Rinse acquires Dryv for its second acquisition of 2020

SAN FRANCISCO - November 17, 2020 - Rinse, the leading national brand in dry cleaning and laundry delivery, announces the acquisition of Dryv, the Chicago-based, on-demand dry cleaning and laundry provider. Dryv is the latest in a series of acquisitions for Rinse that includes OffToYou in 2020, Cleanly’s San Francisco operations in 2019, and Washio in 2016. The acquisition of Dryv marks a significant milestone for Rinse not only in the Chicago market but in its quest for national expansion.

Changing the way people think about clothing care, Rinse offers a simple, consistent, high-quality solution to laundry in seven markets across the United States. The acquisition of Dryv will accelerate Rinse’s capabilities in Chicago and further solidifies Rinse as the market leader and the fastest growing clothing care provider in the Chicago market.

“We’re thrilled to expand Rinse’s presence and capabilities in Chicago with the acquisition of Dryv,” stated Ajay Prakash, CEO of Rinse. “Chicago is a great market and we’re seeing a lot of positive momentum here with demand back up to pre-COVID levels. The timing of this acquisition couldn’t have been better.”

With Rinse, former Dryv customers will now have expanded services beyond Dry Cleaning and Wash & Fold, including Hang Dry, repairs, and more. In addition, Rinse will offer Rinse Repeat, its leading laundry delivery subscription service priced by the bag instead of the pound, as well as Rinse for Business, the first Dry Cleaning & Laundry employee benefit that picks up and delivers laundry at home or the office.

Founded in 2013 with the mission to remove friction from the laundry and dry cleaning customer experience, Rinse is on its way to becoming the first national brand in clothing care. Rinse’s unique approach to reducing customer friction while modernizing the laundry and dry cleaning space has been integral not only to the company’s continued success but in the industry’s evolution to meet the demands of today’s customer.

At Rinse, we give our customers hours back in their week so they time to spend on the things that matter most to them. For example, Rinse Repeat, our subscription laundry service, helps customers save 3+ hours a week –– which adds up!

Today, we’re launching a new and improved version of Rinse Repeat with added flexibility and more ways to save. Rinse Repeat was already the best value high-quality laundry solution on the market and these updates make it even better.

The new Rinse Repeat — Now with Unlimited Rollover!

All Rinse Repeat customers (new and existing) will receive the same award winning Wash & Fold service that they know and love as well as the benefits that allow customers to save up to 56% on laundry over Pay-As-You-Go. These benefits include:

• Flat bag pricing. Save on per pound pricing — if it fits in the bag we'll take care of it! 
• Free pickup and delivery. We'll waive the $7.95 Service Fee on all of your Rinse orders. 
• Free Next-Day Rush Delivery. You'll skip $5 Rush Service fee — every time. 
• No minimum order requirements. Never worry about meeting the Minimum Order value again. 

As of today, customers will get all that, plus Unlimited Rollover so you can use EVERY single pound you pay for! Here's what's included:

• Rollover Bags. All unused Rinse Repeat bags will now roll over each month. They can be used anytime and never expire as long as you have an active Rinse Repeat subscription. 
• Banked Pounds. If you send us less than 30 lbs of laundry, we'll bank up to 10 lbs of unused capacity. For every 30 lbs you bank, you will receive a free extra Rinse Repeat bag to use anytime!

In addition, you can now track the pounds you bank on the newly redesigned Rinse Repeat subscription management dashboard via your My Account page.

Unlimited Roller – How it works

Rollover Bags

We know there are some months where you might not have as much laundry. Don't worry! Any unused Rinse Repeat bag rolls over to the next month and can be used any time. There is no limit to the number of Rollover Bags you can have, and they never expire as long as you have an active Rinse Repeat subscription.

Banked Pounds

Unused bag space is banked in your Rinse Account, up to 10 lbs per bag. For every 30 lbs of laundry you bank, you will receive a free extra Rinse Repeat bag that you can use anytime!

