MotorCity said:
I know you say you don't charge per our but, do you not have an avg $ that you end up yielding per hour...
Because these days I detail part time, I don’t focus on doing details in a timely manner. Customers usually drop off on Friday night and pick up on Sunday. Average jobs take 15-20 hours and average $700-$900. I’m certain that my pricing would adapt if I were doing things differently. Especially if it were my primary source of income. But, I enjoy taking my time and being home with the family; jumping in the pool and taking a long lunch if wanted.
MotorCity said:
If you got the $50 prospects then do it...
I would do $75 if they came to me...You will also be able to upsell other items as well....
Actually, I’d only like to have 50 vehicles to service regularly. Most clients I’ll focus on will have 3-4 vehicles so that really means acquiring between 15-20 clients. That’s pretty easy. My services have already been requested by 3 that have about 10 cars. I'll be starting this early next year(weekends), so I'll be able to get a decent taste for the system then.
MotorCity said:
You are correct and this is key because the actual act of washing a vehicle is one of my least favorite things to do. I have trained someone to do this and he is very good...
Run with it David
Much appreciated Jason . I actually find washing/maintaining a vehicle more interesting. Especially after it’s been completely detailed or it’s brand new.
Jean-Claude said:
I wish it were easy to pick up 50+ regular wash clients at $50 a pop. People are cheap and finding those who are willing to pay for quality in bulk is not easy.
Again, 50 vehicles, not 50 clients. Big difference. Especially in the logistics.
fergnation said:
Actually, after following your posts for the past couple of years I would really like to see you get there.
I think the +500 initial correction is going to be hard enough to get. But I will never be the guy that tells someone they can't do it. So go for it and then fill me in on how you did it.
Thanks fergnation! I think the initial correction would be easy to capture. I’ve already had no problem obtaining twice that $$ on many occasions. I’d say $500 for the maintenance/rejuvenation would be fair. It shouldn't need anything more than a light 1 step polish and light interior cleaning. Because these vehicles will constantly be maintained, they’ll never get off the beaten path by much. If so, I’ll detail them sooner. And likewise on a vehicle that doesn’t require this service.
dmw2692004 said:
I like the plan, and I hope it works out well for you. I have been trying to set up something similar here but, its almost impossible to compete on a "lower" level with the quick "in-out" hand washes here that do mediocre work at best. Plus, I dont think this kind of plan works if you don't get tons of volume consistently.
Oh, and here, anything over 50.00 for a hand wash is considered insanity. Not even a lot of the high end customers I sometimes deal with would ever consider having their car washed for 50.00. Especially when they know that they can do it themselves and achieve similar results, call me out 1-2 times a year to clean up any marring they induce, and still have an awesome looking ride.
just my .02 cents. Good luck though and let us know how it works out!
Thanks dmw! This business will not work in all geographic areas. It takes a high concentration of hi-end clients that see value in this service and are not shy in respect to maintaining their vehicles to the utmost highest standards. Again, focusing on a specific target audience is key. Here in S. Florida, there’s an abundance of these people. There’s literally thousands, so capturing ~20 will be like shooting fish in a barrel. I have a feeling that once the business is in a stabilized mode, there will be a constant growth. I think an important part of running/starting a successful business is offering a service that people need and want. Especially one that has little to no comparitive competition.
MichaelM said:
I would much rather do mediocre details then washes. Dealing with 3 or 4 customers/vehicles a day will be much easier then 10-12. Even if you can do the washes in 1hr you will lose time in the transitions and you won't physically be able to work 10 straight hours a day everyday of the week, and your helper won't even want to, not for 35k a yr.
Great input Michael. Doing 3-4 details daily is much different that washing 10-12. Detailing that many vehicles will require multiple skilled technicians, washing this many vehicles won’t. Also, don’t forget the revenue & overhead differences between washing that many vehicles compared to doing mid-level(mediocre) details. Like mentioned above, the key is obtaining clients with multiple vehicles. There’s no way one person could hit 10 stops in 1 day, day-in, day-out. There could be days where you could go to 1 location and service 15 vehicles there.
MichaelM said:
Some questions for thought:
Will your market be willing to pay $5,500/yr on detailing costs for one vehicle?
