new competition

[ahlenius1]

I have two laundromats that have virtually seen no competition fro the past 20 years they are fairly close to each other and i have only owned them a short time . i have spent a plethora of cash updating them. new equipment, floors, paint ,security cameras.lighting etc. and don,t you know it a brand new laundry is going to be built a block & a half away. I have excellent customer service,and clean safe laundrys.The laundry the compitition is building near is the oldest of the 2 but has the best and brand new equipment. I probably have 6-9 months defore D Day also my stores are each 1/2 the size of the new one. Should i raise vend prices now in antcipation of the price war? do i need to revisit the lease with the landlord who does a poor job of keeping the property up? I know alot of my customers. i carry there baskets in & out. I am well liked as are my attendents that have been working at the stores forever. Any help on how to effectivley compete against a brand new store that could very well have time of day pricing,and a larger new facility for very cost concious patrons. I am expecting the dreaded 50 cent wash. Any comments and how much revenue I can expect to lose over the long run will be greatly appreciated. P.S. I am a new mwmber of the ClA just don,t have login access yet regards.

[SecretarytoBraveDave]

I suggest you educate your self on the experiences of everyone you can that has found themselves in this situation. There are several sites with archived information that may be useful to you, coinwash.com has had several threads on this subject.

Every scenario is different, the more info you use to make a descision the better.

When I was managing multi mats, I had found your question to be very important at one time and I strived to find the answers. Although every market is different we found several ideas proved to help retain the customer base. You have time on your side and you should use it to your best advantage.

Implement a bonus program (wash incentives)
Strive and acheive for the best service and consistently clean business.

Upgrade if necessary to meet the expectations of your customer.
Offer free coffee and occasional snacks during the winter months.
Offer a promo for "a weekly free wash" give away. You learn your marke, names and location of your customers...

Provide well respected and well trained employees.

BE hands on, determined to deliver and be consistent with your delivery of services

Be open hours conveinent to your customer base

Price accordingly

Kitty

[Mel]

I Lad, Sorry to hear it, have seen and heard of this me self too many times! I hate to tell ya but you got so busy with your renovations that you forgot one of the most imortant things as a new laundry owner! MARK YOUR TERITORY! You have to do it! I can remember me self once a long time ago buying a laundry with no others around. The bad part was the amount of trees! I almost passed a stone trying to mark all of them. All me profits sprayed all over those trees.......it must have taken me near a 100 pints of of fine Lager to cover them all but when the others came sniffing around looking for a location they knew better! It's not too late Lad!
Let me know if you need some help. I'll buy the first round and you can get the rest /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif