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Set in the rapidly growing San Antonio market—CNC Laundry was established by Cristian Cervantez-Watkins and her husband Charlie in 2021. What began as a strategic investment has blossomed into a thriving operation in a city that's become a destination for those seeking more affordable Texas living.
Now four years old, their 2,600 square-foot store houses over 40 washing machines and more than 30 dryers to serve their diverse clientele. The business idea took shape when Charlie was deployed. As he was preparing to return from his military deployment, the couple began exploring potential business opportunities. Cristian and Charlie researched various options and discovered that laundromats typically start with a strong rate of return from the beginning, making it an attractive investment for their savings.
The Challenge
Despite a strong business foundation and consistent growth since opening, CNC Laundry faced challenges in expanding their wash and fold and pickup & delivery services in the competitive San Antonio market.
"We are in an area that's being gentrified," Cristian explains. "We have a lot of older clientele who have lived there for ages. Many of the older homes don't have plumbing infrastructure for washers and dryers. Then you have the newer condos and Airbnbs as well."
While the growing San Antonio market presented significant opportunities, their service breakdown showed considerable room for improvement. Approximately 90% of their business came from traditional quarter-based self-service, with only 8% from drop-off wash and fold and just 2% from delivery services. In a city where laundromats seemed to be on every corner, they needed to stand out. Their advantage was already clear: customers prefer laundromats that are cleaner and well-attended, which CNC Laundry offered with seven-day-a-week attendant service. The challenge was getting more customers to discover them.
The Solution
After a short-lived stint with a competing laundromat management solution, CNC Laundry made the decision to switch back to Cents. Their Cents Customer Success representative Bryan identified a key opportunity: Google reviews could dramatically increase their visibility and business.
Upon returning to Cents, Bryan suggested a straightforward approach to boost CNC Laundry's digital presence. He recommended simple keyword adjustments to their Google Business profile and minor website tweaks that would improve their visibility. The most impactful suggestion, however, was focusing on Google reviews.
"Brian noted that businesses with more reviews appear higher in Google searches," Cristian explains. Though initially skeptical, she implemented his recommendation incentivizing employees who collected customer reviews.
The staff quickly embraced the challenge, having regular customers leave reviews. For older customers unfamiliar with technology, attendants would pull up the review page on their phones and guide them through the process. This straightforward strategy required minimal investment but would soon deliver exceptional results.
To read more from Bryan about google business profiles, check out his guest blog post!
The Results
The results were immediate. In February, CNC Laundry almost doubled their Google reviews. While this growth didn't seem dramatic at first, March told a different story.
"In March, we started getting wash and fold orders twice a day, compared to our usual two per week," Cristian explains. The financial impact was substantial – by mid-March, they had already approached their previous monthly revenue record. By month-end, they had far exceeded any previous month's wash and fold revenue in the laundromat's history.
When new customers were asked how they found CNC Laundry, the answer was consistently the same: "You guys popped up on Google."
Cristian was impressed by the return on such a simple strategy. "Even the smallest amount of work we did on Google reviews made a thousand dollars difference. That alone made us more money in March than in any of our previous four years of operation."
Looking Forward
Building on their Google review success, CNC Laundry is implementing new strategies to sustain growth. They're looking into QR code cards for easier review collection and planning permanent wall placards to encourage reviews from waiting customers.
Beyond digital marketing, they're expanding through direct business outreach. This approach is already paying dividends – a recent door-to-door visit secured a local coffee shop as a regular twice-weekly client. "That's money we didn't have coming in before," notes Cristian. They're also targeting Airbnb properties and other local businesses that need reliable laundry services.
With a solid foundation of positive Google reviews increasing their visibility, CNC Laundry is positioned to continue growing their commercial accounts and wash-and-fold services while maintaining the quality that earned them their reputation.
The Cents Difference
After briefly trying another solution, CNC Laundry's return to Cents proved pivotal for their business growth. Cristian credits much of their recent success to Cents and especially to her Customer Success rep Bryan, who provided crucial guidance on their Google review strategy.
"Bryan has been the person I can text when I need help," Cristian explains. "Everything we're doing makes our business better, but we couldn't do it without someone like Bryan." She particularly values the platform's user-friendliness: "I will continue using Cents because it's so easy—for my clients, for in-store customers, and placing orders online."
