More Than Textiles: How CITY and ADI Work Together

Strong vendor partnerships do more than keep products moving. They help customers solve problems faster, improve quality, and create better long-term programs. That is exactly what makes the relationship between CITY Laundering and American Dawn Inc. (ADI) such a valuable one.

American Dawn Inc., also known as ADI, has been supplying textiles to the rental commercial laundry industry for more than 50 years. As Vice President of Commercial Strategy & Business Development at American Dawn Inc., Will Hacker sees that role as much bigger than shipping products. “A big part of our service model to companies like CITY is to try to provide the products that are needed, but not just products,” Will shared. “How can we add value?”

That mindset has helped make ADI a trusted partner for CITY across multiple areas of the business. From food processing frocks to healthcare products, the partnership is built around collaboration, honesty, and a shared belief that service matters just as much as the product itself.

For Will, that starts with understanding what customers truly need. ADI has long been known for custom product development, but the company is also focused on building solutions that can work across multiple customers and industries. That approach helps improve buying power, support stronger inventory positions, and ultimately deliver better value. “It’s a lot easier if we can use the same thing for 10, 20 customers across the U.S.,” Will shared. “Then you get a volume buy. And that lets us get to a cost where we can provide the best cost to you.”

That balance between customization and scalability is one reason the partnership with CITY works so well. According to Will, open communication has played a big role over the years, especially in the relationship ADI has built with the CITY leadership team. “There’s a level of trust in that we’re going to do what we say we’re going to do,” Will shared. “But also, there’s a real layer of honesty.”

That honesty creates better outcomes on both sides. Instead of avoiding hard conversations, both companies use feedback to improve. “If American Dawn doesn’t get a certain amount of business, here’s why you didn’t get it,” Will shared, describing the kind of direct input that helps ADI continue to grow. “That’s very helpful to us.”

It also helps that CITY is always looking ahead. Whether expanding into new markets, investing in new ideas, or building out its healthcare presence, CITY continues to evolve. That makes ADI a natural fit. Because ADI already serves healthcare, hospitality, food and beverage, and industrial customers, the company is well-positioned to support CITY as new opportunities develop.

That support has become even more important as ADI has invested in strengthening its own internal capabilities. Over the last year, the company has expanded its commercial team, added new leadership in product development and client solutions, and built a more robust quality program.

That renewed focus on quality matters for CITY customers who rely on durable, long-lasting products in demanding environments.

ADI is now building

• internal quality checks,
• a deeper quality policy, and
• even a quality lab

to ensure products perform the way they should. And if something goes wrong, Will made it clear that ADI stands behind the product. “If there’s ever been a quality issue, we’re going to react quickly,” Will shared. “We’re going to take care of the customer in the end while we figure out what’s wrong.”

That kind of responsiveness is especially important in industries where textiles take a beating. Food processing, manufacturing, and healthcare all require products that can hold up under real-world laundering conditions. ADI’s answer is to get closer to the process.

Instead of designing products in a vacuum, the company wants to spend more time inside customer facilities, watching how garments are processed, talking with plant leaders, and learning what really matters on the floor. “It’s one thing for us to build it,” Will shared. “It’s another thing to build it with your customer.”

That hands-on approach has already shaped ADI’s newer healthcare scrub lines, including Trace and Respond. Trace was designed with RFID technology built in, while Respond features a performance fabric feel with durability that can stand up to industrial wash conditions. But beyond the product specs, what stands out is the way ADI approached development. The company gathered feedback from real healthcare workers, studied fit and comfort, and brought those findings back into the design process.

For CITY Healthcare, that creates a major opportunity. As CITY continues growing in healthcare, ADI is not just supplying scrub products. The company is also helping with sales education, product training, and marketing support. “We can do full program training,” Will shared. “We can come in and walk your sales team through the benefits, the features, and how to sell it.”

That same support mindset applies to CITY’s Industrial division as well. From long-standing staple items to broader strategic conversations about how to convert customers to rental programs, ADI is looking for ways to help CITY win. Will pointed to the strong marketing alignment between the two companies as another advantage, noting that both organizations are focused on building value instead of competing only on price.

That distinction matters. In commodity-heavy categories, it is easy for products like towels or bar mops to become price-only conversations. But both CITY and ADI understand that the strongest partnerships are built on more than the lowest number. They are built on service, ideas, trust, and the ability to bring more to the table.

“We really would like to not just do the towel,” Will shared. “We want to do more than we can, bring more value.”

That is what makes this vendor partnership important. CITY and ADI are not simply moving textiles from one place to another. Together, they are building programs, improving products, supporting growth, and helping customers succeed in both industrial and healthcare settings.

When both companies are focused on innovation, responsiveness, and long-term value, the partnership becomes more than a supply relationship. It becomes a shared commitment to doing better for the customer every step of the way.