Berwyn has a population of about 57,000 people and not a single Starbucks. In cities like Berwyn that have a high proportion of low- to middle-income residents and renters, the laundromat "is one of the few remaining places where people congregate," says Brian Wallace, chief executive of the Coin Laundry Association, which estimates there are about 29,000 retail self-service laundries in the U.S. that generate $5 billion in annual sales. "Now what the Bensons have done is double down on all that and get very active in the community, doing a lot of those engagement activities that I imagine endear them to the neighborhood. I think they feel good about doing it, but it's also secondarily good for business."