For decades, The French Cleaners in West Hartford has been a trusted name in garment care. The family that has owned and operated the business during much of its existence has excelled and nurtured their technical skills in the cleaning and repair of clothes.
French Cleaners has been continually family-owned and operated since 1911 and is one of - if not the - oldest businesses in West Hartford. It was founded in Frog Hollow in Hartford, and at one time had five locations all along Farmington Avenue.
The company’s success is attributable to the owners' abiding affection and respect for the community they serve.
“We have so many people from all over Connecticut who come to us, and that’s unique for a dry cleaners,” says Phil Cote, the current owner. “Most people go to a dry cleaner that’s close to their homes, but we get people from all over because we have professional tailors and dry cleaners and we understand garments.”
Founded as the French Dye Works, the company was owned by the local Gassner and Mellman families who transitioned it into a dry cleaning shop. Phil Cote, son-in-law of Michael Gassner, came to work with Michael in1987 and purchased the business in January of 2000. Phil was instrumental in helping to continue the tradition of quality and customer service excellence. Over the years, French Cleaners has earned a national reputation as a high-quality dry cleaners.
Phil’s son-in-law, Mark Hatch, recently joined as a manager to mark the 5th generation for the family-owned business. Today, Phil and Mark are focused on servicing their loyal customer base and maintaining the company's superb reputation.
Phil also has preserved French Cleaners' history while guiding the business into the future.
As French Dye Works transitioned into French Cleaners, the business grew alongside the evolution of dry cleaning technology. But those early days were perilous. The solvents used in the process were flammable, and fires were a constant hazard. In the beginning, clothes were transferred between machines — first washed with solvents, then spun out, and finally dried in a separate unit.
Phil recalls stories of how dangerous and inefficient this method was. Thankfully, innovations eventually led to safer, enclosed machines that could handle the entire process in one go.
Phil learned the dry cleaning business from Sid Mellman, his wife’s grandfather. An engineer, Sid had an uncanny ability to identify clothing stains just by looking at them.
“Different stains behave differently,” Phil explains. “A lot of them come from food, and since I used to work as a chef, I can often reverse-engineer what caused the stain. It gets pretty technical — some stains are water-soluble, while others need solvents.”
Phil also embraces innovation, particularly when it comes to sustainability.
“We’ve been interested in eco-friendly practices from the beginning,” he says. Traditional dry cleaning solvents, such as Perc, were effective but bad for the environment and the people working with them.
French Cleaners was an industry leader in adopting new solvent technology and stopped using Perc in 1998. Today it uses a combination of petroleum-based solvents and specially designed microbes in their soaps. These microbes break down contaminants and can even be used as fertilizers. French also is an industry leader in wet-cleaning, which allows some dry-clean fabrics to be cleaned with water-based chemistry.
“It’s kind of come full circle back to nature,” Mark says with pride. “We’re cleaning better and being kinder to the planet.”
Community involvement is another cornerstone of French Cleaners.
French Cleaners does an annual coat drive and donates coats to various charities in the area. The company volunteered its time to the community during Hurricane Sandy by cleaning laundry when residents didn't have power.
During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic masks were in short supply so French Cleaners made and donated them to the community. The company also made specialized masks for surgical applications for St. Francis Hospital.
Phil and his team have always been dedicated to supporting local organizations, schools, and theaters. They’ve cleaned costumes for Hall High School, contributed services to Playhouse on Park, and even worked with the Moscow Ballet.
“We’re one of the only companies in the country that they trust to clean their costumes,” Phil says.
The French Cleaners
935 Farmington Ave.
860-233-3736
Thefrenchcleaner.com