There’s little idle time for Blake Boone these days. The Colony resident has teamed up with his mother, Jennifer Chester, as the new owners of The Mat, formerly Iola Soap and Suds, at 116 E. Jackson Ave., Iola.
It came about as many transactions do — a bit by accident. Former owner Donald Leapheart was working with Jennifer Chester, a real estate agent with Crown Realty, to sell his home. “I mentioned I was interested in selling the laundromat, too,” Leapheart told the Register. “And Jennifer said, ‘Hold on, let me talk with my son about that.’”
Boone, who recently joined his mother at Crown Realty as well, got the call from his mother. In addition to the new career in real estate, would he be interested in owning a laundromat as well? The answer was obvious to Boone. Why not?
The rest happened quickly, with the deal closing two weeks ago. Boone and Chester have already started making improvements to the facility, upgrading to a new interior/exterior security system, installing free WiFi on the premises, and putting in two smart TVs for customers. The Mat is now open 24 hours a day.
And there’s more to come, said Boone. The new owners plan to add vending machines, a restroom, arcade games, and possibly even a playground around back. They’re working on getting more machines up and running. Never a dull moment for Boone, who with his wife Kristin have three children, Rollin, 6, Lennie, 4, and Braven, 2. Kristin owns the Stay Grounded coffee shop in Colony.
The same goes for Chester. The Iola native has returned to the area after several years in Lexington, Neb. and carries her office–a laptop, cell phone, and paperwork–wherever she goes. As she looked around the space Tuesday morning, her excitement was palpable.
“We’d love to get a wash-and-fold service started soon,” said Chester as she walked around the laundromat. They’re also exploring options to bring a dry-clean service back to Iola. “We just need to figure out how to make it work.” She motioned for her son. “Come over here, Blake. This is where we can put the new window for drop-off service.” Opportunities, not obstacles.
Leaphart, who served 15 years as Iola’s fire chief, owned Iola Soap and Suds for over 15 years, but as he prepares for retirement, figured it was time to start downsizing. He sold a Humboldt laundromat last year.
“I couldn’t sell it to any better people,” said Leaphart. “They’re going to do great things with the business to benefit our community.”
