Q4 2023

Better Days Ahead: A Positive Attitude Goes a Long Way…

By Kathy Benzinger, DLI President

As we continue to see positive developments in our businesses, we realize just how lucky we are to be a part of this industry. People are returning to work while parties and weddings are in full swing. We are rolling out new services and automation is helping us become more efficient. By now, most of us are barcoding with some assisted assembly, and many are considering or already using automated bagging machines. Metalprogetti is expanding automation on the AIB side, and steam tunnels are growing in popularity.

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Q4 2023

JULIETTE Technologies Offers Innovative Convenience

By Harry A. Kimmel III, APR PRSA, DLI Communications Director

Frustration with her laundry provider lead Rechelle Balanzat to a “Eureka!” moment. While working on her previous entrepreneurial venture, a social media consultancy firm, she attempted to contact her laundry provider to get some garments. She was unable to get through and wondered why, in a world where we can order virtually everything else any time, why can’t we get our laundry?

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Q4 2023

Onboarding: The Retention Solution (Part 1)

Leverage best practices to attract and retain great talent

By Kenya McCullum, Special to Fabricare

There’s no doubt about it: High turnover can be a business killer. Although the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the cleaning industry included 86,070 workers in 2022, sometimes there are simply not enough employees to keep a company going strong. For smaller cleaners that need every single hand on deck they can get, they simply cannot afford to lose a single person.

This can lead to costly hiring mistakes. In fact, in 2022 alone, companies around the U.S. lost $1 trillion in voluntary employee turnover. Considering most workers leave a job on their own accord, it’s imperative for companies to implement strategies to keep their talent happy, engaged, and retained.

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Q4 2023

DLI Students Graduate Summer 2023 Courses

DLI’s School of Drycleaning Technology trained another group of students in its 383rd General Drycleaning Course, composed of the five-day Introduction to Drycleaning Course, July 17 – 21 and the ten-day Advanced Drycleaning Course July 24 – August 4. DLI’s next Introduction to Drycleaning Course will run October 16 – 20 and next Advanced Drycleaning Course will run October 23 – November 3. See the center of this issue for information on DLI’s 2024 course offerings. Read on to see the class photos.

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Q4 2023

Gain a Competitive Edge with Trigger Based Marketing

Denise Goldstein, Marketing Manager with SMRT Marketing presented a half-hour webinar before Q&A on trigger based marketing for DLI members in August. “Simplifying Trigger Based Marketing” covered the basics of how a point-of-sale system can help bring in more revenue from existing customers. Much has been written and said about marketing to new customers but trigger based marketing is about getting existing customers to come back, she said.  

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Q4 2023

DLI Announces 2023–2024 Board of Directors

Each year DLI’s Board of Directors brings on new members as other members retire or move into Executive Committee positions. This August DLI bid farewell to Chairman Bobby Patel of BeCreative360 and Kona Cleaners in Orange, CA and Ed Longanecker of Iris City Cleaners in Mount Pleasant, IA, while welcoming Dan Sims of Jim’s Formal Wear in Trenton, IL, and David Grippi of Clean Brands in Naples, FL at its Summer Board Meeting. Continue reading “DLI Announces 2023–2024 Board of Directors”

Q2 2023

DLI’s Marketing Lab Helps Members Attract Business

DLI’s Marketing Lab is a monthly virtual meeting allowing DLI members to share ideas about how to attract business. Members share ideas they have used or are considering and discuss how to best promote their businesses. The hour-long meetings give members an opportunity to learn and share marketing ideas and see what other members are doing. The emphasis is on what other members are doing and how well those efforts are working.

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Q2 2023

Member Orientation: So Much More to Membership

Thank you for continued support of DLI! We are excited to provide you with the benefits reserved for our members. Please join Jon Meijer, DLI’s Membership Director, and Peter Blake, regional association Executive Director on the first Wednesday of each month at 3 p.m. Eastern for a brief tour of how your DLI benefits can help your business succeed. 

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Q2 2023

Learn From Your Peers and Share Your Expertise

More than 130 years ago, a group of garment care professionals met in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to band together as a team and associate with each other. They envisioned an institute that could bring cleaners together to share ideas, develop best practices, provide education, and generally make business easier for members of the group. That group is DLI and the founders’ vision continues to direct DLI’s operations to this day.      

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