National Clothesline

By all accounts, the Orlando Clean Show was a success. Exhibitors, even those who are quick to criticize a trade show, heaped praise on Clean ’05. The cleaners and launderers who attended came early and, in contrast to the last show in Orlando where outside attractions seemed to draw people away, stayed in the hall and crowded around the booths. Even the weather seemed to cooperate, providing a welcome break from the usual oppressive heat and humidity one expects in Florida in mid-summer.

A success by all accounts, we should say, except one. Yes, everybody who was there said they loved it. But what about the people who weren’t there? Attendance totaled 13,951, a drop of 16 percent from the previous two Clean Shows in New Orleans and Las Vegas. And it was about 6,000 fewer than attended in 1999, the last time Clean was held in Orlando. Similarly, the number of exhibiting companies has dropped, from over 600 at the 1999 Orlando show to just over 500 at Clean ’05. Fewer exhibitors means a smaller exhibition overall. Riddle & Associates, the company that produces the show, reported 228,850 net square feet of exhibit space in Orlando, down from over 250,000 square feet in Las Vegas.

Some of the drop-off is no doubt due to consolidation within the garment care industry, especially on the industrial laundry side. We’re pretty sure there were fewer exhibits of huge industrial washers and outsized ironing equipment in Orlando. From a drycleaner’s standpoint, this could actually be a plus, since with fewer gigantic pieces of equipment on the floor it was easier to see where in the hall you were going — and get there. Another sign of consolidation in that sector of the industry is the fact that two of its trade associations — the Uniform and Textile Services Association and the Textile Rental Services Association — are discussing a merger. They represent two of the six associations that sponsor the show. It remains to be seen how the consolidation will affect future Clean Shows.

We don’t mean to imply that the Clean Show is in decline. It would be impossible to come to that conclusion after spending four days at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. We saw an industry that is vibrant, upbeat and optimistic despite the challenges it faces. In fact, the Clean Show seems to nurture that attitude since it displays the tools needed to meet those challenges and the knowledge it takes to use them. As the industry changes, so does the Clean Show. There may be fewer people, but the quality remains.

More often than not, it seems that drycleaning consumers wish that their cleaners were more convenient. Many plant owners respond to that desire by offering extended and/or weekend hours, more pickup and delivery routes and drop store locations just to make their customers lives a little easier. Of course, none of those things make a drycleaner’s life any easier.

The National Cleaners Association, however, has a new suggestion designed to do just that. Cleaners themselves have often discovered that they just don’t have enough time in the day to go and attend an educational seminar. Confident that the company will burn to the ground the minute they leave, many plant owners prefer to stay in the trenches, rather than go listen to information that may help them in the battle. Now that will all change. Cleaners will have the option to keep watch over their business and attend an educational seminar — all at the same time.

NCA recently launched a new “telephone seminar” series designed to give even the busiest of cleaners enough time to brush up on topics such as serving route customers, selling at the counter and new federal wage and hour laws, among others. They’ve already recruited experts Rex Carrigan, Alan Spielvogel and Lonnie Tishman, Esq. to speak on certain dates and it is a very simple process for cleaners to pre-register, call up and enter a registration code and listen to the seminar — whether they are in their office, the car or even at home. As an added bonus, cleaners who call in will also get an audio copy of the seminar 72 hours later so they can listen to it again at their own leisure. For those who prefer to have visual aides, NCA also has an “online” registration option so cleaners can watch the powerpoint presentation that accompanies the seminar.

A ton of information is out there and extremely easy to obtain. In fact, all you have to do is pick up the phone.