SAVAGE, Md. — ZIPS Cleaners, a nationally expanding chain of nearly 70 locations, recently announced that it will add two new locations in Washington, D.C. by the end of next year, doubling its presence in the market.
KV Management, LLC, which operates two ZIPS locations in the District as well as two in Fairfax, Virginia, and another in Sterling, Virginia, has issued letters of intent to occupy two spaces in the central District region. The first of these is slated to open in the first quarter of 2023, while the other will debut in the third quarter of next year, bringing to seven the total number of locations run by KV Management’s partners Brett Vago and Kyo Kim, two of the founders of the ZIPS chain.
Vago and Kim own the rights to develop the entire District of Columbia area and say they may open additional locations there in the future. In addition, they have signed a development agreement to expand their presence in Loudoun County in partnership with Carlos Cadenas, a fellow ZIPS founder and multi-unit ZIPS owner in Northern Virginia.
“We are very excited to be providing more convenience and easier access to residents and workers in the District,” says Vago. “Between these new locations and the system advancements ZIPS has underway, we are making it easier than ever for customers to get their belongings to us, have them professionally cleaned and get them back quickly and for comparatively little cost.”
“This is a great example of how we’re leveraging existing operations to give our brand greater presence, our franchisees more comprehensive market coverage and our customers better access to our services,” says Abhi Parikh, director of business development for ZIPS. “We’re pursuing such opportunities with many franchisees and seeking new franchisees who can partner with them to facilitate their own entry into the garment care business.”
Vago said Washington residents have responded well to three characteristics of ZIPS: comparatively low and transparent pricing ($2.99 to dry clean any garment), speed of service, and a “greener” process that uses a more environmentally friendly hydrocarbon solvent.
In select markets, ZIPS has also begun offering home pick-up and delivery as well as secure, 24-hour branded locker systems, to make dropping off and retrieving items easier. A new ZIPS Rewards Program, as well as a new customer relationship management (CRM) and email marketing platform to better engage with customers, both went live in September, and a new gift card program will debut before the end of the year, as will a new mobile app to make it more convenient to interact with the business.
“The pandemic has shown us consumers want complete flexibility and convenience when patronizing a business,” said Vago. “With our expansion coinciding with the introduction of so many new services, we feel very confident that we can take the hassle of garment care off our customers’ minds, freeing them up to tackle other tasks and enjoy more of life.”
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