GreenEarth In the News

2/3/2010

Genuinely Green - NATIONAL CLOTHESLINE
National Clothesline

You don’t even have to walk into the Nashville-based drycleaning plant owned and operated by Surendra and Carolyn Kumar to know that protecting and preserving the environment is one of its chief considerations. After all, the name out front says it all: Oakwood The Greener Cleaner.

It is important to the couple that they remain as green as possible while washing away the bacteria and stains from clothes; but one thing they don’t like is the practice of “greenwashing.”

The term refers to the recent trend where businesses have disingenuously marketed themselves as environmentally friendly to try to appeal more to customers. However, the Kumars believe that most people know when they are being deceived in such a way.

“There are a lot of cleaners out there who like to call themselves organic,” said Surendra. “People are smart. The public is smart. That’s why the term ‘greenwashing’ is out there...”

“...because people lie,” added Carolyn, finishing the sentence.

“Every chance we get as we buy new things, we’re looking at the possibility where it is a green method— can we do this?” Surendra said.

Not only does the plant use two GreenEarth drycleaning machines for the lion’s share of its work (and wetcleans the remaining 40 percent), it also incorporates a hanger recycling program, biodegradable packaging, biodiesel in its delivery vans, and it uses recycled materials whenever possible.

The list goes on and on, mainly because Surendra and Carolyn are constantly looking for ways they can improve every aspect of the business.

“I try to always continually learn from drycleaners who are bigger and better than I am,” Surendra noted.

So far, the strategy has proved to be quite effective. Oakwood The Greener Cleaner has earned Five-Star certified Couture Cleaner status for the prestigious group Leading Cleaners Internationale.

“What that tells the consumer is that we go through multiple levels of inspection and quality control,” Surendra explained. “I remember when we were just another drycleaner. For example, just pressing a shirt would mean you press a shirt, it comes out of the press and you put it on a hanger, bag it and it’s out the door. Now, we check every button by putting pressure on it. We touch up every shirt. I don’t know what the average market in Nashville is... I’m sure it’s under $2 and we charge $3.59 for a preferred shirt. They are going to get the best shirt they can for that price.”

Such attention to detail has helped the company become the cleaners of choice for numerous high end custom clothing retail stores in the region, including Jamie’s, Coco’s, Gus Mayer, Levy’s, J. Michaels, Faccio Bridal, The Bride Room, Tom James and Custom Rags.

Sometimes that means sacrificing production numbers a bit in order to ensure no final quality is every compromised.

“Most drycleaners can probably get through 30 to 40 pants an hour,” Surendra said. “We may get 10 or 12 because we press the linings. We press the cuffs. We inspect the cuffs, the waist band… everything is done by the book. This is something that everybody should do, but unfortunately most don’t. Those are the kinds of things we do and that’s what our customers see at the end of the day.”

Neither Surendra or Carolyn have had any family members in the drycleaning industry, but both have been in it since the mid-1980s. Carolyn is originally from Batavia, NY, and moved with her family to Knoxville, TN, when she was 17. She later attended Pellissippi State and studied drafting.

“I worked at a drycleaners while I was going to school. It was just a job,” she recalled.

Meanwhile, Surendra, who was born in Sri Lanka, grew up in India where he eventually earned a medical degree from Madras College. After moving to Nashville in 1984, however, he found himself struggling to pursue his post-graduate studies in America.

“It was just a very tough time for foreign medical students to get into a program,” he said. “I met another doctor who was in the same boat I was. We were both trying to get into a post-graduate program and he and I decided to buy a business to keep going while we were still trying. The least expensive business we could buy from a broker was a run-down drycleaners.”

The name of the business was Majestic Cleaners and Surendra used perc back then. He learned an early lesson about the importance of being environmentally conscious.

“We were actually shut down a few weeks into owning the business. The city came and shut us down,” Surendra recalled. “We didn’t know that they had actually given the previous owner notices. So, we learned very quickly just by reading National Clothesline and different sources that there was an emerging technology of a closed system... a dry-to-dry refrigerated system.”

Shortly after, Majestic became the first cleaners in Nashville to incorporate the new technology.

“When we first opened, we were probably buying a couple hundred gallons of perc,” he added. “I think, in the following year, we ended up buying about 60 gallons of perc.”

Because nobody sold the machine locally, Surendra had to travel to Florida to purchase it. Thus, he decided to become a local equipment dealer under the umbrella title of Majestic Equipment, Co.

Several years later, Surendra sold equipment to Suburban Cleaners which Carolyn was managing. That was in early 1982. Four months later, the couple married.

The couple complemented each other perfectly when it came to setting up new package plants.

“He would sell the equipment. I would do the drawings for the plant. We would install them together,” Carolyn recalled.

By the late 1990s, the couple wanted to slow down. Traveling 50,000 to 60,000 miles a year didn’t seem conducive to starting a family and the couple had begun the adoption process in India for their daughter, Nina. The obvious solution was to buy a plant that Surendra had designed over a decade earlier: Oakwood Cleaners.

“I really wanted to take all of the years of installing plants and learning from some of the biggest plant owners in the country,” Surendra said. “I wanted to bring that to Nashville. I wanted to become the drycleaners that people would seek out.”

Many brides-to-be certainly seek out Oakwood these days. They come armed with prized heirloom wedding dresses that need to be transformed into pristine condition in time for matrimonial vows to be exchanged.

The plant has successfully handled $15,000 couture gowns and Communion dresses that hail from as far back as the mid to late 18th century. The work can be demanding and difficult, but it’s also quite rewarding. There are also a few pleasant surprises thrown in on occasion.

“They checked the pockets at the counter of this velvet jacket and it had the card in it from the CMA (Country Music Association) Awards,” Carolyn said. “It wasn’t a ticket. It was an award card, you know — This award goes to... And, of course, the star called and said they had left the card in their pocket. We sent it back. They wanted to frame it.”

Being in Nashville, Oakwood The Greener Cleaner has more than its share of celebrity clientele, including many country music legends. That leads to a lot of expensive outfits (often covered in rhinestones).

To keep their employees ahead of the cleaning curve, the Kumars often attend trade association classes with employees and they hire consultants like Fran Sadler to train.

“When it comes down to one thing that Carolyn and I are very passionate about, it is making sure that we treat our employees really well,” Surendra said. “That’s why we offer training and continue to break bread with them as often as we can.”

During last year’s uphill economy, Oakwood’s employees were willing to do whatever it took to remain on board.

“We had several employees basically ask to keep their jobs and just work less hours,” Carolyn added. “We have a really good culture here. Integrity has a lot to do with it, just being honest.”

The employees enjoy the challenges and the familial atmosphere. The customers enjoy the respect for the environment and the dedication to quality. That impressive combination has lead to a lot of positive word-of-mouth advertising and positive publicity.

Recently the Kumars have explored social media in an effort to see if they can spread their business through word-of-mouth electronically, as well.

Though still novices when it comes to the technology, the Kumars have already reaped some benefits.

“Some reporter followed me on Twitter and tweeted me and asked if she could do a story on me,” Surendra explained. “I never sent a press release or anything. That was just from somebody following me on Twitter, being fascinated by the fact that I was present and what other people were saying about the business.”

The article eventually lead to a significant influx of high end work.

“At the end of the day all of that comes together,” a content Surendra said. In fact, he has never once regretted changing from medicine to drycleaning. “God’s really lead us to where we are. I truly believe this is what I was meant to do.”

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