National Clothesline

With the new year comes a crew of new officers to lead the Pennsylvania and Delaware Cleaners Association for the current term, which began on January 1 and will take place over the next two years.

Taking over the association’s presidential duties is Dave Beatty of Murrysville Cleaners in Murrysville, PA.

He will replace Stuart Outten of Capitol Cleaners in Dover, DE, who moves to the position of immediate past president.

Beatty has been a drycleaner for over 24 years and has also served the Drycleaning and Laundry Institute as Board as District 2 District Committee Member.

In an open letter to members in the January 2010 edition of PDCA Press, Beatty expressed a significant need for drycleaners to focus on customer satisfaction: “I see that many times we are our own enemy and create some of the problems our industry faces. When we try to save money and do things cheaply instead of doing them the best possible way, we lose value to our customers.”

Joining him on the board is incoming vice president Tom Chido, who hails from Chido’s Cleaners in Erie, PA.

Bill Nicolais of Spotless Cleaners in Dunmore, PA, will be the new treasurer and Mark Pollock, of Signature Cleaners in Doylestown, PA, will now be secretary.

Dale Kaplan of Kaplan’s Careful Cleaners in Camp Hill will continue his duties in his position as vice president for government relations.

PDCA’s new elected officials will be responsible for increasing association membership and its financial supervision, as well as planning seminars and the 2010 Expo.

The Atlantic City Convention Center in Atlantic City will once again host PDCA’s Drycleaning and Laundry Expo. This year’s dates are Sept. 25 to 26.

The exhibit hall will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Those who plan on securing booths in the exhibit hall can take advantage of an early-bird discount that expires on March 15, 2010.

The early discounted fees are as follows: $1,545 per booth for one to three booths; $1,480 per booth for four to seven booths; and $1,455 for eight booths or more.

The prices will go up after March 15 to the following rates: $1,585 per booth for one to three booths; $1,520 per booth for four to seven booths; and $1,495 per booth for eight booths or more.

Each booth size is 10 feet by 10 feet (100 square feet).

The booth cost covers the following normal expenses from move in to move out (with certain limitations): carpenter labor, freight handling, warehousing, drape, 8-foot high flameproof backdrop drapes; 3-foot high sidewall drapes, standard carpet, standard furniture, identification sign and waste basket.

To reserve booth space or find out more about exhibiting, visit the association’s web site at www.pdclean.org and download a show prospectus and exhibit contract forms from the “Expo 2010” page which can be reached by clicking on the link near the top of the page.

Those who plan on attending the show can call and make reservations at the event’s host hotel, the Atlantic City Sheraton, which is located directly across the street from the Atlantic City Convention Center.

PDCA has secured a discounted rate of $164 per night for single or double occupancy.

To reserve a room, call the hotel at (800) 325-3535 and mention your affiliation with PDCA’s Expo 2010. Hotel information and reservations are also available by using the link on the PDCA web site.

Information on the show can also be obtained by calling PDCA, (215) 830-8495.