Newswise — Chicago, IL, July 27, 2022 - The Coin Laundry Association (CLA) welcomed three highly respected industry leaders to its 2022 Board of Directors. Brian Henderson, founder, and director of operations at Wash-Dry-Fold POS, joined as a manufacturer representative. Alex Smereczniak, cofounder, and chief executive officer at 2ULaundry and LaundroLab, and Mark Vlaskamp, partner, The Folde, joined as store owner representatives. Henderson, Smereczniak and Vlaskamp are passionate about serving their fellow industry members and taking on the responsibility of guiding the CLA’s activities into the future.
Henderson, who learned the tools of the trade from his family’s business, Liberty Laundry, created a new laundromat point-of-sale system when he couldn’t find one. The result helped his team grow a chain of 500 stores across the country in 43 states and the US Virgin Islands.
“The CLA has many amazing strengths including lobbying, networking, education, published resources and unity,” said Henderson. “My career in the laundromat industry has benefited from the social connections made possible through the resources provided by the CLA including in-person meetups and online conversations. In my new board role, I’d like to help continue encouragement and promotion of that community spirit, sharing, and connectivity within this industry.”
Henderson’s primary goals and objectives as a director are focused on fostering continuous growth and adoption of technology and providing guidance for CLA’s online discussion forums.
Smereczniak and business partner, Dan D’Aquisto, began their Charlotte, NC-based business in 2016 and expanded it into the Atlanta, GA area. Smereczniak has been building and managing businesses in the laundry industry for over ten years and looks forward to expanding it into more U.S. cities.
“I’ve been impressed by the CLA’s community network that genuinely cares about doing good and advancing our industry for the better,” said Smereczniak. “After attending my first Elevate conference I was absolutely blown away by the organization, the caliber of members, and mission that every member, vendor, and partner is rallying behind.”
Smereczniak said he’d like to bring what he believes is an underrepresented perspective to the CLA board of directors by challenging the status quo and sparking conversations around modernizing the industry while leveraging foundational business practices that have worked for decades.
“Organizations are most successful when they share a common vision but have a variety of experiences and skillsets to ultimately get there,” he added.
Vlaskamp, who also entered the laundry business in 2016, started with a lot of questions that he couldn’t find help with until networking with the community at CLA. He recalls receiving immediate help and valuable resources for his Austin and Houston, TX stores that were critical in operating and growing his business.
“Simply put, the CLA filled the void that I originally hoped the local laundromat owners in town would fill,” said Vlaskamp.
As a result of his challenging experience, Vlaskamp enjoys helping fellow industry enterprenuers and loves talking laundry. He spends about five hours a week helping other owners with digital marketing and new software onboarding, skills he’s energetic about sharing to help CLA reach its wide audience.
“I see incredible opportunity for CLA to leverage digital communications,” said Vlaskamp. “I’d like to help increase online engagement with information that’s distributed to audiences in a meaningful, consumable way. With the constant evolution of the digital world, new needs can be discovered and met.”
The Coin Laundry Association is guided by an all-volunteer Board of Directors. The Board is the policy and decision-making arm of the association. Board members include laundry owners, distributors and manufacturers who serve up to three consecutive two-year terms and, if elected by the Board, a one-year term in each of the Executive Committee positions. Click here to view the Coin Laundry Association Bylaws.
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About CLA
The Coin Laundry Association (CLA) is a national, nonprofit organization, with a membership of more than 300 manufacturers and distributors, and 1,500 owners in the self-service laundry industry. Since 1960, CLA has advanced the self-service laundry industry and improved the customer experience by providing store operators with research, education, advocacy and other resources required to be successful business owners. For more information about CLA, visit coinlaundry.org.
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