An air hostess and her mum who left Venezuela to make a better life in the UK have launched the first eco-friendly laundry service of its kind, in Chelmsford.

Alexandra Cadenas Pacitto, 32, and her mum Caterina Pacitto, opened Prima Master Dry Cleaners’ first ever franchise in the county, in Chelmsford and they are already recruiting staff.

The new Prima Master Dry Cleaners on Main Road specialises in environmentally friendly wet care technology which uses water and state-of-the-art technology rather than chemicals, to get clothes clean.

The business is a dream come true for the family as it means Caterina can spend precious time with her granddaughter, Sabrina, aged two, after following her daughter to the UK to make a fresh start in life.

Alexandra moved to Braintree six years ago with her husband, as they wanted to start a family but feared for their prosperity in their home country.

She said: “We moved to the UK because after we got married we wanted to start a new life as a family, but we didn’t feel we could do that in Venezuela.

“We are both also EU nationals as I am Italian, and my husband is Spanish, and so it made sense to move.

“We really like Essex, it’s a lovely area and the people are really friendly and it’s nice to be outside London so it’s a bit more of a relaxed pace of life.

“My mum moved here just over a year ago after we had Sabrina, she decided to retire from work, so we could all be together, and she can help raise her grand-daughter.”

Alexandra is looking forward to working alongside her mum, who previously worked for 25 years in an oil company and 10 years in a bank in Venezuela.

They have already taken on one staff member to help Caterina run the shop day-to-day and are looking to recruit a second member for the team, as Alexandra also works part time as a flight attendant and is preparing to start training as a pilot later this year.

Alexandra said: “My mum always wanted to have a dry cleaners. She loves cleaning, and because of her background in banking she can look after the financial side of things.

“We both also really love clothes and looking nice, so it’s going to be nice to help people to look their best,”

The business is set to be a favorite with fashionistas in Chelmsford, as the revolutionary wet care technology is kind to delicate materials used in designer labels, as well as being kind to skin and the planet.

This system uses water, rather than chemicals like regular dry cleaning.

Caterina said: “It’s very satisfying seeing things go in and come out nice and clean and fresh, and to know that you are still being kind to the environment.

“There are lots of designer brands out there these days which need specialist cleaning care, and I think we’ll see a lot of these in Chelmsford as it’s a very smart area and people do care about how they look.”

The Chelmsford store is part of a major expansion into franchising by Merseyside based Prima Master Dry Cleaners.

The Chelmsford franchise is the second to open, and bosses at Prima Master Dry Cleaners are now seeking to recruit more franchisees around the UK in 2018.

Alexandra and Caterina are learning the trade from successful businesswoman Natasha Davies, who set up Prima Master Dry Cleaners 15 years ago.

The business specialises in cleaning delicate fabrics such as wool, leather and silk, so they are expert at helping breathe new life into designer label clothes, wedding dresses, soft furnishings such as curtains and even fabric shoes such as Ugg boots.

The secret lies in pioneering wet care machines made by cleaning experts Miele, which use water instead of chemicals to clean clothes. A non-toxic biodegradable detergent is used to help remove tough stains.

Alexandra and Caterina were impressed by the package offered to potential franchisees by the Prima Master Dry Cleaners team.

She said: “We were looking for a business opportunity that me and my mum could run together. We were Googling franchises and Prima came up.

“As soon as we met Prima team we knew we wanted to work with them. They are really hands on and we know they will give us a lot of support to make a success of the business.

“We were impressed as they have built up a lot of experience over the years so I have confidence in the brand.”