There are more than 35,000 laundromats in the US alone, making up an industry that nears $5 billion in revenue annually. For each laundry store, sales range from $35,000 to $1 million a year depending on a number of factors, like location, rent and the cost of equipment. But as any business owner knows, it’s always wise to look for ways to increase your bottom line and make more money at your laundromat.

Bring In Additional Revenue and Increase Profits at Your Laundromat

The easiest way to increase your laundromat earnings is by adding additional revenue sources. Additional revenue sources will provide more value to your customers and give them more reasons to choose your store. By adding other ways of bringing in profit, not only will you make more money from your current customers, but you will also draw in new customers who come to you because of the additional services you offer.

Food and Drink Vending
This is the quickest way of bringing additional revenue to your laundromat. Profit from vending machines vary based on volume and whether or not you stock and manage your own machines, but can add valuable revenue to your store.

Sell Upgrades on Your Machines
Traditional laundromats are coin operated, and customers receive a standard wash in exchange for a standard fee. However, cycle upgrades (extra rinse/wash) and variable priced cycle options (more for hot, less for cold) are unique capabilities that make a positive impact on a store’s bottom line. You can use a laundry payment system like FasCard or LaundryCard to facilitate this and charge more than your standard price for these upgrades, boosting profits.

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Vending That Offers Detergent, Dryer Sheets, Fabric Softener and Other Laundry Items
In addition to offering food and drink vending machines, provide machines that sell small sizes of laundry necessities, like laundry detergent, boxes of dryer sheets and bottles of fabric softener. While a laundry vending machine is another way to make money, it also makes doing laundry at your store easier and more convenient for the customer, which increases profit as well.

Laundry Drop-off Service
Commonly called wash and fold, adding a laundry drop-off service to your laundromat expands your customer base. Clients that are too busy to spend time at your laundry store will love the idea of being able to drop off their clothes and pick them up clean and dry at their convenience, and your profit will grow.

Pickup and Delivery Service
Though it might not make sense for every store, high volume stores and busy locations might find it valuable to give their customers the option of scheduling laundry pickup and home delivery. Like with offering a drop-off service, pickup and delivery will allow your store to reach more people who might not typically use a laundromat.

Arcade Games
Another popular way to diversify revenue at your laundry store is by adding arcade games. An upfront investment is required, but over time these machines will pay for themselves and encourage your customers to stay at your store for longer periods of time.

Car Vacuums
You can also make more money at your laundromat by adding one or two car vacuums outside your store. Many customers will see this as a convenient tool and vacuum their car while their laundry is going inside, netting you extra dollars per month.

Free Wifi
While not technically an additional revenue source, giving your customers access to free wifi will encourage people to hang around your store while they wait for their laundry to finish, increasing the likelihood that they’ll spend their cash at your vending machines or vacuums.

Distinguish Yourself from Competitors

When you diversify the revenue sources in your laundry room, you provide new ways for your clients to receive value from your store, which differentiates you from your competitors and increases your profitability. With only small tweaks to your current operation, you can increase your margins and serve more customers. Services like FasCard and LaundryCard simplify this process and make it easy for you to sell upgrades and adjust your vend price based on demand.

See how much more money you could make with a system like LaundryCard by using our profit calculator.

Today’s laundry equipment is more advanced than ever. One of the most popular features of modern laundry equipment is multi-vending or cycle based pricing which gives you the ability to charge different vend amounts depending on the cycle selection of the user. This allows store owners to increase profits simply by offering their customers the ability to upgrade their cycles (extra rinse/wash), as well as charge more for hot water or less for cold. Selling these upgrades to your customers is a powerful way to increase sales and maximize your profits.

Cycle upgrades (extra rinse/wash) and variable priced cycle options (more for hot, less for cold) are unique capabilities that make a positive impact on a store’s bottom line, but only if the payment system supports them properly. FasCard and LaundryCard are fully compatible with these features because of their ‘multi-vend’ interface. ‘Multi-Vend’ refers to a type of card reader to machine interface that allows the card reader and the machine to communicate back and forth and allow these features. See our compatibility guide to learn more about how we integrate with today’s latest brands. CCI’s laundry payment systems are compatible with nearly every make and model of commercial laundry equipment.

CCI’s multi-vend interface is seamless in that it allows the machine to ‘sell’ these upgrades without the user having to touch the card reader. Others may claim to ‘work’ with these latest controls, but require the user to press buttons on their card reader to match the price on the machine. CCI rises above the competitive products and integrates deeply with the machine’s control ensuring a more natural user experience. Installing a CCI payment system on a multi-vend compatible machine means there are no unnecessary steps for your customers to use these features which makes it easier for your customers to purchase upgrades and ultimately means your customers will buy more often and your profits will grow.

Use Our Profit Calculator

See how much a small increase in your prices can make a dramatic affect your bottom line.

