March, 24 2020

In the wake of COVID-19, we are seeing a shortage of medical supplies across hospitals across the country, leaving healthcare workers underprepared and undersupplied as they contend with rapidly increasing numbers of Coronavirus patients.

To that end, Rinse is launching a medical supply donation drive this week. If you have extra medical supplies (see the list below) that you can donate to support those on the front lines, Rinse will collect them and deliver them to local hospitals in need.

Below is a list of items we are collecting:
The following items may be collected as long as they have not been used:

• N95 respirators
• Surgical masks
• Disposable gloves
• Protective goggles
• Face shields
• Surgical gowns, surgical booties, disposable head covers/caps
• Hand sanitizer
• Containers of disinfectants and disinfectant wipes

We will be collecting these medical supply donations using a similar process to how we collect clothing donations.

Here’s how to donate supplies:

1. Place your donated items in an enclosed, non-Rinse, bag labeled “medical supplies.”
2. Schedule a Rinse like normal via rinse.com, our mobile app, or by texting “Y” to 746-73. We will pick up your normal laundry and dry cleaning orders along with any donations during this time.
3. Reminder to please follow our “no-contact” pickup and delivery protocol. We are instructing all of our Valets to maintain at least 6 feet of distance between themselves and customers. Please place your items outside your door and maintain distance while your Valet picks them up to help ensure the safety of yourself as well as your Valet.

IMPORTANT: If you do not have any laundry or dry cleaning at this time, but would like to ONLY donate supplies, please schedule a normal Rinse pickup and also email [email protected] or text 746-73 with the words “DONATE ONLY.”

If you are NOT yet a Rinse customer:

If you have not used Rinse before but would like to donate medical supplies, please take the following steps:

• Create your free account here: https://www.rinse.com/customers/start/ 
• Follow the instructions to schedule a pickup and create your account.  If you would like to ONLY donate supplies and do not plan to use Rinse’s clothing care services, that’s okay. The signup process will ask you to select the type of service you are looking for (just go ahead and select any option) and enter your credit card information, but you will not be charged anything.
• Once you have created your account, simply email [email protected] or text 746-73 with the words “DONATE ONLY.”

Thanks for anything you can donate, and thanks for everything you are doing to help keep us all safe and healthy during this challenging time.

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About Rinse:
Since our founding, one of our core values has been to “Make Mom proud.” During this unprecedented global crisis, we know that both the Rinse team and our customers are looking for ways they can help. We are grateful to be able to leverage our established infrastructure for collecting clothing donations in order to collect medical supplies to support the heroic healthcare workers on the front lines of this crisis.

This past Tuesday (9/10/19), California legislators approved a landmark bill that will require companies to treat contract workers as employees when the contractor's work is considered "part of the main business." In response, Uber declared that they were not subject to the new law because it does not consider its drivers to be at the core of their business.

At Rinse, we feel very differently about our Valets: they have always been at the core of our business and are at the frontlines of our customer experience. To that end, the new legislation doesn’t impact us at all because we have classified our Valets as W-2 employees since the very beginning (2013).

Read our CEO and Co-Founder Ajay Prakash's Forbes article from 2015 to learn more about why it's so important to Rinse that we invest in our Valets and classify them as employees since the beginning.
 

Forbes Article from July 15th, 2015

Over the past few years, there has been a growing debate around whether someone is an employee or independent contractor, particularly in “on-demand economy” companies that require a staff of drivers and other service providers to deliver their product or service to the end customer. The recent ruling by the California Labor Commission on how Uber should classify its drivers has re-ignited this debate. While I can’t opine on how other companies have decided to classify their workers, I wanted to provide perspective on how we formed our opinion on the subject at Rinse in case you are currently thinking about starting a company where delivery is core to its value proposition.

At Rinse, a critical part of the experience we’ve created for our customers is the interaction they have with our Valets (which is what we call our drivers) at the point of pick-up and delivery. Our Valets are on the front lines of the customer experience, so we made the decision to classify them as employees (“W-2”) early on. Depending on how you use your delivery staff, you might decide to take a different approach, but here are three reasons why W-2 status made sense for us — and why it could make sense for your drivers too.

