A former nurse from Arizona is now the proud owner of a laundromat — and a seriously improved work-life balance.
“This is my first time where I’ve been able to be home for all the holidays, every weekend off,” she told CNBC (1). “I never have to go to a boss or a manager to be able to go on random trips home or anything like that. So the freedom of my time has completely changed.”
Cami, 38, employs six people at her laundromat and brought in $475,000 in revenue in 2024, which — when accounting for costs — made a profit of about $120,000. This year, she is on track to earn $451,000 in revenue.
She earns about $30,000 by subleasing space next to the hair salon, taking advantage of adjacent business opportunities as well as helping cover her building rental costs.
And as he noted, it’s not just about financial opportunities. It’s also about lifestyle changes. She estimates she spends about five or six hours a week running the business, plus about 10 hours per week creating social media content about her business, which generates additional income through views and brand deals. She expects to make $200,000 through this revenue stream alone by the end of this year.
Kami pays herself $66,000, money that should be used to pursue your interests outside of work, rather than trying to build a career at something you love. She now focuses her free time on spending time with her loved ones.
Are you thinking of becoming an entrepreneur? Here’s what you need to know about starting a small business and the financial risks involved in doing it, as well as some tips on how you can protect your finances when you make the leap to working for yourself.
While Kami is considering retiring in a few years or possibly starting a second laundromat business, her success was almost overnight — and she cautions that it took many hours to build the business to where it is now, expanding the business model and reinvesting in renovations and upgrades.
“Now, I’m only working five or six hours a week. But I’m hesitant to even tell people that, because it wasn’t like five years ago—four or three years ago. I was working long hours to grow this business.”
For example, she was working full-time hours as a nurse while simultaneously running a laundromat from October 2020 to April 2023, when she was able to profit enough from the laundromat to not only gradually reduce her nursing hours, but to quit her nursing career altogether.
She also sold her home in April 2020 and moved into a rental to make down payments on her business, which cost her $300,000, using much of her personal savings to borrow money for things like a new washing machine and other equipment.
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This is a significant risk for an entrepreneur, as most small businesses are at risk of failure within five years. In fact, between 20 and 24% of new businesses fail within the first year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. After 10 years, only 34.7% of businesses are still operating (2).
The average cost of doing business is also steep. According to the Small Business Network of America, small business owners can expect to spend an average of $40,000 in their first year of operation on a retail business (3). These costs can increase if you need a brick-and-mortar location and if you need to hire employees. The US Small Business Administration provides a calculator to help you estimate your start-up costs (4).
Despite these challenges, a large number of Americans have caught the entrepreneurship bug and it is estimated that 27% have a side hustle (5).
Cami was fortunate to take over an established business with a 20-year reputation. For other entrepreneurs, building a business from the ground up may not be that easy (or attractive). For example, some of the top financial challenges include inconsistent cash flow, inability to find funding or outside investments and over-leveraging the business by trying to grow too quickly (6).
“No parent wants to hear that their child isn’t pretty and no entrepreneur wants to hear that the opportunity isn’t perfect,” said Danna Greenberg, professor of organizational behavior at Babson College, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal (6).
However, being a successful entrepreneur means testing and understanding the market, including doing a lot of research to understand if your business is truly viable.
Cami talked to a friend’s uncle who owned two laundromats himself and he agreed to look at the numbers with her. Something he said also stuck with him: “He said, ‘You know, if I could go back in time, I would never have gone to college, I would never have gotten my master’s degree.’ He’s like, ‘I’m going to buy laundromats because laundromats scream money.’
Some questions you should consider include:
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Can you continuously scale and diversify to support growth without overextending your business?
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Are there multiple sources of cash flow to support the business in case one source of cash fails?
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Have you considered legal compliance, including federal, state and local government regulations?
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Are you planning to find balance in your life? Passion may sustain you through 16-hour days in the first year, but burnout is rampant among entrepreneurs. Find out how to prioritize your health and well-being.
Also consider that you need to protect your finances before striking out on your own, especially if you have financial commitments such as dependents.
For entrepreneurs, in addition to understanding the legal and tax implications of your business, be sure to incorporate your business to separate your business assets from your personal assets as a way to limit your liability and to create an insurance plan as another means of protecting your assets in the event of a lawsuit, accident or unexpected loss (7).
Entrepreneurs should also focus their time on future-proofing their business. In Cami’s case, she says she listens to business podcasts, reads books and attends “at least one or two Laundromat conferences a year.” And she was able to buy herself a new house in April 2023.
We rely only on vetted sources and reliable third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
@CNBCMakeIt (1); Bureau of Labor Statistics (2); America’s Small Business Network (3); US Small Business Administration (4); Bankrate (5); Wall Street Journal (6); RBC (7)
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
