does anybody own a coin operated car wash?

[rightaway]

One of my goal in life is to own a car wash. My friends make fun of me about it. can you give me an estimate how much your start up was, average yearly cost of everything and average profit? About how much do you make a month? How much do supplies and utilities cost? i have about $10,000 saved up. I’m not sure if that is enough or not.

[C. Charles Hahn]

If you`re talking about a self-service type wash, you`re on the wrong forum.



You might want to do some industry research through organizations like these:



Carwash.org

PC&D Online: The leading source of news and information for car care professionals.

Auto Laundry News | E.W. Williams



Regardless, I think you`ll find that starting a business like that isn`t cheap -- equipment alone will cost you well over $10,000. If you don`t have a background in running a business or any sort of formal training, I would highly recommend getting some before starting or investing in one.



:peace:

[WAS]

I have a self-service / full service coin op wash. I could write for days on my experiences. But I agree with Charlie, this isn`t the correct forum to ask those questions. To be honest, you should go to Car Care`s World Expo next weekend in Las Vegas. You`d have the opportunity to meet tons of wash owners.

[Cameron]

A friend of mine own a business that builds those type of washes. It has been a while since he told me the cost of building an average one. Don`t quote me, but I remember him saying anywhere from $50,000-$250,000 i think.



Either way good luck to you.



Hopefully you`ll you open your first one, then second, then third....and before you know it your making more money than your friends and you can tell them FU.



Do you research and find an excellent location.

[Dan]

I have a self-service / full service coin op wash. I could write for days on my experiences. But I agree with Charlie, this isn`t the correct forum to ask those questions. To be honest, you should go to Car Care`s World Expo next weekend in Las Vegas. You`d have the opportunity to meet tons of wash owners.

I`d actually love to hear about your experiences. I`ve always toyed with the idea of one. It would be nice to have someone bring me back to reality.

[Slik560]

All good advice. Another good resource for a start up is, believe it or not, is the Small Business Administration. Do a lot of homework and use the SBA site to help you with a solid business plan before you approach any bank for financing. Good Luck!!!

[The Enforcer]

My uncle owns 4-5 of these type washes in town. Between coin thieves, people stealing free washes, and people tearing stuff up....it is a lot of work to keep running. He sits on his laptop ALLLL the time and just watches his security cameras. You have to collec tthe coins allll the time to prevent a huge loss if someone breaks into the the coin machine. With that said, my uncle also owns 3 homes, is probably worth a few mil, and lives a very good life. But this is just what he does in his "retirement"

[WAS]

I`d actually love to hear about your experiences. I`ve always toyed with the idea of one. It would be nice to have someone bring me back to reality.

Nothing to bring you back to, lol. There`s certain factors to consider. Namely, surrounding competition, weather, property costs, and utility costs. These are all more or less location-dependant, so they`re different for everyone. In all seriousness, it`s a good business. The most important thing, as with any business, is to know it in and out. Many people think owning and operating a car wash is a piece of cake, only to go under in their first year or two. There`s too much to type out here, but zip me a PM with your e-mail address if you`re looking for some honest experience.

[C. Charles Hahn]

Nothing to bring you back to, lol. There`s certain factors to consider. Namely, surrounding competition, weather, property costs, and utility costs. These are all more or less location-dependant, so they`re different for everyone. In all seriousness, it`s a good business. The most important thing, as with any business, is to know it in and out. Many people think owning and operating a car wash is a piece of cake, only to go under in their first year or two. There`s too much to type out here, but zip me a PM with your e-mail address if you`re looking for some honest experience.

Very true -- and I wouldn`t even limit it to just a car wash business.



I`ve seen a recent influx of new members on a few different forums all looking to start detailing businesses or other random small businesses with absolutely NO industry knowledge or experience, no background in business, and expect the forum members to tell them everything they need to know from "what are the best products" to "how do I file business paperwork." People don`t understand that in order to succeed they have to do their own research and practice on top of asking for others` input.



Running a small business of any kind is hard work, and certainly isn`t for the lazy. That is the leading reason why 50% of small businesses fail within a year, and 80% fail within 5 years.

[WAS]

Very true -- and I wouldn`t even limit it to just a car wash business.



I`ve seen a recent influx of new members on a few different forums all looking to start detailing businesses or other random small businesses with absolutely NO industry knowledge or experience, no background in business, and expect the forum members to tell them everything they need to know from "what are the best products" to "how do I file business paperwork." People don`t understand that in order to succeed they have to do their own research and practice on top of asking for others` input.



Running a small business of any kind is hard work, and certainly isn`t for the lazy. That is the leading reason why 50% of small businesses fail within a year, and 80% fail within 5 years.

Very true. IMO, the business itself is not as important as knowing HOW to run a business. Just for example, if you don`t know what`s more adventageous for you, a sole prop or a corporate entity (BTW, a corp is much more adventageous to anyone operating a detailing business), you`re going to have a LOT of obstacles in front of you.

[David Fermani]

It`s a dream of mine too! I still get the trade publications every month also.



For about 5 years while I owned my 1st detail shop I managed the adjoinging 13 bay self-serve car wash (indoor and touchless mind you) and I gotta admit it was fun! For it to be profitable, it is very location dependant (which ours was). Once you have things stabilized it`s a cinch to maintain actually, but still requires constant monitoring none the less. It`s a ton cheaper to buy an existing location instead of building one from scratch. I`ve seen a couple that were totally delapitated get turned into cash cows with the right operator. One of the biggest things to do is keep all the bays running and the site clean. The 1st time someone looses their money in a machine you end up loosing them for good. They also don`t want to be stepping in a pile of mud either. Here`s a great site to view car washes (of all kinds) for sale:

BizBuySell - The Internet`s Largest Business for Sale & Franchise for Sale Marketplace