It’s the Right Thing to Do

When starting a company, it’s imperative for founders to remove any friction that may stand in the way of getting their product to their customers to collect feedback. Given that, you want to spend less time early on agonizing over decisions like whether to classify your staff through W-2 or 1099 forms, and instead spend more time on actually serving your customers and improving your product. Even though classifying your drivers under 1099 status is quicker and cheaper (especially since you avoid payroll taxes), it’s important to understand what exactly your drivers will do and how they will do it. At Rinse, our Valets work less than 20 hours per week (which one person told me early on puts us in a “gray area” in the employee vs. contractor debate), but we provide them with a uniform, make their schedule, tell them where to go and when to go there, and supply them with most of their equipment. According to IRS guidelines, those are all indicators that W-2 status is most appropriate for them. If you expect your drivers to do similar things, you might draw the same conclusion that we did.

It’s Better for Your Drivers

Although W-2 status is more expensive for your company, it is much better for your delivery staff in the long run. Financially, they end up paying fewer taxes each year, are compensated for overtime hours and are reimbursed for each mile driven. More importantly, though, it signals to your drivers that they are a critical part of your team (which they are!). At Rinse, we invest enormous amounts of time in training our Valets so they have complete product knowledge to best serve our customers and the appropriate context to understand the importance of their role. This investment has led to better performance, happier valets and incredibly high levels of retention (and in some cases, Valets have been promoted into key roles on our customer experience and operations teams), and is an investment we would be less likely to make if we classified our Valets as merely contractors. As you think about building your team, consider using the W-2 status as a strong motivational tool to get the best out of your delivery staff.

It’s Better for Your Customers

Most importantly, investing in your delivery staff is ultimately better for your customers. One thing I’ve heard consistently from customers since our early days is that we have the friendliest and most competent delivery staff out there. This is because happy employees who really care about their company are more likely to go above and beyond to make sure their customers are happy. In addition, sending a consistent delivery staff to your customers only serves to increase the level of trust they will have in your brand and in your service. At least, that’s what we’ve seen at Rinse.

If delivery is core to your product offering, it’s worth your time to think through how you want to classify your drivers. If you’ve noticed the recent spate of lawsuits against delivery companies that have chosen to go the 1099 route, it might be wise to classify your drivers as W-2 employees today. That said, regardless of how the “W-2 vs. 1099″ debate evolves, make sure you take a people-first approach and take care of all your employees, especially your service staff like drivers, as they are often the main touchpoint for your customers. Remember, happy employees lead to happy customers, and ultimately you need happy customers to even be part of this ongoing debate.

Communications To Date:

March 31, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Washington DC
March 30, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Virginia
March 30, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Maryland
March 25, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Washington DC
March 23, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Maryland
March 23, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Boston
March 22, 2020 - Some more notes on actions Rinse is taking in response to COVID-19
March 20, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in Chicago
March 19, 2020 - Rinse remains open as an essential service in California
March 17, 2020 - Rinse has expanded “no-contact” delivery options
March 11, 2020 - Steps Rinse is taking to optimize prevention

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March 31, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: Yesterday, Mayor Bowser issued a "Stay-at-Home" order to Washington DC residents, noting that only Essential Services, including Laundry Services like Rinse, will remain open. The order is effective as of 12:01 a.m. on April 1, 2020.

We take our role as an Essential Business very seriously during this challenging time. Rinse will remain OPEN for all our customers in Washington DC, (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 30, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: Today, Governor Northam issued a "Stay at Home" order for the state of Virginia, noting that only Essential Services, including Laundry Services like Rinse, will remain open. The order is effective starting, today, March 30, 2020.

We take our role as an Essential Business very seriously during this challenging time. Rinse will remain OPEN for all our customers in Virginia, (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 30, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: Today, Governor Hogan issued a "Stay at Home" order for the state of Maryland, noting that only Essential Services, including Laundry Services like Rinse, will remain open. The order will go into effect starting at 8:00 p.m. on March 30, 2020.

We take our role as an Essential Business very seriously during this challenging time. Rinse will remain OPEN for all our customers in Maryland, (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 25, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: Yesterday evening, Mayor Bowser issued an order to temporarily close all non-essential businesses in Washington, DC starting at 10:00 p.m. on March 25, 2020. Laundry services are noted as an Essential Business.

