Today we’d like to introduce you to Elyshia Irizarry.
Elyshia , we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
We’re healthcare providers and we have a large family. As busy people we thought we needed help climbing down from the mountain of laundry that was taking over our life. That made us see the need in the community. We couldn’t be the only ones drowning in downy. So, we got a license and some insurance, had a website built and the rest is history. I think we’ve grown at the pace we have in part because we’re local and partly because we believe is customer service. It’s a lost art these days and we strive with every washer load to make people’s lives just a little bit easier. That’s the goal of any small business I suppose; to provide a service or product that makes life easier for people and to do it with a positive attitude.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Every business has bumps in the road. We’re no exception, but it’s been pretty great. We’ve grown really fast and keeping pace with that growth and not letting it affect quality is a huge focus of what we do. I mean, what’s the point in growing ever larger if we can’t offer the peace of mind we’re striving for? We want families and business that use us to have absolute confidence in the work product we provide. We want them to have absolute trust that when they get their laundry back in our The Charleston Laundry Co pink bags, they can just unpack it and put it straight away with no doubts about putting them back on their family.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We offer people their life back. Our goal is worry about the suds so people can enjoy Charleston. In it’s literal sense, we offer a mobile laundry service with a 24 to 48 hour turn around time. Customers book a day with the number of bags they need laundered, we scoop it up that morning and return it most often by the next day’s dinner time. We’re known for using perfume and dye free detergents and being incredibly easy to work with. I think what sets us apart from other companies is the fact that we’re locally owned. We’re a part of the community we serve. We understand the demands of Charleston and Mt Pleasant and Johns Island.
Life moves at a pretty good pace here and Charleston pulls us in a million different directions. Between traffic, soccer games, and work the work life balance is a nearly impossible to pull off when you spend all day Saturday washing and folding 6 loads of laundry. We want people to spend time on the boat and picnicking at the battery rather than swimming through a pool of dirty socks and lint traps.
What we want your readers to know is we’re here to help. Our brand is built around the community and offering the best most reliable service we can. We’re bringing customer service back. Also a large part of our business is dedicated to supporting other local businesses like spas and short term rentals with their linen service. Tourism is a large part of our economy and we have our hand in helping prop that up as well.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
The morning started with that specific, frantic energy of Mom packing the survival bag with sunscreen, lukewarm water bottles, and a crumpled map of the city zoo. At the time, my sisters and I just saw it as a Saturday outing. We didn’t realize we were walking into a core memory.
We spent hours drifting from enclosure to enclosure. I remember the humid, heavy air of the tropical bird house and the way the light hit the lions as they napped in the heat. Mom didn’t rush us. For once, there was no “we have to be home by five” or “we have to hurry” She was right there with us, reading the plaques aloud and pointing out the way the giraffes moved like they were in slow motion.
The highlight, of course, was the feeding station. I can still feel the tickle of a llama’s tongue on my palm. My sisters were squealing and giggling, half-scared and half-thrilled as the llamas leaned over the wooden fence. Mom stood back for a second, just watching us. She caught my eye and winked with that knowing, satisfied smile moms get. By the time we walked back to the car, our shoes were dusty and our hair was wild from the breeze. We were exhausted, sun-dazed, and smelled of animal spit and sweat.
Looking back, it wasn’t about the animals at all. It was the rare, undivided version of Mom we got that day. In the middle of a busy life, she had carved out a space where the only thing that mattered was the three of us and showing us a world bigger than our little town.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thecharlestonlaundryco.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecharlestonlaundry/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/The-Charleston-Laundry-Co-61575086932520/
