Many laundromats and dry cleaners in U.S. cities
are owned by Asian immigrants.
The story of an immigrant family-run laundromat
was at the center of the award-winning film
“Everything Everywhere All at Once.”
But the real stories of the families
behind the businesses have largely been invisible.
Actually, the industry has been dominated
by Asians, beginning with Chinese immigrants
in the early 1900s.
Workers resisted racist laws
and language barriers.
Now, in the aftermath of COVID,
more stores are closing one by one.
We traveled from New York to California
to capture their stories to look at the
past, present and future of Asian-owned laundries.
- Hi!
How are you?
- The store is over 100.
- 100 years.
San Toy is one of the oldest remaining
Chinese laundries in New York City
offering hand-laundry services.
Beginning, this store is very busy.
A lot of customers is coming.
Come out, come in, coming...
But then now, no...
Not too much people go office, you know?
The shelves are packed with clothes that were never picked up,
to make the place look busier.
How long has this been here for?
- Oh, long time.
Some people move out. You know?
Some people, maybe they forgot the ticket.
I don't know, you know.
Judy and Michael Huang took over running San Toy in 1983.
It was their first opportunity to own a business.
- Who taught you how to do this?
Before, the old man teach me.
“The old man” is how the couple refers to the previous Chinese owner
who sold the store to them before retiring.
Everything in the store is an artifact,
left untouched for decades just as the old man requested.
To this day, it’s how the couple shows gratitude towards the old man
who sold the store for just $4,000.
They found $2,000 left in the cashier.
He later passed away.
He sell the store for me, you know.
Give back money for me.
Nobody do that, you know.
Judy and Michael immigrated to the U.S.
separately and met in New York.
They soon got married, growing a family of four.
- Getting married at the time.
- You got married?
- I'm skinny, right?
- You're still skinny!
Just like the movie, the couple’s life was
centered around working and living in the laundry
to support their family.
The Chinese hand laundries were places where they worked and lived.
Robert Gee comes from a family of laundry owners.
This store run by his uncle for 61 years is now closed.
- My parents would allow me to run around here, inside, behind the counter.
Without their blood, sweat and tears
in the business,
we wouldn’t be in the positions that we are
today with a better way of life.
San Toy used to be one of thousands
of Chinese laundries, which were once
a staple in New York.
Owning laundries was one of the only ways
Chinese immigrants could be self-employed
and earn income.
As Chinese laundries proliferated,
white laundry workers ran targeted campaigns
painting the laundries as unsanitary.
When many folks think about working
in the laundry business: "Oh, that's dirty work."
But it is a way of earning an income for their family.
A San Francisco law requiring laundry owners
to obtain permits led to the landmark
Yick Wo case of 1886.
The Supreme Court ruled that the law
was discriminatory because no permits
were granted to Chinese owners.
The case set a precedent for the
civil rights movement and has been cited
in more than 150 Supreme Court cases.
In the 1930s, laundrymen in New York formed
the Chinese Hand Laundry Alliance,
which organized against unfair policies
and demanded better labor rights.
Nowadays, Korean-owned dry cleaners are more of a common sight.
Korean immigration boomed decades after
the U.S.-backed Korean War came to a ceasefire —
and after the Immigration Act of 1965 was passed.
Also facing language barriers, Korean immigrants
shared skills helping one another
open dry-cleaning stores.
That’s how this Korean family got into the industry.
By the 1990s, 80% of dry cleaners in Southern California were owned by Koreans.
However, the industry today is in decline,
with thousands of businesses closing yearly.
In New York City, around one-third of local small businesses have closed
because of COVID, disproportionately affecting immigrant communities.
That included Sun’s Laundry, which was forced to close during the pandemic.
- Leading up to COVID,
the Sun’s Laundry business
was already struggling because of casual wear in the workplace.
And then COVID hit.
In California, some are closing shop
because more second-generation
Korean Americans have the freedom to enter other industries.
- I was in child development.
So I was actually teaching.
David dreamed of opening a child care center.
But when David received a call that the store was struggling,
he decided to lend a hand temporarily.
His biggest worry? Working alongside his dad.
- I'll be honest, it was a little bit concerning.
Our relationship is, you know— it was great, but it wasn't the best.
- If I could be honest, like, you know, I was a little bit embarrassed
to kind of, you know, when we go out and talk about, you know, our positions and jobs,
you know, that I'd say that I own a dry cleaners.
But with his dad’s support, David took ownership
of the store and transformed it into his own.
We kind of needed another service to offer to kind of, you know, stay in business.
So here, everybody is about their sneakers.
So right now, we’re actually trying to get another store just for shoes.
I'm proud. You know, I'm not going to lie, you know.
I think the concerns early on was just I really— I didn't have that ownership.
All right. Appreciate you.
- We never really had like a common goal, a common interest,
but this really just kind of brought us together.
Front door? Not the garage this time?
- Hi! Good to see you.
In “Everything Everywhere All at Once,”
a mother and daughter work through generational differences.
Likewise, David’s dad is learning to verbalize his affection.
You guys aren't even looking at each other!
- That's what it [is].
- Yeah, why not?
Yeah, not the first time!
We saw him grow up as a little baby Dave so...
Yeah, I love it. It’s family.
At the end of the day, customers
at both businesses said they continue to come
back because of the people behind the counters.
He come here, he want to take ...
oh I can’t, I can’t!
- I used to bring my...
Coming back to see Judy and my friend here.
I’ll come here forever.
Despite struggling during the pandemic,
Judy credits the community for helping them stay in business.
While rent in Brooklyn has been rising, their landlord actually lowered their rent.
- They're the best.
My good friend!
Michael and Judy are 76 and 75 years old with no plans to retire.
- But do you guys ever take a break?
Just Sunday.
- So you guys work Monday to Saturday, all day.
Yeah, all day.
And Sunday, that's enough?
- Yeah, Sunday we rest.
Just rest Sunday? - Yeah.
And like the movie, the owners say for their family,
owning the store is a shot at the best version of their lives.
Because our English is not good,
this store gave us the ability to have a life.
Michael and I are very humble.
If something can be worn, we wear it. We eat whatever we can.
We’re not picky, we live like this.