professional opinion please?

FiveOhMustang

New member
ok here goes...My friend owns a repair shop and a used car dealer ship which whom he and a friend runs. Today they had asked me if i would detail there cars for 10 dollors and hour so i told them that i would think about it... anyway i had asked them if mabe i can also run a little detailing business out of the shop location as well and they siad sure we can dicuss this more tommorow because they ahd to leave, so pretty much i should have a good location to detail from but how should i go about doin this?????? They already want me o detail there cars for 10 bucks and hour but i will also run my own business as well. Should i give them quarter profits of what i make or should i pay a monthly rent or should i do there cars for free i really dont no how i should go about doing this can you guys give em soem advice thanks so much in advance
 
If I were you, I would pay a monthly fee on the space. Also, I would try to bargain with them on the rate. If you're doing their cars a lot, you won't have time to do other cars that don't belongs to them. Also, detailing for $10 an hour is very cheap. You only make $20.00 for a 2 hour job. I make about $150-200 on a two hour job. Now you do the math on that.
 
at ten dollars per hour and having a detailer on site, it should be more than enough compensation...also ask them how long "they think" a detail should take...they might be thinking $30-40 per car (3-4 hours):nono ...you can't live on that...but if you have free rent and have a place to set up shop and put out signs, it will be a mutual benefit .
 
actually when they told me 10 dollors an hour i was expecting them to want a hack job but...... they guy said i will pay you 10 an hour and you can do 1 or 2 cars per day and take your time as long as the end product is stunning and ready to sell so i was really happy with that because not only will i be able to practice my skills but i can also get word of mouth referals out of it as well.

That is when we started talking abiut business :) so as of now i am thinking of ways i should go about paying them to start my business in there location? I was thinking of doin there cars for 10 an hour and giving them quarter profit of what i make because that is better then dishing out 2-3000 grand per month for rent any other ideas o yea and steve if this all works out you will eb hearing from me very soon :)
 
Just as another suggestion

1. $10.00 an hr is not enough! depending what they are expecting you to accomplish! Perhaps you should work out Per car rate!

2. If your goal was to start your "OWN" detialing business then do that. Your cutting from your own proffits! Why should someone else benifit from your hard work! If you want to detail all year long perhaps you might suggest to them that you would like to work out of the shop in the winter months that way you will have a garage when its cold. (that is if your going to be doing mobile detialing)

Also who would be suplying all of the products (if they are paying for all of your products then your cutting your overhead)
 
I really couldn't see myself detailing for $10 per hour. That's me of course you do what you feel is best for you. Good luck! :beat
 
I think some of you misunderstood me. They want me to detail THERE cars for 10 an hour but I also discussed with them that we can also start a little detailing business as well. So no matter what i am making profit doin there cars and i can also advertise an put up signs and what not and get mabe 1 or 2 more details per day in my pocket.
 
FiveOhMustang said:
I think some of you misunderstood me. They want me to detail THERE cars for 10 an hour but I also discussed with them that we can also start a little detailing business as well. So no matter what i am making profit doin there cars and i can also advertise an put up signs and what not and get mabe 1 or 2 more details per day in my pocket.

You might want to find out how many cars they expect you to do in a day as well as how long each one should take as already mentioned.
To make sure the friendship remains in tact get everything in writing. Too many times each side's expectations are not made clear in verbal agreements which in turn leads to disagreements and lost friendships.
This sounds like a way to make some money, but don't look for and easy way to start a business. Discuss everything on the front end and take time making your decision ... you might have to live with it for a while.
Just my .02
 
Although I don't know anything about the detailing business, I do know that $10 an hour is to their benefit, not yours.
Can you negotiate a deal where you do their vehicles for a flat fee and then work on your customers cars when they don't have something for you to do. Hold out for the use of their facilities, but don't offer them a piece of the action unless you absolutely have to.
For them to have a detailer on site would definitely be a good thing for them. They have very little expense if you are not working on their vehicles so they haven't added much to their overhead.
For you to have a place to work would be a good thing for you and you and since they already have the building and utilities to pay for, the little extra water and electricity you would require shouldn't add much to their costs, either.
Scheduling could be somewhat of a challenge, but I think most car dealers have a pretty large window of time for getting a car detailed.
:dunno

Charles
 
ok ...2 more cents worth....first the minimum wage in this country is no where near $10 an hour....there are many people out of work who think they are too good for a particular job, this is an opportunity for someone who is new to the business to get a lot of practice, can make mistakes, learn about many different paints and problems, while making money and the client and work are secure and waiting. This also could be a good starting point for a business with little or no overhead, and then he could move on.
How many detailers are booked day in and day out:dunno very few and that comes after years of building a client base. Let not all say he'll get ripped off if he looks at this as a stepping stone rather than a rest of his life job:dunno
 
If you have a facility to work from and they aren't expecting you to work day in and out on their cars it sounds like it could be a good springboard into a business. At the very least you could work on building a clientel while you detail their cars.
 
FiveOh,
What's up brotha? Here's the way I see it:
You're just getting started so having this opportunity could work out very well for you as you develope your business. It's not like you can just say 'poof', I'm in business. How awesome will it be for you to use the initial time with this job to get organized and running. It will also give you ample opportunity to hone your skills. And, it will also provide you with a shop in which to opperate in. Sweet deal!

DON'T GET SCREWED OR TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF!
You need to have a firm business relationship with these guys. You said they are friends and great, but you need to make them understand that you have a goal of having your own business. Since I know this is your ultimate goal, don't get caught up in thier cars all the time.

This is what I think you need to establish before starting:
1. You are not a clock puncher. Come and go as you please. If you are getting paid by the hour, fine. Let them know that you will be billing them hours for work done on their cars. This way, you can manage your own time and work on both your business's details and dealership's details when prudent. This, I feel, is vital to establish initially so that a professional relationship is made rather than that of an employer employee.
2. Let them know that you will be buying and maintaining all of the supplies for your side of the deal. This way they won't someday say that you are cheating them. Also establishes a proper segregation of the two deals.
3. DON'T OFFER THEM CRAP for letting you use their space! Why should you? They are already getting a guy who's detailing their cars for $10 an hour. And a guy who is making a career out of detailing. You may not, but I'm sure these guys do, know that detailers are hard to keep and a good one is worth a pretty penny to hold on to.

Let us know how it goes.
 
IMO, I think as a starting point, its a good deal, with 1 to 2 cars a day, IF, IF IF, they purchase the supplies. If your buying the supplies, then the deal is crap. UNLESS, they pay $10/HR, you pay for supplies but you use their bay and pay them nothing on your details. It has been said that a detailed automobile's value increases from $200 to $400 after a detail. They are making a serious profit all ready off of your efforts there is no need to pay them for your work also.

Hope it all works our for you!

Best Wishes!
 
my opinion on your situation is this:

decide if 10 an hour is good after you discuss how you will work out the buisness end of things with them. are they a trusted and steady sales rate dealership . do people come there because they are good or becuase they are just a used dealership. if they wana pay you 10 an hour to do 1 or 2 cars a day and you need to some how pay them some sort of compensation who is it guna be worth more to ? you 2 of thier cars a day no matter what . or them they give you 10 an hour and you have to pay them back there money in the end or at least some of it . you should tell them 10 or more an hour for thier cars 1 to 2 a day tops and youll give them 10 or 20 bucks at the end of each detailing job you do this way you get the 120 or 130 , give them what you agree on and still collect from them at the end of the week for the 10 bucks an hour they have been paying you on there cars . then its a deal for you and a deal for them in some way.
 
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