Teen seeking help in starting business

V

Volvolove

New member
Hello all,



i love detailing cars and there are a lot of people who notice the cars i've done (family cars) and praise my work. Summer has begun for me and besides a regular job, i would like to also detail cars. I already have two guys that i know who would like me to detail their cars.



As far as i've heard or know of -- there aren't too many "professional" detailers where i live in central pa.

granted ... i'm not gonna charge much to start, but i was just looking for some pointers or recommendations on getting/increasing business. So far ... its limited just to word or mouth ... or me approaching people who i know like to have their car clean.



i'm 17 and this summer, nothing sounds better than being outside detailing my first love, cars!



thanks for any help at all



alex
 
I would suggest starting by downloading this guide: Autopia Guide To Detailing Ebook :bow It will definitely start you off on the right foot, and it contains links to buy all your supplies. Don't forget, first impressions mean everything so starting off with the most knowledge possible can't hurt you. Good luck!
 
I'm "almost not a teen", and I just started my own detailing business this summer. Just do really good work and people will start talking about you and you will get more and more calls.



Definately get some business cards made and design a flyer. Even if you print the flyer off of your home printer, you will be set. I made a tri-fold brocure that I posted on here that seems to be getting a pretty good response so far. You might get some good ideas from that.
 
I am 15 and I'm facing the same dilema as you. I recently printed off some cool fliers and a website with some of the previous cars I've done. www.chromenight.com/steve



The site alone has gotten me 4 cars in the summer. I'm stoked, so have a great time, and just do the best job possible.
 
thanks guys,



i have already looked through the Autopia Guide to Detailing ... its great stuff i know. I'll be making some business cars and leaving then in choice places and also make up some flyers. I have some great shots of my old volvo 850 and my new BMW 325is so i may include some of my work too!



good luck to all of you young detailers as well!



alex
 
Im 16 now, and this is my 3rd year detailing cars as a summer business. I made up some nice trifold flyers and passed em out, and the first few loved the work and referred people to me, so on and so forth :) Hope it works out for ya man!



-Zach
 
I started detailing cars when I was 14 years old out of my driveway for family members. People used to see me out there every weekend cleaning cars and would stop in and ask me if I would be interested in cleaning their car. I started to get more and more cars because of the quality work I did and eventually got a job at a local detail shop for a couple years and learned how to buff. After I graduated high school, I opened up a small shop in a nearby town and did very, very well for myself. I had a huge business park nearby that I would pass out flyers and had some pretty impressive wholesale accounts with local car rental places & dealerships as well as retail customers. The landlord got a little greedy with the rent so I found another shop to detail out of and kept most of my old customers. I have been at my current shop for about 3 years now detailing mostly high end cars and exotics. I have an exotic car dealer 3 doors down from my shop and do every car they own. It just goes to show you that if you put your all into it and do quality work, it will definitely pay off. You will never get filthy rich from detailing, but if you enjoy cars, like working for yourself & have a love for detailing like I do, there is nothing better ! :xyxthumbs Just make sure never to cut yourself short (money wise) and do the best job you can do. Every happy customer will pass your name along down the line and before you know it, you will be overwhelmed with cars. Hope everything goes well ! Good luck !

~Rick
 
i know this is an old thread, but i have the same thing going on now. I'm almost 15, and i love to detail cars. so far i've only done my parents' cars but i have a neighbor who wants me to do his late model cougar. :xyxthumbs



i know i have the skill to make the cars look good, but what can i do about transportation? we have some family friends that live a few minutes away by car but my parents work alot and don't necessarily(sp?) have time to haul myself and 1,xxx,xxx( ;) ) products around.



i am able to take products to neighbors houses that are close by, so this can work for the cougar. i was looking for some sort of inexpensive tent thing that can be put up and taken down in our driveway easily and quickly,(garage is home to a '46 plymouth and a '59 dodge). i have looked at the "E-Z Ups" but i would need two to cover a whole car, and i cant find side shades for them. Any suggestions or pointer would be great. :bow :wavey



i am pretty glad i found this site. the things ive learned in the past few months from just reading are great and have really helped me. i just downloaded the Guide to Detailing and am waiting for the email registration password thingy...





thanks in advance for any help. :) .



my first 'click and brag' should be up in a few days. should be my moms car and the cougar if all goes well. :cool:
 
MongooseGA said:
i have looked at the "E-Z Ups" but i would need two to cover a whole car, and i cant find side shades for them. Any suggestions or pointer would be great. :bow :wavey

Click to expand...





