I had to get a job.....

Tex Star Detail

Tex Star Detail

Formerly TexasTB
So, my detailing business has been dead slow. I have not had a paying customer in weeks. Money quickly went from the business end to the surving side. All money going into the business for supplies and advertising went away to bills. Bills are all now past due. Grrrrrr.

The feeling sucks. I have a wife and 4 kids, so I had to do something to put food on the table. I am not a poor person, I have nice things. I am better off than a lot of people, but far away from where I would like to be. I had to go out and do some job searching. I came across one in the newspaper and went and applied. A Porter at a very small used car dealership. Very nice cars though.
I was hired on the spot (I knew I had it..) So now my business is only conducted on the weekend until it picks up again. I guess this is a temo. thing until I can get caught up. It is kind of depressing though. I make, in a week, what I could in a day and a half, doing my own thing. I started at friggin 6.50 and he seen my work and maxed me out at 7.50. Which still sucks, but it is something....right.

Now the process there is just HORRIBLE. The only things there are...
-water hose
-Towels and washcloths
-Tire dressing, degreaser, apc, and windex with ammonia.(newspapers too)
-spray wax
-no buffers of any kind

That is about it. I wash with washcloths and dry with towels.:( Apply and remove wax the same way. It is horrible. Swirls out the a$$.....and these are '02 and up cars/trucks with less than 50k miles. I went from detailing to washing and scratching. It is embarassing.
I brought my trailer up to him and started to work on a black car with my own stuff. I taped half of a fender to show him the difference. He said finish the fender and park it back on the lot. Man o man. He liked it, but he did not want me to take all day on it. I tried explaining the benefits of it. It all came down to he could not afford for me to do that.

Oh well.....I guess all I can do is get caught back up and start pushing details hard.
Somedays I feel like giving up all together and selling my trailer, but the mood changes a few hours later. It is pretty much what I do and know how to do the best.
I dunno. Just a rant I supose. Just feeling blue about everything right now:howdy

BLAH.......Also found out today my wife has some cervical cancer.....she has to go in for more testing, proceedures and have another biopsy to see how far the cancer is, in the tissue. If it is IN the tissue, and not just on the outside, like now, she will need radiation and a hysterectomy.......My son was diagnosed with cancer when he was 17 months old, and was put in remission last January. He is turning 4 this July
 
Awwww don't dispair brother. This is when creativity comes into play. Concentrate on what you next big move could be. Perfect it in your mind and visualize yourself doing it and then start talking about that perfect plan and before you know it you will be back on top of the world.

When you put yourself in a place of dispair people can feel it. Get back in the saddle and ride homie. You will attract business. If what you have been doing no longer works start from the begining and analyze where things went wrong. Maybe it is your marketing stratagey. Maybe you have too many secrets about what you do and how you do it. Explain things to your customers make them feel like they need to run EVERYTHING thru you as it relates to Car care. You can do it!
 
Chris,
I'm so sorry to hear all your bad news :(
You & your family will stay in my thoughts & prayers.
Norah

PS - As you say, as horrible as the job seems, at least it is a paycheque coming in, which is something. Hopefully you'll find some good gigs on the weekends - hang in there! :)
 
Fishpimp said:
Awwww don't dispair brother. This is when creativity comes into play. Concentrate on what you next big move could be. Perfect it in your mind and visualize yourself doing it and then start talking about that perfect plan and before you know it you will be back on top of the world.

When you put yourself in a place of dispair people can feel it. Get back in the saddle and ride homie. You will attract business. If what you have been doing no longer works start from the begining and analyze where things went wrong. Maybe it is your marketing stratagey. Maybe you have too many secrets about what you do and how you do it. Explain things to your customers make them feel like they need to run EVERYTHING thru you as it relates to Car care. You can do it!
Click to expand...

That is what I do all day at this job. I think about what I need to do and how to do it. I know I do kick a$$ work and I can brag about it. I know there are MUCH better out there....But I am confident with what I do, and I do it good. I guess it is just everything is hitting at once? I know it is just a bump in the road, and I need to get over it and keep on trucking.
 
Your attitude is to be commended, Chris!!!

Hang in there.

You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers in the weeks and months to come. Look forward to another park visit with the kids in tow. The Little Detailer has asked about you and your son when I have spoken with him on the phone.
 
I'm sorry to hear about the work situation and the bad news about your wife. As you already know from your son, cancer is a horrible disease but it can be beaten. I commend you for what you're doing to keep your family financially stable, even if you do hate the work.
 
Im sorry to hear all the bad news. Theres always tommorow and im sure it will only get better. I know myself and all the other members of DC are here for you in anayway we can be (as hard as it is over the net we are still here for you) Just remeber when the new job is crappy your doing it for yor family, and im sure they more then appricate it. If your a relgious man im sure god will look out for you and you family, if not medicne these days is amazing and im sure eveything will work out. Good luck in the future, and sorry for the bad news.
 
Chris, hang in there. Life will always sort itself out . When you are down the only way is Up. Life can be tough at times , just remember to stay tougher.
 
