Looking for a detailer in the chicago land area

It is kind of rude to say our prices are too high and then say hey guys please help me out I am broke, I spent it all on a supercharger. That is not our problem.

Maybe you could try bartering with someone. Offer up something plus some cash to get the car done if you can't afford their price.



Also since I am curious, what products would these be that you would bring?
 
my shop is in new lenox.



I would love to detail that car.



My prices dont exceed $200 thats full paint correction and full interior.(typically much less)



I also offer FREE pick up and delivery even to carol stream.
 
nushine31223 said:
my shop is in new lenox.



I would love to detail that car.



My prices dont exceed $200 thats full paint correction and full interior.(typically much less)



I also offer FREE pick up and delivery even to carol stream.
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:wow:



$200 for full paint correction and interior??
 
He just has light swirls apparently.



The reason for low pricing is that I have almost no overhead and I love making customers look new. now sure I can go out and say $500 but that means no business for the shop. I am the guy that would rather do 2 cars at $200 a pop than $400 for one.



And also my work is all professionally done(no meguiars uc or scratch X) try us out ; }
 
nushine31223 said:
He just has light swirls apparently.



The reason for low pricing is that I have almost no overhead and I love making customers look new. now sure I can go out and say $500 but that means no business for the shop. I am the guy that would rather do 2 cars at $200 a pop than $400 for one.



And also my work is all professionally done(no meguiars uc or scratch X) try us out ; }
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Whats wrong with Ultimate Compound? Very similar to M105 in fact.
 
have never been a OTC guy but I do use m105/205 all the time and love them. just more professional to use professional products right? And bulk is always cheaper
 
nushine31223 said:
He just has light swirls apparently.



The reason for low pricing is that I have almost no overhead and I love making customers look new. now sure I can go out and say $500 but that means no business for the shop. I am the guy that would rather do 2 cars at $200 a pop than $400 for one.



And also my work is all professionally done(no meguiars uc or scratch X) try us out ; }
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wasnt bashing you at all. i would also do 2-$200 details a day if i could get them. i am mobile and have a bit of ocd. i would loose money if i did it for that price given the amount of time i put into a detail.



maybe now is a good time to restructure and try a different business model. maybe a summer special??
 
maybe now is a good time to restructure and try a different business model. maybe a summer special??
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Great Idea... we are always thinking of ways to promote its real sad when someone says "ya i uhhhh just got my car detailed at the fullers... 20 minutes and $200 later my car was brand new" Cars need waaaayy better care than that IMHO. thats why i do what i do
 
$200 for a full paint correction and interior is a joke. Especially on a four door Black car. I understand wanting to get cars in the door. But what you are doing is lowering the market for all detailers. I don't touch my buffer for anything less the $299 and probably would have done this car for a customer in a pinch for the 300. But when detailers pull this kind of stuff than customers expect it from all detailers. IF every detailer stuck to certain prices than customers would come to expect these prices. Then everyone is in better shape. But there are always shops or individuals that want to undercut the next guy. It doesn't help anyone including you. By lowering the market it lowers it for you also.
 
Thats how I have always conducted my business, you help me ill help you (just human nature). I charge what I charge and thats bottom line. as I understand we are all hurtin for money (yes including Nu-Shine). Even if that means driving an hour to make a dollar. the money isnt the biggest factor with me. (dont want to give work away either). I dont know about the rest of you guys but my business spreads very easily through word of mouth, and who knows one customer can turn into 4 quicker than a blink of the eye if your work really shows itself. and that is why I am successful, not charging $500-$600 just on paint correction. If that was the case I would have to find a few more tv shows to keep busy.
 
^Sounds like you'd be the perfect match for the Marauder Nushine. Hopefully he gets what he's looking for and everyone's happy. Hell I might even bring my new ride when I buy it and give you a go at it for $200 full detail.
 
nushine31223 said:
Thats how I have always conducted my business, you help me ill help you (just human nature). I charge what I charge and thats bottom line. as I understand we are all hurtin for money (yes including Nu-Shine). Even if that means driving an hour to make a dollar. the money isnt the biggest factor with me. (dont want to give work away either). I dont know about the rest of you guys but my business spreads very easily through word of mouth, and who knows one customer can turn into 4 quicker than a blink of the eye if your work really shows itself. and that is why I am successful, not charging $500-$600 just on paint correction. If that was the case I would have to find a few more tv shows to keep busy.
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So you are hurting for money, yet money isn't a big factor and you don't want to give the work away but that's why you are successful? :confused: :think:

Its just hard to imagine with overhead doing a full correction plus interior as well as picking and dropping off what you could possibly make an hour. That drive alone is what 1 hour total with about $5 in tolls?