We take our role as an Essential Business very seriously during this challenging time. Rinse will remain OPEN for all our customers in Washington, DC, (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 23, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: Today, Governor Hogan issued an order to close all non-essential businesses in Maryland starting at 5pm on Mon March 23. Laundry services are noted as an Essential Business.

We take our role as an Essential Business very seriously during this challenging time. Rinse will remain OPEN for all our customers in Maryland (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 23, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: This morning, Governor Baker issued a stay-at-home advisory for Massachusetts and ordered all non-essential businesses closed starting at noon on Tue March 24. Laundry services are noted as an Essential Business.

We take our role as an Essential Business very seriously during this challenging time. Rinse will remain OPEN for all our customers in and around Boston (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates.

Stay safe and healthy!
 

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March 22, 2020

 
At Rinse, safety is our highest priority.  To that end, we are following developments around the Coronavirus outbreak very closely and taking the necessary measures to protect our team and our customers.  Rinse remains OPEN for all our customers in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, and Washington DC Area as an Essential Service.  Please read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe.

What Rinse Is Doing To Keep Our Customers and Employees Safe

During this uncertain time with new information coming in every hour, Rinse is taking every precaution to keep our customers and employees safe.  And we take our role as an Essential Service very seriously.  We’ve implemented the following protocol to protect against any potential cross-contamination:

During Our Pickup and Delivery Process:

“No-Contact” Pickup and Delivery – We have enacted "no-contact" pickup and delivery options so we can maximize social distance between our Valets and our customers to keep everyone safe. No contact pickup and delivery is now required for all Rinse orders. We now have three no contact options available:

• Rinse Drop – Rinse Drop is a service we offer for customers who aren’t home (or don’t want to answer the door right away) when our Valet arrives and it is incredibly well-suited for our current situation where we want to remove in-person interaction. There are two ways to set up Rinse Drop:
  • Rinse Drop on your CURRENT ORDER – If you would like to set up a “one-time” preference for Rinse Drop (meaning we pick up or deliver items at your door without you needing to answer the door on that specific Rinse), click on the link we text you on the day of your order that asks for instructions for your Valet. Select “I can’t come to the door” and then authorize Rinse Drop and provide any special instructions around where we can pick up or deliver your clothes.
     
  • Rinse Drop on ALL ORDERS – If you would like to set a permanent preference for Rinse Drop, you can do that on your “My Account” page under “delivery preferences."
     
• Text your Valet – As you know, you can text actively with your Valet. We will allow customers to request a no-contact pickup or delivery by simply texting your Valet and telling them to pick up or leave your order at the door. Please only choose this option if you are home and able to leave your items shortly before or gather your items shortly after your Valet arrives. If for some reason you aren’t planning to be home, please use Rinse Drop. If you do use this option, please send a photo of the drop-off location if it’s not obvious.
   
• No-contact in-person pickups and deliveries – We strongly encourage our customers to choose one of the above options to ensure truly “no-contact” delivery, but if you need to open the door to interact in-person with your Valet, please be aware that we are instructing our Valets to maintain at least 6 feet of distance between themselves and customers to avoid any contact. Your Valet will now place or hang your clothes outside your door and maintain distance while you pick up your items. If your Valet is picking up items, we ask that you do the same for them. We recognize this will lead to some unusual interactions, but these are unusual times and this is an important change we can make to help ensure the safety of everyone involved.

How you can help: In addition to keeping a safe distance from our Valets, if you have items with special instructions (e.g. an item needs a repair), please pre-separate the item and put it at the top inside of your Rinse bag. This minimizes our need to find the item within your bag.
 

Keeping Our Valet Team Safe and Healthy

In addition, we are working to keep our customers and Valets healthy by supporting the health of our Valets. We are providing our Valets with soap and water, gloves, and disinfectants to use as they work their shifts. We are also encouraging Valets who may be experiencing concerning symptoms to stay home. As W-2 employees of Rinse, our Valets accrue Paid Sick Leave so they are able to take advantage of this benefit as needed. We are in constant communication with our Valets and their safety and health (and yours) is our top priority.

