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Kentucky IssuesProcter & Gamble Targets Kentucky, Ohio for Car WashesMr. Clean wants to wash your car. Cincinnati-based consumer products giant, The Procter & Gamble Co., is targeting Kentucky and Ohio, including the Louisville market, to open full-service car washes branded under the logo of America’s most recognizable cleaning bald guy. On a Friday morning conference call with the media, officials with P&G’s FutureWorks subsidiary said they are seeking franchisees to open an undetermined amount of car washes. Nathan Estruth, vice president of P&G FutureWorks, said P&G has not yet conducted a thorough market survey to determine where car washes should be located in Louisville. He said P&G officials will make that determination based on feedback they receive from potential franchisees. The average car wash, complete with convenience store, will be located on a 1.2- to 2-acre site, Estruth said. Each car wash would employ between 30 and 50 people, Estruth said. The convenience stores, where vehicle owners can wait while their vehicles are being washed and detailed, feature wide-screen TVs, coffee and soft drinks, car-care products, books and greeting cards. The service industry is a new avenue for P&G, which has a 171-year history of providing some of the biggest names in consumer goods, such as Tide, Dawn, Pampers, Oil of Olay, Gillette, Pringles and Duracell. But P&G officials saw a unique opportunity to leverage their 50-year-old Mr. Clean brand in the $35 billion per year U.S. car wash market. “It all starts with the brand,” Estruth said. “We’ve found that there is great credibility and trust” among consumers. Test Businesses Open in CincyP&G opened two test-market car washes in the Cincinnati area about a year ago, Estruth said. He declined to disclose net income and revenue for the car washes.“We opened these sites as tests and have learned a lot about the industry and the market,” Estruth said. “We’ve been pleased with the results and our learning at these two sites and are now ready to move to the next step.” The franchise fee for a Mr. Clean car wash is $35,000. P&G also receives a 6 percent of total revenue as a franchise fee and 7 percent as a marketing fee. Esteruth declined to disclose the amount of liquidity a franchisee must have to be considered for a franchise. Franchisees interested in learning more about the Mr. Clean car wash business can contact Mike Foster, director of P&G FutureWorks at (513) 983-7950. Information about the existing Cincinnati washes, which P&G will continue to operate, can be found at www.mrcleancarwash.com. Triangle Business Journal - Friday, August 1, 2008. By Brent Adams, Staff Writer |
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