National Clothesline

Dry-Cleaning Express in Montgomery, AL, hosted a press conference last month in which Governor Bob Riley promoted his plan to provide a tax incentive for small businesses to offer health insurance for their employees.

Governor Riley’s proposal would let employers with 25 or fewer employees deduct twice the amount they pay for health insurance premiums from their state income taxes. Small business employees with incomes of up to $50,000 would be also able to deduct the twice the amount they pay for health insurance from their individual income taxes.

“This is a smart way to address three problems,” said Riley. “We can make healthcare more affordable, lower the number of Alabamians who lack health insurance, and at the same time, we can strengthen our economy by helping our small businesses. ”

Matt Hall, the owner of Dry-Cleaning Express, said he makes health and dental insurance available to his 18 employees, but less than half get it because of the $300 per month cost for individual coverage.

A survey of legislators taken by the Associated Press showed that 61 percent of representatives and 58 percent of senators support the Governor ’s proposal. Only two percent of House members and 6 percent of senators registered opposition in the survey.

Satec-USA of Port Monmouth, NJ, the manufacturer, importer and distributor of the Eazyclean, and Anyclean alternative solvent drycleaning machines, has added several distributors to its network. They include:

Banner Machinery in Benson, NC; contact W.C. Bullock, (919) 262-6156.

Mid-Atlantic Laundry Equipment Co. in Ijamsville, MD; contact Bruce Ramirez, (301) 607-4392.

Powers Sales and Service in Columbia, MD; contact Harry Powers, (410)964-9976.

Seickel & Sons in Newark, NJ; contact Joseph Seickel, (973) 242-1948.

Fabric Care in Wappingers Falls, NY; contact Angel Caballero, (845) 463-1627.

For more information, contact Satec USA, (888) 728-3280.

ThermoSteam Boiler has appointed SAI INC/Global Equipment Sales in Fullerton, CA, as its exclusive representative for southern California. Global Equipment Sales focuses on the commercial and industrial boiler market.

The company said that significant growth necessitated a change in the sales and marketing structure in the greater Los Angeles area.

Global Equipment Sales can be reached at (714) 879-6085. Information about ThermoSteam Lo-NOx and atmospheric boilers can be found at www.thermosteam.com.

ThermoSteam has been manufacturing high-pressure steam boilers for the drycleaning and laundry industry for over 50 years.

The Quality Cleaners in Canton, OH, is marking 60 years of family business this year. The firm was started in 1947 by the husband and wife team of Harley and Ella Phares, who began with the principle of quality workmanship and dedication to details to set the drycleaning service apart from others in the area.

In the beginning, the business operated from the Phares’s home in Jackson Township. The sparsely populated rural community was comprised of farm property, so they decided to build the venture by offering pick-up and delivery service.

Phares would go door-to-door selling the service to residents of Canton, Massillon and North Canton, taking the work he collected to a friend who owned another drycleaning firm where the initial cleaning was done.

Phares would pick up the cleaned garments and take them home where the couple would press each item individually and do final, finishing touches before delivering the clothes back to a growing list of customers.

Eventually, they wanted more control over the quality of their finished product and decided to construct a small building on the property next to their home where they could installed their own drycleaning equipment and control the entire process. The business was located about half-way between Canton and Massillon. As part of the expansion, they opened a cash-and-carry store in the same building.

As they business grew so did their family. Two of their three children, Don and Jim, helped out and learned the business from the ground up. Jim today is president of the company; Don is vice president.

The reputation and size of the business continued to grow at a pace that surpassed Harley ’s and Ella’s initial expectations. Expansions were made to the original building several times over the years, but the original location has never changed.

“I guess you could say we have been working on the same ‘spot’ for 60 years now,” said Jim Phares said.

While pick-up and delivery remained a mainstay of the business, the cleaning that was brought in to the production plant also continued to the grow. Jackson Township became a high-growth area as farms in the area were bought and turned into housing developments.

In June, 1965, the business was incorporated as H.W. Phares & Sons Inc. Don and Jim continued to learn the day-to-day operation.

“Mom and Dad taught us the principles of how to live our lives and run the business, ” said Jim.

“We saw every day what it takes to operate a successful business and how to treat our employees and customers, ” Don commented.

The family aspect of the business has grown, too. Jim’s wife, Jane, is the business office manager.

Don met his wife, Gail, through the business — she had been hired as a seamstress, a department she now supervises.

The Quality Cleaners has developed several specialties in addition to normal drycleaning services.

Bridal gown cleaning, restoration and preservation, as well as leather and suede cleaning, refinishing and repairing have are services that have helped spread the company ’s reputation.

While changes have occurred over the years, the original commitment to special attention and the little details has continued, as has the policy of giving a dollar ’s worth of service for every dollar paid.