ZIPS Cleaners Spurs Growth with Dual-Format, Hub-and-Spoke Model

Satellite “drop” stores facilitate faster scalability of high-demand, low-cost garment care concept

Demand for reliable, affordable, quick and convenient garment care is stronger than ever, and franchisees of ZIPS Cleaners are taking advantage of that by capitalizing on the company’s dual-format development opportunities to expedite growth.

The pandemic brought setbacks to many companies, but ZIPS persevered by remaining open as an essential business, emphasizing the full scope of its services beyond – dry cleaning, Wash N Fold laundry, pressed laundry, alterations, cleaning of household items like comforters, and commercial accounts – and investing in its corporate infrastructure, brand strength and offerings both to franchisees and consumers. The company not only survived but has been putting up impressive numbers that are quickly making the pandemic fade from view.

“As of early September, we’re trending about 5 percent over 2019 with systemwide sales,” says Bob Barry, President/CEO of ZIPS. “We’re up 18.5 percent year-to-date through August over last year as well. We’ve been taking major steps to continue increasing our sales and our efficiencies at the same time so our stores bring more to the bottom line. Efforts like these coupled with continued demand from consumers is making ZIPS very appealing both to our existing franchisees and to other growth-minded investors.”

Existing multi-unit ZIPS franchisees have opened new locations in both Texas and the company’s native Maryland this year. In each case, they have taken advantage of a strategic opportunity that allows franchisees to open smaller and less costly “drop” locations that receive and return customer’s clothing under the same “one low price,” “in-by-9-out-by-5” policy as at full-service ZIPS plant locations, providing they either own and operate such a plant nearby or can contract with an existing franchisee who does.

ZIPS’ drop locations bear the company’s same bold black, yellow and teal ZIPS branding, but require none of the cleaning machinery and thus a far smaller footprint, significantly lowering the cost to open and continue operating a site that can capture unique, incremental business. Additionally, the volume of incremental garments they generate helps plant operators maximize their investment in real estate, equipment and personnel.

“We are continuously exploring ways to bring our highly demanded services into new communities and closer to existing customers,” says Barry. “Our full-service plant/drop store model enables growth-minded franchisees to maximize their assets, review a broader selection of available real estate and align with new partners to open more locations sooner. We are excited to see this strategy working so successfully and look forward to deploying it in many more markets where our brand has room to grow.”

The three new drop locations were opened by established ZIPS franchisees with existing plants in their respective markets. In Texas, Jason Frick, a franchisee with a 23-unit development agreement debuted his fourth and fifth overall locations, both drop stores, in February and May, respectively. The first of these opened in Austin at 3421 West William Cannon Drive. It offers the full ZIPS garment care menu, with an on-site tailor and counter staff. About four months later, Frick opened the second drop store in nearby Round Rock in the busy Round Rock Town Centre. Both stores are served by Frick’s full-service plant at 1803 South Lamar Boulevard in Austin. Another full-service plant at 2510 West Parmer Lane location in Austin converted to a drop store during the pandemic, but will soon revert to a full-blown plant to help handle the volume Frick’s stores is processing.

“After we opened our first location on South Lamar Blvd. and two other locations further north, we received many requests to open another location further south. Until earlier this year, we had not opened a new location since 2020. Now we have opened two stores in three months! We are excited about these new locations and our growing presence in Austin. As the population here continues to boom, along with the rising cost of living, our customers have been thankful that ZIPS is expanding and is still the most affordable dry-cleaning option in the area. With each new location, we’re taking another step toward allowing the full Austin market to take advantage of our low-cost, quick-return services,” says Frick.

Around the same time as Frick’s second new store opened, franchisees Tony Akara and Shahid Hashmi opened their third overall location, an endcap drop store at 7300 Ritchie Highway in Glen Burnie, Md. That store is served by the franchisees’ plant location at 25 Eastern Blvd. in nearby Essex, Md. Akaras and Hashmi will soon be opening three more sites in Newport News and Williamsburg, Va., as well as one in Greenbelt, Md. 

Many areas throughout the country are ripe for introduction or expansion of the popular ZIPS concept. If you’d like to explore how you can tap into the $10.5 billion garment care industry with a proven and comprehensively supported concept, contact ZIPS’ Director of Business Development, Mike Waintraub at mwaintraub@321zips.com or (609) 468-7195 today.

About ZIPS Cleaners®

ZIPS Cleaners® provides consumer and commercial garment care centered around low-cost, in-by-9-out-by-5 dry cleaning as well as Wash N Fold laundry, pressed laundry, alterations and cleaning of household items. ZIPS was launched in the early 2000s when eight of the Baltimore-Washington Metro Area’s premier dry cleaners banded together as a unified brand offering same-day service at a single low price. These founders combined more than 200 years of dry-cleaning experience and business expertise, allowing them to create a streamlined process designed for easy replication by owner-operators whether they are experienced independent dry cleaners or newcomers to the business. Today, there are nearly 70 ZIPS locations throughout the United States, with more than 100 slated to open in the next several years. Franchise opportunities are available in select markets throughout the United States. For more information, contact Director of Business Development Mike Waintraub at mwaintraub@321zips.com or (609) 468-7195.

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ZIPS Cleaners
Offering same-day service, a single low price, and a streamlined process that’s simple to replicate, ZIPS is a standout in the garment care segment. Multiple formats afford faster, less costly market coverage. Look your best in a great opportunity. Learn More