Lundrigo Acquires Unmanned Laundry 'Penguin House'

Launch of Laundry24... "Pioneering the Unmanned Smart Laundry Market"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] Uisikju Company, which operates the contactless mobile laundry service 'Laundrigo,' announced on the 5th that it has acquired Penguin House, which operates unmanned laundromats, and is making a full-scale entry into the unmanned smart laundry market.

Uisikju Company will introduce an unmanned smart laundry model optimized for the post-COVID era through the acquisition of Penguin House, which operates about 60 unmanned laundromats in Seoul and the metropolitan area. The brand name will be changed from Penguin House to 'Laundry24,' and operations will be handled by its subsidiary, Uisikju Tech Lab. In the second half of the year, it aims to enter the unmanned laundry system supply business, focusing on the eastern regions such as New York, USA.

Existing laundry franchises or laundromats require operators to handle laundry face-to-face, necessitating constant staffing and making it difficult to provide services outside business hours. Laundry24 is characterized by its fully unmanned operation, integrating dry cleaning services and laundromat (coin wash) functions through a self-developed smart station.

In particular, because Laundry24 operates unmanned, office workers can manage it as a form of 'N-job' while continuing their main jobs. It is expected that the unmanned system will rapidly spread, especially in areas with a high concentration of single-person households. Additionally, Uisikju Company is actively promoting the smart transformation of laundromats. It plans to provide unmanned systems capable of 24-hour contactless operation to laundromats at cost price, helping increase sales while also improving working conditions.

Jung Sung-woo, CEO of Uisikju Company, stated, "Due to the economic downturn caused by COVID-19 both domestically and globally, there is a significant demand for future laundry systems," adding, "Through this acquisition, just as Uisikju Company pioneered the contactless mobile laundry market, we will create new innovations in the unmanned smart laundry market."