If you are a business that relies on company uniforms or if you’re a part of the hospitality industry and linens are an essential part of your operations, these are the tips for you! Have you ever considered how much your business spends on laundry and cleaning? It’s an often overlooked expense that most businesses wouldn’t pay attention to, potentially costing you more than you think.
In this month’s blog post, we will be exploring the ways your business can effectively save on your uniform and linen costs, learn about the industry, and how you can ensure your vendor fees are fair.
Uniforms and Linens can be an unexpected source of expensive costs for many businesses.
About the Uniform and Linen Industry
In the United States alone, the linen and uniform industry makes an estimated annual revenue of up to $14 billion. Thousands of establishments across the USA belong to this industry and can effect a business’s bottom line. These establishments also save on their own costs by using suppliers based in countries like China, Bangladesh, India, and Vietnam.
The most heavily affected and targeted industries that use uniforms and linens include, but are not limited to:
Healthcare
Hospitality
Restaurants
If your business belongs to one of these industries, expect to be paying a large sum to maintain your uniforms and linens.
A Hefty Expense
As a part of your everyday operations, linens and uniforms are often overlooked as an expense. In reality, they can cost you thousands of dollars each month. This cost can come from cleaning, maintenance, and replacement which can all easily build up over time.
In order to save on costs when it comes to your linens and uniforms, you can choose from the following options:
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Invest in Quality
By purchasing linens and uniforms made from high quality materials, you are less likely to have to pay for replacements and repairs. Higher quality also means that your investment can go for longer.
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In-House Washers and Dryers
Yes, the initial cost may be higher, but instead of outsourcing your cleaning to a third party laundry company, you can do all your cleaning and maintenance in-house, saving you thousands in the long run.
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Practice Proper Laundering
Much like the clothes you wear everyday, your business’ linens and uniforms will have proper laundering techniques that need to be followed to ensure a long life. Improper laundering can result in damage and reduction in quality and therefore a costly expense.
Be Vigilant and Understand Your Vendor Fees
When it comes to your uniforms and linens, your vendor agreements are one of the most important aspects to pay attention to as there can be many hidden fees that were not originally agreed upon. While this can be frustrating for you, you don’t have to do this alone. By hiring a third party company to audit your costs, you can easily identify areas in your vendor agreement that you can safely cut to avoid paying more than you really need.
Before signing an agreement, be sure to have insight on the rates and services that the vendor will be providing. Understand how costs are broken down so that you are not caught unaware of any extra expenses.
Vendors expenses often include services such as production, delivery, and restocking of inventory. Loss fees may be applied when items go missing from inventory and upgrade fees will occur when wear and tear happens.
Consider Rentals For Lower Costs
We understand that not all businesses may have the spending power to purchase, maintain, or replace their own linens and uniforms. In situations that call for it, renting your linens and uniforms can be incredibly cost effective as it is a convenient way to keep your everyday operations running without having to worry about replacements or repairs. You may even want to consider renting laundry machines so that you don’t have to pay for up-keep. In fact, most rental businesses will take care of machine maintenance and repair for free!
Start Saving Today!
We hope that our latest blog post has been an informative dive into the ways you can save on your linens and uniform costs. Watchdog Management Services believes that there is always a way to reduce costs, even in essential industries. Get in touch today and we can help you find savings today!
