Possibly Opening Detailing Supply Store ??

RyansAutoDetail

RyansAutoDetail

Weekend Warrior
Hey all Ive had a few thoughts after getting sick of seeing the same brands and no variety of selection at canadian tire as well as wal mart or other auto stores.

My questions are to anyone who opened a storefront for primarily products only:

1- were you successfull
2- how did you research
3- who are your customers
4- cost difference between your cheapest brands to your most expensive, IE what product cost is the maximum some average person would spend on a product that was "better than average" and geared towards the hardcore "DIY-er"
5- How many product brands is suitable to carry 5,10,15 etc ?
6- How much did it cost you to start up
7- How many of each individual products do you stock on a day to day basis ?? EG 2,3,4,5 or 6 of each product on the shelf ???
8-do you think a storefront such as this would be successfull in a city of southwestern ontario where i live of 380,000 people ? i believe that should be more than enough people in a city to have a successfull business ..


can anyone shed light for me ? :dcrules
 
Ryan

The answer to this would be writing a business plan...its a lot of info to explain in a thread...I would start in looking at business plans online to start. it will give you a lot of up front info
 
RyansAutoDetail said:
i know i could write a business plan but some of these i need suggestions or real life answers to
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That's one part...business classes is what I am talking about...there is a lot that comes with opening a business...demographics, income range, locations, etc...the products and what to carry are based more on your experience than anything else.

This is a much bigger endeavor than just a thread here...you need to get some education in the business side of this.
 
Troy would probably have a ton to say on this. I'd say it's a very hard business to keep afloat. It's a really tiny NICHE market. You already have it saturated with relatively large players and I'm sure Troy struggles to compete at times against Autogeek and ProperAutoCare. I'm not so sure if I was a startup this is the business I'd want to be in.

Maybe Scott P can interject here too as far as the internet sales side of it.
 
ya i think theres huge risk but there is literally no competition that sells entire lines of most OTC products and the only two i would carry are megs and mothers selected favourites of what i think would sell of course
 
RyansAutoDetail said:
ya i think theres huge risk but there is literally no competition that sells entire lines of most OTC products and the only two i would carry are megs and mothers selected favourites of what i think would sell of course
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Your competition is peoples ignorance to chose better. They're going to go down to Autozone and get whatever wax is on sale.
 
I think you'd be hard pressed to keep a "local" operation that just sold detailing supplies afloat. Either you'd have to cater to body shops (if there's any around) or have a huge web presence. As stated before, selling something like detailing supplies only would really limit your customer base. As far as a small shop like that competing against big name stores selling the same type of product to an "uneducated" public - I think it would be very hard to succeed. You have to keep in mind the people on these boards and the people buying stuff from the boutique vendors are the "educated" minority when it comes to vehicle care. You're going to be real hard pressed to sell Joe Sixpack on why he should pay $20 for a bottle of polish or sealant when he can get once a year Turtle Wax at Wal Mart for $5.

I would hate to say it could not be done, but I would definitely have to say it would take a stick-to-it mentality.
 
So Ryan wants to start a detail supply store.:idea

First thing I want to say is I wouldn't right now unless you could ride out a bad economy and have good sources for your products. That goes for any retail store but detailing is one of those markets that is really feeling it right now. Maybe it's different in Canada but here I am seeing long time established dealerships going under and every local detailer I know is saying this is by far the slowest they have ever been.

So let's assume that in your area the economy is strong. Do you have sources for the products you wish to carry? Do you have a bank roll for start up costs and initial inventory? Do you have a location in mind? Do you have an idea on how to get customers in your store? The business plan thing is kinda important that is if you want to be successful at it.

As far as an internet store goes, go ahead everyone else is but it is a very tough market and, unless you can afford to buy in large quantities, your margins will be tight and you will be spending most of your time building it and trying to figure out how to get people to buy from you instead of the many other larger more established sites.
 
RyansAutoDetail said:
ya i think theres huge risk but there is literally no competition that sells entire lines of most OTC products and the only two i would carry are megs and mothers selected favourites of what i think would sell of course
Click to expand...

