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I need a permanent location!!!
Posted by Brian Lupo
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I need a permanent location!!! June 03, 2004 09:53PM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 107 |
<HTML>Ok, I'm dying here! I really need to get a permanent location (gas station, auto-shop, body shop), but everytime I approach a place, something goes wrong.
How exactly do you guys approach places like this to open up a car wash? I know that I need insurance, an occ license for that location and a city permit, and I tell them that I will get all of those before beginning to work, but it never seems to be a go.
Do you guys make a financial offer? Walk in with a proposal? Do you call and ask for a manager or the owner?
I need to know every detail lol because obviously this isn't working for me!
I have a few AWESOME locations scouted out, but a few are corporate owned, which seems like it could be hell to get through to them and a few others are just impossible to get them to come aroudn to the idea.
Please email all responses as I cannot always get on the forum the past few days!
Thanks in advance!</HTML>
How exactly do you guys approach places like this to open up a car wash? I know that I need insurance, an occ license for that location and a city permit, and I tell them that I will get all of those before beginning to work, but it never seems to be a go.
Do you guys make a financial offer? Walk in with a proposal? Do you call and ask for a manager or the owner?
I need to know every detail lol because obviously this isn't working for me!
I have a few AWESOME locations scouted out, but a few are corporate owned, which seems like it could be hell to get through to them and a few others are just impossible to get them to come aroudn to the idea.
Please email all responses as I cannot always get on the forum the past few days!
Thanks in advance!</HTML>
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 04, 2004 12:36AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 751 |
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 04, 2004 02:27AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 382 |
<HTML>I understand what you're going through, Brian. I was lucky in that I found a partner who was opening a shop to not only service high end cars (BMW, Benz, Audi) he was looking for a detailer to run his wash bay & do detailing right at his shop. So, he bankrolled the complete development of the facility and we built the shop together with the contractors. He agreed to let me have space for free and bring in my own customers if I would agree to run the wash bay for him and do a wash on every car that they serviced. I jumped on this and it looks like it's going to pay off in spades. Because, every car that comes in for service involves doing performance upgrades or appearance updates (changing bumpers, exhuast systems, hoods, lights, superchargers, etc.) so that by the time they're done with the service work, the car is pretty dirty and with new parts, some of the car looks better than others, so it's real easy to sell a detail so the car looks like new and has a uniform look and shine to it. I also have several outside techs (pdr, interior repair, etc) come in on an as needed basis to offer these services as well.
Plus I market & advertise my business aside from the service center, so I am developing my own customer base, as well. Eventually, I'd like to have my own shop adjacent to my partner's service center where I could have 3 or 4 bays and be able to service more vehicles and boats.
Although, if the service shop grows and takes off, I'll just see if I can expand and start renting space from my partner, since his shop is fully equipped and set up as an auto service facility, complete with adequate drainage, oil/water seperator, adequate compressed air supply, etc.
Maybe you can start taling to people in the business, auto dealers, service center owners/managers and see if they know of anyone that's building a new facility or looking for someone to do their detailing for them. Keep your ears open and if you hear of something, call the guy yourself.
The thing about finding a location is that unless it's already set up for an auto service type business and located in an area where there's other similar businesses, most building owners are going to be reluctant to allow their building to be retro-fitted to accomodate you. After all, who would want an auto center in the middle of a bunch of small office buildings or in the middle of a light industrial complex. You have to find a high-visibility location where either it's a stand alone building or there's other auto-related businesses around.</HTML>
Shine On!
Rod Wesley
Touch Up 'N' Go!
Auto & Marine Appearance Center
We take your car from Rough to Buff!
Visit our website at: www.touchupngo.com
Plus I market & advertise my business aside from the service center, so I am developing my own customer base, as well. Eventually, I'd like to have my own shop adjacent to my partner's service center where I could have 3 or 4 bays and be able to service more vehicles and boats.
Although, if the service shop grows and takes off, I'll just see if I can expand and start renting space from my partner, since his shop is fully equipped and set up as an auto service facility, complete with adequate drainage, oil/water seperator, adequate compressed air supply, etc.
Maybe you can start taling to people in the business, auto dealers, service center owners/managers and see if they know of anyone that's building a new facility or looking for someone to do their detailing for them. Keep your ears open and if you hear of something, call the guy yourself.
The thing about finding a location is that unless it's already set up for an auto service type business and located in an area where there's other similar businesses, most building owners are going to be reluctant to allow their building to be retro-fitted to accomodate you. After all, who would want an auto center in the middle of a bunch of small office buildings or in the middle of a light industrial complex. You have to find a high-visibility location where either it's a stand alone building or there's other auto-related businesses around.</HTML>
Shine On!
Rod Wesley
Touch Up 'N' Go!
