Smoking ban is bad news for the smelly clothing industry

Some of the losers from the smoking ban are easier to spot than others. Pubs, restaurants and bingo clubs have all reported a negative effect. However, here is an example of a market-leading business that is also blaming the smoking ban for a short drop in profits…

Most of us can recall the effect on our clothes of a night out in a smoky pub or club. That stale smell from our clothing - the unmistakble stench of cigarette smoke. If the garment in question was a suit or expensive dress, then the next step was often to have it dry-cleaned. Happy days for the high-street dry cleaners who, how shall we put it, “cleaned up”.

However, the ban on smoking in public places has been bad news for the dry-cleaning industry. That is certainly the message from market leader Johnsons, which has just reported a 28% fall in profits in the six months to June 2008.

That’s bad news for a business that has quite high levels of debt, although these have been reduced by selling a subsidiary business.

However, it is good news for business teachers - an interesting and different example of how a business can face a sharp drop in demand due to external influences.