Here’s how it works: if you give us 30+ lbs in your Rinse Repeat bag, we treat that as a full bag. If you send less than 30 lbs, we will bank up to 10 lbs of unused capacity to be saved in your Rinse account. As soon as you bank 30 lbs, one free extra Rinse Repeat bag will automatically be added to your account.

We're excited to introduce Unlimited Rollover to all of our current and new Rinse Repeat customers, adding even more value to our Rinse Repeat service. Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected].

Rinse Election Updates To Date:

Rinse is Closed on Election Day 2020

Voter turnout is important every year and is especially critical this November with many important elections at stake. To that end, Rinse will be closed on Election Day (Tuesday, 11/3) to ensure our team can vote in-person if they choose.

Please see below for our updated service schedule. If you have any questions, you can reach us at [email protected]. 

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Rinse Will Facilitate Participation in the Big Send Led by Vote Forward

This election season we’re continuing to #MakeMomProud and help any way we can. That is why we’re excited to report that members of the Rinse team are participating in the Big Send -- a nonpartisan initiative to increase voter turnout by sending 15 million personalized letters to under-represented groups across the nation.

Multiple randomized experiments have shown that Vote Forward’s hybrid handwritten / typed letter templates are effective at increasing voter turnout. Learn more about the Big Send here! 

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Rinse Has Partnered with the Civic Alliance and Joined Power the Polls

At Rinse, one of our core values is to “Make Mom Proud.” With Election Day right around the corner, we are focused on doing just that by getting involved and helping out where we can.

To that end, Rinse will be closing service on Election Day (Tue 11/3) and giving all of our employees a paid holiday. We will send an email closer to the date with an updated service schedule for that week.

In addition, we are working with a few great organizations to help ensure everyone who wants to vote will be able to. We’re excited to tell you about one of those partnerships below!

(If you haven’t already, don’t forget to register to vote. It's easy and takes less than 2 minutes!)

Rinse x Power the Polls

Rinse has partnered with the Civic Alliance and joined the Power the Polls initiative to recruit a new generation of poll workers for this year’s elections. 

You may not know it, but America is facing an unprecedented shortage of poll workers. 

Many workers from previous elections are over the age of 60 and due to their heightened risk from COVID-19, cannot work the polls this year. With more than half of the U.S. electorate expected to vote in person, communities around the country need help.  

If you are interested and able to support your community by serving as a poll worker, please sign up using this link or share to help spread the word. Note that poll workers receive PPE, training, and payment.

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Voter Registration Info for Rinse Customers

Boston: Register to vote in Massachusetts
Chicago: Register to vote in Illinois
San Francisco and Los Angeles: Register to vote in California
Washington, D.C.: Register to vote in Washington, D.C.

Boston - What You Need to Know to Vote in Massachusetts

• 10/17 - 10/30: early voting period
• 10/24: the deadline to register online to vote (register here in 2 minutes or less!)
• 10/28: the deadline to request a ballot by mail (by 5 p.m.) 

Who Can Vote in Massachusetts 

To register to vote in Massachusetts you must: 

• be a citizen of the United States
• be a resident of Massachusetts
• be at least 16 years old (must be 18 years old to vote on Election Day)
• not have been convicted of corrupt practices in respect to elections
• not be under guardianship with respect to voting
• not be currently incarcerated for a felony conviction

To learn more about voting in Massachusetts, visit the state's resource page here. 

Chicago - What You Need to Know to Vote in Illinois

• 9/24 - 11/2: early voting period
• 10/18: the deadline to register online to vote (register here in 2 minutes or less!)
• 10/29: the deadline to request a ballot by mail

Who Can Vote in Illinois

To register to vote in Illinois you must: 

• be a citizen of the United States
• be a resident of Illinois and of your election precinct at least 30 days before the next election
• be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
• cannot be serving a sentence of confinement in any penal institution as a result of conviction of any crime
• not claim the right to vote anywhere else

To learn more about voting in Illinois, visit the Illinois State Board of Election's page here. 