Yes. Some clients pay almost ½ that just in detailing already. Add washing and you’re there easily. The difference is that right after I detail these client's vehicles, they get hammered by a crappy car washer that marrs the heck out of them. They end up needing multi-step corrections on a regular basis. It makes no sence to abuse a car like this and these people don't really have an alternative (until now).
MichaelM said:
Assuming you've got your 50 customers, can you and a helper complete a full correction, or the semi-annual details that are due, plus your other 9 washes in one day?
Again, were talking about 50 vehicles, not 50 clients. I’ll be the only one doing detailing. I’ll take on help once I establish enough workflow to support it. I’ll try doing washes 4, maybe 5 days per week and details in-between. I'll stagger the details to 1-2 per week. This will definitely take a lot of logistical skill to plan this, but that’s where I thrive. For 10 years my shop did 25-30 cars a day and very rarely was there a hiccup with pick-up/delivery.
MichaelM said:
If a customer needs to reschedule can you and one helper do the catch-up work and stay on your current jobs in a given day?
Good question. Because I’ll be doing this 4-5 days per week, I think spreading out catch-up work will be attainable. I’ll also have help on stand by in case a back up is foreseen.
MichaelM said:
IME the volume of work you're attempting to complete can't be done with one employee. You're trying to operate at less then 15% of your gross in employee cost. Has your previous detailing business ran close to that? Mine runs at about double what you're attempting to do.
Comparing this business model to my last one is like comparing apples to oranges. This one will require much more hands on involvement(initially) than my last one. Much less headache and overhead too. Doing 50 vehicles per week with 1 person helping will be easy as long as state of the art processes and workflow is utilized. Don’t forget; I’m not going to 10 different stops each day.
toyotaguy said:
^^^^ I agree with Michael, you might need more help. Maybe train one guy, then as business picks up have him train the other and send both of them out while you do the correction work.
and what is considered a full service wash to you? (maybe I missed it) I would find it hard to believe anyone would pay $75 for a simple washing, let alone $100. But, if you can find the clients for that, more power to ya!
Full service weekly wash in a nutshell is a what ever is required to bring a vehicle to “post-detailed� appearance. It will not include(or need) buffing, waxing, shampooing, degreasing or scrubbing. These aren’t cars that haven’t been washed in 2 months. They’ll be maintained to the same standards Autopians care for their own vehicles on a weekly/monthly/yearly basis.
brwill2005 said:
David, it is Bradford for your information. Anyways, the plan looks good on paper, however, like others have mentioned you are going to have trouble finding people willing to pay that much for a wash and vacuum type service. I have about 15 cars that I service bi-weekly or monthly at between $50-85 each time. Finding those 15 cars was a challenge. My plan is similar to yours, only it would be a team of fours guys (two at each station). The stations will be set up for high efficiency, and the services priced to attract a large market share. Essentially each station will be bringing in $60 per hour gross income. Combine the two stations and that will be $120 per hour gross. The key here will be efficiency, and getting the cars done quickly with good quality while the customer waits.
Thanks for the reply Bradford. The purpose of this tread was to research what others are charging in different markets. It looks like you're able to get a decent price for your service. I was actually approached by a group of current clients that asked if I could do this service for them. They all live in the same neighborhood and price(after discussing it with them) isn’t an issue. These are very picky people that require nothing but the best service for their vehicles. If I request something that needs to be done, price isn’t a factor. Here’s a taste of the average home in this area:
(FYI: this is not one of my client’s homes. Just an example of one in the neighborhood to show the demographics I’ll be positioned within)
Palm Beach County Property Appraiser Property Search System
ebpcivicsi said:
You are going to do this mobile, right David? I guess I should have stated that my advice would be based upon my experience running a fixed location. If I had someone to put in a mobile set up, I would in a hearbeat--they would just wash all day!
Yes, I’ll be doing it mobile. I think doing this in a fixed location would be real challenging and probably not realistic. Other than climate, what’s stopping you from exploring this? With the vehicles I’ve seen in your Click N Brags coupled with the level of detail you cater to, I’m sure you’d do great. :up
Scottwax said:
That's fine if you are doing several cars at an office but 1 or 2 cars per location and you can't make squat doing it mobile.
Right. You’ll need to coordinate this to service multiple vehicles at 2-4 locations each day. Drive time will eat up your profits and time.
An assistant will be implemented and will be equipped to earn approximately $35K/yr based on performance. If max capacity is reached this is the potential breakdown of income if all goes well:
