Detailing from your home garage

A

atldeville

New member
this is my 3rd initial post. lol. im currently trying to decide between mobile, permanent location and my home garage. i already have a post on mobile and permanent locations. ok, working out of your garage. i know the pros: no additional overhead other than utilities used in the garage. cons: dont want to run a commercial ESTABLISHMENT in a neighborhood. ok, how do you do this and make it profitable?

marketing????????

not having too much traffic at the house without violating ordinances????
 
atldeville said:
this is my 3rd initial post. lol. im currently trying to decide between mobile, permanent location and my home garage. i already have a post on mobile and permanent locations. ok, working out of your garage. i know the pros: no additional overhead other than utilities used in the garage. cons: dont want to run a commercial ESTABLISHMENT in a neighborhood. ok, how do you do this and make it profitable?

marketing????????

not having too much traffic at the house without violating ordinances????
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If all you're going to be is a wash'n'wax guy (not a detailer) your best bet is probably mobile since you sound like you plan on having people in and out quick with several vehicles a day.

I work out of my home garage, but usually only have 1-2 cars a day and do either 1 step polish or full correction detailing. As far as marketing goes, it's really no different than any other type of detailing business.
 
Shiny Lil Detlr said:
If all you're going to be is a wash'n'wax guy (not a detailer) your best bet is probably mobile since you sound like you plan on having people in and out quick with several vehicles a day.

I work out of my home garage, but usually only have 1-2 cars a day and do either 1 step polish or full correction detailing. As far as marketing goes, it's really no different than any other type of detailing business.
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can you give me pointers on how you market and how much you charge and the details of what you do for that price point??? do they drop the cars off and wait or do you go get them???
 
Depending on where you live, doing this out of your garage might be a no-no. Just throwing that out there. It's better to check the ordinances, laws, and agreements on where you live before jumping headfirst into it out of your home.
 
I detail out of my garage but only because its not my full time job, there are advantages such as everything is there easy to get at, coincidentely this is also the downfall as everything is there and my garage is cluttered with every household item...
 
So after two years, are you still on the fence? Have you started any type of business yet and if so, is it going well?

I personally do some mobile jobs, but prefer to do the work out of my studio (Garage :D)

As you stated above, no overhead, clients don't mind, as a matter of fact they are almost more comfortable as the car is never left alone if its a several day detail.

The only gripe is that some seem to feel that no shop is the indicator of shoddy work, but once they see past projects, they change their mind.

For marketing, I have tried lots. From paid ads, to flyers etc. When I ask each client where they heard about me? Google places. The free, 10 minute setup Google listing is what brings me 85% of my clients. Word of mouth is the other 15%

This is what I am sticking with. I love working out of my garage as it is nice and easy to get up and start working in the AM. More time to spend on the cars IMHO.

Neighbors don't mind at all as I do not have a stream of cars coming and going all day. Its one every couple of days so its no biggie.
 
I've been workign out of my garage for about 6 years now but I only work on the weekends and do a max of 4 cars a month. I also keep traffic to a minimum and try and keep the doors down whenever possible. If you do this full time I'd probably look at going mobile or finding a fixed location. I think it also depends on your neighborhood too. If it's highly populated with home close togetehr vs. large spaced out lots you may not be able to get away with as much. Keeping your neighbors on your good side is key too.
 
atldeville said:
Reality and rasky, do you guys go pick up the vehicles from your clients? Thanx for the responses.......
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Only for close friends/family. On a rare occasion I may help with giving them a ride back after they drop it off but it would have to be fairly close and a bigger job.
 
atldeville said:
Reality and rasky, do you guys go pick up the vehicles from your clients? Thanx for the responses.......
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Like Chad stated, only for close friends and family. For normal clients, if they want to have it brought here, I work with a local transport.
 
I detail out of my garage... some of my neighbors are clients, so i haven't had any problems.
 
If it is going to be your full time job (as opposed to a side revenue source) detailing out of your garage could be dangerous. One pesky or annoyed neighbor reporting you (if you neighborhood isn't zoned for commercial use) and you could have a lot of head aches on your hands.
 
Why don't you go to customers home pick up their car leave your car at their house.Then go back to your house to do the work. Neighbors cant complain because you never have any extra cars at your house. If you have a garage-keepers ins policy(which you should) you will be covered. I always do mobile details because if I have to go get a car I might as well save time by just doing the car right there in owners driveway.
 
decided to just do this as a hobby whenever i can........dont have the concentration to detail...............thanx for the input.....
 
Reality33 said:
For marketing, I have tried lots. From paid ads, to flyers etc. When I ask each client where they heard about me? Google places. The free, 10 minute setup Google listing is what brings me 85% of my clients. Word of mouth is the other 15%
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Thanks a bunch about google places. Is it all free? And what section of Places are you advertising in?
 
I think that offering a mobile service, and the option of having clients bring their car to your garage, is a great combination for a part time business. I do 90% of my details at the client's garage, but there are the few that don't have a garage to work in, so I use mine. It is also nice to work at home every now and then because eveything is there... including food/drinks if it turns into a long detail!
 
Toy_Cam_Ed said:
Thanks a bunch about google places. Is it all free? And what section of Places are you advertising in?
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It is free yes, unless you use ad words or another one of their paid advertising services. (Which I don't)

As in which section, I am not sure what you mean. I have the category as automotive and selected several sub categories that pertain to what I do.
 
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