32 FABRICARE selection, demographic studies, op- erational training and marketing, equipment mix and installation, proformas, financing and more. STEP 2. Establish your location. Your distributor must be able to pro- vide you with demographic, traffic and competitive analyses to help you evaluate a location. Zero in on op- portunities within the geographic areas you already serve through your dry cleaning business. STEP 3. Equipment Mix. Diversify your equipment offering to stand apart from the competition and glean maximum revenue and profit. Just .9 percent of vended laundries feature washers greater than 70 pounds of ca- pacity, according to Planet Laundry’s “2017 Coin Laundry Industry Survey.” But it’s the really big machines that are most in demand. Choose big, en- ergy-efficient high-speed (350-400 G-force) front-load washers and place them smack dab in front of your windows and front door. Select high-speed washers. They remove more moisture during extract, which re- duces dry time, allows customers to wash/dry/fold in less than 60 minutes and boosts customer turnover (more paying customers per day). Invest in an electronic payment sys- tem, which allows you to manage equipment, staffing and operations remotely. Again, your distributor should be your guide in this area. STEP 4. Launch Wash/Dry/Fold. Utilize idle attendants and machines to offer and process drop-off wash/ dry/fold. Harness your fabricare plant and satellite locations to take in wash/dry/fold laundry processed at the vended laundry. Use the vended laundry as a drop-off site for drycleaning. When you have your arms around it, go after commercial accounts, including spas, vet clinics, salons, B&Bs, moving companies, etc. If you haven’t already, offer pickup and delivery services. STEP 5. Look What You Have Achieved! You control and offer all elements of laundry and fabricare services within your geographic area, and in doing so, have reached out to the broadest possible demographic. You control your geographic market for maximum business equity value. Now you can take the equity and grow this model through expansion, or sell your enterprise to the highest bidder! Joel Jorgensen is vice president of sales at Continental Girbau Inc. (Continental). A 23-year industry veteran, he’s considered an expert in the industrial, vended, route, textile care and on-premise laundry markets. A regular contributor to industry trade journals, he is a member of the Coin Laundry Association (CLA) Board of Directors; a frequent speaker for CLA seminars and other industry association events; and a regular presenter on vended laundry development, marketing and expansion. During his career, he’s guided Continental sales, marketing, training, customer service and technical service operations. Contact him at 800-256-1073 or jjorgensen@cgilaundry.com. BULLE TIN NO. 1