The Price of Being Affordable

From The Playbook

I’ve had a lot of conversations with business owners over the years about pricing.

And it’s interesting how uncomfortable that conversation can get.

We’ll talk openly about rising labor costs, insurance, utilities, equipment, supplies, and everything else that has gotten more expensive.

But when the conversation turns to what we’re charging our clients, something changes.

We start worrying.

Will they complain?

Will they leave?

Will the cleaner down the street be cheaper?

I understand it. Nobody wants to lose a good client over price.

But I’ve also watched owners work incredibly hard to keep their prices “affordable” while the business slowly becomes less affordable for them to own.

And I think that’s the part we don’t talk about enough.

There’s a cost to underpricing your work.

Sometimes it’s the equipment you keep putting off replacing.

Sometimes it’s the raise you can’t afford to give a great employee.

Sometimes it’s the person you desperately need to hire but can’t.

And sometimes it’s you working more hours because there simply isn’t enough profit to create another option.

None of those costs show up on the price board.

But you’re still paying them.

I’ve never believed people choose a drycleaner based on price alone. Trust matters. Convenience matters. Quality, service, and relationships matter.

Price matters too, of course.

But being “affordable” can’t mean building a business that no longer works for the people running it.

A healthy business has to work for the client.

But it also has to work for the team, the owner, and the future of the company.

Sometimes the price you’re most afraid to raise isn’t actually the most expensive price you’re paying.

Make Your Move

Take a look at one area of your pricing this week that you haven’t seriously evaluated in a while.

Instead of starting with:

“What will my clients think?”

Start with:

“What does it actually cost us to deliver this well and build a healthy business around it?”

You may be surprised by how different the conversation becomes.

Your Next Step

If you read this and immediately thought, “I know we probably need to take a closer look at our pricing,” this is exactly the kind of thing we’ll be working on inside Maverick Accelerator.

Over 60 days, we’ll work with a small group of drycleaning and laundry owners to uncover opportunities to create more cash flow inside the business you already have. That could mean improving your pricing and margins, increasing revenue, reducing unnecessary expenses, or finding ways to operate more efficiently.

The goal is simple:

Identify and implement at least $10,000 in new cash flow in 60 days. 

And we’re not just going to give you ideas and send you on your way. You’ll work directly with me and the Maverick team through weekly live sessions, implementation support, and a private Slack channel where you can ask questions along the way. 

If you're ready to stop wondering where the additional profit is going to come from and start looking for it inside your own business, Maverick Accelerator starts October 22nd.

👉 Join Maverick Accelerator
https://www.maverickdrycleaners.com/offers/JakXeFLm/checkout

Your friend,
Dave