Talk:Alsco Uniforms

JonnyB94's edits

As I already said in my revert, there are significant issues with this contribution, most notably in its tone. It's a long list of services, awards, and other PR fluff that don't belong in an article - especially if it's entirely from primary sources. See WP:NPOV, WP:ONUS, WP:CORP, WP:PRIMARY, and other guidance.

Additionally, the addition is just poorly constructed in general. It contains no wikilink, every reference template is broken (If you'd previewed it, you'd see that " {{cite web}}: Empty citation (help): Missing or empty |title= (help)" on every addition), it doesn't follow Wikipedia style guidelines (e.g., it uses title case for headings, uses curly apostrophes, etc.).

On top of that, you're engaging in edit warring. If you've been reverted, you take things to talk - see WP:BRD, as already mentioned.

On top of that, it's highly suspicious a new editor suddenly decided to make such an extensive edit to a niche corporate article. Are there WP:COI interests that need to be declared, per the usage policies? On top of that, the additions feel machine-generated; was AI used to produce them, in whole or in part? --Xanzzibar (talk) 20:56, 11 December 2025 (UTC)

Thank you for that information! I do think listing services and awards is appropriate and fairly standard for a company Wikipedia page. I'll find other sources for the news articles.

I'm very new to editing Wikipedia, so I'll fix those links and formatting issues. I just used the VisualEditor, so I don't know why it didn't properly cite those sources.

I do work for Alsco Uniforms, so I will disclose that COI. I never use AI however, so I'm very curious as to which parts sound machine-generated to you? JonnyB94 (talk) 21:11, 11 December 2025 (UTC)

Exhaustive listings of awards, philanthropy, services, and such are not standard for Wikipedia corporate articles, and the ones that do have them are generally PR cruft that hasn't been properly excised yet. They generally fall under WP:PROMOTION and aren't worthy of inclusion. Particularly notable recognition may be included, but that's things like Forbes listings, not local awards or giving a small amount of money to charity, or things that appear only on the websites of the award-giver, honoree, and maybe a passing mention in a local paper. Articles also aren't indiscriminate lists of information - if these things should be included, MOS:PROSE is preferred.

There's also an excessive level of detail on largely irrelevant information in the parts that's aren't peacocky lists - WP:DUE and WP:DETAIL are relevant here. The prose also barely rises above the level of lists, with most paragraphs being no more than a single sentence or two. There's also tonal concerns - it's written like a dramatic biography, not like an encyclopedia article.

As for the LLM suspicion, it's the complete lack of wikification, bulk unremedied citation-template errors, not following even basic Wikipedia style guides (like sentence case for headings), and phrases like "here is a list" and "here is an overview".

Given the COI, you'd do well to self-revert and review WP:COI (especially WP:NOPAY), apply WP:COIPAYDISCLOSE, then draw up a draft of proposed additions rather than hammering away in the mainspace. --Xanzzibar (talk) 21:52, 11 December 2025 (UTC)

These lists are not exhaustive, and I can find other sources to cite for those. I can look up like the vast majority of Fortune 500 companies on here and see that exact information, so I think you're being very selective here.

Which areas have excessive detail? And how is there simultaneously an "excessive level of detail" while most paragraphs are "no more than a single sentenced or two?"

Again, I'm a complete newbie to Wikipedia.

Sounds good, I'll do that. JonnyB94 (talk) 22:06, 11 December 2025 (UTC)

I'm sure you can find some articles with bad lists on them (WP:OTHERSTUFFEXISTS), but if you look at well-established articles (e.g., Coca-Cola, Apple, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, Ford, Meta, Amazon, Walmart) finds no lists of this sort, and only a couple mentions at all of awards and charitable donations, and the one article that does cover it devotes one paragraph of prose to an overview, not a list. These things are generally not notable; every local restaurant and doctor's office gives money to charity, sponsors teams, etc.

Excessive detail is a content issue, while layout is structural. That said, excessive detail comes in things like bullet-pointing every service provided, rather than a simple, "provides uniforms, linens, and facility services"; the above issues with awards, "core values", and "partnerships"; lists of small product additions to their lineup; minutiae like an executive joining the Alta Club or a workhorse's name; etc.

You'd be best-served by a draft that sticks to the company's history, which has good-quality sources to be drawn from (including some use of primary sources per WP:ABOUTSELF). --Xanzzibar (talk) 23:10, 11 December 2025 (UTC)

Thanks for your guidance on this, Wikipedia is surprisingly tricky. I've added those requests below. Did I format those correctly? Am I missing anything COI-related? JonnyB94 (talk) 18:09, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

I made a couple tweaks to the lede per your suggestion, but some of it was redundant (e.g., uniforms mentioned twice in two sentences). I added the acquisitions since those are simple, factual, and readily verified. I did not include the team sponsorships and environmental fluff because, as I said before, those are not generally notable; most companies has a laundry list of sponsorships, charities, community initiatives, etc., so they only merit mention if there's something exceptional about them.

