Today we’d like to introduce you to John Sutherland.
Over a century ago, George Steiner worked his way through school delivering towels for a local laundry in Lincoln, Nebraska. Driven by his entrepreneurial spirit, he later purchased the business for fifty dollars– half down, half later. After purchasing the business in 1889, George and his brother Frank made deliveries together from a green and white handcart they pushed through city streets. But it wasn’t long before the handcart was upgraded to a horse-drawn wagon. Eventually the brothers moved to separate cities where they opened branches in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Salt Lake City, Utah. They never lived in the same town again and spent much of their lives moving across the country, acquiring existing plants and opening new branches where we they identified opportunity.
AmeriPride has been serving the Atlanta market for more than 30 years and continues to expand its services among customers in the Food and Beverage hospitality sector and the commercial-industrial uniform market. Over the last five years, we have amassed quite a referral list of Atlanta’s Top Restaurants, Country Clubs and Event Centers.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There were many challenging times over the years. In fact, on more than one occasion, Frank pawned a family heirloom gold watch to pay bills and sustain the business. They survived many ups and downs, including wars, the Great Depression and other economic downturns. The company expanded into other states and countries and grew the business over time. In the 1950s, all of the branches of the company were consolidated into one integrated corporation and later the company reorganized and split into two separate entities (American Linen Supply in Minneapolis and Steiner American Corporation in Salt Lake City). American Linen eventually rebranded and became known as AmeriPride. Through it all, the company’s ability to adapt and change over time has allowed it to sustain and thrive in a competitive and sometimes volatile business environment.
So, let’s switch gears a bit and go into the AmeriPride Services story. Tell us more about the business.
AmeriPride is now recognized as one of the largest textile rental and supply companies in North America. Operating more than 115 production facilities and service centers throughout the United States and Canada, the company provides linen and towels, uniforms, floor mats, restroom and cleaning products to nearly 150,000 Industrial, Automotive, Retail, Healthcare and Facility Care customers through rental and purchase programs. As a true business partner, AmeriPride helps customers improve their image while keeping facilities clean and employees safe. Innovation, personalized service and a dedication to company values has sustained the private, family-owned company for more than 125 years. And demonstrated commitment to customers, the community, employees and the environment has made AmeriPride the People You Can Count On.
AmeriPride offers customers a one-stop shop with worry-free management of their linen, facility and uniform needs. We offer the very highest quality products and service in the market. Our production facility in Watkinsville is certified ‘Clean Green’ and ‘Hygienically Clean’ by the Textile Rental Association of America (TRSA). We offer our customers an online Customer Portal where they can view invoices, make payments, notify us of any additional needs and much more. We also offer direct sale of customized apparel products and we develop Custom eStores for our larger customers. In 2017, we also began offering custom Focused eStores to our F&B customers with a custom offering for the front and back of house, where they select the products, branding and can self-order from their own site.
What is a win in your mind?
It is our goal to be recognized and respected as a leading customer service company in North America. We strive to consistently exceed our customers’ expectations through the extraordinary commitment and performance of our employees, the support of our business partners and the resolve of our family owners. If we can do this, while remaining true to our core company values and adhering to the highest standards of corporate responsibility, that is a win for us and all of our key stakeholders.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1081 Experiment Station Road, Watkinsville, GA 30677
- Website: www.ameripride.com
- Phone: 706-425-5200
