history

In the 1920s Universal Laundry began operations for residential customers. They would pick up the soiled laundry in the evenings from the homes in the area and wash them that evening. Then in the morning the still damp laundry would be delivered back to the customers for them to hang or iron dry. Back then it was $0.03 per lb.

In the 1950s as residents got washers and dryers the business model changed to hotels and restaurants that owned their own linens but needed someone to launder and press the linens.

In the 1970s the industry changed again and customers required a wide variety of items and the rental arm of the business was established with North Star. Since that time we have focused solely on the Medical and Food service areas and stayed away from the industrial uniform side of the business called “Oil and Grease” for a reason.

Today North Star is run by two brothers, the third generation of the founder of Universal Laundry. We work from the same location as we did in the 1920s and believe in quality service and products. You will be dealing directly with the following three people: your driver, the Service manager and the owner. Many of our customers have tried the large regional and national service providers and eventually gotten tired of the lack of service and constant turnover of people. We work closely with our customers to minimize their cost by reducing unused inventories and recognizing shortages before they are a problem.

We understand the idea of switching linen providers can be a little bothersome especially with day to day duties. As your provider we will meet with you to determine your past usage history and set-up pars that will keep your supplies adequate but not so large that you are paying for items you are not using. When you convert to our services we will make the first delivery and bundle up the previous providers items so that there is no extra work needed by you. Also every 3-5 months our route men will perform a total inventory that will identify any discrepancies between the invoices and the actual par levels. These will be reviewed with the person responsible at each location and changes in Par levels or inventories will be made.