During Our Cleaning Process:

We are taking every precaution we can to ensure the safety and health of our Cleaning Teams as well, and to make sure your clothes are returned cleaned and disinfected. Here are some of the steps we are taking:

• Most importantly, the detergent and heat involved in our normal cleaning processes acts as a powerful disinfectant as we clean your clothes. The CDC has confirmed that laundry detergent and heat from various stages in our Dry Cleaning and Wash & Fold cycles are effective at killing the virus.
• Rinse never mixes customer clothing during our launder process. This was true prior to the COVID-19 outbreak as well. Your clothing never comes in contact with another customer’s clothing throughout the Wash & Fold process.
• Since the laundry detergent we use is effective against the virus, our washing machines are cleaned with each clothing cycle. Absolutely no clothing enters a dryer that hasn’t first been washed, to ensure dryers remain virus-free.
• Cleaned orders are always kept separate from unserviced orders in a polyurethane bag. This helps to protect against cross-contamination as well.
• Rinse Operators, Valets, and Cleaning Teams are required to wash their hands prior to the start of their shift, frequently during their shift, and again at the end of their shift.
• Frequent cleaning of all surfaces within Rinse facilities, trucks, and at our Cleaning facilities. This includes the racks where orders are stored and all customer name tags.
• Our Operators, Valets, and Cleaning Teams are being supplied with gloves, hand soap, cleaning supplies, and paper towels.
• Our entire team, including our Cleaning Teams, are required to follow the same 6 feet social distance protocol at all times.
• At all times our warehouses do not exceed 10 employees on premise, and the majority of time we do not exceed 5 people on premise, while adhering to the 6 feet social distance protocol at all times.

We are in constant communication with our Cleaning Teams as well and are working diligently to ensure the safest process possible.

We hope that understanding our processes and some of the safety measures we have taken helps you feel confident in using Rinse during this stressful time. If you have any questions, feedback, or suggestions, please reach out to [email protected].
 

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March 20, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: This afternoon, Governor Pritzker issued a statewide "Shelter-in-place" order for the state of Illinois, noting that only Essential Services, including Laundry Services like Rinse, will remain open. We are encouraged by the actions taken by Governor Pritzker (and hope to see more of these across the US).

We take our role as an Essential Service very seriously during thie challenging time. Rinse remains OPEN for all our customers in Chicago (in addition to all our other markets) and we are ready to serve you.

You can read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe and follow this blog for more updates. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 19, 2020

COVID-19 UPDATE: Earlier this evening, Governor Newsom issued a statewide "Stay at Home" order for the state of California, noting that only Essential Services, including Laundry Services like Rinse, will remain open. We applaud Governor Newsom for implementing strong measures to help us "flatten the curve" and we take our role as an Essential Service very seriously.

Rinse remains OPEN for all our customers in the Bay Area and Los Angeles (in addition to all our other markets) at this time and we are ready to serve you. Read more below about the actions we are taking to keep our customers and our team safe. Stay safe and healthy!

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March 17, 2020

To our customers,

First, I wanted to send a quick note that Rinse remains OPEN to provide all of our customers an essential service during a challenging time.

Second, I wanted to follow-up on my email from last week. As we all work to navigate the coronavirus outbreak, the safety and health of our team and customers is the main thing on our mind. To that end, we have expanded the "no-contact" delivery options available at Rinse so we can maximize social distance between our Valets and our customers to keep everyone safe.

Effective immediately, we are working to ensure “no-contact” pickup and delivery in the following ways:

+ Rinse Drop – Rinse Drop is a service we offer for customers who aren’t home (or don’t want to answer the door right away) when our Valet arrives, and it is incredibly well-suited for our current situation where we want to minimize in-person interaction across the board. There are two ways to set up Rinse Drop:

• Rinse Drop on your CURRENT ORDER – If you would like to set up a “one-time” preference for Rinse Drop (meaning we pick up or deliver items at your door without you needing to be there on that specific Rinse), click on the link we text you on the day of your order that asks for instructions for your Valet. Select “I can’t come to the door” and then authorize Rinse Drop and provide any special instructions around where we can pick up or deliver your clothes.
• Rinse Drop on ALL ORDERS – If you would like to set a permanent preference for Rinse Drop, you can do that on your “My Account” page under “delivery preferences.”

