Content about John Riddle

NEW ORLEANS — As the new year gets under way, those in the laundry and dry cleaning industry who are planning to attend Clean 2013 this summer can now register for the event and reserve their hotel room in the Big Easy.

Scheduled for June 20-22 (just three days in 2013 instead of the traditional four) at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center, Clean 2013—officially the World Educational Congress for Laundering and Drycleaning—is touted as the world’s “largest exhibition of commercial laundry, dry cleaning and textile services equipment and ancillary products,” according to Riddle & Associates, the exhibition’s organizer.

Pre-registration for Clean 2013 is set at $99, with a deadline of May 31. After that date, attendees will have to register onsite for a fee of $149 per person.

Attendees will have a valuable hands-on opportunity to learn about new products and gather the latest information about industry trends, says John Riddle, president of Riddle & Associates.

“You will see the newest equipment, learn about new services, see working demonstrations and have access to outstanding industry education,” says Riddle. “In today’s world of electronic communication, it is nice to have the opportunity to communicate with someone eye-to-eye, face-to-face and talk with them about industry issues.”

In addition to product exhibitions by hundreds of companies, Clean 2013 will also play host to several educational sessions presented by the five major industry associations sponsoring the overall event. The Association for Linen Management (ALM), Coin Laundry Association (CLA), Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI), Textile Care Allied Trades Association (TCATA) and Textile Rental Services Association of America (TRSA) will host educational sessions that are open to all registered attendees.

“Each association supports its members with education and other valuable services to help them grow and protect their businesses,” reads the Clean 2013 website. “The associations develop and offer seminars on topics of interest to their respective segments.”

To assist attendees with accommodations, the Clean Show Housing Bureau has been established and offers discounted rates ranging from $109 to $315 per night at 20 area hotels.

In addition to general housing for attendees, five properties have been designated as “headquarter hotels” for the associations sponsoring the event, for those who wish to stay with other attendees and exhibitors from their segment of the industry.

A note on the event website reads, “You may be able to find lower rates at official Clean Show hotels by booking through other services, but you may not get the same product in return.”

A complimentary shuttle-bus service to and from the Morial Convention Center will be offered during the June event. The dedicated service will make stops at all headquarter hotels and within two blocks of other official Clean 2013 hotels.

Hotel reservations must be made by May 17 through the Clean Show Housing Bureau to receive the discounted rates.

Official Clean 2013 hotels include:

• Astor Crowne Plaza (CLA headquarters)
• Best Western Plus St. Christopher
• Chateau LeMoyne French Quarter
• Courtyard by Marriott, Downtown/Iberville
• Courtyard New Orleans Downtown/Convention Center
• Hampton Inn Convention Center
• Hilton Riverside
• Holiday Inn French Quarter
• Loews New Orleans Hotel
• Marriott Convention Center (TCATA headquarters)
• Marriott New Orleans (TRSA headquarters)
• Monteleone
• Omni Royal Orleans (ALM headquarters)
• Ritz-Carlton, New Orleans
• Royal Sonesta (DLI headquarters)
• Sheraton New Orleans
• Springhill Suites Convention Center
• W Hotels New Orleans
• Westin
• Windsor Court

Overall, in addition to learning about the newest products and trends, Riddle explained that one other benefit that attendees will reap is the sense of camaraderie and connection among the various businesses and organizations in the industry. “It’s a great chance to renew old friendships and make new ones,” he says.

To learn more about Clean 2013, including how to register and make reservations at official Clean 2013 hotels, visit cleanshow.com.

LAS VEGAS — Clean Show 2011 drew 11,200 attendees June 6-9 and garnered positive reviews from many exhibitors. The press release headline from Riddle & Associates, the show’s longtime manager, was positively glowing: “Clean 2011 Acclaimed Best Show in Years.”

“Almost everyone we talked with—both attendees and exhibitors—had nothing but positive comments about the show,” says John Riddle, president of Riddle & Associates. “Based on exhibitor comments, people really came ready to buy.”

Clean 2011 Chairman David Cotter, CEO of the Textile Care Allied Trades Association, spent much of the show walking the floor and speaking with exhibitors.

“The feedback I received was nearly unanimous,” he says. “A consistent theme running through these comments was the high-level quality attendees and their readiness to purchase.”

The attendance reflected a 13% increase over Clean ’09 in New Orleans. The number of exhibiting companies (430) was up more than 4%, and total exhibit space of roughly 184,150 net square feet was within about 4% of the New Orleans show.

WALKING THE FLOOR

Trying to take in all 430 exhibits and make note of new items, even over the course of four days, was quite a chore. Watch American Coin-Op and AmericanCoinOp.com throughout the year for new-product updates, but here are just a few things that were eye-catching:

• Speed Queen and Huebsch introduced new 125-pound vended washer-extractors.
• Several companies, including ESD, Card Concepts Inc., WashCard Systems, Setomatic Systems, Standard Change-Makers and Heartland MicroPayments, presented new or improved cashless payment systems.
• LG announced the launch of a new family of coin, card and on-premise washers and dryers.
• R&B Wire Products introduced a line of recycled poly trucks.
• Maytag featured a new, high-efficiency stack washer/dryer and a front-load pair.

IN THE CLASSROOM

Educational sessions targeting self-service laundry owners and operators drew large crowds. They touched on a variety of subjects, including marketing, financing, water conservation and more.

Seated in cozy chairs, Coin Laundry Association Executive Director Brian Wallace and three store owners could have been conversing about e-marketing in an office or conference room, but the hall full of attendees had the opportunity to “eavesdrop” on them during Upfront and Online: Leading Store Owners Discuss E-Marketing.

Having store websites has been a valuable marketing tool for all three owners. Louise Messano, owner of three Texas laundries, called her website “the first window to see inside my store.”

Tom Rhodes, a second-generation laundry owner who has eight stores in Florida, uses his website to direct customers to his stores, but he also markets using English and Spanish video testimonials.

Social media such as Facebook is a growing phenomenon that Wallace called “the new word of mouth.” If self-service laundry owners aren’t part of it, then they’re losing the ability to keep track of their businesses, warns Jeff Gardner, the “Laundry Doctor,” a store owner and marketing expert from Minnesota.

The store owners regularly use contests as a way to gather e-mail addresses and build their e-marketing efforts.

FUTURE SHOWS

The Clean Executive Committee made news when it announced the host cities and dates for the next three Clean Shows: New Orleans will host the event June 21-23, 2013; Atlanta will host April 17-19, 2015; and the show will return to Las Vegas June 19-21, 2017.

The biggest news was that the shows are scheduled for just three days vs. the traditional four. The dates reflect a more concise and efficient format designed to give exhibitors and attendees a better value for their time and money invested in the Clean Show, the CEC says.

If the three-day experiment doesn’t work as well as hoped, the show could return to the four-day format, according to Cotter.