Date: April 7, 2022
- What do you want people to know about you? Describe yourself in 6 words.
Rechelle : If I had to explain or discuss who I am in six words it would be laundry, dry, cleaning , fashion, lifestyle and technology. -
Tell us your name, your business name or industry, location and description. Why are you in this field? How did you get here?
Rechelle: We provide laundry and dry cleaning services, everyone has dirty clothes and gets dirty, so there’s no shortage of dirty clothes. The laundry and dry clothing industry is 120 billion dollars and in America alone it is 14.4 billion dollars. And in New York City alone it’s one billion dollars… So that was the hook for me. How do I do laundry and dry cleaning? How do I solve people’s needs? And this is where Juliette sits at the intersection of fashion, lifestyle and technology. We went to the market with an app, clients used our app to request it and deliver the clothes within 24 hours and then on top of that we tell the story of clothes and we talk about the relationship people have with their clothes… This is the arousal of inner confidence … Juliette wants to be part of that, this is why we love fashion , we understand your fashion. I believe that our unique approach to lifestyle, fashion, and technology is what positions us to be the perfect category leader to get that piece of the billion dollar market in New York. - What was your single biggest challenge in running your business or working in your industry throughout the pandemic?
Rechelle: You know so much of our business is people going to the office, putting on that suit, going into meetings, going out for social functions. So no office and no social functions means no dry cleaning. Which means for me a 90% loss in revenue… So my single biggest headache is how do I stay afloat, how do I keep the lights on, how do I have hope in a time of hopelessness?… It was so difficult keeping that mental stamina and steering my company through the storm. But I’m really happy to say June,July, August our numbers beat 2019 and we are back on a growth spurt.
- Like the Elton John song, you are still standing. Where does your resilience come from and how do you tap into it?
Rechelle: Resilience to me has to do with survival. So this idea of paying the bills, I have a saying to myself, first of the month rent is due. And I’ve had this mentality ever since I was in high school, which is coming from a very humble beginning. I came to America , my parents were teenage parents, we came over when I was very young and English wasn’t our first language. There was this idea of survival and knowing to stand on your own two feet and figuring things out on your own. That’s where resilience comes from,it is, it has to be done , period! - Any mistake you made that you want to prevent others from making?
Rechelle: Frame of mind is very important, so when I hear “mistake” or “failure” it actually doesn’t enter my brain. In my brain it’s a lesson or reminder and that’s a perspective that helps get me through things. So what I have learned along the way is to not be such a perfectionist. You talk about juggling multiple tasks, multiple responsibilities and there’s only 24 hours in a day. Some things are not going to get done and you have to forgive yourself . Remember that good is good enough , we tend to be our own harshest critics. If it doesn’t happen tomorrow it happens the next day and the next. Our life is an ongoing journey, enjoy the ride !
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Each one. Teach one. Suggest a book, song, course, program for our listeners.
Rechelle: I’m a big fan of this song called “I Was Here” by Beyonce. And thinking about what keeps you going and as entrepreneurs ,it doesn’t have to be just entrepreneurs, everyday we wake up , we do something, we go to sleep. What is that reason to continue to do that thing that we do everyday… I’ve aligned myself and my vision with a hard goal and “I Was Here” talks about that, I want to leave my footprint in the sands of time and she wants to make the world a better place… It’s such a simple ballad but with a powerful message of why are you here on this earth.
