This Company Bet Everything on 'Laundry Innovation' and Turned Profitable After 10 Years of Struggle

Operator of Laundry Special Forces, a Contactless Laundry Service
Achieves First Half-Year Operating Profit Since Founding in 2015
Targets B2C Market with Membership, Quality Control, and Delivery Infrastructure

#Office worker Kim Areum (pseudonym) recently used the Laundry Special Forces, a contactless laundry service, for the first time. When she inquired at her neighborhood dry cleaner about cleaning her long padded coat, she was told it would cost 30,000 won, so she decided to try Laundry Special Forces and signed up, using a 100-won trial coupon to place her order. The clothes she left in front of her door at around 11 p.m. on the weekend were collected at dawn the next day and delivered back to her door by 11 p.m. that night. Feeling as if she had received brand-new clothes, she also signed up for the paid membership, "Seteuk Pass."

Seteuk Pass is a monthly subscription-based membership launched by Laundry Special Forces in 2023. For a monthly fee of 4,100 to 5,900 won, members receive unlimited laundry discounts (15% for standard services, 20% for premium services) and up to 3% cashback on payments. A representative from Laundry Special Forces stated, "The proportion of Seteuk Pass subscribers steadily increased from 17.5% of all customers in its first year, 2023, to 38.8% this year." The membership-based fixed and recurring demand has become a core pillar supporting the company. The expansion of loyal customers has been the driving force behind Washiswat, the operator of Laundry Special Forces, achieving its first half-year operating profit in the ten years since its founding.

An inspection staff member is checking the condition of clothing at the Premium Specialist Center of Laundry Special Forces operated by Washiswat. Washiswat

According to the industry on December 11, Washiswat recorded an operating profit of 1 billion won in the first half of this year. This marks an improvement of 1.4 billion won compared to the same period last year, when it posted an operating loss of 400 million won, finally turning profitable. During the same period, sales also rose by 8%. A Washiswat representative commented, "Our performance tends to be stronger in the first half," adding, "We expect to remain profitable on an annual basis, even if the increase is not dramatic."

Washiswat highlights its B2C (business-to-consumer) focused strategy as a differentiator for Laundry Special Forces. Unlike Clean Topia, which has strengths in offline stores, and Uisikju Company, which operates the contactless laundry service "Laundrygo" and is recently focusing on B2B (business-to-business) expansion, Washiswat has chosen to concentrate on enhancing services for general consumers.

This strategy has led to investment and growth in premium laundry services. Washiswat separated its previously integrated "premium process" from the existing smart factory and opened a dedicated "Premium Specialist Center" in February. Selected staff with over ten years of experience now handle the premium laundry process in a separate space equipped with specialized equipment. As a result, usage of premium services rose by 9% year-on-year in the first half of this year, and the cumulative volume of premium laundry processed reached 420,000 items. The customer complaint rate for this service remained at just 0.8% over the same period. The strengthening of premium services has also contributed to the expansion of paid memberships.

Laundry items are being transported through the automated conveyor system within the Laundry Task Force smart factory. Washswat

Building on ten years of expertise, Washiswat has also established its own delivery system. The company explains that the entire process, from customer orders to the delivery driver's application, factory WMS (warehouse and process management system), and delivery management system, is integrated into a single data flow. Based on this, not only directly employed drivers but also those using their own vehicles and outsourced drivers are able to improve delivery efficiency through the Laundry Special Forces TMS (transportation management system).

A Washiswat representative stated, "The smart factory itself is no longer a differentiator in the industry," adding, "Consistency in quality through standardized laundry recipes, customer complaint management, and a proprietary delivery infrastructure will be the key factors that determine success in the market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.