*Complimentary Towel Dry Station*
- Thread starter Waxman
- Start date
I did the Vinegar and the towels still not soaking up the water very good, what is the ammonia based product?
MEP001
Well-known member
I buy the Pro-Force stuff from Sam's and use a half-cup per load along with a double-dose of Tide powder. I run a small load on the lowest water setting and restart the washer before it rinses with no detergent on the large load setting for a double rinse.
robert roman
Bob Roman
"Why Free? Because most SS washes are not fully attended. In a tunnel setting I agree that you should not give it away. In a SS setting it builds customer loyalty and provides a service to the customer when you can't be there."
I guess it depends on your definition of service.
In my mind, as with many other people, a service is something that involves people, employees who perform services/work and customer service.
If you only have wand-bays, you are basically a landlord who rents space and facilities and sells customers water, chemical and energy. The customer does all of the work themselves. You work is building it, taking care of it and stocking it, like a vending machine.
If the wand-bay facility has an in-bay, then you are selling a service because you are actually doing something for customers, automatically cleaning, shining and drying their vehicles.
Like I said, why give it away for free.
I guess it depends on your definition of service.
In my mind, as with many other people, a service is something that involves people, employees who perform services/work and customer service.
If you only have wand-bays, you are basically a landlord who rents space and facilities and sells customers water, chemical and energy. The customer does all of the work themselves. You work is building it, taking care of it and stocking it, like a vending machine.
If the wand-bay facility has an in-bay, then you are selling a service because you are actually doing something for customers, automatically cleaning, shining and drying their vehicles.
Like I said, why give it away for free.
soapy
Senior Member
I will be sure to tell my favorite restaurant to charge me for the glass of water they bring me each time. Why should they give it away for free? Why does a EE wash give away free vac use?
I.B. Washincars
Car Washer Emeritus
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I've been wondering that for several years now. You get these guys with "tunnel vision" that preach customers expect more from a conveyor wash and that IBAs are inferior. Yet, they have to undercut IBA pricing and give something away to get customers to come.
robert roman
Bob Roman
“I will be sure to tell my favorite restaurant to charge me for the glass of water they bring me each time. Why should they give it away for free? Why does a EE wash give away free vac use?”
In my market, during times of drought, many restaurants do charge for a glass of tap water.
If they don’t charge, the cost of the providing the water is intrinsically included in the bill you pay for your meal.
If they served bottled water, most likely the owner would charge because the water is associated with a brand and commands a premium.
Moreover, the restaurant owner could have a small RO and produce, bottle and sell his/her own brand of water and charge a price for it.
I am criticizing the decision to give it away but I do so to point out the revenue and profit potential of doing something else. It is your business, you can do as you see fit as well as choose to ignore what I have to say.
People have free use vacuums at an express exterior mainly because they are following the person who decided to it in the first place causing it to become a past practice that has become widespread and now commonplace to do so.
However, it is not absolutely necessary to do so for a wash to be considered an express exterior carwash business.
In fact, the precursor to express exterior is the exterior-only conveyor that uses a personal selling approach rather than automated pay stations, conveyor attendant and people to towel dry as vehicles pass the dryer nozzles. In most cases, the area adjacent to the tunnel has individual, canister, coin-operated vacuums.
This similar to the business model that is employed at Mike’s Express Wash chain in and around Indianapolis, Indiana and Cincinnati, Ohio with the exception there are no towel dryers, at least at washes I have been to.
Hope this helps.
In my market, during times of drought, many restaurants do charge for a glass of tap water.
If they don’t charge, the cost of the providing the water is intrinsically included in the bill you pay for your meal.
If they served bottled water, most likely the owner would charge because the water is associated with a brand and commands a premium.
Moreover, the restaurant owner could have a small RO and produce, bottle and sell his/her own brand of water and charge a price for it.
I am criticizing the decision to give it away but I do so to point out the revenue and profit potential of doing something else. It is your business, you can do as you see fit as well as choose to ignore what I have to say.
People have free use vacuums at an express exterior mainly because they are following the person who decided to it in the first place causing it to become a past practice that has become widespread and now commonplace to do so.
However, it is not absolutely necessary to do so for a wash to be considered an express exterior carwash business.
In fact, the precursor to express exterior is the exterior-only conveyor that uses a personal selling approach rather than automated pay stations, conveyor attendant and people to towel dry as vehicles pass the dryer nozzles. In most cases, the area adjacent to the tunnel has individual, canister, coin-operated vacuums.
This similar to the business model that is employed at Mike’s Express Wash chain in and around Indianapolis, Indiana and Cincinnati, Ohio with the exception there are no towel dryers, at least at washes I have been to.
Hope this helps.
robert roman
Bob Roman
“I've been wondering that for several years now. You get these guys with "tunnel vision" that preach customers expect more from a conveyor wash and that IBAs are inferior. Yet, they have to undercut IBA pricing and give something away to get customers to come.”
Express exterior owners are able to undercut IBA pricing because they have a strong comparative advantage.
An express wash can have automated pay station that accepts cash/credit as well as having customer loyalty or “wash club” where customers can buy into the program at the POS as well as on-line.
An express wash is typically a long tunnel filled with a high-performance carwash system using the latest technology and wash processes that allows owners to produce many more cars an hour at a lower cost than an IBA. Moreover, express washes typically have a good mix of value-adding, on-line products that helps increase the average ticket as well as putting on a good show.
The wash process takes about 4 minutes start to finish and the vehicle is exceptionally clean, dry and shiny and with multiple POS, there is little waiting even during busy periods.
Express washes typically have an abundance of vacuum stations with wide spaces so customers don’t have to wait or work in cramped conditions. Some will have a canopy to protect customers from the elements.
Sounds like a tough act for an IBA owner to follow and it is.
However, you are not helpless and there a great many things a self-service owner with an IBA can do to minimize the comparative advantage.
Express exterior owners are able to undercut IBA pricing because they have a strong comparative advantage.
An express wash can have automated pay station that accepts cash/credit as well as having customer loyalty or “wash club” where customers can buy into the program at the POS as well as on-line.
An express wash is typically a long tunnel filled with a high-performance carwash system using the latest technology and wash processes that allows owners to produce many more cars an hour at a lower cost than an IBA. Moreover, express washes typically have a good mix of value-adding, on-line products that helps increase the average ticket as well as putting on a good show.
The wash process takes about 4 minutes start to finish and the vehicle is exceptionally clean, dry and shiny and with multiple POS, there is little waiting even during busy periods.
Express washes typically have an abundance of vacuum stations with wide spaces so customers don’t have to wait or work in cramped conditions. Some will have a canopy to protect customers from the elements.
Sounds like a tough act for an IBA owner to follow and it is.
However, you are not helpless and there a great many things a self-service owner with an IBA can do to minimize the comparative advantage.