+ Text your Valet – As you know, you can text actively with your Valet. During this period of social distancing, we will allow customers to request a “no-contact” pickup or delivery by simply texting your Valet and telling them to pick up or leave your order at the door. Please only choose this option if you are home and able to leave your items shortly before or gather your items shortly after your Valet arrives. If for some reason you aren’t planning to be home, please use Rinse Drop. If you do use this option, please send a photo of the drop-off location if it’s not obvious.

+ “No-contact” in-person deliveries - We strongly encourage our customers to choose one of the above options to ensure “no-contact” delivery, but if you need to open the door to interact in-person with your Valet, please be aware that we are instructing our Valets to maximize space between themselves and customers to avoid any contact. Your Valet will now place or hang your clothes outside your door and maintain distance while you pick up your items. If your Valet is picking up items, we ask that you do the same for them. We recognize this will lead to some unusual interactions, but these are unusual times and this is an important change we can make to help ensure the safety of everyone involved.

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If you have feedback, questions, or suggestions on more we can do to optimize prevention and continue to provide an essential service for you during this challenging time, we are very open to it. Please don’t hesitate to reach out.

We will continue to communicate with you during this evolving situation as we make or have any updates.

Stay safe and healthy!

Best,
Ajay

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Ajay Prakash
Co-Founder & CEO | Rinse

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March 11, 2020

To our customers,

At Rinse, safety is our highest priority. To that end, we are following developments around the Coronavirus outbreak very closely and taking the necessary measures to protect our team and our customers.

During this time of uncertainty and increased social distancing, Rinse plans to operate with no interruptions while keeping our team and customers safe. We have taken extra steps to ensure that preventive measures like washing hands thoroughly and disinfecting work surfaces are practiced diligently and frequently across our entire workflow. In addition, the detergent and heat involved in our normal cleaning processes will continue to act as a powerful disinfectant as we clean your clothes.

Here are a few other steps we are taking to optimize prevention:

• For Valets - Our Valets are W-2 employees of Rinse, so they already accrue Paid Sick Leave. We are advising any Valet who has concerning symptoms to stay home and take advantage of this benefit. In addition, we are providing Valets with soap and water, gloves, and disinfectants to use as they work their shifts.

• For Cleaning Partners - We are in constant communication with our Cleaning Partners to ensure they are taking the same proactive measures as our internal team. In addition, to remove any barriers to being fully stocked, we are covering the cost of supplies like gloves, disinfectant, and hand soap for our Cleaning Partners.

• For Customers - We would like to remind you of Rinse’s option for “personless” pickup and delivery (“Rinse Drop”), which may be preferable to you at times like this. Below is a quick overview of your Rinse Drop options:

• One-time preference – If you would like to set up a one-time preference for Rinse Drop (meaning we pick up or deliver items at your door without you needing to be there on that specific Rinse), click on the link we text you on the day of your order that asks for instructions for your Valet. Select “I can’t come to the door” and then authorize Rinse Drop and provide any special instructions around where we can pick up or deliver your clothes. 

• Permanent preference – If you would like to set a permanent preference for Rinse Drop, you can do that on your “My Account” page under “delivery preferences.” 


•  

In addition to the steps we are taking, there are a few things our customers can do to help:

• Please have your clothes ready and in your Rinse bag when your Valet arrives. To optimize prevention, we are advising Valets to minimize touchpoints across their workflow, and having your bag ready to go will help.

• If you have items with special instructions (e.g. an item needs a repair), please pre-separate the item and put it at the top inside of your Rinse bag. This minimizes our need to find the item within your bag.

• Consider Rinse Drop (but only if you trust your clothes to be left alone outside your door). 

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We are continuing to monitor and implement local Health Department and CDC guidance for each of our locations. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at any time.

Thanks for being a great customer. We hope you stay safe and healthy during this challenging time!