Auto & Marine Appearance Center
We take your car from Rough to Buff!
Visit our website at: www.touchupngo.com
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 04, 2004 04:51AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 1,838 |
<HTML>How much money do you think one would need to open a shop? Aside from the chemicals and equipment costs, whats the costs involved?
For a lease, an average 3 bay shop w/ office, how much wouyld one spend before opening day?</HTML>
Take care,
Brian
Precision Auto & Marine
Learn to detail boats! Visit www.detailtheboat.com
For a lease, an average 3 bay shop w/ office, how much wouyld one spend before opening day?</HTML>
Take care,
Brian
Precision Auto & Marine
Learn to detail boats! Visit www.detailtheboat.com
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 04, 2004 05:35AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 382 |
<HTML>It depends on if the building is just a shell and the buildout is being done before the floor is poured or if the building is already set up as an auto facility.
If you figure your lease is going to be $12-$15/s.f. and you would need about 3-4,000 s.f. to build a comfortable, state-of-the-art shop complete with customer lobby, rest room (must be ADA compliant) employee lounge, office, storage, heating/cooling system, etc. I would guess roughly about $100,000 to build it properly from the ground up.
Figure the landlord will probably allow for $3/s.f. for his portion of the buildout. The rest is up to you. That would include your oil-water seperator ($5-8,000) auto exhaust system (figure about $3,500). You'll want to invest in really good lighting (mercury halite system and flourescent will run you another $4-5,000) Plus all your drywall that seperates the lobby & offices from the shop will have to be double 5/8" thick fireboard on both sides, so that will be very expensive. Then there's the floor coating which will easily be another $7,500. Plus lighting for the office & customer areas which will probably be another $,2500. Then installing heating for the shop (maybe a couple overhead radiant heat tubes for about $10,000 and then the heating/a.c. for the office & lobby, another $7,500). Then there's all the plumbing fixtures, pressure washer, air compressor, etc. And then there's all the unforseen items that you will encounter like having to change your plans around to make sure everything is handicapped (ADA) compliant. Oh and don't forget the cost of the architect to draw up the plans. And the cost of permits & licenses, etc. And signage. You'll want a nice sign that lights up so you have 24 hour visibility.
I would think $90-$100K is a realistic figure for a nice shop that's going to draw the upscale customer, if that's who your clientele is. These people expect clean, tidy places to do business in and expect to be pamered, so you'll need the gourmet coffee, fresh doughnuts and bagels, a nice t.v. and some wireless internet connections wouldn't hurt either. But above all, it has to be very clean. You want to get away from that corner gas station look, especially if your customers are going to spend any amount of time waiting for their vehicles.
And we haven't even gotten into insurance for the business or worker's comp for the employees. Throw in another $5,000 or so for that.
The more I write, the more I like staying under my partner's roof for as long as I can, lol!!!
I guess you could go cheaper and cut corners, but why would you want to? After all, this is your dream that you're building and by the time you're ready to cross this threshold, you should have a very strong and voluminous repeat clientele and be bursting at the seams with new biz lining up. In other words, the public demand should support your expansion. Make sure you pay someone to do the market studies before you spend another dime!! If you build the shop hoping that the business will come, then you've put the cart before the horse. Make sure the area you're in will support your business. Also, make sure it's not saturated with similar businesses. If you're building a high-end detail shop and you're within a mile of a Benz, BMW, Audi, Porsche and Volvo dealer, you're going to be hard pressed to compete with them because they have in-house detailing and most likely have a significant repeat clientele.
So scope everything out long before the first shovel hits the dirt.</HTML>
Shine On!
Rod Wesley
Touch Up 'N' Go!
Auto & Marine Appearance Center
We take your car from Rough to Buff!
Visit our website at: www.touchupngo.com
If you figure your lease is going to be $12-$15/s.f. and you would need about 3-4,000 s.f. to build a comfortable, state-of-the-art shop complete with customer lobby, rest room (must be ADA compliant) employee lounge, office, storage, heating/cooling system, etc. I would guess roughly about $100,000 to build it properly from the ground up.
Figure the landlord will probably allow for $3/s.f. for his portion of the buildout. The rest is up to you. That would include your oil-water seperator ($5-8,000) auto exhaust system (figure about $3,500). You'll want to invest in really good lighting (mercury halite system and flourescent will run you another $4-5,000) Plus all your drywall that seperates the lobby & offices from the shop will have to be double 5/8" thick fireboard on both sides, so that will be very expensive. Then there's the floor coating which will easily be another $7,500. Plus lighting for the office & customer areas which will probably be another $,2500. Then installing heating for the shop (maybe a couple overhead radiant heat tubes for about $10,000 and then the heating/a.c. for the office & lobby, another $7,500). Then there's all the plumbing fixtures, pressure washer, air compressor, etc. And then there's all the unforseen items that you will encounter like having to change your plans around to make sure everything is handicapped (ADA) compliant. Oh and don't forget the cost of the architect to draw up the plans. And the cost of permits & licenses, etc. And signage. You'll want a nice sign that lights up so you have 24 hour visibility.
