LAA Member of the Month - Sunshine Linen Services

Interview with Robert Herz, Managing Director.

Q: How long has the laundry been in business?

Robert Herz: Sunshine Linen Services is a typical family business story. My moth- er, Elisabeth, was looking for a change of direction after bringing up a family as a single mother and a career in education. For very personal reasons, a laundry business seemed irresistible. The reality was very different. At that time, I was a young lawyer on a very different pathway.

When the call for help came to me from my mother, I had to answer, if only on a temporary basis. That was 31 years ago! It was clear that the business was in a lot of trouble: it had no machinery, no customers and no plan. It did, however, have loads of adrenalin, and I realised that this was where I was needed. Since then, we have bought a competitor, moved to Alexandria and opened a second plant in Silverwater. We found our identity and have grown relentlessly by delivering on the promise of quality, service and real value for money.

Q: What sort of work do you do?

Robert Herz: We are a linen hire and laundry business, offering rooms linen to hotels, colleges, and any other residential environment that seeks quality services. We also provide outstanding rental table linen rental to restaurant and banqueting environments.

Q: What drives your team each day?

Robert Herz: It’s all about exceeding expectations and delivering on the promise. This requires long-term commitment to our customers to do our best for them every day. Sometimes it takes our customers a little time to match

with us, but when they do, they tend to remain with us for the long term. We are genuinely working every day to provide real quality, excellent service and genuine value for money. And this cannot be beaten. The same holds true for our staff. Our workplace is very different, probably because we have such a clear vision of who we are and the standards

we seek to maintain and im- prove. But once people come on board, the best of them stay forever and join us on the

journey. Each member of the team is committed to the “Sunshine Way”; that means that all members of the team are responsible for quality and service, and accountable to each other as equals. I believe that this is key to our success and our ability to provide immediate and flexible responses. I also believe that this is why people thrive and grow within our organisation. It is fundamental to our approach that everything we do must adhere to the highest levels of compliance and ethical conduct. This cannot be done by cutting corners. We aim to elevate our people, business and industry by striving to be the best we can be.

Q: What does the next year - five years look like for the laundry?

Robert Herz: Sunshine is always striving to grow, improve and learn. We continue to work on enhancing the capacity and productivity of our two plants. We do not believe in 24 hour or 7-day work and have learnt from experience that overcommitting is a road

to failure. Sunshine made sure that the disaster of COVID was a cloud with a silver lining; we carried out major works in both our plants, transforming them to be ready for a post-COVID world. This led to a period of radical growth without price compromise.

The next 12 months are more about consolidation. During this time, we will plan the next chapter in the Sunshine Story.

Q: How will you expand to meet increasing demand?

Robert Herz: The Sydney linen hire and laundry market still trails the prevailing pricing of other capital city markets by approximately 40%. Regional markets are even further ahead. There are several reasons for this, with one of them being a reluctance to properly value the importance of the service we offer in light of the capital expenditure and operating costs we face. Our failure to properly value ourselves has nothing to do with competition, as Sydney is short of capacity, and everything to do with self-perception and proper analysis. In time, this will change. Sydney is a city that continues to grow and is clearly the gateway to Australia for international visitors and the commercial capital for business travellers. Sunshine can see opportunities as more hospitality projects are built in Sydney, and we anticipate strong double-digit growth as a consequence. We are continuing to invest in our productive infrastructure to be able to take part in the growth of Sydney.

Q: How long have you been with the LAA?

Robert Herz: Sunshine is a recent member of the LAA. It is true to say that we were somewhat jaded by the performance of previous laundry associations but have come to see the LAA as highly capable in representing and advocating for the industry. We have benefitted from actual value as a result of Laundry Association Australia membership. The work of Luke Simpkins is exemplary.

Q: Have you been to the Conference or participated in any webinars?

Robert Herz: I could not make the Conference unfortunately. I heard very positive reports, so I am sorry that I missed it. The webinars have provided us with some valuable insights and commercial benefits.

Q: What would you like from the LAA in the next 12 months?

Robert Herz: It would benefit the industry for the LAA to work on Award flexibility. The LAA would assist the industry by working on addressing the reality that we are a manufacturing process that delivers a service, which is somewhat unusual and requires matching provisions. It would also elevate our industry for the LAA to continue to promote standards of industry conduct. We are a relatively unknown industry to much of society. Nevertheless, few industries can bring the essentials of modern society to halt, as we would if we were allowed to fail. Advocating for our industry is therefore of primary importance.

https://www.sunshinelinen.com.au/