OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. — In 2021, the Coin Laundry Association is marking its 60th year of service and dedication to laundry owners across the country.
Originally known as the National Automatic Laundry and Cleaning Council, the not-for-profit association was established in 1961 in Chicago. From its founding, the mission of the organization—renamed the Coin Laundry Association in 1983—has been to provide education and service to the entrepreneurs within the laundry business; to protect and advocate for the best interests of store owners across the country; and generally to work toward a more professional, successful and profitable laundromat industry.
“Over the last 60 years, the CLA has helped thousands of would-be entrepreneurs achieve the dream of laundromat ownership, as well as helping those operators get the very most from their businesses,” says CLA President and CEO Brian Wallace. “Along the way, the association and its staff have evolved and grown to meet the ever-changing needs of the CLA’s members and the laundromat marketplace in general.”
An in-person celebration is planned next month during the association’s exclusive ELEVATE event.
“Affiliation with the CLA, its members, its staff and, of course, my fellow board members has truly been enriching,” says CLA Chair Kathryn Rowen. “Let’s all take advantage of this opportunity to remember what has made the laundromat industry so special over the last 60 years, and to consider how we all can work together toward an even brighter future.”
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