CHICAGO — This is it – our last web post for the year we thought might never end! And we thought it would be fitting to count down the top five most popular entries we ran on the American Drycleaner website for 2020. To see the rest of the top 10, check out our previous post.
The Top 5 posts from 2020 are:
5. Coping with COVID-19
For our Your Views snapshot from April, we asked, “How is COVID-19 impacting your drycleaning business right now?” It didn’t come as a surprise that 78% answered, “Very hard, business is down.” At that point, no one knew just how hard the pandemic would strike the industry — and society in general. The difference between the pandemic and economic downturns from past years was that COVID-19 struck immediately. When lockdowns went into place, business instantly dried up.
4. Laundry Services Free for Healthcare Workers, First Responders
When times are tough, drycleaners have historically come together to help their community. CD One Price Cleaners in Westchester, Illinois, did just that when it offered free laundry services for healthcare workers and first responders in March, at the very beginning of the pandemic crisis.
“It’s an honor and a privilege to be able to give back to our community and, more importantly, allow our healthcare workers and first responders to remain focused on the health and well-being of our community,” said co-founder and CEO Rafiq Karimi, Jr.
3. Yarns Spun Here: Mods
When you don’t want to wear fur — either for ethical or economic reasons — you have an alternative. In addition to often being used in fake furs, modacrylic is a fiber that is also used in fleece robes, blankets, stuffed toys, and wigs. It’s popular because it is resilient, soft, and warm, and it resists mildew, sunlight damage, and wrinkling. However, it does take some special care to clean it, which we examined in this article.
2. How Garment Care Owners are Coping with COVID-19 Right Now
It didn’t strike a particular area or region; the coronavirus dealt a crippling blow to every dry cleaner across the nation. As the pandemic was just getting underway in March, American Drycleaner spoke with several business owners to see how they were dealing with the oncoming wave of challenges that the pandemic was sending their way. We documented the additional services drycleaners were adding and the steps they were taking to stay afloat as many elements of the economy were shutting down.
1. Lights! Camera! Cleaning!
It’s almost hard to remember, but the time before the spring of 2020 was “business as usual,” and 2020 looked to be a bright year. During this time, Melody Dunn, a former news anchor and country singer, purchased a Lapels Dry Cleaning franchise in Yuma, Arizona. A native of Yuma, Dunn was eager to work in her hometown and chose Lapels because of their green ecological practices.
“Our sustainable, non-toxic way of dry cleaning clothes has been very popular with customers in the greater Phoenix area,” she said. “We anticipate a similar reaction from the people and businesses of Yuma.”
To read the rest of the entries in our Top 10 list, click HERE. Want to read a story from our archives? Enter a term in the “Search” box to help you find what you’re looking for!
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Dave Davis at [email protected].