Mobility paves Samsung’s silver path
The Korean giant’s early bet on mobile phones helped it hit the $10-bn mark in India, but in its 25th year it ...
Arunabh Sinha, founder, UClean Concepts
Tech-enabled laundry services start-up UClean is hoping to usher in the ‘do-it-yourself’ (DIY) laundromat culture to the country. The company has roped in celebrity couple Soha Ali Khan and Kunal Khemu as strategic partners and brand ambassadors to promote the concept.
This month, it opened two laundry stores in Delhi-NCR. The start-up had recently raised funds from franchise and retail solutions group Franchise India, and will focus on expanding through the franchise route.
By March, the company is targeting to have about 10 stores in Delhi-NCR and 2-3 stores each in Mumbai and Hyderabad. Consumers can either request for the pick-and-drop facility or walk into Wi-Fi enabled UClean stores to avail themselves of DIY laundry services.
The company expects India to become a big market for the DIY laundromat concept in the long term. “We are committed to drive the DIY culture in India and expect it to become popular like in Western or South-East Asian countries. Soha and Kunal will help us reach out to the target audiences and promote this concept,” said Arunabh Sinha, founder, UClean Concepts.
For the company, the two celebrities are not merely brand ambassadors but also strategic partners. Their compensation structure is closely linked to the company’s growth and scale-up plans. Initially, the company expects about 20 per cent of its business to come from this revenue stream.
Sinha, who founded the company last year, said the firm hopes to enter cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Jaipur, Chandigarh and Kolkata by the year end, and have 50 stores.
“We will have 3-4 company-operated and franchised-owned stores in each of these cities; the majority of our stores will be franchise-owned and operated.”
He said that unlike other laundry start-ups that work as aggregators, UClean has full control over the back-end to ensure quality. The company has also roped in commercial laundry equipment maker Alliance Laundry Systems as its technology partner.
Specialised servicesBesides targeting households, UClean hopes to set up stores in college campuses and also service commercial consumers such as hospitality players.
The company is also gearing up to offer specialised home-cleaning and dry-cleaning services, which it believes will be an additional revenue stream for its franchisees.
The Korean giant’s early bet on mobile phones helped it hit the $10-bn mark in India, but in its 25th year it ...
Antrix should adopt a different tactic than merely fighting over jurisdiction: Experts
Invest in relationships, enterprise, behaviour, effort and learning
From different types of osmoses to new membranes, researchers have come up with ways of drawing water
Only half the Sensex stocks have bettered the index’s return in the last 10,000-point journey
High valuation and stiff competition from larger players are a dampener
Investors with a short-term perspective can buy The New India Assurance Company (NIACL) stock at current ...
₹1490 • HDFC Bank S1S2R1R2COMMENT 1475146015051520 Fresh short positions are recommended with a stiff ...
What makes the new crop of young Indian cricketers such game-changing winners? Over and above their talent, ...
In these isolated times when people yearn for a slice of the familiar, amateur and professional chefs are ...
‘You ready to go to work?’ Joe Biden had asked Kamala Harris before naming her as his running mate. ‘Oh my ...
Writer Narendra’s latest book, rich with vignettes from Bastar and his native village in Uttar Pradesh, ...
Digital is becoming dominant media, but are companies and their ad agencies transforming fast enough to make a ...
Slow Network, promoted by journalist-lyricist Neelesh Misra, pushes rural products and experiences
How marketers can use the traditional exchange of festive wishes meaningfully
For Fortune, a brand celebrating its 20th anniversary, it was a rude shock to become the butt of social media ...
Three years after its inception, compliance with GST procedures remains a headache for exporters, job workers ...
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives of companies are altering the prospects for wooden toys of ...
Aequs Aerospace to create space for large-scale manufacture of toys at Koppal
And it has every reason to smile. Covid-19 has triggered a consumer shift towards branded products as ...
Please Email the Editor