In an email message that Gabriel Mandujano recently sent around to friends and family, he was quick to admit that the opening of a new laundry business, of all things, was an odd career move for someone who studied urban revitalization at
Penn and real estate at the
Wharton School, and who formerly worked as director of
The Enterprise Center's CDC.
But
Wash Cycle Laundry, the sustainable business Mandujano launched last December in West Philly, is certainly not your average, everyday laundry enterprise. For starters, it's "a green, socially responsible business that aspires to radically reduce the water and energy consumed by the $20 billion commercial laundry industry," as Mandujano noted in his email. Every last bag of laundry is delivered by bicycle, for instance, and the all-natural
Sun & Earth detergent, manufactured in King of Prussia, is the only detergent used.
What's more, Wash Cycle Laundry recently relocated into a green, coin-operated Laundromat at the corner of South and 16th streets, where the Wash Cycle staff will be hosting something of a
grand opening party on Feb. 3 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Along with inspecting the new digs, you'll be able to check out the
Energy Star-rated
Electrolux soft mount washers that make the use of driers--which suck up massive amounts of energy--practically obsolete.
Aside from Mandujano's commitment to workforce development, what's next for the company? "It's still a baby, so it's hard to know who it's going to be when it grows up," Mandujano says. "But if the laundry pick-up and delivery works here in Philadelphia, there's no reason why it wouldn't work in Brooklyn or D.C. or wherever."
Currently, Wash Cycle Laundry picks up in West Philly and a huge swath of Center City. Individuals looking for pick-up and delivery service can click
here for details; businesses click
here.
Source: Gabriel Mandujano, Wash Cycle Laundry
Writer: Dan Eldridge
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