Content about Market research

December 11, 2012

Survey: 67.4% of Laundry Owners Report Better Business in 2012

CHICAGO — New equipment, larger customer base, higher prices seen as primary factors

CHICAGO — More than two-thirds of self-service laundry owners and operators polled in the last American Coin-Op Wire survey of 2012 said their business was better (“much better,” 18.6%; “somewhat better,” 48.8%) this year than it was in 2011.

Roughly 28% said their business was better than they had expected, while another 51.2% said it was about what they expected. The remaining 20.9% of respondents said their business was worse than expected.

Operators whose business rose attributed it primarily to installing new equipment (50%), a larger customer base (34.4%) and/or raising prices (31.3%). Better marketing efforts (25%), lowering costs/expenses (18.8%), offering new extra services (18.8%), and decreasing competition (15.6%) were other important factors. (Respondents could choose from any or all among several suggested factors or offer their own.)

Among respondents who said their business worsened in 2012, a declining customer base and increasing costs/expenses were the biggest reasons, each selected by 45%. (Again, respondents could choose from any or all among several suggestions or offer their own.) Following closely was customers cutting down on the number of visits, cited by 40%. Other significant factors were competition cutting into business (20%), “other” (20%), and lower extra-service income (15%).

Roughly two out of five operators (41.9%) said they raised washer and/or dryer prices in 2012.

Finally, respondents were asked how they would grade their 2012 management performance. Approximately 47% gave themselves a B, and another 27.9% gave themselves an A. Roughly 19% said they only deserved a C, while the remaining 7% were unsure.

The Wire survey presents a snapshot of readers’ viewpoints at a particular moment but it should not be considered scientific.

Subscribers to Wire e-mails—distributed twice weekly—are invited to take a brief industry survey anonymously online each month. All self-service laundry owners and operators are encouraged to participate, as a greater number of responses will help to better define operator opinions and industry trends.

July 12, 2012

Survey: Coin Laundry Biz is No Fun During Summer, Many Owners Say

CHICAGO — Changing customer habits during summer influence store hours, attendant scheduling

CHICAGO — Is it fun in the sun or the dog days of summer in your store this time of year? Nearly half of the store owners who took this month’s AmericanCoinOp.com Wire survey say that summer is worse than most seasons (36.8%) or is the worst season (10.5%) in terms of business.

Approximately 16% say that summer business is the same as other seasons, while 26.3% think it’s the best season and 10.5% think it’s better than most seasons.

Fewer than 22% of respondents run specials or promotions specifically during summer. They offer things like cash raffles, gift-card drawings, and fluff-and-fold or dry cleaning specials.

“I do a two-for-one comforter special because they are easy to do,” says one owner, “and it helps a lot of people get a job done that they normally would wait until busy winter months to do.”

More than half of respondents (52.6%) say that customer habits, such as when they do their laundry and how often, tend to change during the summer and this affects their store’s hours, attendant scheduling, etc.

With most children on summer break, that means more opportunities to tag along with Mom or Dad to the Laundromat. But 52.6% of respondents don’t think there are more child-related issues—screaming, running throughout the store, etc.—during summer than other times of the year. Roughly 42% believe there are more child-related issues in the summer, and 5.3% aren’t sure.

What’s the worst thing about running a self-service laundry during the summer? Paying higher utility bills, trying to keep their store comfortable, fielding more customer complaints, and having fewer customers were some of the more common responses to the survey question.

While the Wire survey presents a snapshot of readers’ viewpoints at a particular moment, it should not be considered scientific.

Subscribers to Wire e-mails—distributed twice weekly—are invited to take the industry survey anonymously online each month. All self-service laundry owners and operators are encouraged to participate, as a greater number of responses will help to better define operator opinions and industry trends.

To sign up for the Wire, click the “Subscriptions” button at the top right-hand corner of this page and follow the instructions.

April 5, 2012

Survey: Operators Soldier On Amidst Lagging Economy, Increasing Costs (Part 1 of 3)

CHICAGO — How do you think your self-service business compared to others in the industry last year? Did you have a good year or a bad year in 2011? How does your pricing compare with others?

American Coin-Op’s annual State of the Industry survey offers you the opportunity to compare your operation to others in the industry. It focuses on 2011/2012 business conditions, pricing, equipment, common problems, turns per day, and utilities cost.

