Family owned and operated, Card Concepts, Inc. was born from over 40 years of experience in the vended laundry industry. Steve Marcionetti helped start CCI with his family in 2000. He has seen many changes in the laundry business and has helped hundreds of laundromat owners take advantage of those changes. We sat down with Steve to talk to him about where he sees the laundry industry heading this year.
One thing that’s always attracted Steve and his family to this business (and brings a lot of investors to it) is that laundry is a necessity. Laundry and cleanliness are not far off from the basic needs of food and shelter, and people will sacrifice a lot before they give up cleanliness. In that need for clean laundry, there is a lot of security in being a part of this business. There haven’t been any revolutionary changes that are going to prevent people from having to do laundry, so for that reason we are going to see people continue to use and invest in laundromats.
Today we are seeing that laundromat investors and owners are more sophisticated than they were twenty years ago. They are professionals, meaning they aren’t necessarily lifelong laundry operators, but instead are coming from another industry. They aren’t looking to replace their career but supplement it, and a laundromat investment is a smart way to do that. In 2019, we are going to see more investors get involved in the industry that are looking for a way to be able to run a laundromat without being there every day. The technology CCI offers aids in that because it gives them a hands-off investment and allows them to operate their laundry business remotely.
“CCI’s products allow investors to manage their stores remotely from their laptop or smartphone and introduce valuable store metrics and marketing opportunities that would otherwise be unavailable.”
The future of the laundromat business is centered around technology that laundromat users and owners want to use to make their lives easier. In 2019, customers are looking for laundromats that offer modern payment options, a personalized experience and convenience. FasCard and LaundryCard from CCI offer the industry’s most advanced card payment systems and were designed to meet the needs of today’s customers and make remote management possible. Our systems allow investors to configure vend prices, implement specials, run sales reports, manage employees, and monitor the status of equipment without physically being in the store.
“LaundryCard and FasCard have dramatically improved the way laundromat owners are able to manage their business and have changed what today’s customer expects when they visit the laundromat.”
If you are considering a laundromat investment or currently running a laundromat, Card Concepts Inc. is here to help. With decades of experience in the self-service laundry industry, CCI designs all of its solutions with both the operator and end user in mind. Our FasCard and LaundryCard payment systems have helped laundromat owners all over the country offer modern payment options, increase profits, manage employees, implement marketing programs and successfully run their stores.