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Thread: Contemplating opening shop... Could use advice

  1. #1
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    Contemplating opening shop... Could use advice

    I'm not sure if this is a good section to post this but here it goes. After many years of doing custom work, sheet metal, roll cages, carbonfiber lay ups, fiberglass... I'm considering opening a shop in Connecticut. My family is growing, our first child is on his way, and I feel the need that I need to provide better for my household. I've always been the non risk taker but I know I can produce quality work, respectable turn around times, and be very fair with pricing. My scare is building a customer base and getting work in. Any advice, personal experiences, anything at all that is relevant would be appreciated! Thanks guys you are an awesome community!

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    Last edited by Ctwide3project; 01-04-2020 at 06:27 PM.

  2. #2
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    Shops are expensive. Expect it to eat up at least 80% of your revenue.

    So the question you have to ask yourself is, "Is opening up a shop going to allow me to produce at least 5 times the amount of revenue I was producing without a shop?"
    Quote Originally Posted by B4SH View Post
    If anyone knows, it's this guy who knows literally nothing about everything.
    Quote Originally Posted by fcvapor05 View Post
    Do you even OT? The mean 401k around here is probably about $6, what with all the shiny cars and $1,000 watches and donations to get other members' Volvos running.


  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Critter7r View Post
    Shops are expensive. Expect it to eat up at least 80% of your revenue.

    So the question you have to ask yourself is, "Is opening up a shop going to allow me to produce at least 5 times the amount of revenue I was producing without a shop?"
    So far I've been doing all my jobs at my house and with limited space it's been hard to take on more than one customer at a time due to storage. I've arranged a fantastic deal on a location, such a good deal that 2 rollcage jobs will pay the rent for 6 months. With that being said, my biggest concern is finding customers. It's always a huge risk starting something and I'm a very cautious person so all the advice and concerns I can get are greatly appreciated!

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  4. #4
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    I would suggest looking for an existing shop to partner with to mitigate your risk/obligations. Perhaps you can find a shop you can perform after hour custom work and work for the shop during regular hours. Also consider if your wife (girlfriend/life partner/whatever) will be returning to work with regard to affordable health care options. Best of luck and congratulations on your growing family. You definitely have the talent, be careful not to overwhelm yourself at this time and be sure you are able to enjoy it.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by gdavid View Post
    I would suggest looking for an existing shop to partner with to mitigate your risk/obligations. Perhaps you can find a shop you can perform after hour custom work and work for the shop during regular hours. Also consider if your wife (girlfriend/life partner/whatever) will be returning to work with regard to affordable health care options. Best of luck and congratulations on your growing family. You definitely have the talent, be careful not to overwhelm yourself at this time and be sure you are able to enjoy it.
    Over the years I've had some local shops ask if I would do some sub work for them but none were too keen on having me do the work at their locations due to them being pushed for space also but that is certainly an option I'm going to revisit! Thank you for the suggestion! Luckily my wife is a health care professional that works for the state with truly fantastic medical benefits that I am blessed to have and she will be returning to work. If we didnt have those benefits I couldn't even consider this life change.

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  6. #6
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    If you are not already doing it, capture some film of your one-off fabrication and start publishing it to youtube. It could be a powerful promotional tool for your business.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by gdavid View Post
    If you are not already doing it, capture some film of your one-off fabrication and start publishing it to youtube. It could be a powerful promotional tool for your business.
    And this is exactly why I love you guys and this community! Thats a fantastic idea that never crossed my mind

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  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by gdavid View Post
    If you are not already doing it, capture some film of your one-off fabrication and start publishing it to youtube. It could be a powerful promotional tool for your business.
    exactly.....

    when i went looking for my roll bar for my e36 i found my supplier on bimmerforums. there was a thread with many happy customers so i contacted the builder, discussed options, and had the bar shipped to my shop for installation. i never would have found the builder without something like a thread on a forum with follow up posts from happy customers....
    '95 325iS - auto to manual swap done!

  9. #9
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    A few thoughts for the OP....

    CT has access to some great motorsports in the New England area. If your work speaks for itself, a little self promotion and happy customers will get things rolling.

    It sounds like the space you have tabs on might be ideal. Do you already own tools?

    As for promoting yourself, see if you can find a friend who's a photographer to nab some pics of the work you've already done. I would use pics to make a simple website and FB/IG page.

