Textile rental companies supply hygienically cleaned, professionally maintained textiles on a rental basis. In today’s operating environment, this service is more relevant and essential than ever. Maintaining tight stock levels and ensuring textiles are regularly cleaned, rotated, and returned benefits all parties involved. This creates an ideal opportunity to review current practices and reconfigure aspects of the business for greater efficiency and profitability.
To operate a highly efficient and profitable laundry—and to be a reliable partner to your customers—you must have a clear understanding of their operational needs and how your service can support them. Gaining this insight allows your laundry to better align supply with demand while strengthening customer relationships.
Now is the perfect time to survey your customers and gain detailed, specific information about their requirements. This helps them manage their operations more effectively while enabling you to improve inventory control and profitability. With accurate data, inventory management becomes smoother, and your laundry can position itself as an integral extension of your customer’s business. A predictable volume of rented textiles moving through both operations creates the ideal platform for maximising textile utilisation and turnover.
Key information to gather from customers includes:
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Room, table, or wearer configurations
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Service frequency requirements
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Occupancy levels and nature of use
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Concurrent or in-use stock at the time of service
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Minimum expected usage across total issued stock
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Maximum order quantities by textile type
One persistent challenge in the industry is customer over-ordering. Transitioning a customer from irregular, excessive ordering to a structured service frequency with controlled variation can be difficult—but it is essential.
Textiles are a scarce and valuable resource and should only be dispatched based on actual demand. Over-ordering can lead to:
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Stock shortages for other customers
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Inefficient processing driven by “urgent” orders
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Deterioration in product and service quality
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Increased risk of pilferage and misuse
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Lost revenue from idle or underutilised textiles
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Escalating textile replacement costs
Understanding why customers over-order is critical so these issues can be addressed at the source. Common reasons include:
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Overestimated consumption expectations
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Lack of trust that the full order will be delivered
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Stockpiling ahead of peak periods
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Concerns about consistency of supply
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Ad hoc business operations and irregular ordering
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Absence of minimum or maximum order limits
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Outdated standing orders or set packs that have not been reviewed
One thing is certain: allowing customers an “open order book” almost guarantees loss of control over textile assets without strict parameters and ongoing oversight.
Contact Bundle today for creative, automated solutions designed to maximise efficiency, control inventory, and unlock the full potential of your textile rental business. Identifying your customer needs can help you significantly increase your commercial laundry productivity learn how it can be done here.
