With more than 800 stores in Europe and now 250 in Spain, the American brand consolidates its presence and demonstrates its success with its network of investors: today almost 30% of new laundries are opened by current Speed Queen laundromats’ owners.
Barcelona, September 7, 2021. When Speed Queen arrived in Spain in 2016 to test its pilot project for a Premium laundromat concept, the market was mostly made up of small laundries, with a well-established business model but which, by size, was limiting the profit prospects of laundry owners. With the legacy of its more than 110 years of American experience, Speed Queen launched its concept of premium laundries.
The brand belongs to Alliance Laundry Systems, the world’s leading manufacturer of professional washers and dryers, well known in the sector for their durability, washing quality, and speed of cycles. They are very “American” machines, designed to maximize business potential, which today come with touch screens, app for customers and remote management tools for their owners.
This explains part of the success, but there is more. “When we talk to our investors, almost all of them tell us that it is the design and the brand image that has seduced them,” says Francisco Clemente, director of expansion for the brand in Spain. “It projects a different idea of the laundry, in larger spaces, with more machines and high-quality services” adds Clemente.
The 250th launderette is located in the center of Móstoles, a few kilometers away from Madrid, and illustrates well the concept of Speed Queen: it offers 15 machines of various sizes in a large space with the brand’s Premium design, in addition to various payment methods including the App – widely used among the youngest customers.
“All cars have four wheels, but there are high-end and utility ones,” explains Jesús Fernández Verdes, owner of the Móstoles laundry. “We want to offer luxury service at an affordable price. Knowing the excellent quality and performance of the brand’s products, the choice was simple: we scored the winning horse. ” Jesús Fernández Verdes, like many Speed Queen investors, is a flexible and ambitious entrepreneur. “This store model, spacious and comfortable for the user, is the business model to follow in the expansion of our new stores”.
“This business model offers maximum management freedom because it is not a franchise and can be managed remotely, without staff. But we also accompany our investors with a wide range of services to enhance the success of their facilities ”, Francisco Clemente emphasizes. “In addition, our teams not only provide a turnkey service, but we also advise them on the choice of the location – which is key to the business – and help them with their business plan. That is why many repeat the investment with two or three laundries, they see that there is a market that is being created and renewed at the same time, and like to be accompanied by the brand itself. ”
The cherry on the cake? Speed Queen announces record numbers of in-store traffic, with a summer in which visits were multiplied by two and a half compared to the previous summer.
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