Dan Crossman, of Platinum Laundry Services, with wife Laura and Rose, three, and nine-month-old William.
Published: August 28, 2020 | Updated: 28th August 2020
You either love it or you hate it.
So says Dan Crossman about the laundry business.
And in his case it’s very much the former.
To such an extent that he’s invested £40,000 in launching his own business.
The 34-year-old ex-British Army engineer is now the proud owner of Platinum Laundry Services.
The company, based at Three Legged Cross, is offering a premium laundry, ironing, dry cleaning and linen hire service for domestic customers and small businesses.
Free collection and delivery is available within a 15-mile radius.
For Dan, Platinum is the fulfilment of a dream to have as much time as possible at home with his wife and young family.
But it was coronavirus which prompted its birth.
Dan, who was previously a self-employed laundry engineer, said: “Work was going really well until the lockdown.
“So turning a negative – Covid – into a positive, it gave me the perfect opportunity to build my own domestic and commercial laundry and be closer to my family.
“The laundry industry is picking up but the upgrades we were doing have been put on hold.
“I didn’t know when, and whether, the work would come back.
“My dream has been to have a job where I get to spend as much time at home as possible.
“Now seemed the right time to do it and I’m pleased at the way it’s building up.”
Originally from the North-East, Dan joined the Royal Signals at 16, spending six years with the British Army as a generator engineer.
“My grandad and uncle were in the army and if, like me, you’re not sure what direction to take in life then I’d highly recommend it,” said Dan who’s married to Laura, 34, a nurse.
“You get to train for a trade which sets you up in a career for life.”
Based in the UK for his six years of army life, it was only after leaving in 2009 that Dan was to spend time in one of the most hostile territories in the world.
Working for a private contractor he was stationed in Afghanistan where his job was to maintain generators and secret communications equipment for NATO and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).
“I loved the job but I suppose it was a nervous time for friends and family back home.
“Many a time I would be speaking to Laura, who was then a trainee nurse, and a rocket alarm would sound and I’d have to get off the phone. I’d then be texting to say I was fine.”
On returning home Dan married Laura and took up engineering jobs with two companies before going self-employed with DBC Engineering in 2018.
One of his key jobs was to run the decommissioning of the former Berendsen – now renamed Elis – laundry site in Castle Street, Winton, in favour of a state-of-the-art facility in Southampton.
The site finally closed in July 2019 and is to become a mixture of houses and flats.
Dan worked closely on the decommissioning with Keith Blackman, formerly Berendsen’s General Manager in Bournemouth.
Keith is now assisting with Platinum Laundry Services.
In fact, more than just assisting.
Dan said: “He’s an absolute rock and I couldn’t have done all this without him.
“Keith is now retired but he just loves laundry.
“Our relationship has got stronger and stronger and his advice, guidance and work has been amazing.”
Platinum is targeting customers across Wimborne, Bournemouth, Poole and the surrounding area.
Services include:
Dan’s first commercial client is Abbots Court Rural Escape at Winterborne Kingston, co- owned by Simon Brooks, Founder and Director of Seventa Events, pictured left.
He said: “As a busy nine-bedroom exclusive country house retreat, we have a fair amount of laundry to get through each week.
“Upon research of suppliers, we found Platinum Laundry to be incredibly responsive, welcoming and professional.
“They are also a local business, something which we are fond of supporting.
“We’ve found them to be incredible, offering a really personal service which many large laundry businesses do not.
“We highly recommend Platinum Laundry.”
Dan, who lives in Ferndown and has two children, Rose, aged three, and nine-month-old William, said Platinum was trying to reduce its carbon footprint, now and in the future.
He said: “We are proud members of an organisation called Carbon Trap which plants Miscanthus (Elephant Grass), a perennial crop.
“While the crop grows it obviously captures the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which is then stored in the crop and soil.
“Once the Miscanthus has been harvested it can then be used for various projects as a bio- degradable solution to replace plastic, packaging and even textiles.
“For the future we are also hoping to invest in a hybrid/electric van for our collections and deliveries.
“We’ve also applied to the Blue Light Card offering 10% discount for the emergency services, NHS, social care sector and armed forces.
“They’re very close to mine and my wife’s hearts.
“We want to support them as much as possible because they support us every single day.”