I don't have much desire to deep-dive the proposed history section, and don't have access to the cited source to verify anything, but: A quick skim suggests that, while it's an improvement, it still has the same problems as before. The tone still feels very PR ("under [whomever's] leadership", repeated use of "diversify", use of nicknames, etc.), it's completely unwikified (i.e., lacks wikilinks to relevant articles and/or other wiki features), and it's not properly referenced (third-party sources are preferred, but even if the Steiner-published source can be used to support some WP:ABOUTSELF claims, each claim needs to be attributed and be cited to a particular page in that source).

As for the CoI requests, I don't really involve myself in that process, so I can't say if you're following the prescribed procedures correctly. However, I can see the templates are wrapped in code/nowiki tags, which is preventing them from being properly implemented. Xanzzibar (talk) 23:08, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Edit request

Specific text to be added or removed:

−

Alsco Uniforms (originally American Linen & Supply Company[1]) is an American cleaning, linen, and uniform-rental company.[2][3] In 2008, Forbes ranked Alsco Uniforms at #398 on its America's Largest Private Companies list.[4]

+

Alsco Uniforms (originally American Linen & Supply Company[1]) is an American uniform, linen, and facility services provider headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. The company is an industrial laundry and rental service that delivers uniforms, linens, and supplementary products to businesses around the world. In 2008, Forbes ranked Alsco Uniforms at #398 on its America's Largest Private Companies list. [4]

Reason for the change: Updating to more accurately reflect the company, as we are not a cleaning service.

References supporting change: https://alsco.com/about/ JonnyB94 (talk) 17:45, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

This request continues into several sections. I'd suggest splitting the request into separate requests (i.e., drop the nowiki tags and change the successive heading to show each as a separate edit request). Editors will find it easier to address all this in smaller pieces.

Much of the proposed new text does not seem adequately referenced to independent sources. Please add independent sources as inline citations (use the cite templates in the editing toolbar). References that go to Alsco's own websites and publications are NOT independent sources.

In addition, the text needs to be edited and shortened to include only encyclopedic, neutral, and documented content. Phrases like "In response to extortionist practices from labor unions,..." should not appear unless you provide independent sources that can support a claim of such behavior (e.g., a newspaper article reporting a legal judgement against a union for "extortion").

If a source cannot be found to support a claim, that material should be removed from the draft. Fiske (talk) 12:49, 11 April 2026 (UTC)

@JonnyB94: Some time has passed without a response, so I will close this request for now. After you have time to revise the request, you can reopen it.

Be sure that:

a) you include inline citations to independent sources (not just Alsco sources). Each paragraph should have one or more citations.

b) you use only neutral and non-promotional language.

Independent sources are very important for Wikipedia because they show that the text to be added is notable, meaning that it has interest beyond the company itself. Many of the comments made by User:Xanzzibar previously still apply to this draft. Fiske (talk) 20:45, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

Flesh out company history

{{edit COI|summary=expand company history}}

* Specific text to be added or removed: Please update the History section to:

Early years

In 1874, George A. Steiner was born in Leavenworth, Kansas. In 1889, at the age of 15, he bought the Lincoln Steam Laundry pushcart route in Lincoln, Nebraska, for $25 cash, supplying towels to local businesses for a small fee. George's brother Frank M. Steiner joined him in 1891 and they named their business the Lincoln Towel and Apron Supply after adding aprons to their services. They began to use hand-drawn carts to deliver their linens.

In 1896, George moved to Salt Lake City and established the American Linen Supply Company. Over the next few years, George bought their first horse and a two-wheeled wagon, along with acquiring local competitor Salt Lake Towel Supply and establishing a route to Ogden, Utah. Meanwhile, Frank moved to Minneapolis in 1896 and started the American Linen Company.

Over the next decade, American Linen Supply Company and American Linen Company both expanded with plants or branches in Ogden, St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Chicago. In response to extortionist practices from labor unions, Frank and George worked with other towel suppliers in Chicago to form the Chicago Linen Supply Association.

The company expanded into Canada with the incorporation of Canadian Linen Company Limited in 1925, while continuing to expand with more locations across the United States.

In 1918, the brothers patented a continuous-towel cabinet and began selling them directly to customers. These products were a major success for the Steiners, and there were more than 500,000 cabinets in use by the 1950s. George's son Frank Gardner, or F.G., Steiner began managing the Steiner Sales Company and the growth of their cabinet business by 1922.

Expansion

Frank Steiner and George Steiner passed away in 1939 and 1945, respectively. F.G. Steiner oversaw Steiner enterprises along with Frank's sons George R. Steiner and Lawrence McIvor. In 1948, they consolidated all of the individual branches into the American Linen Supply Company. The company was incorporated in Nevada with F.G. Steiner as president.

Under the leadership of F.G. the company aggressively expanded, establishing 16 branches over the next decade and creating another international subsidiary with the Society Toalhas de Papel Steiner Ltda. in Brazil. Their growth continued with 8 new plants in Canada and a branch overseas in Germany in the 1950s.

Throughout this growth, the American Linen Supply Company began to diversify from more than just a linen supplier and launderer. They also began directly selling more products like soap dispensers, tissue dispensers, toilet tissue, and paper napkins. They manufactured uniforms and linens directly and created and sold their own paper products.

