National Clothesline

The Oregon Dry Cleaners Association will have its annual convention at Spirit Mountain Casino in Grand Ronde October 20-22.

Table-top vendor displays, educational sessions and social events are planned for the weekend. The Spirit Mountain Casino and Lodge, the largest casino in the state of Oregon, offers dining in four restaurants and cafes, including Legends for fine dining and live entertainment in the Summit View. Activities for kids include Playworld and an arcade located next to the meeting rooms.

The weekend will open with a President’s Reception from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday. Vendor displays will also be open for viewing.

After breakfast on Saturday there will be presentations from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with a mid-morning break. Scheduled speakers are Steve LaCesa of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers Association and Dick Dezeeuw of the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

The banquet will be from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. that evening following a no-host cocktail hour.

A membership and board meeting will be held Sunday morning following a breakfast.

For more information, call the ODCA, (541) 999-1493.

Those contemplating investing into the coin laundry industry, as well as seasoned veterans who own multiple stores can benefit from the Coin Laundry Association’s three-day conference in Scottsdale, AZ, next month.

The event will be held from Oct. 19-21 at the Renaissance Scottsdale Resort, located at 6160 North Scottsdale Rd.

The conference will get started on Thursday with a full day of sessions designed to aid newcomers to the coin laundry industry.

Educational sessions will begin at 8:45 a.m. with “Considerations for Investment in the Self-Service Laundry Business” by Bob Eisenberg, a 25-year veteran in coin laundry.

At 10:15 a.m., CLA President and CEO Brian Wallace will follow with words of advice on how to find the right location for a laundry site.

A roundtable discussion is scheduled to take place over lunch, starting at 11:30 a.m., so rookies can share their concerns and ideas with their colleagues.

Seminars will resume afterward at 12:45 p.m., beginning with “Build or Buy: Which Option is Best for You?” by Clay Pederson, president of Business Consultants International.

Other sessions for the day will include “Design Concepts” at 2 p.m. by Jay McDonald, vice president of Alliance Laundry Systems, and “A Day in the Life and Open Forum” by CLA Executive Vice President Michael Sokolowski at 3:30 p.m.

Also on Thursday, CLA will offer a separate six-hour session designed to help multi-store managers and owners. A panel of experts will assist attendees with topics such as: growth and store development, operating systems for success, employee relations, finances and record keeping, advertising and promotions for multiple locations and succession planning.

The final two days of CLA’s conference will be aimed at helping current coin launderers grow their businesses and raise profits.

Friday’s sessions will begin at 8: 45 a.m. with “Fight or Flight: Reaction to a Competitor” by Sokolowski and Wallace.

Next up, Richard Weisinger, CPA, of Richard Weisinger Co., will offer attendees “Five Tax Saving Strategies” so they can make the most out of their business investment.

Over lunch, a roundtable discussion will enable launderers to pose questions and get the specific information they seek from their peers.

“The Real Cost of Doing a Wash” will resume after lunch at 12:45 p.m. Speaker Chris Balestracci, owner of Super Wash Laundry, will examine how to calculate operating costs.

Afterward, Ron Lane, owner of The Oasis Laundry, will discuss the advantages of commercial accounts for coin laundry owners at 2 p.m.

The evening will conclude with a CLA annual meeting at 6 p.m., followed by a dinner “Under the Stars.”

On Saturday, the day’s sessions will begin at 8:30 a.m. with “Remodeling and Equipment Replacement: Do the Numbers Add Up?” by Sokolowski.

Jeff Deal, chief executive officer of Hamilton Engineering, Inc., will be on hand at 9:45 a.m. for a seminar on “Redefining Energy Conservation.”

CLA President Wallace will follow with a session on “Public Relations: How to Make It Work” from 11:15 a.m. until noon.

At 1 p.m., CLA will host an “Ultimate Drop-Off Laundry” discussion moderated by Jeff Gardner, owner of Rainbow Laundromat and Sel Dale Laundromat.

This peer-to-peer discussion will explore questions such as: What is the best way to start or build wash, dry and fold business in your laundry?

Registration for Thursday’s “Getting Started” program costs $249 for CLA members and $329 for non-members for those who sign up on or before Sept. 18. After that date, it goes up to $299 for members and $379 for non-members.

Thursday’s session on “Multi-Store Management” is $249 for CLA members prior to Sept. 19. Otherwise, it costs $299.

CLA’s “Growing the Business” sessions on Friday and Saturday costs $449 for CLA members and $519 for non-members who sign up on or before Sept. 18. After that date, the cost goes up to $499 for members and $569 for non-members.

Hotel accommodations are available at the conference’s host hotel, the Renaissance Scottsdale Resort.

A special rate of $179 per night is available to those who call the hotel at (800) 309-8138 or (480) 991-1414 and make reservations. Be sure to mention your affiliation with the CLA conference.

That room rate is no longer available after Sept. 18.

For more information, contact CLA at (877) 252-4332, or visit the association’s web site located at www.coinlaundry.org.

General conference information, as well as registration forms, are available by links via the homepage.