What should be on a checklist for buying a dry cleaner?

A dry cleaner is a business of tickets, regulars and machines that must run every morning. A checklist helps because the risks sit in different places: some in the sales records, some with the people at the presses, some in the lease. Treat each line as a request to the seller, and write down what is missing instead of assuming it exists. Your lawyer and accountant should see the list before you rely on it.

Start with the counter records

Ask to see the ticket system and the point-of-sale reports side by side, then the bank deposits behind them. Ask how unclaimed garments are tracked, and what happens to them after a set time. Request the claims file: any customer who said a garment was damaged or lost, and how it was settled. Note how quickly each item arrives.

List the people and the accounts

Find out who presses, who spots stains, and who works the counter on busy days. Ask which of them know the shop is for sale and whether they plan to stay. Then list the commercial accounts, such as hotels, restaurants and uniform customers, and ask how each one is served and invoiced. If a plant does your cleaning, ask for that agreement too. This answer on drop stores and plants explains the difference.

Walk the shop and read the lease

Tour the production area with the person who runs it, and ask for service records on every major machine. Request the lease and any landlord correspondence, and ask your lawyer whether the landlord must consent to a new tenant. Check the licences, insurance and any inspection reports the seller holds. Compare the shop with your plans for hours, staffing and any changes you intend to make.

Keep the environmental side separate

Solvent handling and the condition of the site are not something a walk-through settles. Put them on the list as their own item, ask the seller what reports exist, and take them to your lawyer and lender. What environmental checks do I need covers the checks to ask about. A lender will set its own requirements.