Learn More

Investing in a CCI payment system pays for itself in many ways and being able to sell upgrades is one way to do that. Customers that pay using a credit card are less resistant to cycle based upgrades, allowing better profits from your machines. They no longer have to insert more quarters to buy another wash cycle. The impact of raising the price for hot water or an upcharge for an extra rinse/wash is very minimal to your customer but could have a tremendous positive impact on your bottom line. You are also meeting the needs of customers by offering these features, setting your laundromat business apart from the others. With CCI’s payment systems, you can run a detailed multi-vend analysis report and see the usage percentage for different temperatures and extra washes/rinses. One store owner saw that his customers selected extra rinses more frequently in his 80 lb washers vs. his 30 lb washers. He determined this was probably due to the larger machines being used more for bedding because the extra rinse feature is needed to remove soap from thicker items like pillows and comforters.

When you are able to offer cycle upgrade options, you are giving your customers the ability to customize their laundry which separates you from competitors and keeps your customers coming back to your laundromat.  When customers take advantage of these features, it adds to your ROI and improves your profitability. FasCard and LaundryCard from CCI offer the industry’s most advanced card payment systems designed with both the operator and end user in mind. Contact us today to learn more about our payment solutions and how investing in the technology can give you more ways to increase the profits of your laundromat business!

One of the main goals for any business owner is to expand their business and grow into a more profitable, more effective enterprise. A laundromat owner is no exception. While owning a single laundromat can be a successful endeavor, there is no doubt that growing your laundromat business and expanding to multiple locations can be even more lucrative.

At some point, as a laundromat owner yourself, you may feel ready to take on the challenge of opening another location. Laundromats represent convenience, and what’s more convenient to the customer than multiple locations? But the promise of a greater bottom line does not come without its own unique tests and complications.

Challenges to Opening Another Laundry Location

Assuming that you are financially capable of opening a new store, the first (and biggest) challenge you’ll encounter is managing it. How will you manage more than one location? How will you split your time between more than one store? How will you handle training your new employees? How will you oversee them when you are not there?

The next challenge is equipping your new location. Will you use the same equipment you are using at your current store? Are you equipping the store entirely from scratch or are you taking over an existing laundromat? If you are taking over a store, will you need to upgrade the equipment?

The final obstacle is time. Managing more than one location will add a lot of time to your already busy day. Will you have the tools to help you manage that time effectively and efficiently? Without them, you could easily become overwhelmed and not have the time to give either location the attention it deserves.

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Expanding Your Laundry Business

How can you be sure to expand your business in the best way possible? A key to owning multiple laundromat stores is having well-trained employees, high quality equipment and tools that make running several stores easier. Each makes your job as the owner of multiple laundry facilities easier and allows you to be more efficient.

One way to do this is with a holistic laundromat management solution like LaundryCard. LaundryCard gives store owners all the tools they need to effectively manage multiple locations in one integrated system. It replaces all of the traditional coin mechanisms with networked card readers in a store, allowing for several features that make managing multiple laundromat stores easier and less time consuming.

Remote Management

LaundryCard is designed to work with any device that has an internet browser. You can remotely control, view, and configure the system from a smartphone, tablet or PC. Run sales reports, configure specials, change vend prices all from the comfort of your home or office. You are no longer limited by distance when opening new stores because complete remote management is now possible.

Employee Management

Every employee has a dedicated card in the system that highlights their responsibilities. When you hire a new attendant, they are issued an Attendant Card, which enables them to clock in and out of work, view work schedules, see scheduled duties, and check off when they have completed tasks. These features will help your employees perform their job effectively, even when you aren’t physically able to be in each store overseeing staff.

Multi-Store Networking

Multi-Store Networking allows you to distribute loyalty cards anywhere and lets your customers use them in any of your locations. For example, customers can purchase a card in Store A and use the card in Store B or Store C as well.

What’s the best solution?

Opening another laundry location can be a worthwhile endeavor, but not without tools that can help you manage multiple businesses. LaundryCard is totally automated, completely coin-less, and helps you run your business and increase profits. Learn more about the laundromat business by downloading our owner’s guide to running a profitable laundromat, or contact us today to get started with our holistic laundry management system in your next location!

Laundry card systems do much more than simply provide an alternative payment method. Laundry cards build customer loyalty. Customers can obtain a loyalty card by inserting cash or a credit card and then use the value added to the loyalty card to start a machine. By having customers pay first and use the system, it establishes customers with a sense of loyalty and encourages customers to return. In addition to the payment cards themselves boosting loyalty, FasCard and LaundryCard have many advanced loyalty programs built into their systems for you to use.

Loyalty card programs serve as your base of operations for both customer retention and the forward-thinking marketing promotions that drive new business. Today we are going to cover a few of the loyalty programs that FasCard and LaundryCard offer.

Bonus Packages

Bonus Packages lets you give your customers bonus dollars for adding value to their loyalty card. For example, you could give your customers a $2 bonus for adding $20. Your customers will be encouraged to pay you in advance and you now have them committed for $22 in service! As your customers add more value to their cards, your business will build a ‘Float’. Float is the amount of money added to cards but has not been spent yet. By encouraging customers to add more money to their cards, you will increase customer loyalty through the float.

Free Dry

Free Dry time is enticing advertising to laundromat customers. The Free Dry program allows the system to reward customers with Free Dry time based on their wash usage. Free Dry can be scheduled for certain days of the week or you can choose to only award customers Free Dry credits on specific machines. For example, you can offer customers Free Dry only on your largest machines. You can control how much ‘free’ time your customer earns and our Free Dry program will keep track of all the details for you.

