Happy Thanksgiving from DashLocker!

Hi there turkey lovers, It's that time of year again! Time for turkey (or tofurky), stuffing, and a relaxing Thanksgiving spent with loved ones. In celebration of the holiday, DashLocker will not be processing on Thursday night. Items dropped off on Wednesday will be returned on Friday night, when we will resume our regular processing schedule.  Here at DashLocker, we’d like to take a moment to give a big “Thank You” to all of our customers. In the past six months we’ve opened four retail locations and placed lockers in five apartment buildings—and we couldn’t have done it without you! To show our appreciation, we’re offering 30% off all our Wash & Press items with the code TH1018 for one week only. Just think of all the money (and time!) you’ll save by letting DashLocker wash the many napkins, tablecloths, and couch cushions left by messy Thanksgiving guests! We’ll help you get your apartment in order and save you money with our 30% off discount.   Bring in your laundry before the discount expires on November 27th, 2012 to save 30% off Wash & Press items like comforters, sheets, tablecloths, and more! Enjoy the holiday!  All the best,   The DashLocker Team

Announcing Weekend Processing! 24 Hour Dry Cleaning

We’re proud to announce that DashLocker will be processing clothes on Saturday! This is an important step that will improve our turn around times and increase the convenience of our cleaning services. 

At the end of October we quietly started test driving the weekend cleaning process. The kinks have all been ironed out, and we can now safely announce to our customers that we will pick up and drop off laundry and dry cleaning seven days a week.

Since June, customers have repeatedly told us that they need a dry cleaner who is not only accessible 24 hours a day, but also dry cleans and launders within 24 hours. We knew that it wasn’t enough to be open all the time—we also had to start doing laundry every day of the week. Our new Saturday processing schedule is an important step towards achieving this goal.

In the past four months, DashLocker has grown by leaps and bounds. We now service hundreds of customers every month and process thousands of pounds of laundry. We knew it was time to take the leap.

Our operations team—made up of the sharpest needles in the tailoring box— anticipated our growth and created plans so that the transition to servicing Upper East Side customers on Saturdays went smoothly. They also began engaging in negotiations with our vendors to secure better turnaround times.

In June, customers who dropped off their clothes on Thursday night after our 10pm pick up had to wait until Monday for their clothes. A customer dropping off at this time was our worst fear—we know how terribly inconvenient it is to wait a full four days for receive clothes. Even customers who dropped off on Friday had to wait a considerable amount of time to pick up their clean clothes.

But no longer! Customers dropping off on Thursday after 10pm can expect clean clothes on Saturday, and customers dropping off on Friday will have a bundle of fresh laundry on Saturday, too.

We’d like to thank each and every one of our DashLocker customers who helped to make this possible. We truly appreciate your business and your patience!

Dry cleaning with DashLocker just got more convenient—so what are you waiting for? Drop off some clothes this Friday to give our new turnaround times a shot! 

5 Dinner Spots on the Upper East Side

Don’t tell us—you had a long day at work. In fact, every day is a long day at work. If you’re not running around the subway system trying to make it to meetings, you’re getting out of the office past 7:00pm. The last thing you want to think about doing after work is making it to the dry cleaners!

Your trip to DashLocker can be as late and as leisurely as you would like—our store is always open, so you don’t have to rush to get there before the gates are drawn. In fact, why don’t you take your time after work and grab some dinner or a drink before picking up your laundry? Here’s our top five favorite Upper East Side places to relax!

1. Cascabel

This Upper East Side taco casa pairs bright colors with delicious eats. Head over on Fridays for the Baja Fish Tacos paired with the Pineapple Mezcal for some south of the border relaxation.

2. Big Daddy’s

Throw tradition out the window and have the Super Hot Malted Waffles for dinner! Go all out and have a milkshake to top off your sugar rush. Ice cream plus waffles equals perfection, so don’t hold back! If you’re super hungry, get some Lord of the Fries and drip them in your milkshake like an old episode of Happy Days.

3. The Penrose

This place gets popping after 10pm, so if you want to snag a table make sure to arrive early. Get the Dirty Pickle Martini and the Penrose Burger for some straight up comfort food with a classy twist. For an appetizer, hit up the Oyster Sliders because fried oysters are delicious!

4. 16 Handles

We’re all guilty of having ice cream for dinner… so join us in our glorious sugar high! Go for the healthiest possible combination of fruit and froyo or treat those extra-large cups like your own personal Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory by throwing in gummy worms, fudge and cookie dough. Either way, we can’t tell you how to make your froyo—that decision’s personal!

5. Café D’Alsace

If you’re feeling fancy, visit Café D’Alsace for some modern French cuisine. Get the Duck Sausage pastry for an appetizer and the Pan Seared John Dory Grenobloise for dinner—you can thank us later!  

The DashLocker Telemundo Shoot-- ¡Ay, caramba!

Telemundo visited DashLocker last month to shoot some very special footage that aired almost entirely en español! It was a VERY exciting day, and luckily I was there to record all the behind the scenes action on my iPhone.