    Lastly, the BMW world is small. Someone will play very handsomely to get a custom widget from someone who is really good at building them. Track cars are cash hogs and the guys who run them usually are prepared to drop decent sums on a parts/fab work.

    PS, if you haven't ever taken business classes I might suggest taking one or two at your local community college. Accounting and money related things can sink a business fast so knowing how to keep your books is ideal.
    Wade

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aubergine View Post
    A few thoughts for the OP....

    CT has access to some great motorsports in the New England area. If your work speaks for itself, a little self promotion and happy customers will get things rolling.

    It sounds like the space you have tabs on might be ideal. Do you already own tools?

    As for promoting yourself, see if you can find a friend who's a photographer to nab some pics of the work you've already done. I would use pics to make a simple website and FB/IG page.

    Lastly, the BMW world is small. Someone will play very handsomely to get a custom widget from someone who is really good at building them. Track cars are cash hogs and the guys who run them usually are prepared to drop decent sums on a parts/fab work.

    PS, if you haven't ever taken business classes I might suggest taking one or two at your local community college. Accounting and money related things can sink a business fast so knowing how to keep your books is ideal.
    I do already have all my own equipment which is another great advantage for me going into this. So far I've got some friends/old customers who have been asking me for work for many years lined up and committed to allowing me to work on their cars which is going to be very helpful in building a portfolio. I'm an old school kind of person who doesn't have facebook because I prefer to pick up the phone and speak to my friends instead of broadcasting what I'm doing online lol however I am seeing the benefit of a facebook page for business reasons.

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  11. #11
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    PS, if you haven't ever taken business classes I might suggest taking one or two at your local community college. Accounting and money related things can sink a business fast so knowing how to keep your books is ideal.[/QUOTE]

    Another advantage for me is for the past 12 years at the small business I currently work in I have been keeping the books, doing payroll, ordering parts, arranging the tax payments and so on. This at least gives me a great starting point but a class might also give me more insight into better ways instead of any bad habits I have picked up throughout the years.

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  12. #12
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    dworthy is offline Wagon meister :) BMW Tech Expert
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    Another place for free advertisment is Google maps. Get some of your previous customers to go on there once the business is established and drop a couple of reviews for you.

    Also it wouldn't be a bad idea to consult a business lawyer on starting a company and what legalities that entails. Every city/state will have different laws and paperwork that will be needed, and a lawyer can help with that, plus what kind of insurance that will be needed/required.

    Good luck, for every business will have about 3-5 years before getting out of the red, less so if you already own all the equipment that will be needed.
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  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by dworthy View Post
    Another place for free advertisment is Google maps. Get some of your previous customers to go on there once the business is established and drop a couple of reviews for you.

    Also it wouldn't be a bad idea to consult a business lawyer on starting a company and what legalities that entails. Every city/state will have different laws and paperwork that will be needed, and a lawyer can help with that, plus what kind of insurance that will be needed/required.

    Good luck, for every business will have about 3-5 years before getting out of the red, less so if you already own all the equipment that will be needed.
    One of my close friends is a contract liability lawyer for the Stanley Corporation and he is being kind enough to look everything over for me and advise me on legalities. I called my insurance broker who deals with my home insurance and he also does commercial insurance so it's a waiting game for him to get quotes back to me.

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  14. #14
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    Update:
    Due to the current situation we are all dealing with, I have had to take a step back from opening my dream shop. With a house, wife, and a 4 month old little man, I cant bring myself to leave my reliable day job in these uncertain times and take such a risk. However I decided I can't fully give up on it so I have taken advice from several of you guys and I am going to ease into it by doing initial work from my home on evenings and weekends. While it's not the full dream yet, at least it's a start. In the next few weeks I'll have my first customer job as an actual business and not hobby beginning and I'll keep you guys posted on the progress. Thank you all for the support and encouragement! Stay safe everyone.

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    Last edited by Ctwide3project; 05-24-2020 at 07:34 AM.

  15. #15
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    totally understand that decision.

    thank you for keeping us updated - let us know how the job goes and how you progress!

    i know of more than one story from a variety of industries that started out like you are.

    just be smart about "working from home" - be aware of any zoning, etc....

    let us know what projects you work on!
    '95 325iS - auto to manual swap done!

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