Discounts

The system enables you to configure any discount amount to any card. You can establish discounts for groups and market to specific customers. For example, you could offer 10% off for all military personnel. You can create as many groups as you wish and assign a unique discount to each group. As each group member uses the machines, not only will they receive their discount but you will get valuable sales information regarding each group. This program gives you the ability to create an endless number of marketing programs to promote your store. This helps you target your primary audience and focus on building loyalty within those markets.

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Loyalty Points

The loyalty points program is a great way to reward your most loyal customers. This program allows customers to earn Wash Points when they use laundry equipment and the system will automatically reward these customers when they reach a certain point goal. The program allows you to set how many points customers earn for every dollar spent and how many points they need to earn to be awarded the bonus. Not only is a points program a great way to promote loyalty but it’s also a great way to encourage card retention.

Coupons

The coupon program lets you create custom coupon codes that can be distributed to prospective and existing customers. You can configure a coupon code and distribute via direct mail, coupon circulars, email and even social media. With LaundryCard your customer simply enters the coupon code on the X-Changer Kiosk and with FasCard your customer can redeem it through the FasCard mobile app. The systems will redeem the reward automatically. Coupons can be configured to provide a temporary discount which expires on a specific date or designed to issue a bonus to a customer’s loyalty card.

Birthday Bonus

With the LaundryCard system, the birthday bonus allows you to give a gift to your customers on or near their birthday. You can set up a birthday bonus that will automatically be applied to their card with a set number of days before or after their birthday. When customers visit the store on or near their birthday, they will be greeted with a special birthday message and a bonus at the X-Changer kiosk. The birthday bonus program is a personalized way to reward customers and creates a memorable customer experience that will influence loyalty.

Registration Bonus

The LaundryCard system has a registration bonus program that will reward users bonus money for registering their contact information at the X-Changer kiosk. For example, if a customer enters their registration information, the system will apply a $2.00 bonus to their card. The program and bonus amount are configurable by the operator.

By implementing LaundryCard and FasCard’s advanced marketing and loyalty programs, you can take your laundromat business to the next level. Competition is everywhere and giving your customers reasons to do business with you versus your competition begins by encouraging loyalty. If you’re a laundromat owner or investor looking to set your business apart from the competition, contact us today to learn more about our payment solutions and how investing in the technology can give you more ways to increase your laundromat business!

LaundryCard is a holistic laundromat management system that gives owners of multiple stores all the tools they need to succeed. LaundryCard replaces all of the traditional coin mechanisms with networked card readers in a store. Customers get a loyalty card from a kiosk by inserting cash or a credit card and the value added to the loyalty card can then be used to start the customers desired machine. A LaundryCard system is a great choice for owners of more than one location because it has several features that make managing multiple laundromat stores easier and less time consuming.

  No More Coins

With coin based laundromats, you spend a lot of time collecting and processing quarters. Since there are no coins used to start the machines in a LaundryCard store, there is nothing to collect except the cash receipts located in the X-Changer kiosks. LaundryCard saves busy multiple store owners time because they don’t have to empty coin boxes frequently or make several trips to the bank each week. A store that would normally take 2 hours to collect with coins, can now take 5 minutes, giving you time to manage your stores rather than work them.

Multi-Store Networking

Multi-Store Networking allows you to distribute your cards anywhere and lets your customers use them in any of your locations. For example if a store owner operates three locations in the same town, customers can purchase a card in Store A and use the card in Store B or Store C as well. The totals report will have an added field to show store owners the dollar amount of card balances that have been transferred in or out.

One Touch Collection

One of the major benefits of having a card system is its ability to reduce the exposure to cash and coins to the public. When collecting from a Laundry Card System, all that is needed is a collectors card. The collector is issued a Collectors card and this card enables the system to track the date, time, and amount of each collection. This allows multiple store owners to spend less time collecting at each location and even allow trusted employees to collect. In a LaundryCard system, every employee has a dedicated card that highlights their responsibilities. You can have a dedicated collector that retrieves the collections from each store.

Employee Management

In a LaundryCard system every employee has a dedicated card that highlights their responsibilities. When a store owner hires a new attendant they are issued an Attendant Card and this card enables them to clock in and out of work, view work schedules, see scheduled duties, and check off when they have completed tasks. These features will help your employees perform their job effectively and manage your stores because when you run multiple stores, you aren’t able to physically be in each one overseeing staff.

Remote Management

LaundryCard has been designed to work with any device that has an Internet browser. You can remotely control, view, and configure the system from a smartphone, tablet or PC. Run sales reports, configure specials, change vend prices all from the comfort of your home or office. You are no longer limited by distance when opening new stores because complete remote management is now possible.

With coin operated laundromats, the number of stores you are able to run depends on how much you can physically handle and there are only so many hours in a day. A LaundryCard system helps you automate and grow your business so you aren’t limited to how many stores you can manage and operate. Contact us today to learn more about LaundryCard and how its tools can help your laundromat business!