6 Things You Need To Open a Dry Cleaning Business

Dry cleaning is a great business to get into because it is considered recession-proof. There will always be clothing and fabrics that cannot go into a regular home washing machine, which means there will always be a need for your business. However, you do need a lot of special equipment to get your dry cleaning business up and running. Some you may be able to rent, while others you can buy. Here is some of the essential equipment and supplies that your dry cleaning business needs right away.

1. Sorting Bins

Sorting bins are useful for transporting clothing between the washing machine and the dryer. They are also useful for keeping certain pieces separate. For example, you can use them to keep clothing belonging to one customer all together and separate from other customers’ clothing. You can also use sorting bins to separate colors and whites.

2. Racks and Conveyors

Rack and conveyors are useful for keeping clothing organized. A dry cleaning conveyor saves you steps and helps you find customers’ clothing quickly when they come to pick them up.

3. Cleaning Chemicals

Dry cleaning requires special chemicals for treating certain fabrics. These include upholstery cleaner, stain removers, detergent, and starch. If you plan on servicing coats and jackets, and it can only help your business if you do, you also need cleaner for leather and suede.

4. Washers and Dryers

It is next to impossible to run any sort of laundry business without washers and dryers. The machines you are looking for have a greater capacity than household washers and dryers. Because the machines are larger, you will need to measure the space carefully and choose machines that will fit. Pay careful attention to the warranty on your devices because you have so much invested in them.

5. Presses

After the clothing is clean, the next step is to remove all the wrinkles that form during the laundering process. A press steams the clothing to remove the wrinkles like a handheld iron does.

The difference is that a press is a large piece of machinery with a lid that opens and closes. You lay the clothing into the press and close the lid. The press then applies steam to press the wrinkles out.

6. Supplies

In addition to large equipment, you also need a continuous supply of tags, hangers, and garment coverings. Tags are crucially important because they identify who the clothing belongs to, and customers will get angry if their clothing goes missing.

When a customer picks up the clothing, it will go out with a garment cover to keep it clean. You will hand it on its hanger back to the customer.