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David Lavalle is a self-described “serial entrepreneur” and no stranger to franchising. He founded home service franchise Mr. Handyman in 1996, which he sold to Service Brands International four years later. (The Dwyer Group, now Neighborly, bought all Service Brands International affiliated franchises in 2015.)
During his time at the head of Mr. Handyman, however, he noticed a lack in the market. “I would get a fair amount of calls from customers needing their dryer vents cleaned, but it was a service we didn’t offer. I always imagined some companies would handle this sort of need. After helping a friend that owned an air duct cleaning business one day, I realized they didn’t even offer this service and began to think there might be a potential market and business in dryer vent cleaning.”
An often overlooked issue, dryer fires account for approximately $35 million in property losses per year. Thankfully, since Dryer Vent Wizard was founded a decade ago, awareness of the danger is on the rise. “What I see in the industry are more and more compliance and awareness,” David says. “Dryer fires were somewhat unknown [when I started the franchise], and now there is more awareness than ever before. Somehow, perhaps, we have a lot to do with that increased awareness over the years.”
As you can imagine, this home service franchise fills quite a need in the communities it’s a part of. And it goes beyond the main concern of preventing fires.
Properly cleaned dryer vents help keep homes safer and healthier. “Of course, there is always a risk of a dryer fire if the lint buildup becomes too great. However, many people do not realize clogged vents can also lead to mold buildup in a home and, with gas dryers, the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning,” David says.
In addition, “Dryers with clogged vents often take multiple cycles to dry a load of clothing,” he explains. “These clogged vents cause energy inefficiency, higher electrical bills, and unwanted wear and tear on both the appliance and the customers clothing. By having the dryer vents cleaned on a regular basis, we can help the appliance run at its peak performance and efficiency.”
Beyond its safety and health functions, Dryer Vent Wizard is a franchise that works symbiotically with other repair and maintenance franchises as well.
“Often it’s an appliance repair company that discovers a customer’s dryer vent is clogged. They are typically called because the customer’s clothes are not drying and the dryer is assumed to be broken,” David tells us.
“The appliance repairman will do some testing and finds that the dryer is working great, but the exhaust is clogged, therefore the dryer can’t evacuate the heat and or moisture out of the clothing. When it is determined the dryer vent is causing the problems, they refer the customer to us, and they will typically call us the Dryer Vent Experts or Specialists. In return, when our customers have dryers that are not functioning properly, we reciprocate the referral back to one of our repair center partners.”
And on a personal note, Dryer Vent Wizard has given David something many prospective franchisees are after for themselves: better work-life balance. “With Dryer Vent Wizard I have always worked a tremendous amount of hours, but between the scheduling center answering the phones and the efficiency of the business, I have been able to step back a little bit from where I was in the past.
“I used to work weekends, and now I don’t do that anymore….Dryer Vent Wizard has given me the opportunity to devote more time to the family as well as get the family involved in the business, and that has worked out perfect for me.”
For more on Dryer Vent Wizard, please see its profile.
Note: This post originally appeared in our Home Services Franchise Industry Report 2019. Read it for more on the home services industry, in addition to the feature above, you'll find details on trends, another feature about a quick-growing surface refinisher, and common costs when buying a home services franchise.