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Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

cherry.com

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Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#31

Post by dangrossman »

rythie wrote: post #22

I wonder if their model is to franchise out the cleaning to local companies/people, since having 1000s of staff around the country would seem to be impractical for a startup.

> Washers apply to Cherry through our site here, we then select a handful of applicants and setup phone calls to vet the washers. If they pass, we send them all the equipment they need to get started and start pushing them your carwash requests in real time.

http://help.cherry.com/entries/20351222-how-does-cherry-hire...

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#32

Post by dangrossman »

rythie wrote: post #20
rohansingh wrote: post #12

While there is a claim in there about ecofriendly solvents and methods being used, I am somewhat skeptical and concerned about the potential ecological damage and waste of water. At least in the state where I live, there are regulations that require car wash locations to recycle the runoff water. I don't see how this would be possible with this model.

It's waterless apparently: http://sachinhd.posterous.com/cherry-com

It's not waterless

> You fill up the portable sprayer before you leave in the morning. It holds 5-gallons of water. It's battery powered so you don't need plug in either!

http://help.cherry.com/entries/20210796-how-do-i-get-water-p...

> Our washers use an eco-friendly carwash concentrate and the carwash sprayers use a small fraction of the water that normal carwashes use.

http://help.cherry.com/entries/20209442-are-cherry-carwashes...

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#33

Post by dangrossman »

Casc wrote: post #18

Yes, please come to NY. I would use this regularly. Also, more insight regarding the materials your service utilizes (ie soaps, brushes, mits, wax, compound - if any, etc) would be great. If this is on the site already, I apologize, I did not register nor did I really dig around (Maybe I wanted to know a bit more to justify my time spent registering). People dish out serious amounts to pamper their automobiles. Some…

"One more question, how do you handle water at an office building?"

Sounds like they bring it with them.

> You fill up the portable sprayer before you leave in the morning. It holds 5-gallons of water. It's battery powered so you don't need plug in either!

http://help.cherry.com/entries/20210796-how-do-i-get-water-p...

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#34

Post by dangrossman »

Casc wrote: post #25
TWSS wrote: post #9

I love the idea ("Uber for carwashing!") but I have some doubts. The price point is too low for me to believe they'll do a decent job. There are already mobile car detailers here in Portland, and a good exterior detail costs around $100. That's because the companies are licensed and bonded. If I'm going to go cheap on a car wash, I'll do a $6 drive-through special at Washman on my way to the grocery store. Not knowin…

They need to define what's in a wash. A detail usually involves a bit more than a basic "wash", if that is in fact all they are offering. Maybe their MVP?

> Our washers use an eco-friendly carwash concentrate and the carwash sprayers use a small fraction of the water that normal carwashes use.

http://help.cherry.com/entries/20209442-are-cherry-carwashes...

> Yes, the carwash pro will do a full exterior wash including wheels and also wash the interior if you leave the doors unlocked.

http://help.cherry.com/entries/20211376-is-it-a-full-carwash

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#35

Post by Casc »

dangrossman wrote: post #33
Casc wrote: post #18

Yes, please come to NY. I would use this regularly. Also, more insight regarding the materials your service utilizes (ie soaps, brushes, mits, wax, compound - if any, etc) would be great. If this is on the site already, I apologize, I did not register nor did I really dig around (Maybe I wanted to know a bit more to justify my time spent registering). People dish out serious amounts to pamper their automobiles. Some…

"One more question, how do you handle water at an office building?" Sounds like they bring it with them. > You fill up the portable sprayer before you leave in the morning. It holds 5-gallons of water. It's battery powered so you don't need plug in either! http://help.cherry.com/entries/20210796-how-do-i-get-water-p...

I had a feeling, thanks for digging.

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#38

Post by dangrossman »

herval wrote: post #21
herval wrote: post #17

I know at least two "startups" doing this per city, in Brazil. Except you don't need a smartphone to call them... :-) It's amazing how the obvious in some countries is, sometimes, a novelty in others. Another example: I found out a couple of months ago that, in Chile, there's simply NO ONE offering lockers on beaches. Meaning you have to drive to the place and leave your stuff in the car, or simply not take a wallet/…

In case that's really a novelty in the US, here's the mobile washing "thing" they use in brazil: http://valparaisodegoias.olx.com.br/lava-jato-movel-carrinho... It uses a sort of mobile water "pump" - a lot faster and more economical than hand + towel. But I suppose they use something similar (if not the same piece of equipment) there

From Cherry's zendesk entries, it sounds like they do the same thing -- each washer is provided a battery powered sprayer that holds 5 gallons of water and a battery powered vacuum for interiors.

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#39

Post by dangrossman »

rohansingh wrote: post #12

While there is a claim in there about ecofriendly solvents and methods being used, I am somewhat skeptical and concerned about the potential ecological damage and waste of water. At least in the state where I live, there are regulations that require car wash locations to recycle the runoff water. I don't see how this would be possible with this model.

> At least in the state where I live, there are regulations that require car wash locations to recycle the runoff water. I don't see how this would be possible with this model.

I'm curious too. In the process of looking for relevant information (which I haven't found yet), I see that each washer Cherry contracts with in California will have to pay for a $250 per year car washer license. They'll have to do a pretty large number of washes before they start making any money.

http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/HowToObtainCarWashRegistration.ht...

Re: Startup will wash your car wherever it is located

#40

Post by mcphilip »

A few questions come to mind:

1. Can you request a car wash for a car you don't own? If so, how can you prevent car owners who don't want the service handling their care washed as a gift (or prank)? If not, how does a user of the service prove ownership of a car?

2. Does the service require cars to be parked in a relatively unoccupied area so as to minimize impact on other cars and/or pedestrians in the area?

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