pjsorgi
03-20-2004, 02:08 AM
I discovered laundromat located in a community mall (one large anchor and 10 ssmaller businesses). Plenty of parking, lots of foot traffic and the general area is 32% renter occupied. The store is 1750 sq ft and is vacant. There is no equipment. Is it better to lease equipment or buy? I am guessing 10 to 15 washers and 15 to 25 dryers. Is buying refurbished sound good? The only info I could get on the original tenent was he didn't pay his rent. If memory serves me correctly the former laundromat was there quit awhile. I believe this opportunity to be plug and play. I have no build out costs or multiples of net income to pay. I think I can get started for under $45,000. I plan to run a straight self serve with vending and a display board of products I sell on the internet. I have had some success with displays in other traffic areas ie bowling alleys and skating rinks.
Duane
03-20-2004, 01:35 PM
Pj,
I would first think, why didn't the previous owner pay his rent? You need to pay your bills to keep making more money. If he didn't have a positive cash flow then the area wasn't supporting the store. Of course his lack of business could have been from the way the store was maintained or bad customer service. You'll need to figure this out.
Is there a separate water meter for the store? If so, see what kind of volume he was doing so you can calculate what a new store might be able to do.
Even though you have plenty of parking, is it right outside the mats door? I mean just a few feet, or do your customers need to carry their clothes across a parking lot? Even though you have parking spots outside your door doesn't mean they are laundry customers, your customers will need to carry from the middle of the lot to your door. This is a big inconvenience and customers will not make multiple trips from their car to the mat to carry in all their clothes no matter how nice the mat is.
Duane.