Have you been to a local body shop to see if they sell any products? This doesn't sound like a good idea, IMO. In today's day and age people want things done for them, not to try and figure out what to buy and do it themselves. Sure there are a select few people who would solely look for detail supplies but that's not going to cover your overhead. It's a nice thought for sure, but I don't foresee it surviving... How about this idea, more people would want their cars detailed, so open a detail business and then for the select few who want to maintain their cars, sell them the product .... you don't have to keep any on hand but make an online order, mark the price up (or include it in the detail) and you're all set...
 
JaredPointer said:
I think you'd be hard pressed to keep a "local" operation that just sold detailing supplies afloat.
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As most of you know we took over a local detail supply store in February and I saw the need to be more than just a supply store right away. We tried offering services like window tinting to draw in customers but unless you can market yourself effectively or have a good location it's just not gonna work.

One other important thing to keep in mind. Weather. Are you going to have enough customers in the winter months?
 
Very well explained Troy. I totally agree.:)
Troy@DetailCity said:
So Ryan wants to start a detail supply store.:idea

First thing I want to say is I wouldn't right now unless you could ride out a bad economy and have good sources for your products. That goes for any retail store but detailing is one of those markets that is really feeling it right now. Maybe it's different in Canada but here I am seeing long time established dealerships going under and every local detailer I know is saying this is by far the slowest they have ever been.

So let's assume that in your area the economy is strong. Do you have sources for the products you wish to carry? Do you have a bank roll for start up costs and initial inventory? Do you have a location in mind? Do you have an idea on how to get customers in your store? The business plan thing is kinda important that is if you want to be successful at it.

As far as an internet store goes, go ahead everyone else is but it is a very tough market and, unless you can afford to buy in large quantities, your margins will be tight and you will be spending most of your time building it and trying to figure out how to get people to buy from you instead of the many other larger more established sites.
Click to expand...
 
RyansAutoDetail said:
ya i think theres huge risk but there is literally no competition that sells entire lines of most OTC products and the only two i would carry are megs and mothers selected favourites of what i think would sell of course
Click to expand...

No competition? I can think of 2 stores (without searching) in Canada that have nice store fronts, ship to Canada as well as the US.
 
sal329 said:
No competition? I can think of 2 stores (without searching) in Canada that have nice store fronts, ship to Canada as well as the US.
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Not to mention the zillion web sites

My thoughts are if Ryan wants to work in the car detail products area....find a mfger that he can rep or find a company that he can hire into
 
RyansAutoDetail said:
well this is gonna suck then lol ...
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Ryan

no is stopping you from going after your dream but giving you the...direction that you need to look at before you start.

I think that if you can find a good car care supplier and rep them selling to detailers, auto dealership, large car washes place...you can work in the industry, get experience and make some $$ at the same time
 
Being a tech guy here at the Geek and seeing how operations work, I will tell you first hand that I would definitely not attempt to open a detail supply store. Starting out is tough enough as it is, and with bigger competitors, ridiculous shipping prices due to gas, and smaller profit margins with the way the economy is going, I'd definitely look elsewhere. You'll probably be way better off building a good client base and doing high-end details.
 
Find something you like, cars, computers what ever it is. Get a degree and a career in that, detail on the side for a paying hobby. Unless you just love to detail Im sure there are many people that make money as a detailer full time.
 
The ones I know about do not have a traditional shop (brick and mortar). They run an internet sales operation and also do the car show circuit. The three I know seem to focus on one brand. I think most do show detailing as part of the business. I had placed an internet order with one (home based in NC) but they were in Ga. at a show and shipped the products to me from there!

There is a lot of sellers but sales seem to be based upon convenience and customer service not price on the non-store brands (like Poor Boys, Adam's, etc.). If you sold the PB line you can be somewhat sure that no one is really undercutting anyone else except through special promotions. If you carried brands like Meg's, etc. you may have to compete on price more since there are more wholesalers.

There are many sellers on the internet but many sales are still direct like at shows where people like to see demo's and get the personal education. Some think the internet is the only way but there is still a lot of biz done through personal direct sale.

From what I see here at DC and elsewhere, it seems like a lot of hard work and constant promotion. Like in restuarants, you are after repeat business unless you have a large market.
 
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