How Patrick Elverum's Tide Laundromats Are Revolutionizing Dallas's $2 Billion Cleaning Industry
Nov 10, 2025
How Patrick Elverum's Tide Laundromats Are Revolutionizing Dallas's $2 Billion Cleaning Industry
The moment Patrick Elverum watched a single mother of three walk into his Oak Cliff laundromat and burst into tears wasn't what he expected when he left the tech world. She wasn't crying from frustration—she was overwhelmed that someone had carried her laundry from her car, that the machines actually worked, and that she'd be done in under an hour instead of four.
"That's when I knew we weren't just cleaning clothes," Elverum says, standing in his newest Tide franchise location, where 500 five-star reviews appeared in the first month alone. "We were giving people their Sundays back."
When North Texas's Service Desert Met Silicon Valley Discipline
The Unlikely Pivot from Software to Suds
Patrick Elverum never imagined he'd trade command-line interfaces for commercial washers. The former submarine officer had built a SaaS company from $500,000 to over $5 million in monthly recurring revenue. But in 2023, as Dallas's population explosion created unprecedented demand for basic services, he saw an opportunity others missed.
"Everyone thinks laundromats are passive income—throw in some machines and collect checks," Elverum explains. "We're doing the opposite. We're bringing software-level execution to an industry that hasn't innovated since the 1980s."
The numbers support his thesis. Dallas-Fort Worth added more residents than any other metro area in 2023, with over 150,000 new arrivals. Yet the region's laundromat infrastructure remained stuck in the past—aging machines, absent owners, and a business model that treated customers as an afterthought.
The 400-G Revolution Hidden in Plain Sight
Most Dallasites don't realize their home washing machines extract water at roughly 100 Gs of force. Elverum's smart machines hit 400 Gs—"makes Top Gun look silly," he quips—pulling clothes nearly dry before they hit the dryer. This isn't just engineering prowess; it's time transformation.
"The wash cycle takes 25 minutes. The dry cycle, maybe 15," Elverum notes. "We've cut laundromat time in half."
The Dallas Development Boom Creates Unexpected Opportunities
Why Oak Cliff Became Ground Zero for Laundromat Innovation
The intersection of Jefferson and Adams in Oak Cliff tells Dallas's transformation story in miniature. Historic neighborhoods colliding with new development. Young professionals moving into areas their parents avoided. And now, a gleaming Tide Laundromat where customers are greeted by name.
"Oak Cliff has this pride of place," Elverum observes. "When we opened there, our local employees were genuinely excited about bringing something excellent to their neighborhood."
The location strategy reflects deeper market understanding. Unlike Chicago, where Tide first tested its concept, Dallas sprawls. Density matters less than traffic patterns and community nodes. Elverum targets what he calls "activity centers"—corners where life naturally congregates.
The Three-Month Construction Sprint That Shouldn't Be Possible
Dylan Salvo, Elverum's construction partner, makes the impossible routine: complete transformations in 90 days, on budget, every time. But these aren't simple finish-outs. When a laundromat moves into a former Aaron's Rent-A-Center, everything changes.
"We're going from half-inch to two-inch water lines," Elverum explains. "We're saw-cutting floors, upgrading electrical to handle these smart machines. It's major construction."
The permitting dance with Dallas officials starts before leases are signed. Gas connections alone can derail timelines if not initiated immediately. Yet Salvo's team hasn't missed a deadline.
How Franchise Innovation Meets Local Employment
Here's what sets Elverum's model apart: while the Tide franchise provides brand power and cleaning chemistry, his local operation focuses relentlessly on culture. The hiring philosophy contradicts conventional wisdom about hourly workers.
"We don't hire for laundry experience," Elverum says. "We hire for life-giving potential."
The Human Capital Experiment Transforming Entry-Level Work
Darling Morales and the $13-to-Salary Journey
The story that makes Patrick Elverum tear up involves Darling Morales, a single mother who started at $13 an hour in the company's dry cleaning operation. Quiet, introverted, but relentlessly reliable, she said yes to every challenge.
"She wasn't the obvious choice for store lead," Elverum admits. "She's not bubbly. But she has this above-the-line ownership mentality—see it, own it, solve it, do it."
Today, Morales manages four locations as area manager, participates in leadership meetings, and sets her own OKRs. Her transformation from barely surviving to building a career mirrors what Elverum hopes to replicate at scale.
The Benefits Package That Shouldn't Exist in This Industry
"They offer me benefits and they always pay on time," one employee told a friend, as if describing a miracle. In the hourly wage world, these basics become differentiators. But Elverum's approach goes deeper.
Every meeting starts with their mission: "Take laundry, give life." It sounds like corporate speak until you watch attendants helping elderly customers to their cars or see the genuine relationships formed over Sunday laundry sessions.
"If you're not being called a cult, your culture's not strong enough," Elverum laughs. "I'm obnoxious about our mission."
Why Dallas-Fort Worth's Growth Demands Service Innovation
The Restoration Side Nobody Discusses
Beyond the laundromats lies another business: restoration after floods and fires. When disasters strike North Texas homes—increasingly common with extreme weather—Tide's team handles the heartbreaking task of salvaging what matters.
"It's not just clothes," Elverum reflects. "It's grandmother's quilt, dad's military uniform, the blanket from the hospital when your child was born."
This positions Tide Laundromats as infrastructure, not just service. As Dallas builds thousands of new homes annually, the network of support services must evolve to match.
The 30-Location Vision for Greater Dallas
With four locations operational after 16 months, Elverum targets 30-plus across the metroplex. Each store represents roughly $1.5 million in construction costs—serious capital deployment in a traditionally underfunded industry.
His private equity partners at Portico Capital share an unusual philosophy: kingdom impact alongside financial returns. They lead investor presentations with people stories, not spreadsheets.
"The returns we generate will be forgotten," Elverum states. "The relationships are eternal."
The Return: What Dallas Gains from Elevated Basics
Inside Tide's Oak Cliff location on any Sunday, Dallas's future unfolds in miniature. Software engineers fold clothes beside construction workers. Young mothers catch up while their children play in the kids' area. Recent immigrants practice English with longtime residents.
This is what Patrick Elverum left Silicon Valley to build—not just cleaner laundry, but cleaner outcomes for people traditionally locked out of growth stories. His submarine training taught him that small spaces can contain enormous purpose. His software background proved that execution beats innovation without discipline.
Now, as Dallas races toward 10 million residents by 2040, Elverum's Tide Laundromats offer a template for elevating basic services into community assets. The question isn't whether Dallas needs better laundromats. It's whether other industries will follow Elverum's lead in transforming overlooked necessities into engines of opportunity.
"We take dirty laundry," Elverum says, "and we give life. Jesus did it best. We're just trying to follow the model."
Meta Description: Patrick Elverum's Tide Laundromats bring Silicon Valley innovation to Dallas-Fort Worth's booming service industry, transforming basic laundry into community building across North Texas.
Why This Episode Matters
In a city like Dallas where service businesses often compete on price alone, Patrick Elverum and Tide Laundromat prove that purpose-driven companies can win by focusing on quality, experience, and relationships. This conversation matters because it shows what's possible when entrepreneurs refuse to accept "good enough"—whether that's in laundromats, roofing, or any essential service.
The laundromat industry has been historically underinvested, treated as passive income with minimal maintenance and zero customer service. Tide is fundamentally different: spotless facilities, attended by caring staff, equipped with the latest smart technology, and driven by a mission that transforms both customer and employee lives. When people walk into a Tide store, their faces show "shock factor"—disbelief that a laundromat can be this clean, this fast, this enjoyable.
Patrick's journey from Naval Academy graduate to submarine officer to SaaS scaling ($500K to $5M MRR) to Dallas laundromat operator reveals a common thread: building cultures where people thrive. Whether leading sailors, tech workers, or hourly wage laundry attendants, the principles remain—love people well, give them opportunity, measure what matters most.
