If you’ve lived in Skokie for more than a minute, you know the sign. That bold, unapologetic lettering on Dempster Street. Kenny the Kleener Skokie IL wasn't just a place where you dropped off your sweat-stained work shirts or that one "dry clean only" dress you wore to every wedding since 2019. It was a landmark.
But things changed fast in 2025.
One day, it's a bustling hub of steam and hangers. The next? Yellow tape and charred remains. If you’re searching for them now in 2026, you’re likely wondering if they’re ever coming back or where on earth your favorite wool coat is supposed to go now.
The Night the Steam Stopped
It was April 2, 2025. While most of Skokie was sleeping, a massive fire ripped through the building at 3358 W. Dempster St. I’m not talking about a little kitchen flare-up. This was a "gutted and boarded up" kind of disaster. ABC7 caught up with the owner, Ken Davis, who looked understandably devastated.
Ken’s been at this since 2003. Think about that. Twenty-plus years of keeping the North Shore looking sharp. He’s the guy who pivoted during the pandemic to sew cloth masks just to keep his staff paid and the lights on. He’s the same guy who, for years, cleaned over 1,000 coats for the Rotary Club of Skokie Valley’s annual drive.
Seeing a pillar of the community stand in front of a smoking shell of a building and say, "I'm at the end of my life and my career here," is a gut punch. It makes you realize how much we take local businesses for granted until the conveyor belt stops spinning.
Why Kenny the Kleener Mattered to Skokie
Honestly, dry cleaners are usually invisible. You only notice them when they lose a button or miss a deadline. But Kenny the Kleener was different. People actually liked going there.
Check the stats from Consumers' Checkbook before the fire. They had an 80% "superior" rating for doing work properly. In an industry where people mostly leave reviews to complain, that’s basically a miracle. Their prices were consistently lower than the Chicago average, yet they didn't treat your clothes like rags.
What made them the "Go-To" spot?
- The Price Point: In an era where a simple blazer clean can cost as much as a steak dinner, Kenny’s kept it reasonable.
- The Tailoring: They weren't just about chemicals and steam. Their tailoring services were legendary for being both fast and—wait for it—actually good.
- The Footprint: Ken Davis didn't just own the Skokie shop. He had a handful of locations, including a well-known spot in Wilmette and another in Rogers Park.
But that Skokie location on Dempster? That was the heart of the operation.
The 2026 Reality: Is Kenny the Kleener Skokie IL Still Around?
Here is the truth: The Skokie physical storefront is currently out of commission due to that fire. If you drive past 3358 W. Dempster today, you aren't seeing a grand reopening.
However, the "Kenny" brand hasn't vanished into the ether.
The Wilmette location at 3520 Lake Ave is still a lifeline for loyalists. Many Skokie regulars have started making the trek there because, frankly, finding a dry cleaner you trust with your grandmother’s vintage lace is harder than finding a good plumber.
Current Status of Services
- Wilmette Branch: Fully operational. If you have a "Kenny the Kleener" account, this is your primary hub.
- Pickup and Delivery: This is the big pivot for 2026. Because the physical footprint in Skokie is gone, the business has leaned heavily into delivery. It’s what everyone is doing now anyway—why drive to Dempster when someone can grab your laundry from your porch?
- The Dempster Site: There have been whispers about rebuilding, but at Ken's age and given the extent of the damage, it’s a massive undertaking.
What Most People Get Wrong About Dry Cleaning Right Now
There’s this weird misconception that dry cleaning is a dying art because everyone wears "athleisure" to the office now. Lululemon doesn't need a heavy press, right?
Wrong.
The industry in 2026 is actually seeing a weird surge. Why? Alterations. With the massive rise of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs (you know the ones), people aren't necessarily buying whole new wardrobes yet. They’re taking their expensive stuff to places like Kenny the Kleener to get them taken in. Expert tailors are the new rockstars of the service industry.
Also, the "eco-friendly" shift is no longer a luxury—it’s the standard. The old-school, harsh chemicals are being phased out for liquid silicone and specialized "wet cleaning" processes. Kenny’s was always pretty good about staying updated, which is probably why their clothes didn't come back smelling like a gas station.
If You’re a Former Skokie Regular: Your Next Steps
You can't just leave your suits in a pile indefinitely. If you were a regular at the Dempster location, here is how you handle the transition in 2026.
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1. Check the Wilmette Location First
If you have unclaimed clothes from before the fire (though by now, most insurance claims have been processed), or if you just want that same level of service, the Wilmette shop at 3520 Lake Ave (Unit 101) is the direct sister site. Their phone number is 847-728-0523.
2. Switch to the Delivery Model
Don't bother looking for a new "brick and mortar" if you're busy. Kenny the Kleener has been pushing their pickup and delivery routes hard to cover the gap left by the Skokie fire. You can usually set this up via their website or a quick phone call.
3. Address the Tailoring Gap
If you specifically went to Kenny's for the alterations, ask if their lead tailor moved to the Wilmette or Rogers Park locations. Many of the skilled staff were redistributed after the fire, so your favorite seamstress might just be a ten-minute drive further north.
4. Watch the Dempster Property
The Skokie Chamber of Commerce still keeps tabs on these things. While the building was "heavily damaged," the land is prime. Whether it reopens as a brand-new Kenny the Kleener or becomes something else entirely, that corner of Dempster is too valuable to stay boarded up forever.
The Final Word on a Skokie Icon
Losing a business to a fire is a tragedy, but losing a 20-year community staple feels like losing a neighbor. Ken Davis and his team at Kenny the Kleener Skokie IL represented a specific type of Chicago-area business: the kind that cleans your coats for free for the homeless and stays open late when you realize your tuxedo doesn't fit two days before a gala.
While the physical doors on Dempster might be closed for now, the service lives on through their other branches and their delivery vans. Support local businesses while they’re here. Because as Skokie learned last April, everything can change in a single night of smoke and sirens.
Immediate Action Items:
- Call 847-324-5101 to see if your old Skokie account is active for delivery.
- Visit the Wilmette location for in-person tailoring needs that require a fitting.
- Update your Google Maps bookmarks so you don't accidentally drive to a boarded-up building on Dempster.
- Verify your insurance if you are still seeking compensation for items lost in the 2025 fire; most windows for these claims are narrowing.