After more than a decade growing Tide Cleaners from a single location in Naples, Florida, into a 42-unit operation spanning five states, Robert Lyons is entering a new chapter. Through Consolidated Cleaners, Inc., Lyons and his partners have built one of the largest Tide franchise portfolios in the country, employing more than 550 people across Tide Cleaners locations.

Now, Lyons is preparing to open his first Tide Laundromat in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, bringing the trusted Tide brand into a category he believes is overdue for innovation. By combining a modern customer experience with the operational lessons learned from years in the dry cleaning industry, Lyons sees significant opportunity for continued growth. As he expands into the laundromat space, his focus remains the same: build great teams, invest in people and create businesses that serve their communities for the long term.

1851 spoke with Lyons about his background, what drew him to Tide and his plans for the future. Here’s what he had to say: 

1851 Franchise: Frame your personal story for us. What do you want us to know?

Robert Lyons: We've been involved with Tide Cleaners for more than 13 years now. We started with one location in Naples, Florida. I was the operating partner alongside two other partners. I came from a real estate development background and had previous franchising experience. The story of the brand really resonated with us, and we felt it was a market that was ripe for growth.

Since then, we've grown to 42 locations across five states, including Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio and Kentucky. We now have approximately 550 employees. It's been an incredible journey, and we've really enjoyed the ride.

This Tide Laundromat in Fort Lauderdale is our first location in the laundromat category, which makes it especially exciting.

1851: What did you do before franchising, and how did you decide franchising made sense for you?

Lyons: I started my career as a financial analyst. I worked for a joint venture between Morgan Stanley and Duke Energy, and eventually became a project manager overseeing projects in North Florida and South Georgia.

In 2010, I found myself looking for new opportunities and eventually became vice president of business development for a tile restoration franchise. In that role, I worked closely with franchisees across the country. That's when I really fell in love with the small-business side of franchising.

My father and grandfather were both small-business owners, so entrepreneurship was always in my blood. When one of my partners approached me about the Tide opportunity, it immediately resonated with me. The rest is history.

1851: What made you pick this brand? What excites you most about this company?

Lyons: The dry cleaning industry hadn't changed much in the last 50 years. There wasn't a major national player or any real consolidation happening in the industry. There were larger regional brands, but nothing with the national recognition that Tide brought to the table.

What appealed to us was that Tide wasn't starting from scratch. The store concept was new, but the product brand already had decades of trust behind it. People grew up with Tide. Their parents and grandparents used Tide. That brand recognition was incredibly powerful.

We also aligned with the company's values and the way they do business. Another factor was that we wanted to be in an industry that wasn't likely to be disrupted out of existence by technology. We've implemented a lot of our own technology over the years, but at its core, dry cleaning remains a necessary service.

The laundromat business is similar to dry cleaning in some ways, but it's really a different industry. We saw an opportunity to completely reimagine the customer experience. Traditionally, laundromats aren't places people want to spend much time. We asked ourselves, "How can we change that?"

Like our Tide Cleaners locations, this laundromat is bright, fresh, welcoming and safe. One of the unique features is that the machines automatically dispense detergent, so customers don't have to bring their own products. The detergent is included in the wash experience.

It's the exact opposite of what many people expect from a laundromat. It serves a different customer base than our dry cleaning business, and we saw it as a great opportunity to diversify while remaining within a category we understand well. Given the market opportunity, we believe it's an excellent fit.

1851: What do you hope to achieve with your business? What are your plans for growth?

Lyons: Looking ahead, we want to continue opening both Tide Laundromats and Tide Cleaners locations. We're very excited about the laundromat concept, and it's been very successful so far.

We also hope to continue expanding within the territories where we already operate and potentially grow into additional markets over time.

1851: Is there anything else about your story you want us to know?

Lyons: One thing I'm especially proud of is how much growth we've created from within the company. Nearly all of our managers have been promoted internally.

From our very first store, we still have five of the original 10 employees with us today. My director of operations in Florida started with me when she was 18 years old. The general manager of our laundromat started as a customer service representative in one of our dry cleaning stores.

We really believe in creating opportunities for our people. We value our team members, invest in their development and help them grow their careers.

1851: What advice do you have for people thinking about becoming franchise owners?

Lyons: It's all about the people. You have to build the team from the ground up.

Get to know your customers from day one, and bring your managers along with you throughout the process. When people learn the business from the ground up, they become stronger leaders.

At the end of the day, it's about treating your employees well. If you take care of your team, they'll take care of your customers. It's really that simple. It's all about people.

ABOUT TIDE SERVICES

If it's got to be clean, it's got to be Tide for consumers in the home and outside the home. Tide Services, a subsidiary of Procter & Gamble, is the only out-of-home laundry brand who cleans and cares for all consumers' clothes through a national network of expert franchisees, powered by the most trusted brand in the history of fabric care. Together, our Tide Cleaners and Tide Laundromat experiences deliver a full suite of cleaning services with a combined 220+ stores and additional access points like delivery, lockers, and campus laundry. For more information, visit tidecleaners.com, tidelaundromat.com, or tidefranchise.com for franchising opportunities.