I would think $90-$100K is a realistic figure for a nice shop that's going to draw the upscale customer, if that's who your clientele is. These people expect clean, tidy places to do business in and expect to be pamered, so you'll need the gourmet coffee, fresh doughnuts and bagels, a nice t.v. and some wireless internet connections wouldn't hurt either. But above all, it has to be very clean. You want to get away from that corner gas station look, especially if your customers are going to spend any amount of time waiting for their vehicles.
And we haven't even gotten into insurance for the business or worker's comp for the employees. Throw in another $5,000 or so for that.
The more I write, the more I like staying under my partner's roof for as long as I can, lol!!!
I guess you could go cheaper and cut corners, but why would you want to? After all, this is your dream that you're building and by the time you're ready to cross this threshold, you should have a very strong and voluminous repeat clientele and be bursting at the seams with new biz lining up. In other words, the public demand should support your expansion. Make sure you pay someone to do the market studies before you spend another dime!! If you build the shop hoping that the business will come, then you've put the cart before the horse. Make sure the area you're in will support your business. Also, make sure it's not saturated with similar businesses. If you're building a high-end detail shop and you're within a mile of a Benz, BMW, Audi, Porsche and Volvo dealer, you're going to be hard pressed to compete with them because they have in-house detailing and most likely have a significant repeat clientele.
So scope everything out long before the first shovel hits the dirt.</HTML>
Shine On!
Rod Wesley
Touch Up 'N' Go!
Auto & Marine Appearance Center
We take your car from Rough to Buff!
Visit our website at: www.touchupngo.com
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 04, 2004 12:28PM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 499 |
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 04, 2004 07:47PM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 23 |
<HTML>Hi Brian,
I seem to be having the same problem here...Im in south Florida just a few miles away from Ft lauderdale and alot of the gas stations here are corporate owned. I just went to city hall today to get some info on zoning laws and etc. I was told that there is no car washing allowed at any fixed location such as a gas station unless the washing as well as vacuuming and preping is done inside a bay area...However there just happens to be 2 gas stations side by side that have a drive thru car wash with guys vacuuming the cars before they go through the wash and finalizing them once they come out of the other end...Im in the process of setting something up with a local barber/salon owner that just recently opened up a nice shop which offers valet parking,beer of choice or wine beverage while waiting on your barber /nail tech or whatever it might be.This guy also wanted to offer a complimentary car wash to his VIP customers which of course they're paying for the wash they just dont know it its included in the cost of his service . He is located on a very busy highway and has an empty gated parking lot right behind his shop which would be an excellent place to set up a nice canopy and run a detail shop out of..... One problem...One of the city employee's stopped in and noticed the comp wash advertised and told him to be careful that the city will request for him to put in a water recovery system if they found out that cars are being washed there. I dont want to jump right into this so im going to do a little research with the city codes in which the shop is located and see what happens.....any advice from anyone would be helpful...Oh there is a self serve car wash just a block up the road so the zoning should be fine for a car wash...</HTML>
I seem to be having the same problem here...Im in south Florida just a few miles away from Ft lauderdale and alot of the gas stations here are corporate owned. I just went to city hall today to get some info on zoning laws and etc. I was told that there is no car washing allowed at any fixed location such as a gas station unless the washing as well as vacuuming and preping is done inside a bay area...However there just happens to be 2 gas stations side by side that have a drive thru car wash with guys vacuuming the cars before they go through the wash and finalizing them once they come out of the other end...Im in the process of setting something up with a local barber/salon owner that just recently opened up a nice shop which offers valet parking,beer of choice or wine beverage while waiting on your barber /nail tech or whatever it might be.This guy also wanted to offer a complimentary car wash to his VIP customers which of course they're paying for the wash they just dont know it its included in the cost of his service . He is located on a very busy highway and has an empty gated parking lot right behind his shop which would be an excellent place to set up a nice canopy and run a detail shop out of..... One problem...One of the city employee's stopped in and noticed the comp wash advertised and told him to be careful that the city will request for him to put in a water recovery system if they found out that cars are being washed there. I dont want to jump right into this so im going to do a little research with the city codes in which the shop is located and see what happens.....any advice from anyone would be helpful...Oh there is a self serve car wash just a block up the road so the zoning should be fine for a car wash...</HTML>
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 05, 2004 02:30AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 382 |
<HTML>You're doing the right thing BG. do your homework before you jump in. Talk to the city about the codes & ordinances. My partner sat down with the head inspector & fire chief, licensing agent for the city and anyone else who has input into the final approval and precisely spelled out every operatiion that would be performed in the shop. So far, there's been no problems and we've gotten a green sticker on the first request for every inspection so far. Now we're just waiting for the plumbing fixtures to be installed next week then we'll get our cert. of occupancy.
