Case Study: Washlava achieves app-enabled, real-time coin-free laundromat operations with PubNub

Washlava Revolutionizes the Laundromat for Businesses

Washlava is the world's first app-enabled laundromat that replaces coins with a mobile app for reserving, paying and receiving real-time alerts, while giving operators remote visibility and control over machines. After the founder experienced a robbery at a coin-operated site, the team set out to remove cash and add secure, real-time coordination between washers/dryers, the backend and customer apps—requiring a reliable messaging layer to handle reservations, payments, status updates and remote machine control.

Washlava implemented PubNub for real-time bidirectional communication between embedded machine systems, the backend and mobile apps, chosen for its SDKs, scalability and support. The integration enabled a full business dashboard (analytics, remote resets, refunds), rapid development-to-deployment, unattended operation and fast customer adoption—delivering a secure, scalable laundromat experience praised by operators and users alike.

Washlava

Jamie Sewell

CMO