Page 208 - Schooley Mitchell Marketing Manual

SCHOOLEY MITCHELL
MARKETING MANUAL
Cheat Sheets – Uniforms and Linens
Manual Revised: April 3 2025 Confidential
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Uniforms and Linens Cheat Sheet
Get pictures of the logo or brand that should be included on garments.
Ask if the client has any garment cleaning requirements (allergen free, bleach free, etc.).
Ask if the client has any preference on garment brands (i.e. Carhartt).
Optional: If the client is strongly considering a new vendor, ask for a list of names of the current staff that have uniforms and how many more may be added to the list.
Briefing Points
Category Pain Points
Incurring minimum delivery charges.
Too many garments being delivered.
Charges for items not actually received.
Long-term contracts.
Perceived lack of vendor options.
Implication Questions
Do you have a method to monitor the marketplace rates for the products you purchase on a daily or weekly basis?
Do you have software to monitor charges for replacement and/or repairs fees?
Do you have a method to identify when you were under or over delivered?
Savings Opportunities
Negotiating to reduce vendor margins or increase discounts for garments and emblems.
Negotiating to reduce delivery fees or other monthly fees.
Optimizing minimum charges, overcharges on garments, and unauthorized repair or replacement charges.
Stories
Multi-location Hospitality Group
Jane is the COO of a locally owned, multi- location restaurant chain. Part of her day-to-day is to ensure each of the ten locations has everything they need in order to operate – so she is certainly a busy person. A significant portion of what they need is their linens, which cost $236,321.68 per year.
Jane had a longstanding, 20+ year relationship with their provider (Alsco) and has been watching her costs increase due to “inflationary” reasons for the past couple of years. Considering there was a contract in place, she thought there was nothing she could do. She was reassured by her rep at Alsco that those cost increases were for their company to keep up with their own costs increasing. On top of that, if they wanted to consider another vendor, there would be a penalty in the tens of thousands ($35,833.37).
After Jane signed our Service Agreement, our Analyst investigated all of the 35 linen items on the contract to ensure they were receiving the best rates as compared to the marketplace. While most of the items were reasonably priced, there were two items that were significantly above marketplace rates. These two linens also happened to make up 61.36% of the costs: fabric napkins and bar towels. We negotiated with Jane’s rep at Alsco, being respectful of the longstanding relationship, to get the best rates for almost all items, with a primary focus on the napkins and towels. Overall, we are happy to say that we reduced the client’s costs, and they were able to stay with their vendor. I’m sure this company will be more than excited to save $62,662.43 per year (26.50%)!
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