Ken Sandy: Turning A Dry Cleaner Into A Brand

Ken Sandy: Turning A Dry Cleaner Into A Brand

Ken Sandy is the managing partner and co-founder of Dryy Garment Care and part of FRSTeam Restoration, serving the Washington, DC metropolitan region and beyond. With a background in hospitality, real estate, technology, branding, and service, Ken brings an outsider’s perspective to an industry built on trust, relationships, and operational excellence. In this episode of Cleaner Conversations, we dive into Ken’s journey from being laid off to building one of the most modern and recognizable garment care brands in the country. Ken shares how Dryy grew through lockers, multifamily partnerships, community involvement, restoration work, branding, storytelling, and a people-first culture that has shaped the business from the inside out. This is a practical and inspiring conversation packed with real lessons on growth, resilience, customer experience, community trust, and why dry cleaners have a bigger role to play in their local markets than many realize. Topics Covered: • Ken’s path into the dry cleaning industry • Building Dryy Garment Care in the DC market • Why dry cleaning is really a people and trust business • Lockers, convenience, and multifamily partnerships • Working with properties like Greystar, Bozzuto, and Lerner • The merger with Total Cleaners and lessons from scaling • Why operators need control over quality and reputation • FRSTeam Restoration and diversifying revenue • The shrinking piece-count challenge in dry cleaning • Culture, team buy-in, and people before profit • Community involvement and the Dryy Run 5K • Branding, storytelling, and content creation • The future of dry cleaning and why operators must evolve Subscribe for more conversations with operators, founders, marketers, and leaders across the garment care industry.

Nathaniel Dubasik: Why Cleaners Lose Customers Without Realizing It

Nathaniel Dubasik has spent nearly 20 years helping dry cleaners understand automation, operations, kiosks, and the technology shaping the future of the industry. After years with Metal Progetti and firsthand experience growing up around dry cleaning, Nathaniel brings a unique perspective on what actually works inside a plant. In this episode of Cleaner Conversations, we dive into customer communication, AI, missed calls, kiosks, team buy-in, consolidation, and why every phone call can become a make-or-break moment for a customer relationship. This is a practical conversation packed with lessons from inside the industry, real examples from operators, and insight from someone who has seen dry cleaning from nearly every angle. Topics Covered: • Growing up in the dry cleaning industry • 19 years with Metal Progetti • Automation and team buy-in • Kiosks and changing customer expectations • The real cost of missed phone calls • PhoneClarity and AI-powered communication • Customer service and employee professionalism • Consolidation and the future of dry cleaning • Advice for owners navigating change and growth Subscribe for more conversations with operators, founders, marketers, and leaders across the garment care industry.

Dave Coyle: What Smart Dry Cleaners Do Differently

We sit down with Dave Coyle, one of the most respected operators and business minds in the dry cleaning industry. Dave shares the real story behind building In The Bag Cleaners from the ground up, surviving chaos, scaling through uncertainty, battling addiction while growing the company, and eventually creating Maverick Drycleaners, a community built around helping operators think bigger and lead better. This conversation goes far beyond dry cleaning. We talk leadership, entrepreneurship, personal growth, pickup & delivery, profitability, mindset shifts, and what it takes to build a business that supports your life instead of consuming it. In This Episode: - How Dave got started in dry cleaning - Growing from 1 store to a multi-location operation - Buying 13 stores during the 2008 financial crisis - The reality of entrepreneurship and survival mode - Addiction, isolation, and rebuilding personally - Why “better is better,” not just “more” - Pickup & delivery strategy for modern cleaners - Payroll, profitability, and operational efficiency - Building Maverick Dry Cleaners - The future of the dry cleaning industry - Leadership lessons for owners and operators About Cleaner Conversations: Cleaner Conversations is a podcast built for dry cleaners, laundromat owners, operators, route drivers, marketers, and industry professionals. We focus on real conversations, real stories, and practical ideas that help move the industry forward. New episodes drop every Sunday evening. Listen & Follow on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. #DryCleaning #Laundromat #BusinessPodcast #Entrepreneurship #PickupAndDelivery #SmallBusiness #Leadership #CleanerConversations

Cohen Wills: I Got Almost Everything Wrong

We kick off Cleaner Conversation with Cohen Wills. Cohen didn’t enter the dry cleaning industry through a traditional path. What started as a concentration risk in another business quickly turned into a crash course in survival, customer acquisition, marketing, and adaptation when COVID hit shortly after entering the industry. In this episode of Cleaner Conversations, we talk through the story behind Sage Cleaners and Cleaner Marketing, including pickup & delivery growth, attribution, scaling customer acquisition, learning the dry cleaning business in real time, and the mindset required to keep pushing through failure and uncertainty. This is an honest conversation about growth, pressure, risk, marketing, and what it actually takes to build and scale in the garment care industry today. Topics Covered: • Entering dry cleaning before COVID • Building Sage Cleaners • The growth of pickup & delivery • Customer acquisition and attribution • Failure, pressure, and persistence • Marketing systems that actually work • The evolution of Cleaner Marketing • The future of dry cleaning and laundromats Subscribe for more conversations with operators, founders, marketers, and leaders across the garment care industry.

James Peuster: What 3,500+ Ride-Alongs Taught Me (Pickup and Delivery Hall of Famer)

James Peuster, better known by many as “The Knockfather,” has spent decades helping dry cleaners grow pickup & delivery operations across the country. After thousands of ride-alongs with route drivers and years of hands-on consulting, James has seen firsthand what separates average route operations from elite ones. In this episode of Cleaner Conversations, we dive into route sales, customer service, leadership, driver psychology, growth strategies, and the small habits that can completely change the trajectory of pickup & delivery. This is a candid conversation packed with lessons from the road, stories from inside the industry, and practical insights from one of the most recognizable voices in route development. Topics Covered: • Training 3,500+ route drivers • Pickup & delivery growth strategies • Driver psychology and customer interactions • Route density and retention • Leadership and accountability • The evolution of dry cleaning routes • Building better customer experiences • Lessons from decades in the field Subscribe for more conversations with operators, founders, marketers, and leaders across the garment care industry.