Who wants to do the ironing? Not me. And, fortunately
for anyone who is planning on starting-up an ironing service, you will
find that I'm not the only one who doesn't enjoy this domestic task.
Many young professionals, busy mums, single men and just about anyone
who has a busy schedule would hunch into their shoulders at the mere
suggestion of it. But if you enjoy ironing, are good at it and have
the time, you could eliminate this domestic chore from many people's
busy lives and make a handsome profit in the process. Sounds like the
job for you? Then read on.
The first requirement for this type of work is experience.
Although most clothes do have ironing instructions, some don't or some
may have faded. It's no good going on a hunch when you are being paid
to carry out a job to professional standards. Make sure that you know
how to handle delicate fabrics and how to press certain parts of clothing
to achieve pristine results.
Many people who offer an ironing service do so from
their own home, while others prefer to carry out the work in the customer's
home. If you do want to work from home you will either have to arrange
for the customer to drop the clothes off at your house or flat, or offer
a collection and delivery service. You will need a car if you are to
offer a collection/delivery service and you may choose to charge for
this service, or offer it free of charge as a perk to get you started.
Do ensure that your premises are smoke-free and eliminate all odours
from your workplace. Cooking odours can seep into clothes, and returning
garments smelling of your delicious curry or lasagne won't be such a
treat for your client.
Getting Started
So what do you need to get started? A good steam iron
is a must. You will also need an ironing board, preferably with extra
attachments to enable you to iron sleeves and awkward sections of clothing.
Make sure that you have a clothes rack where you can hang all your freshly
ironed pieces to keep them aired and crisp. You can pick up a cheap
clothes rack from somewhere like Argos
but
if you don't have one or if you are ironing in the customer's home,
then do make sure that you have ample space to hang and lay out the
pressed garments to avoid creasing. It would also be a good idea to
buy some spray starch as some men, especially young professionals, like
to have their shirt collars and cuffs crisp.
Apart from general clothing you may be asked to iron
larger items such as bed sheets, pillows and table linen, so do make
sure that you have an adequately sized ironing board before accepting
larger pieces - you may find it very time consuming and difficult to
iron large items on a small ironing board.
You will need to keep all things in order once your
business picks up, the last thing you want to do is mix your customers'
clothes up! Buy numbered receipts to keep all clients items in order
and do make sure that each client's bag/basket/clothing is labelled.
You will also need to buy some hangers for certain items. Wire hangers,
although not desirable, are the norm for most laundry businesses. You
will find that many of your customers will return the hangers the following
week for re-use so you won't have to keep forking out for new hangers!
You will also need polythene bags to cover your clothing to protect
them during transit.
Charges:
Now to the important part, how much will your charge?
Some people choose to charge by the hour, some prefer to charge by weight,
whilst others prefer to charge per item. If you are charging per item
this guide might help:
Adult Shirts, blouses, tops, Polo tops - from:
£1.15 - 1.50 per item
Adult trousers, Jeans, Skirts, Dresses - from:
£1.50 - £2.00 per item
Large items, such as bed sheets and table linen -
from:
£3.00-4.50 per item
Smaller items, such as napkins, towels, baby/kids
clothing - from:
0.70-£1.00 per item.
This is an approximate guide as prices*
differ according to location. To get accurate costings the best thing
to do is check out your local dry cleaners/ironing service company for
up to date prices in your area.
If you're charging by the hour then an average cost
would be £7.00- 13.00 per hour. Charging by weight suits some
people and the average cost for this is in the region of £1.80
per lb.
Delivery Charges:
If you are offering a collection and delivery services
then you could offer a free service if it's over a certain amount, i.e.
over £20.00, and impose a small fee of around £2.00 if the
order is under £20.00 to make it worth your while.
Pros and Cons:
One thing to consider before embarking on a home-based
ironing service is that however much you enjoy ironing it can be laborious
and you will be on your feet for many hours a day. So do bear this in
mind before you take up this type of work from home option.
If you have young children then do make sure that
they are well away from the hot iron at all times and never leave your
hot iron unattended.
Once you've got a good flow of customers and they
are happy with your work, not only will they keep coming back but they
will also refer you to family and friends. This can be a lucrative business
if you put the hours in and market yourself correctly, or simply a good
way to earn some extra cash on a part-time basis.
Don't forget to get insured
You also may want to consider taking out some
Business Insurance.
Although this is by no means compulsory, it will safeguard you against
any damages to clients' clothes i.e burns or loss of garments and any
other claims that my arise. This really is worth looking into as you
may end up having to fork out cash to cover losses from your own pocket
if any problems arise.
Tips on advertising your service
Now all you need is customers, where are they? Get
some business cards printed to let people know about your service .
You can get 250 free business cards printed at VistaPrint
(you only pay for postage and packing).
You can also advertise on free online sites such as
Gumtree
or UK
Classifieds.
Place
an ad on Preloved.
They offer for Business Users a free two month trial and a flat fee
of £23.50 per month thereafter (correct at time of publication).
If you cancel your membership before the two month period is up you
will owe nothing. This is a good way to see if this classified works
for you.
Flyers have proved to be very effective in attracting
customers in this line of work. Get them printed at VistaPrint
for local distribution. Placing an ad in your local paper, newsagent
or library to alert people of your new service is also a good marketing
strategy.
Get Yourself a Website
Create your own website to promote your ironing service.
You can create a FREE professional looking website at Moonfruit.
Income Tax
Don't forget to register as self-employed when you
start your ironing business. You can read our page on Income Tax and
registering as self-employed here.
*correct at time of
publication August 2010
