This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Partners turn neglected washers into solid profit. This is a fun story. I don't know if we've talked about laundromats in the past. Have we talked about laundromats? Laundromats, laundromats.
I always wonder how to spell that word because it has an O instead of a Y. I expect it to be spelled differently than it is. So when I'm looking at it on the page, I'm like, oh, how do you even pronounce that word? But we all know we're talking about washers and dryers, a place where you go to do laundry, at least in some parts of the world, depending on where you are, it's more or less common. When I was a kid, I used to go with my dad to wash our clothes, and now, fortunately, I have a washer or dryer in my home.
But this is still really important in lots of different communities. So these two guys, they decide to take a bold leap. Instead of starting from scratch, they bought a failing business, a failing laundromat, and turned it around using some focused marketing, simple cost cutting, and a whole lot of hustle. That's what we're all about here on Side Hustle School. And they did it also without going into debt, and they actually spent very little money.
So that's the key point. I don't want you to go into debt for your side hustle. I want you to have a side hustle that actually pays you. I want you to be able to make money doing something that you enjoy. And in this case, it's not that they had a great passion for washing clothes.
They just liked to work together, they were good friends, and they had a passion for spotting an opportunity. So that can be fun as well. So they did a little bit of grassroots marketing. We'll talk about that. Let's hear the story from one of the co-founders.
I think it's James and Jason. I think we're going to hear from James. I'll come back at the end with a few words of wrap up. [Music]
My friend, Jason and I, we're both burned out of juggling freelance gigs. We wanted a side hustle that was physical and local, something we could actually see and improve with our own hands.
One night, Jason came across a classified ad for a failing laundromat. The price was so low, we thought it might be a scam. But we kept thinking about it. Laundromats, when they work, can be a solid semi-passive business. You don't need staff all day, and the machines do most of the work.
Assuming they work. So we checked it out. The owner was this tired guy who clearly wanted out. Place was grinding, the machines were ancient, and the lights barely stayed on. It was right next to a big apartment complex, and the nearest competitor was miles away.
We offered him 28,000 cash. If he'd agree to keep the rent the same. He said yes on the spot. We each put in 10K of savings, borrowed the rest from family, and suddenly we owned a laundromat. The first two weeks were just basic triage.
We painted the walls, swapped in LED lights, deep cleaned everything, and upgraded the vending machines. That alone made the space feel 10 times better. Total cost around $2,000. Then we tackled the marketing. This business had zero online presence.
So we made a Google profile, added photos, got it listed on Yelp, and ran a simple Facebook ad targeting people nearby. But the best thing we did was hand out old school punch cards at the nearby apartment building. 10 washes, get one free. People loved it. Now, we couldn't afford new washers or dryers yet, but we made small upgrades.
Replacing old valves, fixing leaks, tweaking dryer timers. Every time something broke or got stuck, we were there. We also started offering a wash and fold service and negotiated bulk detergent prices, labeling them for staff use. Little things, but they added up. At first, we barely broke even.
But by month three, we were cleared our first $1,000 in profit. It wasn't huge, but it was real. We reinvested that to replace two completely dead machines, and we've been growing from there. Now, six months in, we're making about $2,500 a month after expenses and loan payments. We're planning more upgrades and even talking about adding a little coffee corner for people to hang out.
If you're thinking about buying a struggling business, here's what we learned. One, inspect equipment thoroughly. We got a good deal, but the repairs added up. Two, get the lease terms locked in. If rent had gone up, it might have killed the deal.
Three, local outreach works. The punch cards and community focus made a huge difference. Four, online visibility matters, even for a laundromat. People check reviews before walking in. We still do the cleaning and repairs ourselves, but once things are up and running, the machines mostly run the show.
It's not glamorous, but it's working and it's ours. Thanks a lot, James. Congratulations to Jason as well. Earning $2,500 in monthly profit beyond operating costs. And of course, they're just doing this on the side.
It's not a full-time business. It doesn't sound like it's taking a ton of time. And they might actually be able to do it again, like the same kind of thing in a different location, perhaps, or they could just say, this was fun. What are we gonna do next? Maybe it's something totally different.
That's the beauty of the side hustle world. That's why I like sharing these stories with you, our listeners, if you have a question, a comment, an update about your hustle, sidehustleschool.com. Resources page for every episode is there as well. And of course, new episodes drop every single day, seven days a week. Thanks for being out there.
New one's coming up tomorrow. My name is Chris Guillebeau. This is "Side Hustle School." [Music]
From the "Onward Project."
