Our family has been in the service and retail business in the Cedar Valley for more than 100 years, so we understand what it takes to earn and keep the trust of customers.
We’ve set basic, fundamental standards for our services at Prestige
We have decided that we will no longer use “perc” (perchloroethylene) as a solvent to clean any band
uniforms. We decided it was simply too dangerous to continue to expose children (and our workers) to a
chemical that “likely causes cancer.” (See, for example, the entry on “perc” at “WebMD” or any of the
other, numerous studies on the topic.)
Perc is a phenomenal degreaser and has been the industry standard for many years. Most dry cleaners
use it (and will continue to use it) on everything. We now refuse. Perc is just too risky. Children simply
should not be put at a higher risk of cancer from wearing band uniforms cleaned in perc.
We have converted our system to use a silicon-based product known as “Solvon K4”, which is a vastly
safer biodegradable solvent developed in Europe. It performs as well as perc on all textiles; on some
textiles, it cleans better than perc, giving a better result on many colors and patterns.
However, the economics of K4 differ from those of perc. Doing the math, we have decided that the best
way to price band uniform cleaning under the new system is to price per set, rather than per piece. We
have also decided that, rather than hem and haw over how to price pick up and delivery, we will include
all pickup and delivery within 90 miles of our main store in the base price.
Thus, the new price for all band uniforms is $18.00 per set (no matter how many items, including pickup
and delivery (either to home or school) anywhere within 90 miles of Charles City, Iowa. Every uniform will
be cleaned in the far safer K-4 system, and professionally finished.
We know this is more expensive than it has been in the past, but we believe it is the right thing to do. We
will not apologize when it comes to children’s safety or the quality of our service.
We can provide emergency “rush” services to help you cope with life’s apparel catastrophes. Whether it’s super-fast alterations, rapid-turn-around dry cleaning, or express pressing, the best bet is to call us and we’ll bring our resources to bear on the problem. There is usually an extra charge for speed, but we will try to keep it to a minimum.