On-demand car wash service is better for customers, employees and environment

With WashMyWhip users can book their car to be washed at a location and time of their choosing.

As smartphones become ubiquitous, an increasing number of services are becoming available on-demand. We’ve recently seen apps that enable users to arrange fuel delivery, avoiding the need to stop at a petrol station, view houses without organising a visit with an estate agent, and order snacks 24/7. The latest service to follow this trend is car-washing: enter WashMyWhip.

WashMyWhip is an on-demand, eco-friendly car-care service. Users download the free app and drop a pin on their car’s location. They can then book a convenient time, select a service – an outside clean at USD 20, an inside and out clean at USD 30, or full detailing at USD 120 – and a ‘WashPro’ will arrive. The company builds a number of improvements into the car-washing industry. Perhaps most obviously, it’s more convenient for consumers. It’s also significantly less wasteful. Where traditional car washes can waste 50 to 100 gallons of water, WashMyWhip uses a waterless system that consists of lubricants that raise the dirt, clay that breaks it down, and wax that makes sure a car stays shiny and protected. It also represents an significant improvement to those washing the cars. Car-wash employees are typically overworked and underpaid. “WashPros” have the ability to manage a flexible schedule and earn both salary and commission-based pay. The service has cleaned more than 5,000 cars to date, saving between 250,000 to 500,000 gallons of water and has plans to eventually expand to other car services, such as battery and tire changes, wiper blade and windshield replacements.

WashMyWhip is useful to individual clients but the company see real opportunity with corporate clients that manage fleets of cars and have developed a web application that can manage their inventory for car care. Despite having only launched in summer 2016, the startup has already secured a partnership with Xchange Leasing, an Uber company, as its preferred car-cleaning provider. Will fleet managing companies want to bring such an important service in house?