New Year, New Columnist!
Join us in welcoming our newest columnist, Jeff Moak of Superclean Laundromat in Ajax and Cambridge, ON (east and southwest of Toronto respectively.) Jeff is an enthusiastic entrepreneur who has a passion for the laundromat side of the industry, and he will be sharing his journey with you each month.
Who is he?
Jeff grew up in the laundromat of his grandfather (you’ll read more about that in his first column) and has expanded to two locations with two more in the works. As a third-generation operator, he has seen the industry changing, and is enthusiastic about the changes in technology. He also loves the renewed enthusiasm he senses in the industry, and the new ideas that are entering the market.
Jeff’s current locations offer pickup and delivery. “We’ll be spinning that into its own entity in the next two months,” he said. It will operate under the name Saaf – Laundry Delivered. He’s also the founder of Claro – Modern Laundry Solutions, a consulting/development company helping people build and modernize laundromats. “We focus on payment solutions, laundry equipment sales (Electrolux/Wascomat) and consulting,” he said.
Jeff likes to share what he’s learned and to listen to what others have profited from. He’s appeared at industry events speaking on a wide range of topics, most recently at the Laundry CEO Forum and the CLA Wash-Dry-Fold Workshop.
We’re excited to have him join our team of columnists and anticipate lots of great ideas from his corner each month. Stay tuned!
Life in the Laundromat Lane
By Jeff Moak
I’m happy to be writing my first column for Fabricare Canada magazine. To kick off the new year, I want to reflect on how the industry has evolved through a technology lens, shaped by growing up in laundromats with my grandfather.
READ IT HERE…
Smart Machines
By Kevin Marois
It’s amazing that the latest equipment doesn’t make coffee for you and do your taxes while you’re waiting for a load. What can they do?
The new dry cleaning machines are fantastic. They have much better control over the cleaning process. You can have a cycle for every kind of garment and every type of soil. They save water and steam. They get better solvent mileage.
READ IT HERE…
Are Robots Taking Over?
By Linley McConnell
Artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics are advancing faster than most of us can comfortably keep up with, and while it’s tempting to think these changes are still years away, the reality is that in some places, they’re already here. This month, I want to explore how robotics are already showing up in our industry and what is worth paying attention to as we think about the future of our operations.
READ IT HERE…
Behind the Tech: Your people are your first concern
By Francis Flair
Everywhere you turn, someone is talking about new machines, new software or new systems. New presses. New POS. New route apps. New auto-texts. All of that matters. But behind every machine and behind every piece of tech, there is still one thing that decides the customer experience: your people. If the people using the tech are tired, checked out, or feel unseen, no machine in the world can save the experience.
READ IT HERE…
DLI February 2026 Courses and Events
The Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI) and its regional partners are kicking off 2026 with a month of skill-building programs, expert-led webinars, and high-value networking opportunities designed to help garment care professionals sharpen their operations, improve customer experience, and boost business performance.
SEE THE FEBRUARY CALENDAR IN CONFERENCES & EVENTS…
New Power Sheets Laundry Detergent from Arm & Hammer
Arm & Hammer has designed laundry detergent Power Sheets to eliminate plastic bottle waste. The liquidless sheets come in a lightweight, recyclable boxes and help users avoid lugging, pouring from heavy bottles, and drips. In 2-sheet boxes, the sheets are recommended for laundromat and OPL situations.
READ MORE IN PRODUCT NEWS…
Over the Counter Excerpt for January
The new Over the Counter book is available in both paperback and eBook from Amazon. This updated version of the classic book written by Marcia Miller Todd, has been edited and revised to reflect the needs and challenges of today’s counter professional. Here is an excerpt from Chapter 4, Handling Incoming Garments — Garment Inspection and Identification.
Books often mention guardians who stand at the entrace of territories. St. Peter, for instance, at the gates of Heaven; the customs examiner at the border of a new country. And there’s you, standing between the confusion of all the clothes coming in over the counter and the order of those marked garments that are ready for cleaning.
You must be just as sharp-eyed as the customs inspector and just as accurate as a computer. This is the technical side of your job at a counter. Certainly none of your customers would ever intentionally bring non-cleanable garments to you, nor would they leave any valuable or harmful items in their garment pockets on purpose. But that doesn’t make your job any easier, since both things happen. Every garment can conceal issues you must solve before they are processed.
It’s part of your job to watch what comes in over the counter to guard the best interests of your customers, and your dry cleaning plant. However, that is not nearly as easy as it may sound.
The chapter continues with tips on garment inspection, invoicing all pieces in an order, and questions for discussion.
Over the Counter, already available in English, will be available in Spanish in March 2026, and French, German and Japanese soon thereafter. You can get your copy from Amazon today.
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JANUARY ARTICLES: Behind the Tech
All month long we’ll be taking you BEHIND all the tech you saw and experienced last year. Who are the people who bring you that tech? What motivates them? Where was that machine of yours born? Stick with us and find out.
Behind the Tech at Jensen
Today’s machines have computer screens, QR codes, buttons and lights, access panels for maintenance, and conveyor belts to move the load from Point A to Point B. Every machine also has a team of people behind it that brought it to life. Here are two of them.
Behind the Tech at GreenEarth Cleaning
GreenEarth’s technology did not start with a machine – it started with people. Technicians standing in dry cleaning plants, listening to operators explain what actually makes a dry cleaning business run and flourish were vital to equipment design and product development.
READ IT HERE…
DECEMBER ARTICLES: Industry Person of the Year/Buyer’s Guide
2025 Canadian Industry
Person of the Year
MARCIA TODD
The selection of Marcia Todd as our Canadian Industry Person of the Year for 2025 was greeted with great enthusiasm by the people who were let in on it and asked for comments about her. She has been well known across Canada and in the U.S. for her journalistic work, and especially as publisher and editor of Fabricare Canada for over 30 years. Now at age 101, she has much to look back on with pride.
The 2026 Buyer’s Guide is here!
The companies that have what you need — supplies, services, advice — and are excited to do business in Canada and beyond. Check out the list and bookmark it for future use.
Happy Holidays to Your Employees
By Becca Anderson
It’s a puzzle you have to solve every December: How can you reward and celebrate your employees at the holidays without breaking the bank? A pay bonus is nice, but not as memorable as non-cash recognition. Here are some practical holiday reward ideas that can work in your plant, don’t disrupt production, and feel genuinely appreciative rather than gimmicky.
All I want for Christmas is… a goat
By Kevin Marois
I want a goat for Christmas.
Yes, four legs, fur and smell. I got a goat for my dad one Christmas so I think I’d like one this year. If you can’t afford a goat, I’d settle for a couple of chickens. But we’ll talk more about that later.
Wondering what’s on Kevin’s mind this month?
Your 2026 Marketing Resolutions
By Linley McConnell
2026 is around the corner, and as the saying goes, those who fail to plan, plan to fail. A new year always brings fresh momentum, but it can also bring pressure to overhaul everything at once. When it comes to marketing, the goal isn’t to do more, it’s to do better. Strong marketing starts with a few clear, disciplined resolutions that are built for consistency, not burnout. Here are six marketing resolutions that can help you kick the New Year off on the right foot.
Software to the rescue? Maybe not.
By Francis Flair
As the year comes to an end, a familiar cycle begins. Business owners reflect. Goals are reset. And suddenly, that one software platform that didn’t work last year starts to look shiny again. Maybe this time it’ll be different. New year, new software, right?
Read the hard truth from Francis.