The split

In 1959, largely due to management differences between the cousins, F.G. Steiner and his son Richard R. Steiner split the business into two companies with George R. and Lawrence McIvor. F.G. and Richard favored a more aggressive growth strategy of reinvesting their profits into building the business, while George and Lawrence preferred a more conservative, cautious approach.

After the split, George and Lawrence operated out of Minneapolis, while F.G. and Richard remained in Salt Lake City. The Minneapolis group kept the name of American Linen Supply Company, while the Salt Lake Group changed their name to Steiner American Corporation. Each company took some of the plants in the split, with the Minneapolis group controlling 22 plants in the Midwest and Canada and the Salt Lake Group controlling 19 western plants, plants in Milwaukee and Chicago, and the locations in Brazil and Germany.

Growth and diversification

Once Steiner American Corporation was on its own, F.G. and Richard continued their strategy of aggressive expansion. Over the next five years, they built 17 new branches, with 11 in the U.S. and six internationally. They began moving into markets in Switzerland, Australia, and Italy while growing their presence in Canada, Brazil, and Germany.

By 1967, Steiner American had 30 branches in the United States, five each in Australia and Germany, two in Brazil, and one each in Italy and Switzerland. That year, they opened a mid-century office for their headquarters in Salt Lake City.

Under Richard Steiner′s leadership, Steiner American also diversified the products and services they offered and established numerous subsidiaries. They manufactured fiberglass, processed foods, created an insurance company, provided financial services, and even operated a ranch throughout the 1960s, 70s, and 80s.

1990s to present

By the 1990s, major competitors were staking more of a claim in the linen services industry. Companies like Cintas and Aramark were growing, and Steiner American faced more competitive pressure. After decades of sustained growth, the company upgraded their facilities, moved into larger plants, and focused on water conservation and recycling to improve their capacity to serve customers.

In 2000, Richard R. Steiner retired, and his sons Robert and Kevin began running the company as co-chief executives. They rebranded Steiner American as Alsco in 2002, bringing all the company's diversified services and product offerings under one name. Throughout their leadership, they have focused on consolidating their services to place the company's focus on uniforms, linens, and facility services while promoting continued growth.

Kevin Steiner retired in 2022, leaving Robert Steiner as CEO. The company rebranded again in 2022 to Alsco Uniforms, placing an additional emphasis on their uniform offerings for industrial and healthcare workers.

* Reason for the change: Adding more detail to company history.

* References supporting change: Leonard J. Arrington, From Small Beginnings: A History of the American Linen Supply Company and Its Successors and Affiliates, Salt Lake City: Steiner Corporation, 1991. JonnyB94 (talk) 17:58, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Adding acquisition history

{{edit COI|summary=adding information about our acquisitions}}

* Specific text to be added or removed: Please add a section for Acquisitions and the following content:

In June 2018, Alsco Uniforms acquired CLEAN Linen Services Ltd., a laundry service based in the United Kingdom.

Alsco Uniforms acquired Churchhill Linen, a New England-based laundry service, in September of 2024.

In February of 2025, Alsco Uniforms acquired MacIntosh Services, a privately-owned laundry provider based on the East Coast.

Alsco Uniforms acquired Topper Linen in June 2025, expanding their presence in Canada with a second facility in Toronto.

* Reason for the change: Updating company informaiton

* References supporting change: https://alsco.com/news/alsco-inc-acquires-uks-clean-linen-services-ltd/

https://americanlaundrynews.com/articles/alsco-uniforms-acquires-churchill-linen

https://www.trsa.org/news/alsco-uniforms-acquires-macintosh-services/

https://americanlaundrynews.com/articles/alsco-uniforms-acquires-topper-linen JonnyB94 (talk) 18:02, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Adding sports partnerships

{{edit COI|summary=Adding information about professional sports partnerships}}

* Specific text to be added or removed: Please add a section for Sports partnerships with the following content:

Alsco Uniforms partners with several professional sports teams. They currently sponsor:

·      Toronto Raptors

·      Sacramento Kings

·      Indiana Pacers

·      Milwaukee Bucks

·      Houston Rockets

·      Utah Jazz

·      Utah Real Salt Lake

·      Utah Royals

·      Utah Mammoth

* Reason for the change: Adding more information about the company

* References supporting change: https://alsco.com/partnerships/ JonnyB94 (talk) 18:04, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Adding sustainability information

{{edit COI|summary=Information about company sustainability}}

* Specific text to be added or removed: Please add a section for Sustainability with the following content:

Some of the company's sustainability initiatives include:

·      Partnering with textile companies to recycle fabric

·      Working with chemical suppliers to innovate NPE-free formulas for laundering

·      Reducing water usage by 50% in all U.S. facilities

·      Integrating electric and hybrid delivery vehicles into their fleet

·      Installing solar power at facilities

·      Reducing paper waste with electronic invoices and statements

* Reason for the change: Provide more information on sustainability initiatives

* References supporting change: https://alsco.com/our-sustainability-approach/ JonnyB94 (talk) 18:08, 5 January 2026 (UTC)