Filoa + Esta McCarthy, Launder Founders 25.11.25

Launder wasn’t the obvious choice for us, but it was the most honest one.

We grew up in South Auckland with nothing but a car, a phone, and a belief that even the most overlooked industries deserved design, intention, and care. We weren’t handed opportunities; we carved them out. In many ways, we were already in an “owning mindset” before the business even existed.

Before we opened our doors, we applied everywhere.

Every bank. Every grant. Every programme.

Every funding opportunity turned us away.

We were rejected more times than we can count, but we kept going.

We ended up pouring our own savings into the business just to get it off the ground, money we didn’t really have, but risked anyway. And even when we tried to buy existing businesses, owners questioned us. Some didn’t want to sell to us because they assumed we couldn’t afford it. Others asked where the money came from.

We began with no industry knowledge, no roadmap, no safety net. Like if we fucked up - we’re fucked, it’s collateral for us.

But there’s a saying my brothers and I live by:

“The road is built while we walk.”

I even tattooed it on myself,

if an opportunity doesn’t exist, create it.

A reminder that nothing was ever going to fall into our laps…

but everything could be built with our own hands.

Not a sad story, a fucking proud one.

A story of choosing ourselves when no one else would.

So when we opened our little Panmure spot, it wasn’t just a Laundry facility.

It was a statement.

A reminder that starting small is powerful.

That working with what you have is a skill.

That you can build something meaningful long before you have the perfect tools or the perfect conditions.

We always say we want to be the McDonald’s of the laundry industry, not because of the food, but because of the systems, the culture, the consistency, the global standard created from nothing.

We run Launder like a kitchen.

Disciplined. Sharp. Process-driven.

And we sell it like a fashion brand, intentional, bold, beautifully executed.

People forget that smiling is free. Somewhere along the way, hospitality became transactional, like you need to be paid just to be kind. But one book changed everything for us: Unreasonable Hospitality.

It gave language to what we always felt but didn’t know how to articulate: that service is an art form, not a chore. That going above and beyond isn’t “extra,” it’s culture. It’s how you make people feel seen.

That philosophy became the heartbeat of Launder.

Whether it’s a bag of linen, a uniform, or someone’s favourite tee, we treat everything like it belongs on a runway. We love fashion, and what better way to express that love than through the garments people actually live their lives in?

Because that’s what clean clothes feel like,

the haircut you get after wearing a hoodie all day,

the lipstick that changes your whole mood,

the quiet alignment you feel when you look in the mirror and actually like what you see.

There’s power in feeling put together. There’s pride in being clean.

We want to give people that feeling again, especially the guys who do the hard yards. The cleaners, the staff, our people.

Our tagline has always been simple: We Sell Time.

Because time is the one thing people forget they can never get back.

Everyone has that one chair, that couch, that corner that becomes a dumping ground for clothes, a slow build-up of life. You don’t notice it growing until suddenly you do. And by then, you’re staring at three or four hours of washing, drying, folding… hours you’ll never reclaim.

We built Launder to give those hours back.

Not just clean clothes, clarity, space, breathing room.

The feeling of finally clearing that chair and feeling your whole environment shift.

That’s the service. That’s the luxury.

That’s what we’re selling.

Launder is our way of showing that even the overlooked deserves excellence, style, and respect.

We’re here to build a culture of hygiene and presentation, to make being clean, sharp, and put-together feel aspirational again. To take an everyday task and elevate it to a standard people didn’t realise they were missing.

This is only the beginning.

And for us, the best is truly yet to come.

Brothers

Filoa & Esta