San Francisco and Los Angeles - What You Need to Know to Vote in California

• 10/5 - 11/2: early voting period
• 10/19: the deadline to register online to vote (register here in 2 minutes or less!)
• 10/19: the deadline to request a ballot by mail (must be postmarked by 10/19)

Who Can Vote in California

To register to vote in California you must: 

• be a United States citizen
• be a resident of California
• be at least 18 years old or older on Election Day
• not be currently in state or federal prison or on parole for the conviction of a felony
• not be currently found to be mentally incompetent to vote by a court

To learn more about voting in California, visit the Secretary of State's resource page here. 

Washington, D.C. - What You Need to Know to Vote in Washington, D.C.

• 10/27 - 11/2: early voting period
• 10/13: deadline to request a ballot by mail
• Reminder, you cannot register to vote online in WDC

To learn more about voting in Washington, D.C., visit the DC Board of Elections' resource page here. 

Who Can Vote in Washington, D.C.

To register to vote in Washington, D.C. you must: 

• be a citizen of the United States
• be a be a resident of the District of Columbia
• maintain residency in the District of Columbia for at least 30 days prior to the election in which you intend to vote
• not claim voting residence or the right to vote in another U.S. state or territory
• be at least 17 years old (You may register to vote if you are at least 16 years old. You may vote in a primary election if you are at least 17 years old and you will be at least 18 years old by the next general election. You may vote in a general or special election if you are at least 18 years old).
• not be in jail for a felony conviction
• not have been found by a court to be legally incompetent to vote

This year's elections are incredibly important for a number of reasons, and not surprising for #2020, they will also be a bit different than many we've seen in the past. Typically, most of the energy prior to an election is spent on persuasion - e.g. how can you convince voters to support your candidate (some of you are probably trying to do that with family and friends right now!) - but the interesting thing about this year's election is that it's less about persuasion and much more about mobilization.

It has become increasingly clear that Voter turnout will decide the election.

Like many of you, Rinse has been thinking about how we can help mobilize voters over the next 35 days. Below are a few things we are doing:

1. Rinse is closing service on Election Day (11/3) and giving our employees a paid holiday. We typically only close around July 4th, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve. This year, we will be closed on Election Day so we can give our team time to vote, to volunteer as a poll worker, or to just enjoy the day off.
2. Rinse has joined the Civic Alliance, a nonpartisan coalition that provides valuable tools, resources, events, and partnership opportunities to companies to help them engage employees and consumers as active participants in civic life.
3. Rinse has partnered with Power The Polls to help address the impending poll worker shortage this year.
4. Rinse will facilitate participation in the “Big Send” led by Vote Forward. Vote Forward is an organization that focuses on sending letters to drive voter turnout (a surprisingly effective approach). They have set October 17th as the "Big Send" date to maximize voter turnout.
5. I am personally supporting the Voter Participation Center and exploring ways that Rinse might be able to as well. Their only goal is to turn non-voters into voters.

Note that all of the organizations above are nonpartisan and primarily focused on voter turnout. Involvement in any of the above efforts is 100% optional for our employees (except for taking the day off ... they've earned it!) - our goal is simply to #MakeMomProud and facilitate ways our team and customers can help.

To stay up-to-date on our election initiatives, visit our blog page here.

Check out Rinse’s Co-Founders, Ajay and James, episode of NPR’s How I Built This with Guy Raz as part of the Resilience Series.

How I Built This is a very popular podcast about "innovators, entrepreneurs, idealists, and the stories behind the movements they built" produced by NPR. The Resilience Series focuses on Guy’s conversations with founders and entrepreneurs about how they're navigating turbulent times, including Airbnb, Hello Sunshine, DreamBox, and now Rinse!

In the episode, Ajay and James discuss with Guy how to start a business and choose the right Co-Founder, how Rinse’s business model works, and how Rinse’s core values have been guiding Rinse through the challenges of COVID-19. Download the episode or watch the full video interview below!

Download the audio podcast here.

Watch the video podcast:

Depending on your lifestyle you may need access to a dry cleaner regularly, particularly if you work in an office environment with a dress code or frequent social outings that require formal wear. Finding a trustworthy dry cleaner near you should not be taken lightly. After all, you are trusting the cleaners with your wardrobe which costs money, and ultimately can affect how you look and feel each day.

