If you’re like the vast majority of people, time is the fixed commodity that is most challenging to manage. For this reason, many services have popped up to help people reclaim those precious minutes often lost to life’s tiresome necessities — like handling the laundry.
Laundry101, which opened its doors in September 2011, is the brainchild of three friends: Tony Bonner, who serves as marketing and legal advisor; Joe Putnam, who handles billing and accounting; and Jimmy Turek, who heads operations. While a corporate office is maintained on Main Street, in essence, there is no storefront.
“It’s very easy,” Bonner said. “Just go to our website, Laundry101.com, and enroll. Once you’re a client, you simply set the time you want your laundry or dry cleaning picked up. We arrange for the pickup with you, which may be a bit different from client to client, and we have it back to you within two business days.”
Laundry 101 has grown steadily since opening, averaging a new client every day. Bonner said he sees this as just the beginning, with three other employees already working for the company, not including the owners. A Louisville branch was opened in June 2012, and the company has branched out, not only offering laundry and dry cleaning, but also shoe repair, zipper replacement, and mending services for tears in fabric.
“We have a lot of massage [business] clients who need linens washed and doctors’ offices that send out their lab coats,” Bonner said. With the two-day turnaround and volume discounts for corporate and larger residential customers, it starts to save people a lot of time that they could spend doing other things, Bonner said.
“We’ve contracted with several cleaners in town who handle laundry, designated by a blue bag, and dry cleaning, designated by a yellow bag.”
It’s a system that seems to be working well, with a lot of satisfied clients.
“We even do wedding dresses,” Bonner said. “The whole idea is service: if we can take away the burden that everyone has to remember to gather their laundry, take time to drop it off and remember to go get it, this saves people enormous amounts of time and energy. You also have a lot of people who are unable to get their laundry to the cleaners and need help. That’s where we come in.”
Laundry101 offers a texting service for their clients. Once registered online, clients decide how often they would like texting reminders.
“These remind people to get their laundry and dry cleaning together, and that we will be by on a certain day at a certain time for pickup; then another reminder when the items are returned to them.”
Laundry101 has found a receptive market in the Lexington and now Louisville areas. Bonner said he is excited about the possibilities ahead and the growing chance to serve community.
“All three of us came up with this idea and decided to bring it to life,” Bonner said. “Now it’s becoming a true service to make people’s lives better.”
To learn more about Laundry101, go to laundry101.com, or call (859)967-9274.