New 'app' in Bizkaia 'The coladers' arrive in Bilbao: they collect the dirty clothes at your house and wash them for you

VIRGINIA MELCHOR

"Dirty laundry is washed at home", according to the popular saying. But in Bilbao, for a couple of weeks and in the literal sense of the phrase, they also wash at someone else's house. If these days you have come across a walking washing machine walking animatedly around San Mamés or the University of Deusto, you will already know that the 'coladers' have come to the town to free their clients from doing their laundry. A tedious and repetitive task that takes time and energy that we would like to use in another way. For this reason, three young engineers from Bilbao have proposed that "people focus their energy on doing what they like the most." And since they knew that it was rare (very rare) that putting the washing machine and ironing were among people's hobbies, they have developed a mobile application, 'Colada', in which users find 'coladers' willing to wash their dirty clothes. And not only that, customers can ask for their clothes to be picked up and delivered to their own home so they don't have to travel. A great invention considering that doing the laundry brings many down the path of bitterness in their daily chores.

The idea arose four years ago, when Pablo Curiel, Borja Salazar and Iban García, who worked together in a telecommunications company in Getxo, observed that they did not have "enough free time to enjoy leisure." «One day hanging the laundry I realized that I was fed up with doing the laundry. My mother told me to have someone in the house to help me, but I didn't feel comfortable. So, I thought of doing it the other way around, that the clothes would leave the house, someone would wash them and bring them to me. It seemed like such an obvious idea that I imagined it would already exist. And it may sound like a Bilbainada, but we haven't found anything like it in the world», says Iban García, 32 years old and one of the creators of the 'app'.

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Thus, these three friends decided to leave their respective jobs to throw themselves into 'Colada'. During the confinement, they began to develop the 'app', which after a lot of effort, many hours and a few video calls they managed to finish last March. Today his project is already a reality in the Greater Bilbao area. "We reached Basauri, Getxo and even Santurtzi, and our idea is to soon expand the service to neighboring municipalities," explain those responsible for Colada.

How the 'app' works

After entering the 'app' and entering their home address, the user is shown a virtual map in which the seven 'coladers' appear, four men and three women, who currently make up Colada. In this way, the client can choose the one who lives closest to his home. In addition, view the profile of each 'colader' - "a detail that generates trust" - and see the requirements that each one establishes. Because these “completely autonomous” people, who do the laundry for others in their own home, decide for themselves the time it takes to deliver the clean clothes (24, 48 or 72 hours), the maximum weight of laundry they allow, the supplement they charge for ironing or door-to-door service; and if they accept that they are given underwear or do not include this option. They are also in charge of putting a price on their work. For washing and folding, they charge between 9.95 and 12 euros, if the customer wants their clothes ironed they have to add between 3.50 and 5 euros; And if you also prefer to have it picked up and delivered to your home, you must add between one and two euros more to the final price.

COLADA, AN 'APP' TO GET RID OF WASHING AND IRONING CLOTHES

How to become a 'colader'

Becoming a 'colader' is relatively Simple, you don't need great skills to do laundry. “It is enough to have a washing machine, a place to dry and iron clothes; and be a bit skilled with the use of the application, since the orders arrive that way, ”they explain. Of course, when entering the 'app', interested persons must fill out a form with their personal information and then read the 'colader' manual to provide the service correctly. «Afterwards, we do an interview by phone and a test order to verify that they meet the quality standards. We believe that in these difficult times, we can also help some people to earn extra money in an easy and safe way, “they point out.

Originally, they thought this service would appeal to "30-somethings," but have been surprised by how well it has been received by older users. In fact, they believe that it would be a useful tool for "elderly people who live alone or who no longer manage household chores." "Their children or grandchildren could install the application to free them from these tasks," they say. These three young entrepreneurs know that these are not good times to embark on an adventure, alone or with others, to start a business. Starting a business is never easy, but nowadays it becomes a real challenge that they are willing to face. "In September, we want to extend the service to Madrid, a large city, with more movement... we believe that it can work there as well."