Customer says dry cleaner closed, still has her clothes

CHARLOTTE — A local woman says she’s trying to get back two of her favorite garments after finding the dry cleaner she used closed.

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Lorraine Nichols cares about her clothes. Well, at least some of them.

“If I take it to the dry cleaners, that means that’s one of my favorite garments,” she told Action 9 attorney Jason Stoogenke.

So, she says, she took two items to Collins Cleaners. They have at least two Charlotte locations: One on The Brookshire and another on Mount Holly-Huntersville Road. Nichols says she went to the latter. She says that when she went to pick up, she found the doors locked.

“First I was angry because those are my clothes that I paid for,” Nichols said.

She says she tried calling and emailing, but couldn’t get a real person.

“I can’t get no feedback. I mean, I’m doing my part,” she said.

The last time she spoke with Action 9, she wondered if she’d ever see those clothes again. After all, their last Facebook post looks like it was about a year ago. Their website seemed down, and Google listed them as “permanently closed,” which isn’t a guarantee, but it was not what Nichols wanted to see.

Action 9 emailed two addresses for the business, texted two numbers, and called both. No one responded in time for this report.

Stoogenke sees this issue come up a fair amount with a variety of cleaners. So, no matter which you use, if you can’t get in touch with the business:

• The property owner may have access to the building. It may take some digging, but see if you can track them down. Start by asking other businesses there.
• You can always file a police report or complain to the attorney general’s office.

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