In instances where respondents were asked about 2011 business results, they were given the opportunity to state that their results were up, down or unchanged. This is a slight departure from previous surveys that asked only if their business results were up or down. Keep this in mind as you are making comparisons to previous years’ polls.

The survey is an unscientific electronic poll of American Coin-Op readers who operate stores. Some percentages may not equal 100% due to rounding.

2011 BUSINESS VS. 2010 BUSINESS

In 2011, nearly 45% of respondents saw their overall coin laundry business increase from 2010.

More specifically, 44.8% of operators reported an increase in business (gross dollar volume) in 2011 compared to 2010. In last year’s survey, 42% reported an increase in business, and two years ago, 40.2% reported a bump in business.

The average 2011 business increase is 11.5%, up from 10.8% in 2010. Other past increases were 7.9% (2009), 14% (2008) and 12.2% (2007).

Here’s a closer look at the 2011 business increases (these figures relate to those reporting an increase, not all the respondents):

Operators with a business increase of less than 10%: 40.4%
Operators with a business increase of 10-14%: 38.5%
Operators with a business increase of 15% or greater: 21.2%

The largest single increase in 2011 was reported to be 50%.

Approximately 35% of respondents saw their business decrease (in gross dollar volume) last year. In our survey of 2010 business, 58% saw a drop in business. The percentage was 59.8% in 2009.

The average 2011 business decrease is 10.2%, down a bit from last year’s figure (11.2%). Previous averages were 13.7% in 2009, 14.3% in 2008 and 13.2% in 2007.

Were the losses consistent last year or did they vary? Here’s a closer look at the 2011 business decreases:

Operators experiencing a business reduction of less than 10%: 56.1%
Operators experiencing a business reduction of 10 to 14 %: 17.1%
Operators experiencing a business reduction of 15 % or greater: 26.8%

The largest reported decrease in 2011 was 50%.

Approximately 20% of operators reported their 2011 business was unchanged compared to their 2010 results.

Overall, these results continue to reflect year-to-year improvement on average. The number of operators reporting an increase in business was up slightly from last year, as was the average business increase.

The average business decrease (10.2%) was a percentage point lower than the prior year. In addition, the number of operators suffering a large business reduction (15% or greater) shrunk from 31.7% in 2010 to 26.8% in 2011.

DROP-OFF-SERVICE BUSINESS

In a culture built on saving time and intent on finding ways to free up that precious commodity, drop-off service would look to be a popular choice for self-service laundry customers. But do the numbers bear that out?

Did drop-off service improve in 2011 or do customers still consider it a bit of a luxury?

Approximately 32% of respondents reported drop-off-service business (gross dollar volume) increased in 2011. For 2010, approximately 47% reported business increases.

The average drop-off-service business increase is 17.3%, four points higher than 2010’s increase of 13.3%. It should be noted that a handful of respondents reported an increase of more than 20%.

Roughly 24% saw a decrease in drop-off-service business. That is much lower than in 2010 (53%), but that could be attributed at least in part to survey-takers’ ability to list their drop-off service business as being unchanged.

The average decrease is 18.1%, down a bit from 2010’s figure (18.8%). In 2009, the average drop-off-service decrease was 24.2%.

Nearly 45% of respondents said their drop-off service business was unchanged from 2010.

Two-thirds of respondents offer some type of drycleaning service. Only 17.5% reported a business increase. The average business increase is 10.4%. The average business decrease is 15.1%.

VENDING RESULTS

Roughly 35% of the respondents had an increase in vending sales in 2011, slightly lower than 2010’s reported one-third. Approximately 31% saw their vending sales decrease in 2011, and 34.2% saw vending sales remain unchanged.

The average vending gain is 11.2%, up a bit from 2010’s figure (9.2%).

The average decrease in vending business is 11.0%, compared to 12% in 2010.

Check back on Monday for Part 2: Washer, Dryer and Drop-Off Service Pricing

March 28, 2012

StatShot: Sales Up Nationwide for Second Straight Month

CHICAGO — Drop-off service sales also rise in year-to-year comparison

CHICAGO — Self-service laundry sales were up in all four regions for a second straight month in February, according to the most recent AmericanCoinOp.com StatShot unscientific survey.

February sales in the South were up 6.8% (compared to February 2011 sales). Sixty percent of the respondents reported an increase in sales, while 20% reported a decrease. Sales were unchanged for 20% of respondents.

Sales in the Midwest rose 5.6% compared to February 2011 sales. Roughly 64% reported year-to-year sales increases, while 14.3% reported decreases. Sales were unchanged for 21.4% of respondents.

