the importance of design to an attractive and successful coin laundry

 

In this guest post, Chris Fazio, owner of Broadway Modern coin laundry in Chelsea, Ma, talks about the importance of design to an attractive and successful coin laundry

What pops into your mind first when you decide to buy a coin laundry?

Cost? Location? Size?

Where is store design on the list of priorities? It may not be first or even in the top three choices. However, an effective store design pays dividends during the life of the store.

I built two large vended laundries from the ground up, including the buildings. They are both successful and I’ve been in the industry for over 15 years. I was raised in the restaurant business and much prefer laundries.

For my third store, I bought a tired old store in Lawrence, Massachusetts. People told me there was a lot of competition in Lawrence, and like other experienced operators, I focused on my own product quality without regard to other laundries.

When it came to store design, I used a modern look with brushed steel, bright colors and flooring, wall and ceiling materials that are reasonable priced, easy to install and maintain. I dealt with a narrow store by installing floor to ceiling windows in the store front and added an interesting monument sign on the corner of the store by the street. Customers like the high ceilings and modern look. It makes the store look roomier.

I have to give a shout out to Eastern Funding for making the financing plentiful and readily available at a reasonable cost so that I had the freedom to focus on the project and not the paperwork. I still have one more store in me and I’m on the look out.

So consider some novelty in a store design, modern materials, reasonable cost and easy maintenance when you build your next store. You might consider looking at some of the large franchise food chains for idea’s to get your creative juices going.

Good luck!