I have thought about getting one of these. What I would do is just buy a standard tarp and wrap it around two of the sides. and then move it as needed througout the day. You could figure out a way to tie or clamp the tarp to the ez-up.
 
wow, that was fast!



thanks for the idea. i thought about it and its a good option. God knowsmy dad has tarps ans line laying around everywhere. (hes the kind of person who keeps 1,000 ft. of line and an entire portable city in the back ofour super duty... you know, "just in case".) haha. plus the tools, every trailer hitch ever invented, etc...



i have really just been waiting until like 5 o'clock p.m. to start washing or waxing etc... Since it doesnt get dark here until about 8:30 this time of the year i have a few good shady/cool hours to work. problem is the weather now doesnt know what it wants to do. Cloudless in the morning at 100 degrees and a thunderstorm in the afternoon. :(
 
ive spent quite a bit on waxes and other products. several hundered dollars. what i have will work for now (mostly meguiars and mothers products) but other things like MFs and terry towels are hard to find. i can find cheap ones, but good ones i can buy at a store either dont exist, or are hiding from me.



i had alot of black magic things before, but that was because there was so much of it at the AAP or Auto zone. that junk is all gone now. i am still perfecting claying (wow thats cool. ) and hand waxing (have no money for a good PC or equivalent).



if the weather holds up tomorrow i will be washing, claying, washing, Meg's deep crystal system (minus the carnuba) and sealing it with NXTx2. i tried it on half of the hood this afternoon. looked awesome with just one hurried coat of NXT after the Deep crystal products.



i looked at the autopia store too. if they sold most of these products in stores, i would be in dept up to my eye balls at Autozone.



im still looking to find a professional retail store close by (Virginia Beach, VA) that might sell everything. thanks for the help. :D
 
~One man’s opinion / observations ~



“I'm 17 and this summer, nothing sounds better than being outside detailing my first love, cars!�



That’s all I used to think of as a teenager…:nixweiss

(Grasshopper there is more to life than wax on, wax off)



I wish you well in your new venture :xyxthumbs



~Hope this helps~



Experience unshared; is knowledge wasted…/ Jon

justadumbarchitect * so I question everything *
 
TOGWT said:
~One man’s opinion / observations ~





(Grasshopper there is more to life than wax on, wax off)







~Hope this helps~



Experience unshared; is knowledge wasted…/ Jon

justadumbarchitect * so I question everything *
Click to expand...





Aye, and it's known as "the fairer sex". ;)
 
Oh I remember it well, the spring of 99 when I opened up my first bottle of wax and cleaned my parents 98 Windstar at the age of 10. Bam! Now I am in my third year of auto detailing. This season has been by far my best. I have already made about $3,000 and summer has barely started. I charge close to nothing ($35 for small cars and coupes, $40 ford sedans and large cars/station wagons, $50 for small and mid-size SUVs and Pickups, $55 for minivans, and $60 is for large vans...think 15 passenger vans and the ocassional GMC Yukon or Caddy Escallade ESV). I have flyers and business cards pretty much everywhere since I live in a small town called Dunmore in Northeast Pennsylvania. A common thing that you notice up here is that there are a lot of landscaping businesses up her and I have managed to attain just about all of them...although cleaning these F-550 diesal engined dumptrucks are a pain to clean.



You may want to keep a tally of what vehicles you have done. I have a chart setup on Microsoft Word that I list all the vehicles, years, model, and the price paid...just so at the end I can add up the nice number that comes up on the calculator and so that next year, I can send all the customers new flyers and business cards, since I don't clean them in the winter. AND MAKE SURE YOU CALL THE DAY OR NIGHT BEFORE TO CONFIRM YOUR APPOINTMENT! There's nothing like your appointment not showing up...I learned that the hard way and man was I ticked off! ONE last thing...make sure you take your time...never rush...especially if the car is quote on quote priceless! If the owner of the vehicle asks when it will be ready always add atleast an hour on to the time you figure it will take you...you never know what can happen. Rushing can also bring up "ut oh's"...like a vaccumm cleaner falling into the side of a car...and yes I was rushing...luckily the guy had more money than god and had it fixed. Supprisingly too, he returned twice this year to get his car done!
 
anothe problem i have is pricing.



for a full detail including shampooing the interior, leather care, clay, cleaner, polish, wax, dressing, etc... i only charge $60 so far. looking at what everyone else (who is not a professional) on here charge over $100-200 blows my mind. i just dont know if i can get people where i am to pay this kind of money. they dont realize the difference between all hand done, day long work vs. the $65 car-spa right down the street that does a $%@# job!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top