“My customer count is up 15% over last February,” a Midwest operator reported.

In the West, February sales were up 3.6%. Fifty-five percent of respondents reported a bump. “Coin sales very spotty,” reports an operator there. “Have added credit card readers to one-third of the Laundromat, which resulted in better results.”

February sales were up 2.4% in the Northeast, where 57% of respondents reported increases.

Despite the rise in sales overall, many operators offered gloomy comments. Some said their local markets are suffering because of the economy.

West — “Not good. Nearby businesses are dropping their rate to 75 cents per top loader!”
Midwest — “Maybe fair at best. The national media keeps reporting the economy is in the upswing, but I do not see or believe it.”
West — “The economic slowdown did not impact our rural area as quickly as most of the nation but is affecting us now. I had the lowest income in 14 years during November-January.”
Northeast — “Too much competition, but I am the best.”

Respondents were also asked about drop-off-service sales for February (compared to February 2011). Every region reported sales were up, but there was quite a bit of difference in two of the regions compared to the others.

In the Midwest, where 71.4% of respondents have offered drop-off service for two years or more, sales were up 7.1%. Twenty-one percent don’t offer drop-off service, and 7.1% didn’t offer drop-off service last year but they do now.

Southern operators saw their drop-off-service sales rise 6% in February from the previous year. Eighty percent of the respondents have offered this extra-profit service for at least two years.

Sales increases were much less in the Northeast (0.5%) and the West (0.4%). Fifty percent of Northeast operators have offered drop-off service for at least two years, while 58.3% of West operators have offered the service during that time.

“Coin laundry flat, but oil drilling clothes for drop-off is great income,” says a Midwest operator.

“We ran a great promo in February that really boosted drop-off,” adds another. “Drop-off is thegrowth segment for our business.”

AmericanCoinOp.com’s StatShot includes information on sales, wages, costs or other financial data based on anonymous survey information provided by industry owners and operators.

Audience members are invited to participate in these unscientific surveys, which are conducted online via a partner website, on a regular basis. Self-service laundry operators are encouraged to participate, as a greater number of responses will help to better define industry trends.

August 8, 2011

Distributors Remain Optimistic (Part 1 of 2)

CHICAGO — Upon studying the results of this year’s American Coin-Op distributor survey, there are reasons to be optimistic about the state of the self-service laundry industry.

Nearly half of respondents said business was better in 2010 than it was in 2009. Better yet, nearly two-thirds of respondents predict that 2011 business will be better than 2010.

Every distributor listed in the American Coin-Op Distributors Directory prior to June 1 was invited to participate in the unscientific survey.

2010 BUSINESS

Last year was a bounce-back year for many distributors, based on the survey results. Forty-six percent of respondents said business (sales of newly constructed stores plus replacement business) was better in 2010 than 2009. Approximately 21% said business was worse in 2010 than 2009, and 32.1% said business was comparable in both years.

In the 2010 survey covering 2009 business, only 15.6% said business was better in 2009 than 2008, while 49% said business was worse in ’09 than ’08.

For those experiencing a change in business in 2010, the No. 1 reason, by far, was the economy. But it’s interesting that it was cited either as a positive or a negative, depending on the respondent.

Those who thrived saw investors who were inspired by upticks in the economy, or who chose to look into the coin laundry business after losing their jobs.

Distributors whose business suffered in 2010 lamented over changing demographics, tight lending/lack of financing, and potential investors unwilling to spend. One businessman partly blamed his company’s downturn on the BP oil spill.

REPLACEMENT BUSINESS

Replacement-business figures also showed signs of improvement from our report one year ago. In replacement business only, 39.3% of respondents said business was up last year compared to 2009. That’s compared to 20% who saw their replacement business increase from 2008 to 2009.

Roughly 29% saw replacement business fall in 2010, and 32.1% said their level of replacement business was unchanged from 2009.

The figures in this category have proven to fluctuate over the last several years. In the 2009 survey for 2008 business, 40% of respondents saw replacement business rise, and only 29% saw business dip.

NEW-LAUNDRY CONSTRUCTION

American Coin-Op asked distributors how many new laundries they built and/or to whom they supplied equipment in 2010. Fifty-six percent of respondents built or supplied equipment to three or fewer new laundries. In the 2010 survey for 2009 business, this figure was 62%.