We put together a list of the top factors you should consider when choosing a dry cleaner near you in order to help you find the best option nearby.

1.) Cleaning Quality

Arguably the most important factor to consider when searching for a cleaner nearby is determining whether or not the cleaner is able to provide you with high-quality, professional cleaning. The easiest way to find this out is to try the cleaner yourself. If you choose to do so, it might be a good idea to start small and only provide a few clothing items that are relatively easy to clean, such as dress shirts. This way, you’re not putting too much of your wardrobe at risk.

Otherwise, we recommend doing your research on the cleaner to find out how long they have been in business and what their customers say about them. Sites such as Yelp! are helpful because customers are able to leave a review and post photos, which gives you a preview of what the service is like at the prospective cleaner.

Additionally, cleaners may have a website where they provide a brief description of their experience and list reasons why they are the right cleaner for you.

At Rinse, we have decades of cleaning experience. Our Co-founder James Joun has been in dry cleaning for over 30 years. As such, we know what it takes to provide high-quality cleaning and have been doing so for many years in several locations.

Another way to find out if a dry cleaner is able to provide you with high-quality cleaning is by asking them questions. (HINT: if you need to ask Rinse a question you can email us anytime at [email protected].)

For example, you can bring in an item that you know will need extra care and attention, such as a formal dress with ornamentation, and ask the cleaners how they would handle the cleaning process. By doing so, you’ll gain a better understanding of how knowledgeable the cleaner is and it will help you determine if they are able to provide you with quality cleaning service that you can trust.

2.) Accessibility

Finding a dry cleaner that is accessible for you and your schedule is another important factor to consider. Many dry cleaners are only open during normal business hours (e.g. 9am to 5pm). If you do find a cleaner near you, may have to navigate parking or the lack thereof. However, this schedule causes issues for most of us since we typically work during the day. Spending precious minutes before or after work to drive to the cleaners isn’t a great use of your time either.

In addition, you will want to find out if any cleaners near you offer a delivery service. If they do, they may only deliver during the day which isn’t helpful if you work or they may only deliver within a certain radius.

Rinse has addressed these two major pain points to make dry cleaning more accessible and easier than ever. We offer door-to-door pickup and delivery 7 days a week between 8pm and 10pm. With this schedule, our customers are able to fit dry cleaning into their daily routine.

3.) Damage Policies

Accidents and mistakes happen to the best of us, including professional cleaners. If your next cleaner inadvertently loses or damages your items it’s important to understand how the cleaner will handle the situation and what your options are as their customer.

While reputable cleaners rarely lose or damage items, they might have policies in place just in case the worst-case scenario does happen.

At Rinse, we have the best guarantee on the market. In the rare instance that an item goes missing or is damaged during the cleaning process, we will provide reimbursement for up to the full value of that item ($1,000 max per order), in accordance with our terms and conditions.

Furthermore, if you’re not satisfied with the cleaning of your clothes, we will re-clean them — free of charge.

4.) Additional Services

While you may be in the market for dry cleaning today you never know what you might need in the future. Finding a cleaner near you that does more than just dry cleaning is valuable because it will save you time from having to search for another cleaner and perhaps even save you money depending on the type of service you’re looking for.

It’s rather difficult for dry cleaners to offer laundry services but you may be lucky and live near one that offers both laundry and dry cleaning.

Another reason why Rinse is a leader in the clothing care industry is that we offer a variety of services including Wash & Fold, Hang Dry, Dry Cleaning, Launder & Press, Repairs, and Leather Cleaning.

Many of our Dry Cleaning customers end up using us for Wash & Fold and vice versa. You may need a cleaner that is versatile sometime in the future so finding a cleaner that offers several services now as opposed to later can save you time in the long-run.

Perhaps you are already thinking of this given what has transpired as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Now more than ever, door-to-door services are becoming much more important. Rinse will continue to a leader in the space and provide door-to-door delivery service to those who need it

Choosing a dry cleaner near you shouldn’t just be based on the proximity of the cleaner to your home — it’s a decision that should take into account everything from pricing, convenience, experience, and quality.