

SAN FRANCISCO — Are you thinking of changing or adding solvents? Are the various considerations adding to the complexity of making your decision? You are right to weigh all the issues, so perhaps we can outline some of them to help simplify your conclusions (for now).

Whatever choices you make, they may be only temporary because of the dynamic environment in which you operate your business.

This temporary nature is also true for this major decision regarding your choice of solvent(s), but the expense of a change complicates it further and limits the number of times you can make a change, so planning ahead is essential.

THE CONSIDERATIONS. For the purposes of this column, we are leaving the discussion of the negative effects of perc and other solvents to others. But the net effect of the perception-versus-reality argument is that many perceive dry cleaning as being “bad.” In addition to having a major impact on dry cleaners, that perception directly influences the thinking of politicians, regulators, landlords and consumers.

Your mission is to evaluate the impact on your operation.

May 17, 2011
Treating Springtime Stains

CHICAGO — Every season brings a unique set of stains to the garment-care professional. Spring typically finds customers venturing outside again to do yardwork, household repairs, and shop for summer wardrobes. When customers try to make themselves, their yards and their homes look better, stains often result.

April 2, 2010
Achieving Excellence in Stain Removal

I just finished the last stain-removal test necessary to requalify for the Award of Excellence (AOE), a voluntary certification that helps cleaners distinguish themselves while demonstrating a commitment to the industry, the community and continuing education.

This year, the swatches — on white silk with a plain weave — were stained with nail polish, coffee with cream, ink, egg, spaghetti sauce, and red wine. These are stains every cleaner should be able to remove.

June 26, 2009
Make Your Plant a Household Name

A first look at the comforter gave me the impression that she had dragged it behind her car. An entire winter of laying on it, wrapping herself up in it and sleeping under it had taken a heavy toll on the orange, green and brown earthtones. When she told me that she had a dust ruffle, shams and drapes to match, I told her that I would hold off on cleaning the comforter until she brought all matching pieces.