LAUNDRY BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE

Do you want to start a laundry business or do you want to expand one?

This is the right post for you to learn how to start or expand a laundry business.

A laundry business is a very lucrative and profitable business when done well, it is an easy business to start which can be done by anyone.

Do you know that the laundry business can guarantee you a 30% to 35% return on investment and sometimes even as high as a 100% return on investment? Do you know that there is a recession-proof business?

This business also needs absolutely no prerequisite skills or training. It costs almost nothing to startup.

DISCOVER: Profitable Businesses to Invest In

This great business is a laundry business. The laundry business involves the use of water, soap, or other detergents to wash clothes and other linens or garments for customers who pay for such services.

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In Nigeria, there are 1.7 million people all of which put on clothes. More than 40% of this population do not have the time or the energy to do their laundry and rely on other people to do their laundry for them.

This is why a laundry business is lucrative business. It is important to note that laundry is quite different from dry cleaning as the latter does not involve the use of water while the former does.

To become a millionaire, you don’t necessarily have to start a very big business, small businesses like the laundry business I am talking about can also make you rich and be a great person.

One very important thing that a laundry business should have is a fixed price, for instance, a price of $50 can be fixed for washing and ironing a shirt. So, also you determine the price for each clothing [gown’ skirt, trouser, etc.].

The success of the business depends on the number of regular customers the business has.

For someone who is about to start a business, the laundry business should be one of your considerations. It is a clean business that is respectable and profitable.

There are many types of laundry businesses but for someone that wants to start small, home-based laundry services are the best. You can pick from any of these services laundry and dry cleaning companies render to the public to start the business.

Here is a sample business plan for starting a laundry and dry cleaning service.

Step 1: Get Registered

This is the very first step to take when starting a laundry business. It is important to register your laundry business name especially if you want to be taken seriously and you are planning on expanding your laundry business to a big one with various branches.

Your laundry business must be registered with the appropriate commission depending on your country. For instance, you register with the Corporate Affairs Commission in Nigeria.

Even when you are operating from home, you still have to register your laundry business and this must be done before opening your laundry business to the public.

This will help in the stability of your business and prevent future problems with the commission or government.

Step 1: Training

It is an important aspect of starting a laundry business. A person who is trained in this business will have a professional touch that will not have been there if not for the training.

Training can be done at existing and successful laundry businesses, the success of a laundry business partly depends on how well it is performed.

Step 2: Get your Capital and Purchase the needed Equipment

The type of laundry business you want to start either small or big will determine its starting cost considering the space, equipment, and staff that will be needed. The size of the laundry business will determine the type of equipment that will be needed either industrial tools or basic ones.

The next step to take is raising the capital for your laundry business. Now, this can be done in two ways depending on the scale of the laundry business you are interested in.

For a small-scale laundry business, the materials and equipment you are going to need would include; basins and buckets, ironing board and pressing iron, pegs, clothesline, hangers, detergents and starch, and a generator (optional).

For a larger scale laundry business, you would need a washing machine, hangers, generator, borehole, pressing iron and ironing table, drier, packaging nylons, glass shelf (for displaying clothes after washing them), towels, and office space among others.

Depending on the scale of the laundry business you intend to go into, it is important to get your capital ready.

In starting a laundry business, some of the basic equipment you need are:

• Ironing Table 

The ironing table should be wide enough for convenience and also have a wide pressing space. You will be doing lots of ironing, so a smooth and wide ironing table is necessary.

• Garment Conveyor 

This is used in hanging finished clothes. Furniture makers can locally make it, and it should be extended to avoid the stuffing of clothes. There are also standard conveyors mostly used by big laundry businesses.

• Pressing Iron 

A good pressing iron is needed for efficiency purposes since you are handling other people’s clothing not yours. Using a bad or poor pressing iron might cause havoc by ruining customers’ clothes and spoiling your reputation.

Other pieces of equipment are big washing basins, ironing space, laundry detergent, clothespin, drying space, and so on.
Starting a laundry business is not very challenging, it can even be started in one’s home and expanded over time.

Step 3: Location

When it comes to the laundry business, location is an important factor. Who are your target customers? Your laundry business should be located close to them. This increases patronage and saves cost when you are doing customer drop-offs and delivery of washed items to customers.

People who usually patronize the services of the laundry business include civil servants, hotels, corporate workers, hospitals, students among others. Locating your laundry business close to either of the following could help to boost your laundry business. The best location for laundry businesses is busy industrial areas, housing estates, hotels, universities, etc. A laundry business with good services in such areas will be successful.

The location of your laundry business matters a lot and partly determines the success of your laundry business.

Having a laundry business in a low-profile area is the wrong location because most of the people living there will most likely wash their clothes themselves.

The space you decide to rent for your laundry business is also important as you would need enough space indoors for all your equipment and where to hang clothes and other linens after washing.

If you are not planning on getting a dryer, it is important to have enough space outdoors for hanging clothes. You need to choose a place that is not located close to a busy street, waterlogged environment, or where smoke could come in contact with your clothes e.g from suya joints, or burning of waste.

Step 4: Spread the Word

The next important step to take is advertising your laundry business. Your customers are your number one advert platform. This is why it is very important to render the best services as much as you can.

Try as much as you can to always deliver before the time specified and avoid any form of disappointment. You could also take your laundry business online and spread the word on social media.

At the startup stage, you could go from door to door and share flyers about your laundry business.

