Why Laundry Outsourcing Makes Sense

With a pandemic sweeping across the world in 2020, a majority of hotels of all sizes are moving to outsource their linen to cope more effectively with the growing requests of ensuring safe and sanitary linens by guests.  By partnering with an external supplier, hoteliers can remove the stress and costs associated with running an in-house laundry.  With continued increases in ensuring sanitary compliance and cleanliness, it may be better for hotels to focus on their rooms and facility to ensure it’s clean, versus also worrying about laundry cleanliness.

Currently, hotel outsourcing of linen services is far more common in Europe than in the United States, some industry experts believe the US will soon start catching up as it seems to be making more sense for hotels. In addition to the costs of electricity, water and buying linens, laundry output is easily impacted by limited manpower and machine maintenance.

By comparison, an external supplier will have contingencies in place, as well as quality-assurance processes to check for finished quality, cleanliness and replacement linen. Set up is typically simple, with a set service price and costs that vary with occupancy, rather than fixed costs. This makes for a more predictable and manageable budget. Linen stock and management often can be handled online.

Another reason outsourcing is beneficial for hotels is the rising expectations that customers have for enviro-friendly companies and services. Textile service providers can be an integral part of a hotel’s environmental footprint.  It makes sense for hotels to enhance services and the quality of linen products, while reducing labor costs – or using that labor to ensure cleanliness and sanitation elsewhere.