P&G launches Tide into KC drycleaning market
Procter & Gamble will become the latest big-name affiliate of GreenEarth Cleaning, LLC,
this fall when the corporation opens three new drycleaning plants in the Kansas
City area.
In addition to building a new store, Procter & Gamble will take over two existing drycleaning facilities in partnership with a
local drycleaning operator.
All three businesses will operate under the Tide Drycleaning brand.
“This is very much a test,” said Gary Coombe, vice president for new business development for P&G, in an Associated Press interview.
The company, whose Tide name is over six decades old and is responsible for $3.3
billion in annual sales, has conducted research on consumers’ feelings towards drycleaning and found that many of the responders have
indicated that they were dissatisfied with their current level of service.
As a result, P&G believes they will have a significant competitive edge in the marketplace.
“We think our service can be a step above what consumers enjoy today in the
industry,” Coombe said. “We also know the drycleaning industry is very large and it’s here to stay, and we believe we can offer something for unmet needs.”
Approximately a decade ago, P&G believed that such consumer unrest would be a key factor for successful sales
for Dryel, a home product they designed to freshen up garments for customers
and cut back on visits to the drycleaners.
Dryel never generated the sales response P&G anticipated, but that hasn’t stopped the corporation from trying other new directions.
In the past two years, they launched three car washes in the Cincinnati area
that utilize the Mr. Clean brand.
Now, the company hopes it can turn a tidy profit through drycleaning.
The Tide Dry Cleaners locations will test various wetcleaning methods in an
effort to improve its overall cleaning effectiveness, including trying out
proprietary techniques that will seek to restore faded colors on garments.
All drycleaning processes offered by the three sites will utilize the GreenEarth
cleaning method.
Such technology has also been the preferred choice for some other major players
who have attempted making inroads into the drycleaning industry, including
Johnson Service Group, Men’s Wearhouse and Sanyo Electric.
The Tide stores plan to offer tailoring, drive-through services, 24-hour drop
box and lockers, wedding dress preservation and same day service. An on-staff
tailor will be available for alterattion and minor repairs — broken buttons, loose seams and pen hems — will be repaired at no charge.
According to Coombe, Kansas City was chosen as the test site because the region
provides a mix of demographics conducive for a consumer test market.
The city is also home to the corporate offices of GreenEarth Cleaning, LLC.
GreenEarth’s patented processes has been licensed by more than 1,300 partner affiliates
altogether in the United States and abroad.
The company was originally founded in 1999.
For more information on GreenEarth Cleaning, visit the company’s web site at www.greenearthcleaning.com.
The Tide Dry Cleaners brand has a web site in operation, as well. It is located
online at www.tidedrycleaners.com.