Sorry to hear about your bad luck.
At 7.50 per hour, your new boss should let you slip your business card onto the sun visor of every car sold there. Maybe you'll get a few calls that way.
Make sure your business cards say 'Swirl Removal a Specialty', and you'll be rolling in the dough soon.
If you don't have any business cards, tell me the details and I'll print up 30 or so for you.
-John C.
 
I'm sorry Texas. I hope somehow this turns things around and allows you to slowly build a loyal customer base.
 
sorry to hear about your bride and slowing business. i am very impressed with your positive attitude. it will work out in the end. keeping your head up can be the hard part. i am sure a business oppurtunity will come out of this job somehow. your family will be im my prayers.
 
JohnZ3MC said:
Sorry to hear about your bad luck.
At 7.50 per hour, your new boss should let you slip your business card onto the sun visor of every car sold there. Maybe you'll get a few calls that way.
Make sure your business cards say 'Swirl Removal a Specialty', and you'll be rolling in the dough soon.
If you don't have any business cards, tell me the details and I'll print up 30 or so for you.
-John C.
Click to expand...

Cancer is seriously bad news. And I think I have problems. Your health is one thing you don’t want to have to worry about. There will always be jobs and money.

Don’t ask your boss this question yet. When I owned the dealership and employees were feeling "entrepreneurial" with my customers, I'd overwork them to get them to quit or fire them. Feel him out for a while, but keep looking for a higher paying job.
 
TexasTB said:
Now the process there is just HORRIBLE. The only things there are...
-water hose
-Towels and washcloths
-Tire dressing, degreaser, apc, and windex with ammonia.(newspapers too)
-spray wax
-no buffers of any kind

That is about it. I wash with washcloths and dry with towels.:( Apply and remove wax the same way. It is horrible. Swirls out the a$$.....and these are '02 and up cars/trucks with less than 50k miles. I went from detailing to washing and scratching. It is embarassing.
I brought my trailer up to him and started to work on a black car with my own stuff. I taped half of a fender to show him the difference. He said finish the fender and park it back on the lot. Man o man. He liked it, but he did not want me to take all day on it. I tried explaining the benefits of it. It all came down to he could not afford for me to do that.
Click to expand...


Not trying to hijack:

When I see people on this forum trying to do dealer work, you need to be prepared for this. When I owned the dealership, I did not care how the car looked. I wouldnt even clean all of them, some I would just drive throught he $5 car wash. All of the retail customers thought they were spotless, I knew they were train wrecks. They all sold and I made a lot of money with out paying an extra $100 to get them cleaned up properly. We were selling 40-50 used cars per month back then. This would equate to $4000-5000 per month, I could use that extra profit to pay the phone bill. Business sense says, use the extra profit for the phone bill, not to provide the customer with a service they will never recognize. (This was a Cadillac, GMC truck store)
 
You should be able to do better than that at Walmart per hour. Its climate controlled in the store all year long. Even TLE isnt bad in the humidity except a couple days last summer. At slow times I go help on the floor and this site has helped me with the sales on automotive paint care. Ya some customers really suck and then theres the good ones who appreciate your opinion and what you can do for them. Then theres the idiot who buys the turtle wax and soft white towels to take care of a new 2006 truck. I just shook my head when on the shelf was NXT, Megs gold, Cali GOLD, and some less expensive MF.Now if we could just get some PBs (I have yet to use any myself). Walmart is alright place to work in the of season when the weather isnt quite right for other outside activities. RANDAL
 
Sorry to hear Chris, family and health comes first. You are a young guy and have plenty of time to achieve higher goals. Take one day and step at a time and be thankful for each and every day you have your family. You could always take another part-time job to help with the bills if needed. Your trailer is replaceable and if you can get a decent offer ..take it...there are many a good detailer that work out of their trunk. Good luck and let me know if there's anything I can help you with.
 
I Was Slow To, What I Did Was Take My Price Sheet And Hit All The Bussniess Close To My Home. Bascialy I Did Cold Calling,its Not For Everybody, But It Got Me 10 Full Details.

Hope This Will Help Good Luck To You And Your Family.
 
TexasTB,
I too was sorry to hear about your family's health problems. My fiance, an RN, works on a Cancer floor at a local hospital here. My thoughts and prayers are with you. These problems test us and bring us closer together. As far as your job goes, I consider this a temporary hiccup. You sound like you know what you want to do, what you love to do and you've taken steps to provide for your family in your business' slow time. I think you can use this time (as others have suggested) to network yourself and make connections that you may not have necessarily made before. Hang in there!

Stephen
 
Chris,
Sorry to hear of your troubles we will be praying for you and the family.

I can relate to the getting a job thing.I had to step away from my full time pressure washing recently(afternoons and weekends only for now).It's hard working for someone else after 3 yrs on my own,but if it means the bills are paid and the kids are fed I'll do what I need to.You are doing the right thing and that is all that matters.
 
Terrible news and all at once. I second gators comment about the businesses. Take some flyers around to big places and see if you can get it posted or circulated around the office building. Maybe even offer a discount for people that get serviced at their job.

I think I joined DC after you made the decision to start up the mobile detailing business. What were you doing before and what made you make the jump?
 
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