Putting a New Spin on Laundry

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Laundry is a chore that some dread and others relish. And while waiting for clothes to dry may not be everyone’s ideal weekend morning, for some Canadians it’s an expensive ordeal to have clean sheets and fluffy, fresh towels.
Enter For the Love of Laundry, a London,Ontario-based start up helping families in need complete this seemingly-mundane chore.
Melissa Power knows how difficult it can be to scrape together the change, to mention time, to visit the local laundromat.
“I had a hard time making ends meet, so certain luxuries often had to wait, and laundry fell into that luxury category,” the formerly single mom said to The Huffington Post, from London, Ontario, where she founded For the Love of Laundry in 2014.
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A few years ago, Power started making her own laundry soap, in an attempt to save her family money. After donating extra soap to local social service agencies, Power realized that those who couldn’t afford laundry soap, probably couldn’t afford the trip to the laundromat. Power then started selling her soap to grocery stores, using the proceeds to pay laundromats to let residents use their machines for free.
Last month nearly 70 people visited a London laundromat to do three hours of laundry for free. Not only do the families save money, but they also walk away with a new sense of community, said Power.
For the Love of Laundry is based out of London, but Power says she hopes to expand soon to other Canadian towns.