water repellants

This Is the Season To Sell Repelling

This is the time of year that Mother Nature is preparing the earth for hard times to come, better known as winter. What we find is numerous wet days in many forms, rain, drizzle, sleet, hail, etc. depending on your location. As a drycleaner, this season should not be called, winter it is repellent season.

If you are not pushing water repellency at your counter, you are missing the boat. You can perform a great service for your customers and at the same time make a nice little profit.

Cleaners tell me all the time that "It's good idea but we don't get that rainy in my area" or "I don't have the time or space." I understand what the owners are telling me but, I do not believe what I hear.

Reason #1 is the most common, "not my area." I look outside, doesn't it rain in this area? Is there dirt in the area? Do people wear clothes in this area? Obviously the answer to all of the above is yes, so I usually tell the drycleaner that if I stood by the counter on a busy day, I could get at least one half of the coats coming in repelled and after I tell them why, they usually agree.

It has nothing to do with your area, it's you. If you don't ask the customer if he wants his garment repelled, then you are right, you will not get any. If you ask, you will amazed at the results.

Train your employees and be prepared for "Doubtful Dan." He's the customer who will always ask "Why?" If you stare at him blankly and give no answer you will lose that sale.

However, look him in the eye and say "Well Dan, not only will this coat shed water better (don't say waterproof, we don't do that), but it will also protect your garment from stains, give body to the jacket, and also add to the warmth of your coat. Say it with confidence and I guarantee that you will get a lot of sales.

Let's not fall into a rut and only look for raincoats. We can repel topcoats, trench and car coats, golf jackets, ski suits, hunting clothes, cottons, slacks, dresses, table linen, sport coats, rugs, ties and many more. You are limited only by your imagination.

The last hint I gave you will save you hours on the spotting board. By repelling ties you are putting a thin layer of wax over the ties. When the gentleman spills his food (and we all do) the tie will either repel the stain or if it does catch it, it will be a lot easier to remove, due to the fact that the stain will set on the wax and not on the fabric itself.

Most times, after drycleaning, the stain will be gone as in the repellency and you can repel the tie again so it is ready to use, without ever getting close to the spotting board.

Obviously repelling ties is not only a winter tip, it is a year long tip that will save you valuable time and money.

Reason #2 is no longer a problem in this day and age. No longer do we have dip tanks, used that may take up valuable space. Most cleaners now repel right in the machine using the 34d tank which is a great way to water repel garments. Bring up your repellence from the 3rd tank, let the garments soak for around 2 minutes with limited mechanical action, drain back to the 3rd tank and go into light extraction. Bingo. You're done! Now simply dry your garments in the machine like you would any other garments and you are almost finished. The job is never totally done until the garment is pressed and finished.

Laidlaw also makes an aerosol water repellent named Swan Cote for Down coats and other hard to clean garments. The Laidlaw answer is Crystal Soft Cote or Swan-Cote.

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