Linen Supply

According to Dun & Bradstreet's (D&B) Industry Reports, there were 1,701 establishments in the linen supply industry in 2010. This figure represented an increase from the 1,142 establishments estimated by the U.S. government in 2002. Industry sales in 2009 totaled $1.8 billion, and the industry employed 55,679 people, according to D&B. About 64 percent of firms employed fewer than 25 people, although 77 percent of all employees worked for companies that employed more than 50. California employed the most workers in the industry in 2010, with 7,117, followed by Texas with 4,302; New York with 3,097; and Florida with 2,530.

The dominant company in the industry in the early 2010s was uniform giant Cintas Corporation, based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company designed, manufactured, and rented work uniforms in addition to providing dry-cleaning services. With about 30,000 employees, Cintas served businesses ranging from small shops to large corporations. Its clientele comprised 800,000 business customers, and sales reached $3.5 billion in 2009. A close second in this category was the ARAMARK Corporation of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with 255,000 employees and sales of $12.2 billion in all divisions in 2009.

G&K Services, Inc. of Minnetonka, Minnesota, was the third-largest uniform and rental supply company in 2010, serving more than 165,000 customers. G&K reported $833.5 million in sales and 7,500 employees in 2009. Other industry leaders included UniFirst Corporation of Wilmington, Massachusetts, with 10,000 employees and more than $1.0 billion in revenues; Alsco (American Linen Supply Company) of Salt Lake City, Utah, with 13,585 employees and sales of $551.5 million in 2009; and AmeriPride Services Inc. of Minnetonka, Minnesota, with 6,025 employees in 2009 and sales of almost $170 million in 2004.

According to IBISWorld, the linen supply industry was expected to rebound from the economic recession of the late 2000s as demand increased due to rising employment numbers, especially in the hospitality and food service sectors.