Lapels Dry Cleaning Clothing Drive (May 5 – 13) benefits the Big Brothers Big Sisters Foundation.

Lapels Dry Cleaning CEO Lawrence Friedman is keeping his fingers crossed. Over FOUR TONS of clothing was collected during Lapels’ semiannual clothing drive for the Big Brothers Big Sisters Foundation last fall. Will Lapels franchisees and their generous customers be able to keep up the pace, again doubling donations?

The challenge is on! Lapels’ Spring Clothing Drive benefiting the Big Brothers Big Sisters Foundation will be held from Saturday May 5 through Sunday May 13 (Mother’s Day).

Aiding and abetting Lapels in its quest is simple. Start now and clean out your closets before May 5 rolls around. Then, take your gently worn clothing and extra households linens to your local Lapels store during regular business hours and place in the receptacles designated for Big Brothers Big Sisters donations. Clothes for "littles", clothes for "bigs" – all types of clothing as well as sheets, blankets and towels are welcome.

Lapels customers are looking forward to the drive, as this note illustrates, "We definitely want to support your efforts if you are involved again this year. Please let us know if Lapels is involved again this year. Thank you."

Friedman is amazed by the generosity of Lapels’ customers. "When we started these semiannual drives 2 years ago, I never would have envisioned collecting so many TONS of clothes! Having been a "big" (big brother) for years, I personally know how much this clothing drive can benefit all of the "littles" served by the Big Brother Big Sister program. I hope all of the communities served by Lapels will pitch in and make this our biggest clothing drive yet."

The more clothing collected, the more kids that can be helped through the Big Brothers Big Sister Foundation. Big Brothers Big Sisters will pick up the gently used clothing collected by Lapels and distribute it to consignment shops, using the proceeds from the sales of these items to support their mission to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships.

Lapels Community Commitment
Being a good neighbor isn’t just a slogan at Lapels, where community involvement is quickly becoming a tradition. The upcoming Clothing Drive is a semiannual event benefiting the Big Brothers Big Sisters Foundation, with more stores than ever participating. In addition to conducting clothing drives, Lapels has also worked in conjunction with the American Red Cross to encourage blood donations through campaigns in their stores, and by sponsoring blood drives as well.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters
Big Brothers Big Sisters serves over 200,000 children, ages 6 through 18, in 5,000 communities across all 50 states, establishing successful mentoring relationships for all children who need and want them, contributing to better schools, brighter futures, and stronger communities for all. Big Brothers Big Sisters one-to-one mentoring makes a huge difference for the youth it serves by helping at-risk youth overcome the many challenges they face.

A Rising Star
In 2005, Lapels was ranked in Entrepreneur’s "Franchise 500" as well as Entrepreneur’s "Top 50 New Franchises," identifying Lapels as one of today’s top franchise opportunities. Entrepreneur's "Franchise 500" is the best and most comprehensive rating of franchises in the world and is based on objective, quantifiable measures of a franchise operation.

The Lapels Difference
With Lapels’ unique outsourcing advantage, Lapels storeowners outsource dry cleaning operations, providing the best possible service and quality to customers while caring for the environment. With the establishment of franchisee owned Lapels Earth Friendly dry cleaning plants in Massachusetts, Lapels retail store franchisees will have unprecedented access to wholesale dry cleaning that meets Lapels rigorous standards, providing better quality at a better price.

Lapels franchise owners benefit from exclusive territories, group purchasing power, job security and unlimited earning potential. Lapels offers franchisees full training and support in every aspect of the business and a comprehensive start-up package that includes: a point-of sale computer system; an automatic clothing conveyer; a wedding gown program; retail products to sell; indoor and outdoor signage with all needed permits; a grand opening marketing package; and advertising promotion to 10,000 homes. Lapels also provides franchisees a custom web site with email, on-going training and support, custom counters, start up supplies, and much more.

Store Locations
Lapels has stores in Massachusetts (Abington, Bedford, Boston-Back Bay, Boston-Charles River Park, Brighton, Concord, Dedham, Easton, Framingham, Halifax, Hanover, Lynnfield, Newtonville, Norton, Quincy, Randolph, Salem, Sudbury, Taunton, Westford, and Westwood); Rhode Island (Greenville and Lincoln); California (Ponoma); Louisiana (Baton Rouge); Texas (Garland); and Washington (Kirkland). Lapels is also coming soon to Cape Cod, MA; Arlington, TX; Peoria, AZ; and Washington, DC.

Lapels – Earth Friendly Cleaners
A full slate of services are offered at each Lapels store, including: same-day dry cleaning; shirt service; tailoring; shoe repair; wedding gown heirlooming; suede and leather processing; box storage and fur storage.

Lapels corporate offices are located at 962 Washington Street, Hanover, MA 02339. To learn more about franchise opportunities with Lapels, call toll free (866) 695-2735 or email admin@lapelsdrycleaning.com. Additional information and up-to-date company news can also be found on the company’s Web site, www.lapelsdrycleaning.com.