Starchup and Laundry Locker Inc DBA Drop Locker announced March 10th the two companies have entered into a strategic agreement to license Drop Locker’s patents and other intellectual property related to the storage, pick-up and delivery of laundry, dry cleaning and household items to lockers and secured locations.
The agreement permits Starchup to integrate the locker-based delivery tools into the Starchup point of sale (POS) and will extend the rights to Starchup customers, through use of their software.
Drop Locker will also become the exclusive supplier of lockers to Starchup and be named the preferred locker supplier to Starchup’s POS users – including the industry leading, patented Angled Locker design, which maximizes hanging space in lockers and preserves the finish on long hanging items.
Lockers provide a unique extension of a dry cleaner’s business by adding physical presence to locations where customers live, work and play, making it more convenient for them to get laundry done. Laundry lockers can be found in offices, parking garages, apartment complexes or universities. As an added convenience to their customers, gyms, co-working spaces and retail locations, like pharmacy and grocery stores, have installed laundry lockers serviced by the local cleaner. There has also been a trend in the last few years of laundry and dry cleaning operators converting counter stores to locker room kiosks, reducing labor costs and extending their hours of availability to their customers 24/7.
“Starchup customers have been interested in locker-based delivery for a while. That interest deepened through the COVID-19 pandemic as contactless delivery solutions became necessary. As an industry innovator ourselves, Starchup appreciates and respects IP rights and worked with the team at Drop Locker to provide these best-in-class solutions to our customers. We see this partnership as a win-win. Starchup software users can tap into Drop Locker’s unparalleled expertise in locker-based delivery, as both an operator and supplier,” stated Nick Chapleau, CEO and Co-Founder of Starchup. “Consistent with our founding mission, this agreement allows Starchup to continue its work providing technology solutions to cleaners and laundromats to expand and grow their businesses,” continued Chapleau. “This is one of many future moves we’ll be making on behalf of our customers.”
“Drop Locker has long admired the work that Starchup is doing. We are pleased to be working with the team at Starchup as they expand the already impressive suite of tools in their product offering, especially as demand for contactless and convenient delivery solutions continues to increase,” stated W. Tad Jenkins, CEO of Drop Locker. “Their appreciation for our technology is a shining example of how the laundry and dry cleaning industry can partner to innovate and grow, responsibly, together while providing the best tools possible for our collective cleaner partners and the best convenience and experiences to our end-user customers.”
Locker-based delivery for laundry and dry cleaning has been in market for 16 plus years, pioneered by Drop Locker’s founder, Arik Levy, in San Francisco. “Locker delivery for laundry and dry cleaning was a niche for many years, mostly adopted by new entrepreneurs dedicated only to lockers. More recently, traditional cleaners have adopted lockers as an additional distribution pillar, supplementing their brick and mortar counter stores and home delivery routes.,” said Levy. “Established cleaners are finding that delivery to lockers is more efficient for drivers, more convenient for time-starved and convenience-minded customers, and provides a built-in marketing asset for cleaners. It can become a 24/7 extension of their stores.” said Chapleau.
Details of the license agreement have not been made public.