Step 5: Hire the Needed Human Resource

For your laundry business, you would need people to do the laundry and ironing. You would also need someone to handle the bookkeeping, talk to customers as well as inspect clothes brought in to be washed and ironed. You could start with just two employees, one handling the books while the other washes and irons.

Step 6: Offer the Best Services and Pricing

To boost your laundry business it is also important to offer customers the best service. You could decide to offer free services which could range from free delivery to ‘pay to wash 5 shirts and wash one free’ services to customers as this could also help increase patronage. Try as much as possible not to mix up customers’ clothes.

Use perfumed detergents for washing clothes, treat them with the utmost respect, and do not forget to thank them for patronage as this is very important.

Step 7: Competition

In dealing with competitions, you should be able to offer very good services especially the ones that are not offered by your competitors. You can even start your business by offering free services for publicity’s sake and ensuring that you do not disappoint customers. Always have customers’ clothes ready before or on the deadline and can also offer home delivery.

After a few years of starting a laundry business, one of the main objectives of your business should be expanded.

Expanding your laundry business will make it grow more into a profitable enterprise.

One very effective way to expand your laundry business is by opening another location. In opening another location for your business, you must have the necessary tools needed in managing multiple businesses.

Having well-trained employees and equipment of good quality will make your job easier and more efficient. It is certain to face challenges when opening another location for your business.

The following are some of the challenges faced in opening another location for your laundry business:

• Management: Managing more than one location by splitting time, overseeing everything and handling training of employees is not an easy task.

• Equipment: Getting equipment for the new location will eat deep into the purse of the business or owner.
 Time: Handling businesses in more than one location is time-consuming most especially for someone who always has busy schedules.

The laundry business has been one of the best businesses that have is very lucrative. So if you have got the interest, waste no more time and quickly invest in the laundry business.

BONUS GUIDE

How to Start a dry cleaning business is one good way to make money most especially if you live in an urban area. It can be a good source of steady income for the entrepreneur if it is located in a well-trafficked area.

Many entrepreneurs venture into this business because it is never affected by the economic recession. The best part for most entrepreneurs is that starting a dry cleaning business does not involve large capital and it has a very high demand.

In this post, I will be sharing with you how to start a dry cleaning business and generate big money from your community dwellers. This is a business that never fades as everyone puts on clothes and some have a busy schedule that they don’t have the time to do laundry.

You stand a good chance to make a lot of money if you can start this business with the right planning and execution in place.

First Go Gain Experience

It is always advisable for the entrepreneur to first go and gain experience in an existing dry cleaning firm. This is very crucial for the success of a dry cleaning business.

Working in an existing dry cleaning shop will help you determine if the business is profitable as you think it is. You will gain first-hand experience.

You will also learn about the equipment you will be needing and how much you will need to spend when opening your own dry cleaning business.

If working for an existing dry cleaning business is not an option for you, you can either go conduct detailed research on the business by going online and asking questions on places like Quora or you can employ someone with years of experience in the dry cleaning business to manage your business for you.

Make a Business Plan

The way you intend to run your business has to be put into writing if you want to succeed. The dry cleaning business is a very wide niche that entails so many services. You need to decide on the type of services you will be provided in your business plan for laundry and dry cleaning.

Will you be providing pickup and delivery services? Do you have a place already or will you rent a place? How many employees will you start with? There are many more questions you will need to answer in your business plan.

You will still have to figure out your business plan, your target market, and your marketing plan too. Include every of your move and forecast your expenditure and income.

Decide on Your Location and Model

You will need to know where you choose to plant your business even before you start looking for funds. This helps you know how much you will be needed for rent and so factor in the cost in your business plan.

If you will need to add a delivery service to your dry cleaning business, you will need to have a vehicle and a reliable driver also. Whether you choose the traditional storefront business model or you go mobile, focus on giving your customers what they want when they want it.

If you can make your customers happier because they came into the dry cleaner today – you are likely to have that customer for life.

Secure Funding

Once you have known how much you will be needing to launch your dry cleaning business, you will need to secure funding to get the business started. The cost of running your dry cleaning business depends on the business model you have chosen for your business.

Though your savings might be able to cover some expenses, there may still be cases where you will need funds from a third party like banks, other financial institutions, friends, or family members.

This is where your business plan comes to the rescue. But, if you would not want to start your dry cleaning business on a loan, you can get a partner. The cost of starting your dry cleaning business is now split into two, making it easy for you.

Another way to solve the area of getting funds is by starting a franchise still in this niche. You can search for low franchise opportunities that you can become a franchisee to and start your business.

Most franchise companies provide funds for their franchisees that help cover startup costs and franchising fees.
So, you have a different funding option available to you to get your dream business started.

Obtain Necessary Permits and Licenses

Running any legal business requires licenses from the concerned government department.

You will need a special permit from various departments such as pollution control, sewage control, and many others before you can start your dry cleaning business.

Contact your local or state officials to obtain the necessary papers to start your dry cleaning business.

Equipment
It is impossible to run a dry cleaning business without dry cleaning equipment. You may not need more than three dry-cleaning machines to get started. Decide on the machines you can afford according to the available capital.

Advertise Your Business

You have to market your business to bring in customers. You might have the best equipment and the best laundry services in town. The fact remains that for you to be able to make sufficient income, you need to market your business to attract customers.

Look for cost-efficient ways to market your dry cleaning business and make sure it is effective. Television and Radio advertising might be expensive but it converts faster.

If you don’t have a budget for that, you can take leverage of social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram Ads and target who you want to reach with your advert message.

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