Predictions for the new year
It took a long time for officialdom to say it, but they finally decided that,
indeed, the U.S economy is in recession. Now, in fact, they say we have been in
a recession for most of the last year. This news comes as no surprise to anyone
in the drycleaning business. Too many drycleaners in pursuit of a dwindling
number of customers who seem to have fewer clothes that need drycleaning — or the same number of clothes that they are cleaning less frequently — all in the face of rising costs. These have been the complaints of drycleaners
for months, years even. Drycleaners don’t need fancy economic statistics to determine there is a recession on.
We predict that the new year will be bad for those cleaners who have been
stumbling from day to day, hoping to survive but with no particular plan to do
so. When they bought their businesses, they only bought themselves a job. Their
response to rising costs and falling revenues has been to work harder, not
smarter, and now, after working ever harder for less and less, they will be out
of a job. They are about to slide off the road and into the ditch.
The sight of all those roadside wrecks will be both sad and sobering. But we
also predict that it will signal the beginning of good times for cleaners who
have kept both hands on the wheel and both eyes on the road. They know where
they want to go and have mapped out how to get there. For those cleaners, the
best is yet to come. They stand to reap the rewards of thoughtful, enlightened
and progressive business management. As that oversaturated drycleaning market
becomes desaturated, they stand to gain. Good times, perhaps the best of times,
are ahead for the survivors.
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New Orleans shows by example
As the drycleaning industry desperately tries to tread water during sinking
economic times, perhaps the best thing to do is look ahead at the promise that
2009 holds. Fortunately, it’s a Clean Show year for drycleaners, which is a good place to look for hope and
recovery. After all, it’s the ideal forum for cleaners to exchange ideas, learn profitable secrets and
discover the latest technology that can help them to attain levels of higher
quality and faster efficiency. The entire point of the Clean Show is to make
the industry stronger and better.
Ironically enough, Clean ’09 will take place in New Orleans, a city that knows more than a thing or two
about clinging to hope and making an effort to recover in desperate and
desolate times. There probably is not a more fitting venue to host the event at
this time.
The Big Easy itself took an immeasurable hit from Hurricane Katrina almost
three-and-a-half years ago, yet the city continues to fight to survive and even
flourish in some regions, such as its world-famous French Quarter near the
convention center. True, both the local and visitor population is down
considerably from its numbers pre-Katrina, but the city is stronger than ever
in terms of possessing an indomitable and resilient spirit. Whether you find
yourself listening to live boisterous jazz music, eating flavorful and fine
cuisine in a restaurant or simply breathing in the rich history found in its
streets, you will be hard pressed to find a more generous, helpful and colorful
collection of people to show you the true meaning of hospitality.
Parts of the city are still recovering, to be sure. If you visit some of the
areas that Katrina’s wake hit the hardest, such as the Lower 9th Ward, you will see destruction and
devastation, as well as touching memorials for those who lost their lives in
the floods. You will also see people picking up the pieces and rebuilding with
a strong sense of unity. It is quite inspiring to witness and it makes a
visitor feel that the only thing that is preventing New Orleans from being
bigger and better than ever is time.
Perhaps the same can be said of the drycleaning industry. It will take time for
the economy to heal. It will take time for plants to prosper again. The first
step, however, is taking time to make plans for the Clean Show in June. It’s a trip you can not afford to miss. After all, New Orleans is a vibrant city
that needs more visitors to see just how far it has come back, and cleaners
need New Orleans to see how it is possible to recover even when the bottom
falls out.
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