For Dallas entrepreneurs, this episode reinforces that every commodity business can be differentiated through the three-legged stool Patrick and Chris discuss: best-in-class product, exceptional experience, and trusted relationships. For job seekers, it shows companies exist that will invest in you, pay you on time, offer benefits, and care about what's happening at home. For North Texas, it's a reminder that when great operators choose Dallas, remarkable things happen—and there's no better place to build than right here.
Episode Timestamps
00:00 - Welcome & mission: Take Laundry, Give Life
02:00 - What Tide is building in Dallas: cleaners + laundromats
04:45 - Oak Cliff store: spotless, attended, full-service
09:30 - Smart washers: auto-dosed detergent, hotter water, 400G spin
11:30 - Faster in, faster out: halving laundry time
13:30 - "Nerdy clean": why suds ≠ clean and how dosing works
15:15 - Restoration & specialty textiles (when life happens)
16:45 - Roofing × laundry: product, experience, relationship
20:00 - Site selection: density, visibility, Oak Cliff pride
23:40 - Customer journeys: DIY vs. Wash-Dry-Fold (same-day/next-day)
26:30 - Workwear & comfort: cleaning that helps pros feel better on the job
27:45 - Construction realities: utilities, permitting, 3-month buildouts
29:40 - Culture & hiring: giving life, 5-star service, growth stories
34:45 - Capital partners & purpose beyond spreadsheets
40:05 - What's next: growth across the DFW metroplex
🎧 Listen Now
Related Topics
Dallas roofing and home restoration services
Oak Cliff commercial property development and construction
Faith-based business operations in North Texas
Dallas construction and buildouts
Construction utility upgrades
Relationship-driven service business
Quotes to Remember
"I was on this trajectory to be an underperformer, to not believe in myself, to believe the lies of the world about who I was and did I matter. And then God inserted this man into my life who spoke truth to me every single day. He said, 'You're loved. You do matter. You have what it takes. You're enough.'" — Patrick Elverum
"We take laundry, give life. You take someone's dirty laundry and what do you do? Turn around and give them life. Who did that best? Well, Jesus Christ." — Patrick Elverum
"When you give life, you get life. That's what happens with these relationships." — Patrick Elverum
"The only thing eternal about this business is the relationships." — Patrick Elverum
"We've never sold anything to a roof or to a building or to a house—we're selling to a person." — Chris Arrington | Arrington Roofing Dallas, Tx
About Building Dallas
Building Dallas tells the stories shaping North Texas — one brick, one business, one big idea at a time. Presented by Arrington Roofing, proudly serving Dallas-Fort Worth for over 42 years.
Patrick recognized the surprising parallels between laundry and roofing—both essential services that succeed through quality product, exceptional experience, and trusted relationships. As the roofing partner for Tide's Oak Cliff location, we've seen firsthand how Patrick lives these values.
"The laundry business and the roofing business actually have a lot of crossover. A roof and clean laundry—those are things that everybody needs, but it's viewed as a commodity. To differentiate yourself, it's like a three-legged stool. My product has to be best-in-class. The experience has to be great. And then the third leg is the relationship. Who is the guy that I'm going to trust to get on my roof, to come in my home and take care of my home? Most valuable possession." — Patrick Elverum
Learn More About Patrick & Tide
🌐 Tide Laundromat & Tide Cleaners Dallas
📍 Oak Cliff Location: Jefferson & Adams, Dallas, TX
⭐ Google Reviews: 800+ five-star reviews
🏢 Organizations / Companies Mentioned
Arrington Roofing | Dallas Roofing Company
Host of Building Dallas Podcast Series
Location: 2203 Obenchain St
Dallas, TX 75208
Serving Dallas-Fort Worth and North Texas with residential and commercial roofing services
Tide Laundromat & Tide Cleaners Dallas
Website: https://www.tidelaundromat.com/
Locations: Oak Cliff (Jefferson & Adams), White Rock (Jupiter & Garland), and 2 additional DFW locations
Services: Self-service laundromat, wash-dry-fold, dry cleaning, commercial accounts
Portion Capital
Faith-based private equity firm
Focus: Kingdom impact + profitable returns
Procter & Gamble
Parent company/franchisor partnership
Territory: DFW, Oklahoma City, Waco region
