ironing/domestic help

mollymoo45_2

Hi, i'm thinking of setting up a new business- Ironing and cleaning company with my sister- once our reclaimed bank charges come through! does anyone here have a silmilar business, that would have any tips? such as the best iron to get, where to get hangers/plastic garment covers, and i have seen a shirt blower/steamer type thingy and if anyone knows what this is called - it was origainally made by Siemens and now i think Bosch owns it, i have googled but cant seem to find it anywhere!

we have struggled for a long time with debts and no money and this could be a new start for us both!.... hopefully!

Thanks Molly x

mollymoo45_2

i have found the shirt blower that i was on about before, just trying to find some reviews for it now!

mollymoo45_2

mollymoo45 wrote: »

Hi, i'm thinking of setting up a new business- Ironing and cleaning company with my sister- once our reclaimed bank charges come through! does anyone here have a silmilar business, that would have any tips? such as the best iron to get, where to get hangers/plastic garment covers, and i have seen a shirt blower/steamer type thingy and if anyone knows what this is called - it was origainally made by Siemens and now i think Bosch owns it, i have googled but cant seem to find it anywhere!

we have struggled for a long time with debts and no money and this could be a new start for us both!.... hopefully!

Thanks Molly x

just bumping incase anyone has any ideas!

Savvy_Sue

I thought I replied to you yesterday, but obviously not ...

Anyway, do a search of this board for ironing, and I think you'll find some useful tips! Other people have considered doing the same.

Good luck!

Debt_Free_Chick

Do you really need garment covers? Do you need to supply hangers?

The cost of each would be reflected in the price you charge and I would guess that some customers might not see the benefit of it.

I would have thought that customers would supply their own hangers?

BrandNewDay

No, customers don't supply their own hangers. They will give you their clothes in a bag and expect them back pressed and hung neatly.

You can get hangers for less than £1/10 (I think 10 for about 88p at Tesco.) What I do is use the cheap hangers I have at home - they came with clothes when I bought them - and then I replace them in my own closet with the ones I've bought at Tesco.

Sometimes, the stores throw them away and sometimes they are short of hangers. I've been given a few dozen at Tesco, but the last time I asked they had nothing.

You can always ask repeat customers to give them back for re-use, offering a discount for them.

Anyway, I charge £10 a basket to wash, dry and iron. That will be one or two loads, depending on the fabrics and colors. I will also tighten up a loose button or something like that and tell them I've done it so they think I'm this wonderful, caring person. Not that I'm cynical or anything of the sort.

mollymoo45_2

Thanks for your reply! helps a lot x

Debt_Free_Chick

BrandNewDay wrote: »

No, customers don't supply their own hangers. They will give you their clothes in a bag and expect them back pressed and hung neatly.

Blimey - I always supply hangers But then again, I can't stand those useless wire ones that you get from the dry cleaners, so insist on supplying my own.

Oh - and I want my trousers hung by the waist using those hangers with little grips - not folded over a hanger with a bar across

:shhh:Also have my own garmet covers, but don't insist that my ironing lady uses them - I just put them on when I get the ironing home :shhh:

Some people, eh?

BrandNewDay

Debt_Free_Chick wrote: »

Blimey - I always supply hangers But then again, I can't stand those useless wire ones that you get from the dry cleaners, so insist on supplying my own.

Oh - and I want my trousers hung by the waist using those hangers with little grips - not folded over a hanger with a bar across

:shhh:Also have my own garmet covers, but don't insist that my ironing lady uses them - I just put them on when I get the ironing home :shhh:

Some people, eh?

If my customer gave me the hangers and bags, I'd do whatever they wanted!

barrymung

Round this way they price per sack of ironing. When working out what to charge don't charge too little: If you need to drop your prices at a later date you can easily do so. Try justifying to an existing customer that you have had to double your prices in order to meet costs and it's a different matter!

Also, factor into your prices the possibility that you may need to take on sub contractors at a later date if the workload increases, or if you are busy/ill/whatever.

If you were to pay people, say £6 per hour to do the ironing on your behalf, would you still make a (Small) profit?

Raksha

By supplying hangers aren't you just adding to landfill?

Our local council insisted the ironing service I used reused its hangers......