Calgary Business Spotlight: Dolphin Cleaners and a Community That Shows Up

When I first walked into Dolphin Cleaners on Northmount Drive, I introduced myself to the man at the counter, told him I had a meeting with Imran, and waited as he went to the back to let him know I was there.

And that’s when I noticed it — or rather, noticed the absence of it. It’s been a while since I’ve walked into a dry cleaner. But the smell — that sharp chemical signature from years past — I remembered it.

It wasn’t there. The air was clean and chemical free.

I let the space settle around me.

The room had a quiet peace to it. Not rushed, not anxious. A couple of staff moved calmly through their work, and all around them — overhead on automated racks, lining the walls — garments hung in what I can only describe as a tidy labyrinth of order. Each one neatly wrapped and waiting for delivery or pick up.

Before long, Imran appeared, hand extended with a welcoming smile. Warm and unhurried, like he had all the time in the world, even though his day was clearly full.

That door stayed open the whole time we talked. Staff would appear in the frame every few minutes — a quick question, a thoughtful answer, friendly and easy.

I’ve been in a lot of business meetings over my nearly 30 years in radio, and they typically go like this: can I get a better rate, here’s my budget, can you promise results. I came prepared for that conversation. Imran wanted none of it.

He Wanted to Talk About the World

Within minutes, we were somewhere I didn’t expect — talking about homelessness in Calgary, about community, about what we owe the people around us. About how rewarding it is to give to others, and how gestures of kindness, no matter how small, make a difference.

And Imran isn’t just talking about it.

Every Saturday, he and his team go out and distribute food and warm clothing to people experiencing homelessness in Calgary. Not as a campaign. Not as content. But because it is the right thing to do.

That’s when I started to understand what kind of business I was sitting in.

Most business owners who are advertisers I’ve worked with in the past — and I say this with respect — want to lead with price, promotions, and reach. Imran wanted to lead with why. Why he built Dolphin Cleaners the way he did. Why he believes businesses have a responsibility to the communities they operate in. Why, when he sees a gap, his instinct is to fill it rather than look the other way.

According to a 2022 article in The Chestermere Anchor, what started more than two decades ago with Imran giving a single winter jacket to someone in need has grown into something much larger. Where they once served around thirty people in an hour, on a busy day they now see three hundred people in twenty minutes.

The winter clothing donation initiative running right now across all seven Dolphin Cleaners locations in Calgary came from exactly that instinct. Gently used coats, gloves, backpacks, and winter wear can be dropped off at any location. From there, the items are cleaned and distributed to Calgarians who need them. Imran spoke at length about his concern that demand is exceeding supply. The need is real and the donations are running low.

Because anyone who’s lived here long enough knows: Calgary doesn’t do spring gently. The temperature can swing from plus fifteen and sunny to minus fifteen and a blizzard in a matter of hours. This year is no exception as spring came in January, while winter has made its abrupt return mid-March. For people living on the street, warm clothing is not a luxury; it is a matter of survival.

This earlier CTV feature helps tell part of the story behind Dolphin Cleaners and its connection to the community.

A Different Way of Doing Thing

As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been in dry cleaners before, and I distinctly remember the smell. That chemical signature that would hit you at the door and follow you home, embedded in the plastic wrap around your clothes long after they’d found their way to the closet.

So, as Imran was walking me out, I decided to ask, “Where is the ‘dryclean’ smell?”

He told me the smell I remembered was caused by a chemical called PERC. Dolphin Cleaners uses only environmentally friendly solvents and is PERC-free.

Then he directed my attention to a vintage leather coat hanging to my right, and the conversation shifted to sustainability and the obvious pride he takes in the work that they do.

That coat, he said, could have ended up in a landfill. Leather like this doesn’t get cleaned in a day. It takes weeks. Meticulous, patient work—assessing the condition, understanding what it needs, and moving through the restoration carefully and in stages. But when it’s done, something that might have been thrown away goes back to the person who loved it.

Imran cares about what gets thrown away too easily, whether that’s clothing that could be restored or people too often overlooked. That same mindset runs through everything he does at Dolphin Cleaners.

This Is What Local Business Actually Looks Like

I write and talk a lot about advertising — it’s my world, and I love it. But the reason I got into this work in the first place was because of businesses like Dolphin Cleaners. Local businesses run by people who do not see commerce and community as competing priorities.

If you want to feel better, do something good for someone else. Imran said that to me, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it.

If you have a coat, a pair of gloves, or a backpack you haven’t touched in two winters, consider dropping it off at one of the Dolphin Cleaners Calgary locations. In a few minutes, your closet will be less cluttered, and you will have helped someone stay warm tonight.

And if you need a dry cleaner, now you know a little more about who you’d be trusting your clothes to.

---

I work with local businesses across Calgary through radio advertising at Shine FM and AM The Light and through IDMD, my digital marketing company. If you want to talk about connecting your business with the right audience, I’d love to hear from you.