2ULaundry

Market position

The company positions itself against other laundry delivery services by cleaning orders in facilities it operates under its own LaundroLab brand and using full-time employees instead of gig workers. Management characterizes the US laundry and dry cleaning industry as a $46 billion market lacking innovation at scale, and notes that although there are more than 35,000 laundromats in the United States, there is no clear market leader or recognizable brand.

Vertical integration is the central differentiator: 2ULaundry processes orders in its own LaundroLab facilities rather than outsourcing, employs drivers and laundry staff as W2 employees, offers bag-based flat-rate pricing that lets customers select treatment and price, and pairs the delivery business with a franchised retail laundromat network that layers delivery volume onto store economics.

Technology

Customers schedule and manage orders through the 2ULaundry mobile app (iOS/Android) and web account, with pickup and delivery notes, cleaning preferences, ETA notifications and in-app chat, call and email support. The company states it uses proprietary technology to track laundry through each step of its cleaning process, and describes software that automates its logistics chain to keep pricing competitive with local cleaners.

Go-to-market

The company sells direct to consumers through its website and mobile app, with recurring weekly or ad hoc pickups and no required subscription. Commercial customers are acquired through consultation requests, and the company has targeted national partnerships with categories such as gyms, fitness studios and Airbnb hosts. Geographic growth is pursued largely through franchising LaundroLab locations, with 20 new locations planned in the year of its Series B announcement and 25 stores targeted over the following 12 months.

Households seeking to outsource everyday laundry and dry cleaning, and commercial accounts of all sizes including boutique local businesses, national franchises, Airbnb hosts, spas and healthcare practices. LaundroLab franchisees form a second customer group.

Geography

Headquartered at 520 Elliot St, Charlotte, North Carolina. The mobile app lists service across the metro areas of Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Houston, Phoenix, San Antonio and Tampa. The business launched in the Southeast, expanded to Atlanta early on, and planned initial LaundroLab franchise openings across Metro Atlanta before adding locations elsewhere in the Southeast and nationally.

History

2ULaundry began inside a classroom at Wake Forest University and was founded by Dan D'Aquisto and Alex Smereczniak; sources variously date the founding to 2015 and to December 2015. By early 2018 the company had raised almost $3 million and expanded into Atlanta. In late 2019 it closed a $6 million Series A. COVID-19 cut the laundry business roughly in half initially, particularly dry cleaning delivery, before demand returned to and then exceeded pre-pandemic levels; the company used the period to conserve cash and launch LaundroLab, having previously operated out of an existing laundromat before deciding to vertically integrate. LaundroLab launched its franchise offering in 2021, and in 2022 the company announced a $20 million Series B led by Level 5 Capital Partners, bringing total capital raised to $25.4 million.

Risks & controversies

The company reported that its laundry business took an approximately 50% hit at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, driven by reduced demand for dry cleaning as customers shifted to working and schooling from home, before recovering to pre-pandemic levels. Growth depends heavily on franchise expansion, with stated targets of dozens of new LaundroLab store openings and large-scale hiring.