How many new laundries are distributors dealing with in some fashion? Here are the most popular answers from this year’s survey:

Distributors were also asked if their 2010 new-construction total was more, less or the same when compared to 2009. Nearly 41% said new construction was up in 2010 (by comparison, that figure was only 14% in the 2010 survey for 2009 business), 37% percent said new construction was down, and 22.2% said new construction was the same in 2010 and 2009.

EQUIPMENT MIX

How to equip a store is a critical decision for an owner. Generating revenue is vital to an operation’s success, but overcrowding with equipment can be a detriment.

Fifty-four percent of the new stores had at least one top loader, down just a bit from last year’s figure (62%). (It should be noted that a handful of respondents chose to skip the top-loader question when taking our online survey, so the figure may be even a bit lower than 54%. It’s possible some respondents didn’t install any top loaders, and skipped the question as a result.)

More specifically, here are the most popular numbers of top loaders put into new stores in 2010:

Newly constructed laundries in 2010 have 3.8 top loaders. (This figure factors in the stores with no top loaders.)

Here are the most common numbers of front loaders installed in newly constructed laundries last year:

Newly constructed laundries in 2010 have an average of 26.9 front loaders. This is down only slightly compared to last year’s figure (27.3).

The average newly constructed laundry in 2010 has 32.1 dryer pockets. That’s compared to 32.6 dryer pockets in 2009.

Wednesday: Does size matter …

July 12, 2011

Survey: Educational Sessions Big Draw for Self-Service Laundry Operators

CHICAGO — The Clean Show’s educational sessions were a big draw for the self-service laundry owners and operators who attended the Las Vegas event, based on June’s unscientific Wire survey, as nearly a quarter of respondents said they attended four or more sessions.

Roughly 71% of attendees sat in on at least one session. The breakdown was one session, 11.8%; two, 23.5%; three, 11.8%; and four or more, 23.5%.

Approximately 64% of respondents said they attended Clean ’11, and 63.4% of them reported being “somewhat satisfied” (46.7%) or “fully satisfied” (26.7%) with their experience as a whole. Roughly 27% were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.

These attendees sought information about a variety of products and services. Among the exhibit categories that respondents sought out during the four-day show, washers, dryers and payment systems were mentioned most often.

Roughly 73% of respondents said they are more likely to do business with a certain manufacturer, distributor or supplier because of their trip to Clean. Twenty percent said they aren’t sure, and 6.7% answered no.

Most respondents attended Clean on Tuesday (72.2%) and Monday (66.7%). Attendance started to drop off on Wednesday (44.4%), and only a small group (11.1%) visited the convention center on Thursday, the final show day.

The 2013 Clean Show in New Orleans will open on a Friday and run through the weekend. Many respondents applauded the show committee’s decision to shorten the biennial event to three days but indicated that they hoped the educational sessions would not suffer. In fact, some respondents lobbied for three or four hours of sessions per day instead of the traditional one or two.

Respondents who didn’t attend Clean in Las Vegas most often cited budgetary constraints or scheduling conflicts as the reasons. One person said they had just opened a brand-new store and didn’t have need of equipment.

While the American Coin-Op Wire survey presents a snapshot of readers’ viewpoints at a particular moment, it should not be considered scientific.

Subscribers to Wire e-mails—distributed twice weekly—are invited to participate in a brief industry survey each month. The survey is conducted online via a partner website. Readers are encouraged to participate, as a greater number of responses will help to better define operator opinions and industry trends.

To sign up for the Wire, click the “Subscribe” button at the top right-hand corner of this page and follow the instructions.

June 16, 2011

Is It Time for E-mail Marketing (Part 2 of 2)

March 23, 2011

StatShot: February Sales Stagnant; Drop-Off-Service Sales Mixed Bag

CHICAGO — February sales were down in three out of the four regions, according to the most recent AmericanCoinOp.com StatShot unscientific survey. In last month’s survey, reflecting January activity, sales were up in three out of the four regions despite numerous winter storms.

September 29, 2010

StatShot: August Sales Sluggish; Expenses a Concern

April 13, 2010

Survey: Operators Not Sold on Marketing

January 12, 2010

Majority of Operators Met Business Goals in 2009, Survey Says

December 23, 2009

Some Laundries Show Signs of Economic Recovery, Drop-Off Service Helps Some

December 15, 2009

Survey: Fewer Customer Visits, Higher Expenses Plague Owners in 2009

October 20, 2009

What’s Hot, What’s Not