Meurice is a family owned high-end dry-cleaning service that specializes in dry cleaning, furnish, wardrobe deep cleanings, and restoration services. CLEAN By Meurice, the East End flagship, opened its doors the summer of 2021 in The Circle in East Hampton.
This summer the shop has been host to a variety of pop ups and exhibitions including an art that supports charities focused on mental health and a partnership with online retailer Hipchik for a pop up.
We caught up with CEO Wayne Edelman to learn more.
Tell us about your background and what brought you to this point.
I was a commercial real estate broker and my Dad was in the dry cleaning business. I was in the middle of negotiating a lease renewal for his store on University Place as well as working with vendors to install new equipment, I realized that Meurice had a great reputation but was still operating as a Mom and Pop small business. After many years my Dad was tired of the day-to-day operations. I decided to make a career change and entered the business on a full time basis.
The first thing I did was computerize the business. It made operating it much simpler. We were able to track orders efficiently and record customer preferences. I then realized that Meurice French Dry Cleaners did way more than dry cleaning so I coined the term “Garment Care” and changed the name to Meurice Garment Care. I tried to register “Garment Care” with the FTC but was unable as they said it was too broad a term. In years following many other cleaners adopted the term Garment Care.
In a continual effort to differentiate ourselves we dropped Garment Care and are now known as just Meurice. After operating in rental facilities we purchased and renovated a 15,000 square foot facility in Hunts Point. I decided to build a world class facility where we could clean everything. Typically cleaning facilities were dirty and were hot horrible places to work. I built our plant to be a place where if a customer walked in to visit, they would want us to be their vendor or when a prospective employee visited they would want to work for us.
What made you decide to open in East Hampton?
When the pandemic hit many of our customers relocated to the East End… We knew that the demographic would appreciate our level of service and after searching for some time we secured our location and had the store open within a month.
Tell us about some of the pop up and gallery experiences you’ve incorporated into your shop, like the exhibit by Artist Bonnie Druker and the Hipchik pop up this summer.
Since I entered the business I tried to change the feel and experience in our stores. I hated the bars that regular dry cleaners had to place finished orders on and thought the orders should be handed to the customer or brought to their vehicle. I tried to emulate a luxury hotel experience where instead of sliding a key across the check-in-counter, the person at the front desk would walk around and hand you your room key or escort you to the elevator. Our first year in East Hampton I looked at the blank walls and it screamed gallery to me. I partnered with a friend to showcase emerging Korean artists.
The Hipchik pop-up was another instance of partnering with a friend. After year one I thought the space could showcase the “Best Of” Hipchik. While customers are waiting to be served they can browse the Hipchik offerings. It proved to be a good partnership as we had extra space but as our business develops we are regularly increasing the storage space for finished orders.
Proceeds from the sale of the Bonnie Druker exhibit go to support charities focused on mental health in honor of Bonnie’s mother.
Tell us more about this and any other non profits that you support through your business.
Bonnie, wife of our Clean co-founder Marleen Cohen, is our newest featured artist. She draws her inspiration from her mother Linda, who was also an artist. The proceeds from this project, in honor of Linda, will benefit the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
The restoration division of our business is often left with clothing in perfect condition that customers do not want back. We were introduced to Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, an organization that provides reentry support to incarcerated people. We provide Hudson Link with clothing and furnishings that would have otherwise been discarded — giving the clothing and the participants a second chance.
Talk about some of the services you offer at your East Hampton flagship?
We offer dry cleaning and wet cleaning for everyday items as well as designer and couture clothing. We clean, restore and repair shoes, purses and accessories. Our home division does seasonal cleaning, carpets rugs, and upholstery as well as draperies and window treatments. We even clean outdoor furniture and apply water and stain repellent to these items. Our water smoke and fire division takes care of any insurance related event. We clean clothing related to these events as well as structure and other contents. We do all emergency services but do not handle reconstruction.
