Driven Auto Detail has moved indoors!

mshu7 · 04-08-09, 08:27

As I pointed out in my other thread (Belated Recap of 2008), last year was a year I'm glad to put behind me. For 2009 I have transitioned from being mobile to a fixed location. My new shop is 1.5 miles from my house (25 minute walk, 5-minute bike ride) and it's right downtown Brownsburg on Main St. Everything about this shop is better than the one that fell through last fall, including the rent so I am pretty happy with it. I moved in March 1st and so far things are going ok. The first couple weeks I didn't have a sign so no one knew I was there, but since I've had my sign up, things have gotten busier. I LOVE working in the comforts of the indoors. This shop now allows me to work all year round, no matter the weather. Plus, it has already seemed to given me more credibility when it comes to talking to prospective clients. It seems as though people take me much more seriously when I tell them I have a shop as opposed to when I would tell people I was mobile. All in all, I think it's going to be a great change for my business. Here are some pics of the facility.

The exterior (entrance door is on the right side of the building):

Interior:

Wash bay through doorway. Closed-door is bathroom.

Wash bay:

And finally, the upstairs loft:

And here is one of the first cars to come through. It's a brand new black 2009 Mercedes E350 4MATIC. I'll post more pics of it later on as the ones I took that day didn't turn out real well.

Thanks for looking!

kaval · 04-08-09, 08:30

Congratulations man! This must be very exciting for you! The shop looks fantastic! Lots of space to really grow and get serious. Best of luck!

d00t · 04-08-09, 08:56

Wow!! That shop has SERIOUS potential! Amazing!!

Something like that here in the Bay Area would cost a few grand a month

dsms · 04-08-09, 09:03

What a space! Cant wait to see some great work come out of there, best of luck with it!

toyotaguy · 04-08-09, 09:33

Nice man, I would love to have a spot like that to operate out of...enough room it looks like for 3-5 cars, plus one in the wash bay!

any room for waiting area? what about an office area?

Auto Concierge · 04-08-09, 09:38

It will be painful financially at first but it is the right move, congrats really tight space!!.

mshu7 · 04-09-09, 06:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by kaval

Congratulations man! This must be very exciting for you! The shop looks fantastic! Lots of space to really grow and get serious. Best of luck!

Thanks! I'm definitely excited about it. I was never that comfortable with things when I was mobile. Now I feel like my business has a "home".

Quote:

Originally Posted by d00t

Wow!! That shop has SERIOUS potential! Amazing!!

Something like that here in the Bay Area would cost a few grand a month

Thanks Aaron! I really feel like I got a good deal on the place. The reason I got such a good deal on it was because they wanted a tenant that would be relatively quiet as to not disturb the elder law office in front of me as well as someone they could have a close working relationship with since all 3 buildings are just feet away from each other. The property has 3 buildings on it including mine. The other two are a law office (elder law unfortunately) owned by my landlord's wife and an even bigger garage/office next to me used for my landlord's real estate business. Funny thing was, I had detailed both their vehicles last fall before this building even became available. There was an airbrush paint touch-up service in my building before, but they outgrew it and moved down the street. Since they are still close, I can offer people touch-up service as well now and just up-charge what those guys charge me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dsms

What a space! Cant wait to see some great work come out of there, best of luck with it!

Thanks, I really appreciate it. I just worked on a cool little black 07 Audi A4 yesterday that turned out really good for the limited amount of time that I had it. The guy is coming back this weekend so I can show him proper washing techniques and to get some better "after" pics. I'll be sure to post them up.

By the way, I really like your signature!

Quote:

Originally Posted by toyota guy

Nice man, I would love to have a spot like that to operate out of...enough room it looks like for 3-5 cars, plus one in the wash bay!

any room for waiting area? what about an office area?

Thanks TG! It'll probably only hold 3 cars max, but it's still a nice amount of space for a first shop for sure. I'm not sure what to do about a waiting area. I've considered putting carpet and some other stuff up in the loft area for a wait area, but I've also considered turning it into my office area. We'll see.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Auto Concierge

It will be painful financially at first but it is the right move, congrats really tight space!!.

Thanks!!! You aren't kidding about the financial aspect. Although I have to say that between the truck I was leasing (it's now sold) and astronomical insurance costs (mainly the commercial auto) when I was mobile, I only have to detail an extra 2-3 cars per month to make up for the extra overhead of the shop. My insurance is about 1/4 of what it was when I was mobile. Overall though, I'm watching every penny that I spend. For now, I'm not buying anything that I don't absolutely have to have to operate.

Twista616 · 04-09-09, 08:03

Mike, thats awesome! The place looks perfect..literally, with the wash bay and everything! For the upstairs, make it your office...you can see who pulls in from the window.

I see the entrance door walks right into a bay...not sure how much leeway you have, but i wouldnt use that door at all..and make it a sitting area. Only problem, dust and stuff, could get messy. Personally, I dont think you need a sitting area because how often do customers sit there and wait, usually they just drop it off and pick it up.

Your washbay would be the perfect polishing bay, install some side lights on the walls, you would see every imperfection!

And congrats on the move and the child, and sorry about your father and i hope your health is getting better!

Hemin8r · 04-09-09, 08:08

That's an awesome looking shop. I bet being indoors working on the cars is going to make your work even more enjoyable. Congrats!

mshu7 · 04-09-09, 08:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Twista616

Mike, thats awesome! The place looks perfect..literally, with the wash bay and everything! For the upstairs, make it your office...you can see who pulls in from the window.

I see the entrance door walks right into a bay...not sure how much leeway you have, but i wouldnt use that door at all..and make it a sitting area. Only problem, dust and stuff, could get messy. Personally, I dont think you need a sitting area because how often do customers sit there and wait, usually they just drop it off and pick it up.

Your wash bay would be the perfect polishing bay, install some side lights on the walls, you would see every imperfection!

And congrats on the move and the child, and sorry about your father and i hope your health is getting better!

Thank you very much! And thanks for the suggestions on the layout. I think what you said makes sense about the office upstairs. You're right about the entrance door leading into the detail bay. As you said, I don't see a client needing to wait around very often. It'd still be nice to have a chair or two just in case though. You're right about the wash bay. I wish it was just a tad wider. I can't fully open vehicle doors to pre-treat jambs and wash them but I'm making due. The biggest thing about the shop is that it has drainage in the floors. That was one of the biggest problems when I was looking for a place. This place couldn't really have been a more perfect match for me and my needs so I feel very lucky that I was able to land it.

Thanks again!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hemin8r

That's an awesome looking shop. I bet being indoors working on the cars is going to make your work even more enjoyable. Congrats!

Thanks Hem! I can't even tell you how much better I enjoy working indoors. As much as I like being outside and all, detailing indoors is much more enjoyable. Plus, I think my quality of work has already improved because of it. And I know I'm more efficient since everything is easily accessible and not packed away in trailer.

Jakerooni · 04-09-09, 09:02

Mike you already know what I think of having a set shop. Man that place is top notch. You're going to skyrocket in sales this year no doubt. When I get back down that way I'm definatly stopping in. Get that place nice and stocked up now.Do you have a grand opening planned out yet? I would defiantly do that. Get the local media involved to let everyone know your there.

Pats300zx · 04-09-09, 09:07

Wow Mike that place looks beautiful. I am very happy for you.