Clothing left behind + donations = Money!

Hi Wash Weekly Family.

What if I told you there was a way to take the clothes people leave behind, whether from self-service or wash-and-fold, and turn them into extra revenue?

I know what you’re thinking. Here Waleed goes again with some crazy ideas!

Today’s article isn’t just some idea I came up with. It’s something we practice at our store — both with clothes people leave behind and unwanted items we encourage people to bring in.

We make extra revenue reselling those items.

Just check out these stats:

“The second-hand apparel is becoming a global phenomenon. The resale market grew 24% in 2022 alone, and is expected to reach a $218 billion market valuation by 2026.”

YOU can have a piece of that second hand apparel market and add additional revenue to your business.

We’re going to look at 3 ways to do this:

• Clothing left by self-service clients

• Clothing not picked up or delivered for wash-and-fold clients

• Donations

Clothing Left by Self-Service Clients

Clothing that gets left in the store by self-service customers is an easy, low-cost sale.

We don’t pay anything for these clothes, so all we need to factor in is the labor and time spent listing these items for sale.

Go through these items and look for:

• Clothing in good condition or close to new condition

• Possibly distress or vintage items

• Name brand items that are currently in fashion

Clothing Left by Wash and Fold Clients

Clothing that gets left by wash-and-fold clients, whether from drop-off or pick-up and delivery, can be a little more costly, especially if the client did not prepay.

If they did not prepay, factor in the labor and materials you used to clean and fold the clothes, as well as the time and labor spent listing these items for sale.

Look for the same clothing as that left by self-service clients:

• Clothing in good condition or close to new condition

• Possibly distress or vintage items

• Name brand items that are currently in fashion

Donations

In this case, you’re going to ask clients and the community to bring in their unwanted items.

There are a few ways to get these donations:

• Place flyers in your store and around the community that you accept unwanted clothing and sneakers

• Place flyers in customers’ orders

• Sent out email and text message campaigns to all of your clients

• Set up a donation bin in your store. Here are some we recommend:

  • Cardboard Bin Box

  • Plastic Bulk Box Truck

  • Commercial Trash Bins (just add signage so they don’t think it’s for trash!)

  • Outdoor Drop Bins

  • Indoor/Outdoor Custom Branded Bins

Sidenote: check your local laws and regulations concerning what laundromats must do with leftover clothing. Some areas may require you to donate the items to charity when left after a certain amount of time.

So, how do you turn these clothes into revenue?

There are two ways:

1. Donate undesirable items to a non-profit so you can get a tax deduction. That one is pretty straightforward.

2. Sell them directly on online marketplaces (more profit). I explain more below.

There are plenty of online marketplaces to sell clothing and shoes, but we use:

• Mercari

• Ebay

• Poshmark

• Facebook

• Depop

Trying to manage all of those listings can turn into a nightmare, especially with writing descriptions and posting pictures on each platform.

We use Vendoo to create the listing once and post it on all of the marketplaces I listed above.

Want to get started? Use this link to get 25% off your first month!

Here’s the checklist to pull it off:

1. Gather quality clothing that was left behind or from donations

2. Create an account on all the marketplaces where you’ll list your times

3. Set up your Vendoo account using this link for 25% off your first month

4. Research the item online for price and description. You can use eBay to search for the item or use the price checker feature on Vendoo (sellhound).

5. Take photos

6. Create a description

7. Create the listing on Vendoo

8. Use Vendoo to post it on the marketplaces

Then monitor your listings and wait for people to purchase or make you an offer.

Don’t have the time or desire to take photos, write descriptions, and post these items online?

Me either! That’s why we train our team members to do this when they have downtime or incorporate it into their regular routine in the store.

It’s a great way to make revenue when your team members aren’t busy.

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TL;DR:

1. You can make extra revenue by selling clothing that was left behind

2. Donate any undesirable items for a tax deduction

3. Sell quality items through various marketplaces to make money

4. Use Vendoo to streamline that process

5. Train your team members to do this in their downtime

6. Make more revenue

Til next week.

Waleed Laundry Pirate 🏴‍☠️

p.s. I moved the Events and In The News section to their own pages so they would be easy to find over time.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this week’s topic– let me know in this issue’s survey and the comments section (on the website). And for more on the garment care business, connect with me on Youtube and Linkedin!

❝ QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Always deliver more than expected.-Larry Page