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48 The insider
Retail Heritage Vintage Consume
The king of
clean
Eddy Beaurain has been fighting dirt for more
than 30 years. Pressing n° 1, the dry cleaning
business he set up in 1979, is a trustworthy
address, enviably located on Rue Antoine
Dansaertstraat, Brussels’ fashion epicentre.
A former civil servant, Beaurain got bored
with red tape, office hours and paperwork.
He wanted to be in touch with people and
thought dry cleaning could do the trick.
“When I was a kid, I lived in the neighbourhood
and my parents used to bring their
clothes here. They were sent elsewhere for
cleaning and they’d come back to collect
them after a few days. When I took over from
the previous owner, I set up a workshop at
the back, allowing us to do everything on the
spot. We got regular business fairly quickly,
enabling me to hire more staff.” There’s something
real and charismatic about Beaurain.
Besides his affable manner and openness, he
comes across as a sincere and hard-working
guy. The fact that he’s been on Rue Antoine
Dansaertstraat for so long gives him a unique
insight into the life of the street “It changed
so much here,” he explains. “I’m 57 now and
remember how it was. There were mainly
craftsmen. Some were making watches, others
were running small ateliers for leather goods
and crocodile bracelets. Stijl was one of the
first designer boutiques to open in 1984. Sonja
Noël (owner of Stijl and Halelujah) is still a
client of mine. Theatre companies – such as
La Monnaie / De Munt – began working with
me, too. I’ve always dealt with creative people
and they are very loyal clients.” Never defeated
when it comes to stains, he rarely refuses to
clean clothes. He doesn’t seem to object to the
obsessive habits of some of his clients either
I always find solutions
when it comes to dirt.
In dry-cleaning, milk
and biro are the biggest
challenges
ˆ
ˇ
“I always find solutions when it comes to dirt.
In dry-cleaning, milk and biro are the biggest
challenges. Some folks complain constantly,
but they keep on coming back. Others bring
things that don’t even need cleaned. We have
a guy who drops a bag of white underwear
every week. It’s always the same brand and
the same amount of briefs. Another elderly
man has one black shirt he gets cleaned on a
regular basis. The week after, he comes back
with the same shirt and a silk white tie. It’s like
a ritual and has been going on for years. When
the shirt starts falling apart, he has the same
one made at a tailor’s he knows.” As clothing
deals with privacy and intimacy, clients start
opening up after a while, becoming friends
with Beaurain and his staff. “People will talk
about personal matters behind the counter.
They feel we can be trusted and that we listen
to them. Clients become friends after a while.”
Beaurain has touching stories about some of
them, “I became friendly with this guy who
came in every Saturday. He was a joyful person
and we had great chats. Then he disappeared
for six months and I wondered where he was.
One day, I got a call from him, telling me he
was at Saint-Jean / Sint-Jan clinic and really ill.
He wanted to see me the next day and I went
there. We never talked about his illness, but
I think it was AIDS. Although it hurt to see him
weak and diminished, I had to be there for him.
He died a few days after my visit.” Ironically,
Beaurain was approached by a fashion brand
three years ago and has finally decided to sell
his shop. He will close in December this year,
starting a new chapter in his life. The stains may
be long gone, but Beaurain’s indelible stain on
the neighbourhood won’t be washed away any
time soon. (Farewell Eddy. Brussels’ fashion
strip won’t be the same without you.) (PP)
Visit thewordmagazine.be/wonders/kingofclean for a full
gallery of Pressing N°1’s downtown shop.
© Pauline Miko