Me and my buddies want to start a shop.

"BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather" (bugeyedacura)
09/02/2013 at 22:18 • Filed to: None

However, we're all (kinda) young and (really) broke. Anyone have any helpful experience or know anything about how to go about this endeavor?

DISCUSSION (11)

Bandit > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/02/2013 at 22:31

Well, what kind of shop? Like chocolate shop or metal shop?

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > Bandit
09/02/2013 at 22:34

Speed/Customs shop. Auto related of course!

Agrajag > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/02/2013 at 22:44

Customer service is key. Keep in mind a large portion of people don't care about their cars and just want something fixed cheap. I'd suggest working retail to get an idea of what you'll be dealing with as far as customer interaction. Then remember that they'll be paying out a significantly higher bill, so their demeanor will reflect that increase.

People often tell me to be car salesman or open up a specialty used lot. Then I tell them, "but 98% of my customers will be people like you who don't give a shit and want a cheap car."

Business aspect of it, I got nothing.

DasWauto > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/02/2013 at 22:48

You'll have to start building cars, likely part-time to start and build a name/reputation slowly through word of mouth. If and/or when it gets big enough you can get yourself a building/shop and go bigger from there.

Also, either develop a certain style or do all sorts of work. With a certain style you might gain popularity faster but you may also limit yourself in terms of a client base.

Roadster Man > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/02/2013 at 22:58

Charge a whole lot of money because you are nice, give honest estimates, communicate properly with your customers and most importantly because you do it right the first time.

Find a niche. Oftentimes shops will specialize in BMW's/subies/GTR's/exotics although they still work on whatever you'll give them. How do you get damn good so you can have a decent customer base to fall back on in the bad times? See DasWauto's post. I think a big component is giving your work away for free/cheap. Be willing to do that to show people that you're good.

Or, get another job because going into business with your buddies is a good way to lose those buddies (speaking from my experience watching Bar Rescue on TV).

The Stampi > DasWauto
09/02/2013 at 23:29

I'm no entrepreneur, but based on what I have heard from my friend with a similar startup, Das has the right of it. It's like what journalists say to people who want to break into the industry; sometimes you gotta work for nothing to get your foot in the door. Build amazing things for no one in particular and then make people notice. The business landscape is very different than it used to be. It's rare to be given a shot on your word alone.

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > Agrajag
09/02/2013 at 23:42

I worked retail for 5 years. Then at a couple of dealerships for almost 2.

Agrajag > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/03/2013 at 00:01

You got a handle on that aspect then.

davedave1111 > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/03/2013 at 05:57

Doing the work is the (relatively) easy part. Finding the work is the hard part. If you can get people to pay you to work on their cars, that's the biggest battle won.

In general, to start any business you either need enough cash to quit work, buy everything you need, and live off until money starts coming in, or you need to ramp it up slowly, starting in your spare-time. Since you say you don't have a lot of cash, the latter route seems like the plan to follow.

To sell your mechanical work, you're going to need to have some examples. Whether you get them by working on your own cars, or by doing some work at cost, or because someone is nice enough to help you out with your first job, make sure everything you've done is well-documented so you can show people.

One other option that I wouldn't personally recommend, but which has certainly worked for some people who are now rich, is to fake a few bits of work to start with. As long as you can actually do the work right, you will probably get away with using pictures of a car you didn't build, or something.

Like I said, I wouldn't choose that route, but it has a good chance of working. And if you're going to do something a bit dodgy, doing it before you have a reputation to lose would seem to be the way to go.

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > davedave1111
09/03/2013 at 07:13

Well, a buddy of mine has a group of guys he works with and runs with that all have built cars or are building cars. So since they would help out with the shop, we could use all of their cars as POCs, and technically not be lying or fudging anything.

bourgeoisie > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
09/03/2013 at 09:56

I would start by doing repair work in your spare time. Repairs are something people (generally) have to do, which means there's more of it and it's easier work to get. Call yourself a mobile mechanic and get listed somewhere like Google or Yelp, so that your customers can sing your praises. Also, get liability insurance from day 1, it's not that expensive but will save your ass without a doubt.

Upgrades are something people want to do, which means they can be pickier about where and when they have the work done. Personally, I wouldn't trust my car to a shop without extensive mechanical repair roots.

West Coast Customs is what comes to mind when you say "custom shop".