Start an ironing service... official MoneySavingExpert.com discussion

samarnesen

ive only just found this thread ive been taking in ironing for a while its just people i know but after my recent separation ive decided to do it as a business im fully registered with the inland revenue but my customers seem to have fallen by the wayside so ive been reading with interest ive only been charging £10 per black bag because i thought anything else too unreasonable as it doesnt take that long too do
so if anyone is in south east wales and you need your ironing done you know where to come

carol1970

Iroming is a funny one, as most poeple like to have their clothes ironed in their own way, ironing out is clearly a good idea though..

9to5_no_more...

Hi Steph
Thanks for the advice, am doing the leaflet now and start delivering tommorow will let you know how i get on!
There is a launderette in the local holiday park so I will be putting one in there definately.

Stephb1986_2

great 9to5 get out there hun if you need anymore advice feel free to pm me

the best steam generator irons around are the likes of tefal pro express make sure its one you can fill up all the time without a valve on the top or a rowenta steam generator irons. expect to pay £100-£150 make sure you clean them out every 2 weeks as you do get alot of scale build up

Steph xx

katiekat

I have a 'Rowenta steam Generator DG 9040' I really like it as it's quite heavy weight but not industrial if u know wot I mean! Beware in hard water areas as some steam generator irons cannot be de-scaled with stuff, rinse the tank frequently to avoid dirt coming out of the jets.
Look after your iron it will look after you! I will prob upgrade if I get any busier but mine was £109 all in on ebay do your homework, read reviews of irons you like, Amazon is good for customer reviews, best of luck!!

Maz

Thanks to everyone on this thread for their generosity with advice and help. Just put up adverts and have 100 flyers ready to go. I'm hoping that the response will be enough to keep me from accepting a job in a supermarket (horrible hours and cr*p pay!)

Barcode

Hi all,

I'm a postgrad, moving nearer campus next month, and with being permanently broke, this seems like a semi-sensible idea for [STRIKE]beer[/STRIKE] bill money. A few questions if that's o.k.

(1) Would you feel o.k entrusting shirts, trousers etc to a student? The idea, at least at first, would be to advertise on the university classifieds, pick up ironing from campus, take home, return the next day (or whenever they want).

(2) What would you think is a reasonable price? I'm reluctant to say by the hour. I'm thinking £10 per basket, but what exactly consitutes a basket? I don't want somebody bringing me a huge laundry basket which is impractical.

(3) Is it necessary to invest in a good iron at first? I don't have the money for this, at least not for the first few months.

(4) I'm only looking to make an extra £20-£30 a week to start with, how achievable would you say this is?

Thanks all.

Maz

Have put up posters in shops, nurseries, community centres, launderettes and just about to put out my next batch of 100 flyers (home made).

Has anybody found a particularly good place to put up ads etc?

Phone hasn't rung yet and I'm very probably being impatient here but eager to get cracking!

Stephb1986_2

We have always leafleted new housing estates or asked if we can put them in the sales office

HTH

Steph xx

Flossie

Hi all
I was looking for an Ironing person recently and found my lady on Yell.co.uk

I also noticed that there is a section on the netmum's website, so you can advertise your services. Netmums is for local Mum's so you can target your area.

I looked in the newsagent windows, but I wasn't drawn to the scrawled notes there - a flyer would have been better.

oh and my final idea is the local church magazine. They are usually distrubuted to all local homes (well they are in our area), and people trust people who feature in the church magazine - rightly or wrongly!
The ad will cost, but not much at all.

I set up a babysitting service a few years ago to bring in some extra pennies and I placed an ad in one church magazine and got a few calls. I got enough business for what I wanted to do. Once you have customers they will tell their friends and family and it should go from there.

Hope these ideas might help people, if I didn't hate ironing so much myself I might give it a go!

Flossie

PS Another idea might be to give people a first 'order' discount. That way you can introduce your service, it won't cost them too much and will open their eyes to the joys of someone else making their clothes look neat!