Best,
Ajay

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Ajay Prakash
Co-Founder & CEO | Rinse

Rinse acquires OffToYou and continues rapid expansion across the Bay Area

San Francisco, March 9, 2020 – Rinse, the leading national brand in dry cleaning and laundry delivery, today announced that it has acquired OffToYou, a Bay Area competitor located in San Jose. As part of the acquisition, Rinse extended its Bay Area regional footprint by opening up more San Jose neighborhoods and launching Los Gatos and Milpitas.

Rinse was founded in 2013 with the goal of making trips to the dry cleaner and the washer / dryer obsolete while building the first national brand in clothing care. The service launched in San Francisco, and has since expanded its footprint to serve Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Chicago, and Boston. More recently, Rinse has shifted its focus to regional expansion within its markets, including launching its service in the Peninsula, South Bay, and East Bay in the Bay Area within the past 18 months. The acquisition of OffToYou strengthens its foothold in San Jose and surrounding areas.

“Rinse is solving a universal need and a universal pain point, and we’ve always had a clear vision of serving customers in big cities and suburbs alike,” said Ajay Prakash, Co-founder and CEO of Rinse. “We’ve received a tremendous response from suburban customers in the Bay Area and our other markets and saw OffToYou as a great partner as we double-down on those customers and those areas.”

OffToYou was founded in 2015 with the suburban customer in mind. Its founders were able to demonstrate steady growth in the South Bay while bootstrapping the business by focusing on high-quality cleaning, strong customer service, and technology. The company viewed partnering with Rinse as a way to take its service to the next level.

“We’ve looked up to Rinse over the past couple years and have developed a deep admiration for their team and their service,” said Joy Banerjee, Co-founder and CEO of OffToYou. “Rinse shares our commitment to quality, convenience, and supreme customer service, which is why we are so excited to work with their team.”

Rinse has a history of acquisitions in this space, including its acquisition of the customer list of its defunct competitor, Washio and the San Francisco arm of Cleanly, a New York-based competitor, and is actively exploring and evaluating new acquisitions at the moment.

"Rinse is actively exploring acquisitions with several dry cleaners and laundromats. We’re happy to give them an exit path if that’s what they are looking for,” said Prakash. “The key for Rinse is to find the best partners out there, provide a seamless transition for their customers, and continue to raise the bar on quality and customer service in the industry."

Happy National Dry Cleaning Day! Today is a special day for us #laundrynerds at Rinse and a great opportunity for us to briefly share the fascinating history of dry cleaning and the incredible man behind the process, Thomas Jennings.

The History of Dry Cleaning

Modern day dry cleaning can be traced back to the 1800’s when Thomas Jennings (more on Jennings later!) first developed the process known as “dry scouring,” where he would use non-water based solvents to remove stains from fabric. At the time, many viewed the process as dangerous and attempted to stop Jennings from pursuing a patent, however Jennings persevered and his work paved the way to what we now know as dry cleaning. It wasn’t until 30 years after Jennings received his patent that his process became widely adopted. Then, nearly 100 years later, in the 1930’s, the solvent tetrachloroethylene or perchloroethylene (perc for short) became prevalent throughout the dry cleaning industry, causing the next wave of innovation in dry cleaning. Perc is a powerful cleaning solvent, nonflammable, and can be used on many different types of garments without causing them harm. However, today, we know that perchloroethylene (perc) has been known to cause health issues in some and many dry cleaners (including Rinse!) no longer use it.

Thomas Jennings: The Man Behind Dry Cleaning

Born free in New York, Thomas Jennings worked many jobs until he found his footing as a tailor. Highly skilled and well-respected in the community, people would come from far and wide for his services. As mentioned previously, one of those services was dry scouring a method that he patented in 1821. In fact, Thomas Jennings was the first African-American to receive a U.S. patent! With his success as a tailor and the earnings from his patent, he was able to open up his own store, which became one of the largest clothing stores in New York City.

Not only was Jennings an accomplished inventor, but he also fought hard for the civil rights of African-Americans long before the Civil War, Emancipation, and the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 60s. Jennings dedicated much of his life to securing civil rights for his fellow African-Americans, donating his time and money and founding abolitionist organizations. He spent the income he earned from his tailoring business to buy his wife and children out of slavery and continued to put the bulk of his earnings towards abolitionism to free others.

The next time you have something dry cleaned, just remember the amazing man that invented the process and the good he did for our country and his community.