Although, I've already got work booked for next week. As long as people are dropping the cars off and not waiting in the shop, we're not officially open. So, I can just say that I'm giving the shop some "test runs" prior to opening if anyone asks.
Scott-I'll be moving my gear into my shop Sunday & Monday and be doing my first job in the shop on Tuesday. It's a '00 Lexus GS coming in for a complete detail and some scratch touch up so the owner can sell it. Should be about a $240 job. I'm allowing 4-5 hours so I'll have time to make sure everything is where it needs to be logistically. Should be no problem, though. I'll get a couple of those Stanley or Workforce plastic shop cabinets to store my supplies & jugs of chemicals and a pushcart to hold the stuff I'll be using for the job. Then I'm good to go. Nothing too fancy or complicated.
My partner should follow with the opening of his service center within a week after I'm up & running. He told me that when that happens, my business will increase tenfold. I told him "Bring it!"
Anyhow Scott, it would be great if you want to stop in & visit. My shop is actually in Commerce Township, about 7 miles up the road from Novi. Give me a call when you're in town and I'll give you directions.</HTML>
Shine On!
Rod Wesley
Touch Up 'N' Go!
Auto & Marine Appearance Center
We take your car from Rough to Buff!
Visit our website at: www.touchupngo.com
Although, I've already got work booked for next week. As long as people are dropping the cars off and not waiting in the shop, we're not officially open. So, I can just say that I'm giving the shop some "test runs" prior to opening if anyone asks.
Scott-I'll be moving my gear into my shop Sunday & Monday and be doing my first job in the shop on Tuesday. It's a '00 Lexus GS coming in for a complete detail and some scratch touch up so the owner can sell it. Should be about a $240 job. I'm allowing 4-5 hours so I'll have time to make sure everything is where it needs to be logistically. Should be no problem, though. I'll get a couple of those Stanley or Workforce plastic shop cabinets to store my supplies & jugs of chemicals and a pushcart to hold the stuff I'll be using for the job. Then I'm good to go. Nothing too fancy or complicated.
My partner should follow with the opening of his service center within a week after I'm up & running. He told me that when that happens, my business will increase tenfold. I told him "Bring it!"
Anyhow Scott, it would be great if you want to stop in & visit. My shop is actually in Commerce Township, about 7 miles up the road from Novi. Give me a call when you're in town and I'll give you directions.</HTML>
Shine On!
Rod Wesley
Touch Up 'N' Go!
Auto & Marine Appearance Center
We take your car from Rough to Buff!
Visit our website at: www.touchupngo.com
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 05, 2004 02:46AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 1,838 |
<HTML>WOW, $100k and you still wouldn't own the building -- that would hurt.
Reason I'm asking is because I'm on the look-out for a gas station (without tanks) to move into. Actually an old auto center with a huge back lot for boat storage would be prefect.</HTML>
Take care,
Brian
Precision Auto & Marine
Learn to detail boats! Visit www.detailtheboat.com
Reason I'm asking is because I'm on the look-out for a gas station (without tanks) to move into. Actually an old auto center with a huge back lot for boat storage would be prefect.</HTML>
Take care,
Brian
Precision Auto & Marine
Learn to detail boats! Visit www.detailtheboat.com
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 05, 2004 08:46AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 499 |
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Re: I need a permanent location!!! June 05, 2004 10:55AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 1 |
<HTML> Hello, I'm new to responding to your board, but I have been reading this forum for about a year. We opperate two Carwashes in Southeast Missouri
and are now adding a Detail Center. I have had the same problem in that there was no suitable location in the city. So we are building.
Your cost are on building are close. Cost vare form area to area, but the average is about $40.00 per sq. ft. . Plus your land and equipment.
To fully outfit a new location will run between $195,000.00 to $250,000.00
( building, land, equipment, office equipment)
As far as the City regulations most of them can be overcome with a lot of sweet talk and a (Special User) permit, from the city.
Best of luck
Curt Smith</HTML>
and are now adding a Detail Center. I have had the same problem in that there was no suitable location in the city. So we are building.
Your cost are on building are close. Cost vare form area to area, but the average is about $40.00 per sq. ft. . Plus your land and equipment.
To fully outfit a new location will run between $195,000.00 to $250,000.00
( building, land, equipment, office equipment)
As far as the City regulations most of them can be overcome with a lot of sweet talk and a (Special User) permit, from the city.
Best of luck
Curt Smith</HTML>
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