I met Louis, the DashLocker employee who volunteered to do the segment, at our dry cleaning drop off location at e 81^st and 2^nd ave. Louis has been with DashLocker from day 1, and he knows almost everything there is to know about dropping off dry cleaning—plus he speaks amazing Spanish!

But talent doesn’t stop people from being camera shy, as I know from my brief stint as the mute actress in our “how to” videos (they’re coming soon!), and Louis was feeling the heat from those bright lights. Luckily Victoria, the Telemundo reporter, was there to ease our nerves. After interviewing Louis, she spoke to a customer about the DashLocker system while us “extras” hid out of the frame around the corner.

Then it was my turn to cook under the lights as the Telemundo crew took some shots of us placing bags into lockers. There I am filling up a locker with clothes! You can’t tell from the shot, but that bag was chock full of laundry.

Finally, the talented Telemundo team took advantage of the terrible weather and shot a very complicated scene: Victoria exiting the store, opening her umbrella, and walking down the street. Everything had to be timed perfectly and we had to make sure the camera man didn’t fall down while walking backwards out of the store. Louis guided the cameraman from behind while Victoria opened her umbrella and threw her DashLocker dry cleaning bag over her shoulder like a pro! 

Cleaner Stores Equal Cleaner Clothes!

Some of our previous posts have mentioned the amount of comments and questions we receive about our branding. It’s no secret—the DashLocker branding is pretty sharp. In fact, we have a whole marketing team that works together to make sure DashLocker products and promotional items stay consistent.

We have so many people to thank for helping us to develop a personality, but first we need to thank our customers. The feedback you have given us about the aesthetic of our store locations, the layout of our website, and the tone of our customer service and promotional teams has served to reinforce our original instinct that the dry cleaning industry needed a makeover.

We’ve heard it over and over again—how can dry cleaners claim to clean clothes if they can’t even clean their stores? The Formica counter tops, the laminate floor, the pigeon droppings all over awnings! It has our neat-nick minds all flustered just thinking about it.

Of course, if you’re in the cleaning business your store should be clean, too! That’s why DashLocker spends so much effort on its outward appearance. We know you take pride in looking nice—that’s why you dry clean your clothes! Shouldn’t your dry cleaner care about looking nice, too?

Making over the dry cleaning industry starts with technology, and it ends with good service. For DashLocker, that means being friendly, clean, and easy to use! 

Fall Fashion Care: Jeweled Collars

One of my favorite pieces is now back this fall season: sweaters with jeweled collars! I somehow never outgrew the era of large jewelry, so I’m thrilled to see this trend back in style. From Alberta Ferretti’s chic, soft statement collars to the leather and metal collars from Luis Vuitton, the look has been all over the runway—and the streets of NYC.

Richard Chai's fall 2012 collection features delicate,
whimsical, and hard to wash collars!

There’s just one hitch: how does one clean a stunning sweater with such a delicate neckline? This piece cannot be laundered in a regular machine—the rhinestones may break off or chip, and the setting for the stones could also be damaged.

Unfortunately, the only way to safely clean this fall trend is by hand washing the sweater or sending it to the cleaners, who will hand wash the piece for you.

To hand wash, fill a basin with a small amount of water—just enough to soak the sweater. Mix the water with .5-1 tablespoon of detergent. Stir until you start to see suds.

Then dunk your sweater into the cold water and swirl it around until the sweater is completely soaked. Using your hands only, scrub some of the dirtier areas of the sweater, like the armpits or sleeves.

Remove the sweater and gently squeeze out excess water. Then dump out the soapy water and refill the basin with cold, clean water. Immerse the sweater and rinse until it is suds free.

Finally, remove the sweater and hold it above the basin until the water stops dripping. Don’t wring the sweater—it could end up wrinkling the fabric! Dab the sweater with a dry towel to remove the excess water and hang dry. Use the now moist towel to dab the jeweled collar, shining stones and buffing metal as needed.

There's no denying it; statement collars are fabulous! But they can be expensive, so care for your investment by properly cleaning the item to avoid irreversible damage from stains or dirt. 

Do you have a favorite fall sweater with a jeweled collar? Post a picture and tell us about it!

A Message to Our Customers Following Hurricane Sandy

Dear Customers,

We'd like to offer our condolences to everyone suffering from the after effects of Hurricane Sandy. Our thoughts are with the families affected by the disaster.

As New York works to put the pieces back together, rest assured that DashLocker will be processing laundry as usual. Many of our customers have wondered if our processing was affected by the storm; however, our facilities continue to offer 24 hour access and next day processing.

New Yorkers are famed for their solidarity through times of tragedy, and this instance is no different. We know that many of you are rearranging your schedules and opening your homes to friends and family without access to water or electricity.

If you need to launder extra towels for guests, wash spare sheets, or clean garments wet from the storm, please use this 35% off discount for your Wash & Fold orders until November 17th. Simply enter the code TH1017 into your DashLocker account to use the discount.

We hope that you are all safe and sticking together following Hurricane Sandy. Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions about the discount or our processing.

All the best,

Ariele, Caitlin, Donnyl, Kevin, and Robert
The DashLocker Team