OMAHA, NEBRASKA (September 8, 2015) – In late August, Creighton University became home to a newly opened on-campus dry-cleaning solution for students, faculty, and staff. JayClean, the brainchild of Andrew Rogers, Creighton ’12, is the culmination of three years of hard work, partnerships with Max I. Walker and the Heider College of Business and the incredible support of fellow Alpha Kappa Psi members.
Rogers was initiated by the Delta Pi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Psi in 2012, quickly taking roles as vice president of administration, and most recently president. Though he was involved heavily in other activities such as 3-day Startup, internships, coursework and other organizations, his professors and fellow members of Alpha Kappa Psi supported him through his many efforts.
JayClean is a fully automated system, allowing customers to select the items for drop off, bag their clothes, drop them down a laundry chute and then return for pick up. The automation of the store creates the opportunity for customer flexibility, keeping a smaller staff and shorter hours. The location is convenient for students, faculty and staff, allowing pick up and drop off on their way to and from classes or work. Furthering the experiences Rogers gained through starting this business, JayClean provides experiential learning for other ambitious entrepreneurs.
“The best part of my 3+ years in Alpha Kappa Psi have been spent building life long bonds with my brothers, the same brothers who helped me pin 500+ coupons to socks for a JayClean promotion, helped me hang the JayClean banner before we opened, and supported me throughout the ups and downs of starting a business. I am not sure I could point to one specific lesson I have learned from AKPsi, but I know that it has helped mold me into the leader I am today. AKPsi has taught me how to manage people and set attainable yet challenging standards and expectations for employees, co-workers and teams. As president of Delta Pi, I have had to learn how to manage not only our executive board, vice presidents and directors, but also our chapter of 100+ and our relationships with the university as a whole. The lessons I have learned on our executive board over the past two years have made me a much better leader in my business.”
Rogers recounted a message from one of his mentors, Professor Taylor Keen: “Anyone can say they are starting a business, few can say they started a business and even fewer can say they started a successful business.” His drive and passion for developing JayClean comes from the many experiences in The Heider College of Business and Alpha Kappa Psi. The advice from mentors and friends resonates with him. Rogers gave a few words of advice for anyone with a drive for starting their own business, “The decision of what to do in your business is always yours, but when getting advice from others whether you agree or not try to humble yourself and take in all the advice you can then make your own decisions.”
