The goals of the best laundry budget hotel hack are clear: to lower costs and increase customer satisfaction. The key is simple: a professional laundry partner that cares as much about guest experience as you do.
Partnering with the right large-scale professional laundry service can cost your property less money than your on-property laundry (OPL) and set you apart for impressing guests with luxurious linens.
Get ready to join the ranks of other upscale properties that have taken advantage of the best laundry budget hotel hack for saving money and delighting guests.
Cut Costs Without Cutting Corners
The laundry budget hotel hack itself is easy – outsourcing – but we understand that the steps before and after it can be complex. It isn’t enough to reduce expenses, you need to maintain or exceed the current quality of your laundry handling and protect your luxury hotel bedding and linens.
Before you begin the process of shutting down your OPL, here are some recommended steps and factors to consider.
Calculate the True Cost of Your OPL
You won’t be able to fully appreciate the savings of outsourcing if you don’t have an accurate calculation for how much your OPL currently costs.
Too often, properties underestimate the true laundry budget hotel cost of their operations by not including indirect, or “hidden,” costs such as maintenance, management oversight and the depreciation of both commercial laundry equipment and the laundry room itself.
Check out the OPL Cost Calculator for a comprehensive tool to help estimate your current cost per pound – all of it.
Run Apples-to-Apples Comparisons
Or, depending on where you are, oranges-to-oranges may be more appropriate. The point is that gathering quotes from hotel laundry services can be tricky because they don’t all include the same things in their pricing.
A quote from a service may be significantly lower than its competitors because the company charges extra for things like pickup and delivery, sorting and government fees. When comparing services, make sure you understand exactly what the price includes and what it doesn’t.
Invest in Enough Pars
We know, you were waiting for this one. Because one of the reasons you haven’t outsourced your laundry in the past is that you didn’t want to have to get more pars.
But the truth is, you need more pars anyway. Outsourcing or OPL, having enough pars on hand is essential.
The benefits of having four pars at all times include:
- Being prepared in the event of severe weather, power outages, unexpected vacancies and whatever else is thrown at you
- Lengthening the lifecycle of your linens. Constant washing, drying and ironing takes its toll on even the highest quality linens, and giving your sheets, towels, bath mats and robes the chance to rest between uses will extend the amount of time they’re guest-ready.
- Having outsourcing as an option. You’ll be better positioned to partner with a hotel laundry service and reap all of the savings that brings once you’re on top of your par level management.
Have a Latte in Your Laundry Room
Imagine watching guests sip your signature coffee drinks or shop for your branded luxury linens where your commercial laundry equipment is now. Once you shut down your OPL, you’ll be freeing up the space it now occupies for amenities that can bring you more guests – and more revenue.
Outsourcing properties have converted their on-property laundry rooms into:
- Coffee shops
- Retail space
- Meeting rooms
- Convention space
- Fitness center
- Spa
Get More for Less
Once you finish the best laundry budget hotel hack, you can rest easy knowing that your linens are being handled by professionals for less money. You and your staff will have more time for other guest-satisfaction activities and more space for an amenity your guests will love.
For more information, check out our recent blog on How to Reduce Hotel Laundry Costs by Shutting Down Your OPL.
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