I am not trying to tell you how to run things but it would seem to me you are killing yourself. But whatever works and as long as you are happy is what matters. :)
 
well swan I try to see things as half full. to be honest i havent ran into a person that is willing to put up that kind of cash. but as things pick up and my client base grows, then things start working in Nu-Shines favor. with new clients comes money not the other way around (just my approach):heelclick
 
I think instead of bashing the OP we should focus on educating him in the difference between 250 dollar details and those that run much higher.



If detailing has taught me one thing, doing an extremely thorough and good job (regardless of the type of detailing you do) takes time. The more through the job, the more time is required.



To properly polish a large car such as the Merc is going to require a thorough wash (45 minutes to an 1 hour), clay (15-30 minutes), and prep (wipe down and taping (another 30 minutes or so). It is easy to spend 90 minutes to several hours before the paint polishing has even startered.



Removing paint (and thus swirls) is fairly easy, you are just removing paint. However to remove swirls and leave behind a scratch free, level, hi-gloss finish requires the proper technique and even more time.



To go over the entire car twice with a polisher and remove most (but not all) marks on a large four door sedan like a Merc will probably take 6-8 hours. You could do it much faster by not getting into every corner, working quickly, and doing a good job. At this point we are likely going to between 8-10 hours. Now the automobile needs to be washed again (remove dust), dried thoroughly, and waxed/sealed. Figure another 30 to 90 minutes (at least).



At the very least you are looking at 9 to 12 hours for a good two step. At 250 dollars that is 20-25 an hour. Figure travel time, product costs, insurance costs, and the price drops to 15-20 hour, tops. Since you are going to hire a business we are not including other overhead costs like marketing, web, etc... After taxes and overhead the owner is lucky to make 15 an hour net....



You are going to have a hard time attracting true professionals who are very good and have invested a lot of time in learning their craft for 15 an hour.



So what do you get for 250 dollars? Likely you get a rushed job that takes less hours or you get somebody who is learning on your car. By using glazes, oils, and filler heavy polishes the detailer may get the polishing done in half the time. Now he can make a reasonable profit. You cannot fault the detailer, he is working to a market, but you also loose the right to complain (IMO) about substandard work when you choose the cheapest route. Pay your money, and enjoy what you get.



The problem is the general consumer isn't aware of how difficult polishing paint can be (heck a lot of pro's aren't famililar with how difficult it is) and have no idea how time consuming it is. This is further muddied by the fact that the general consumer looks in the phone book and finds details ranging from 100 dollars to 1000 dollars, and has no idea of the difference.



Life is all about choices as well. If you choose to put your money into making your car fast (nothing wrong with that at all :2thumbs:) then you shouldn't expect somebody to take a reduction in pay because you choose a faster car over making it look good...



And hence my pet peeve... Would you expect the supercharger company to charge less because you just had your car detailed?
 
TH0001 said:
I think instead of bashing the OP we should focus on educating him in the difference between 250 dollar details and those that run much higher.



If detailing has taught me one thing, doing an extremely thorough and good job (regardless of the type of detailing you do) takes time. The more through the job, the more time is required.



To properly polish a large car such as the Merc is going to require a thorough wash (45 minutes to an 1 hour), clay (15-30 minutes), and prep (wipe down and taping (another 30 minutes or so). It is easy to spend 90 minutes to several hours before the paint polishing has even startered.



Removing paint (and thus swirls) is fairly easy, you are just removing paint. However to remove swirls and leave behind a scratch free, level, hi-gloss finish requires the proper technique and even more time.



To go over the entire car twice with a polisher and remove most (but not all) marks on a large four door sedan like a Merc will probably take 6-8 hours. You could do it much faster by not getting into every corner, working quickly, and doing a good job. At this point we are likely going to between 8-10 hours. Now the automobile needs to be washed again (remove dust), dried thoroughly, and waxed/sealed. Figure another 30 to 90 minutes (at least).



