NEWPORT, R.I. — Tech-enabled laundry pickup and delivery service HappyNest hosted its 2nd Annual Partner Conference here in early July, gathering more than 50 partners from across the United States for three days of idea sharing and networking.
HappyNest says it supports more than 130 laundromat partners in 38 states in bringing the next-day pickup and delivery laundry service to residents and businesses across the nation. The company reports it processes over 25,000 pickups and over a half-million pounds of laundry every month.
Partners shared ideas surrounding growth, staffing, operations, and industry trends. CEO and founder John MacKrell called the event “a great success.”
“It was a collaborative, productive, and exciting few days to bring together HappyNest partners and share information, pass ideas back and forth and get feedback from our partners,” he says. “We appreciate our partners making the trip to Newport to learn how to further scale and enhance their pickup and delivery laundry business.”
During the conference’s two and a half days, partners had the opportunity to speak with members of the HappyNest team in the Partner Support, Customer Service, Commercial Sales, Technology, and Marketing departments.
Partners Ralph Myers (Jacksonville, Fla.), Charlie Russell (Baltimore) and Mark Hardaway (Los Angeles) spoke on their experiences with recent HappyNest initiatives. A Q&A session allowed partners to share successful strategies and methodologies on staffing and growth; panelists included Hardaway, Charles Measley (Ocean Township, N.J.), Amber Knott (Mobile, Ala.), and Eli Carey (Denver).
HappyNest also welcomed some guests from the laundromat industry to contribute their thoughts on the future and growth of laundry pickup and delivery. Brian Wallace, Coin Laundry Association president, talked about current industry trends, and Eastern Funding’s Tony Regan (a member of the American Coin-Op Advisory Board) provided a comprehensive overview of growth financing within the industry.
“I came away both impressed by the quality of operators and with the high level of engagement they displayed as a community,” Wallace says.
“Lots of energy, and (the) organization provided for valuable information shared amongst so many great operators,” says Regan.
U.S. swimmer and three-time Olympian Elizabeth Beisel, a native Rhode Islander, shared a motivating and engaging presentation on what it takes to be successful and the importance of teamwork, plus shared stories from her time competing in the Olympics.
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