At the very least you are looking at 9 to 12 hours for a good two step. At 250 dollars that is 20-25 an hour. Figure travel time, product costs, insurance costs, and the price drops to 15-20 hour, tops. Since you are going to hire a business we are not including other overhead costs like marketing, web, etc... After taxes and overhead the owner is lucky to make 15 an hour net....



You are going to have a hard time attracting true professionals who are very good and have invested a lot of time in learning their craft for 15 an hour.



So what do you get for 250 dollars? Likely you get a rushed job that takes less hours or you get somebody who is learning on your car. By using glazes, oils, and filler heavy polishes the detailer may get the polishing done in half the time. Now he can make a reasonable profit. You cannot fault the detailer, he is working to a market, but you also loose the right to complain (IMO) about substandard work when you choose the cheapest route. Pay your money, and enjoy what you get.



The problem is the general consumer isn't aware of how difficult polishing paint can be (heck a lot of pro's aren't famililar with how difficult it is) and have no idea how time consuming it is. This is further muddied by the fact that the general consumer looks in the phone book and finds details ranging from 100 dollars to 1000 dollars, and has no idea of the difference.



Life is all about choices as well. If you choose to put your money into making your car fast (nothing wrong with that at all :2thumbs:) then you shouldn't expect somebody to take a reduction in pay because you choose a faster car over making it look good...



And hence my pet peeve... Would you expect the supercharger company to charge less because you just had your car detailed?
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Once again the guru puts it all together. Well said my friend. :bigups
 
you guys....... whats going on.



I am just trying to give a possible customer a little of a break, not start a price war.



Maybe you dont understand whats going on, I am exremely passionate about what I do.



I understand that a good detail envolves hours upon hours of proper correction. Thats all I do.



So what do you get for 250 dollars? Likely you get a rushed job that takes less hours or you get somebody who is learning on your car. By using glazes, oils, and filler heavy polishes the detailer may get the polishing done in half the time.
Not true at all. I use products like menzerna and the meguiars twins to complete my work and IPA frequently. I dont want to come off as the guy down the block that uses those cheap glazes to fill swirls and spiders. My work is truly professional just like the rest of ya.



Take it or leave it, my prices are what they are and thats that. I would never in a million years bash any of you guys if you told me how much you made/car.
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Click to expand...
 
nushine31223 said:
you guys....... whats going on.



I am just trying to give a possible customer a little of a break, not start a price war.



Maybe you dont understand whats going on, I am exremely passionate about what I do.



I understand that a good detail envolves hours upon hours of proper correction. Thats all I do.



So what do you get for 250 dollars? Likely you get a rushed job that takes less hours or you get somebody who is learning on your car. By using glazes, oils, and filler heavy polishes the detailer may get the polishing done in half the time.
Not true at all. I use products like menzerna and the meguiars twins to complete my work and IPA frequently. I dont want to come off as the guy down the block that uses those cheap glazes to fill swirls and spiders. My work is truly professional just like the rest of ya.



Take it or leave it, my prices are what they are and thats that. I would never in a million years bash any of you guys if you told me how much you made/car.
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Hi sir,

I just want to say thank you for understanding the money issue we running in this economy, if you are coming down here i will try to get 3 or 4 more marauders to get your services, hack you could use my home garage to do your work for other people car's, i don't care i just want to learn also, You see i am in the Marauder club so i know about 8 owners from the Chicago land area and Indiana alone, I am a member on this site MercuryMarauder.net, and i be happy to post people to join in for this effort that you are offering for a good deal. You see guys is not about the money it is about your good intention for understanding, and i really appreciated it sir, I will keep you updated if you could do 3 car's in one day. Here are some picture was taken from my car last show at JC Whitney Car Show:





http://www.autopia.org/gallery/uploads/65586/IMG_5000.JPG



http://www.autopia.org/gallery/uploads/65586/MM.jpg
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Your really going to hire a sixteen year old kid?



Not sure how much experience he can actually have? Just reading on a forum such as Autopia does not make you a pro buddy.
 
Shutter said:
Your really going to hire a sixteen year old kid?



Not sure how much experience he can actually have? Just reading on a forum such as Autopia does not make you a pro buddy.
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WTF? is he really 16?
 
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