Where the money is REALLY at in this business.??

RenuAuto said:
David put out a good point about the business taking a toll on your body. Even if you build a really successful one-man operation for yourself, which is undoubtedly great, it WILL take a toll on your body. I'm a young gun, exercise, and I'm already running into body problems. I've also been gone from literally NEVER getting sick, to being in the doctors office every other month for some random sickness. Admittedly it's probably because I burn the candles at both ends (work/play), but regardless, your body can only hold up for so long. It's like being a stripper, you have to think of something for the future when you can't work in the business anymore.
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I'm totally in your shoes and can relate. Detailing is some serious hard labor. I give tons of props to older gentlemen like ScottWax & Bob for being physically fit to keep up with the demands of this profession.



RaskyR1 said:
Which is why I love just doing this part time. ;)



I used to be able to go 10-12hrs a day 6-7 days a week with no issues....not anymore! No I enjoy a 40hr week with great benefits/vacation and detailing is just for fun and extra coin. :)
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No kidding. Nothing like being able to fall back onto your day job when you need to. Especially with a 401K/Insurance/PTO/Company Car. Best of both worlds.
 
400-500 on top of the one step price is where its at! hourly rate jumps up to 150-175 per hour when doing coatings! Why? because of the added benefit the consumer will receive! Not to mention the money savings from them not having to have the car polished as often anymore, they dont lose 3 days with the car, just one! Time saved is far more important than money spent!



Im about to get into both ends of this industry and roll the dice to see what happens!



high end detailing is good money per car, but not always there.

volume is crap money per car in comparison, but it is easier to sell someone on a $200 detail than it is on a $500 detail. 95% of people dont see the need for the balls to the walls paint correction! Plus, you can get 3 one steps with poliseal, blacklight, KAOI done in one day...at $200 each, thats a good final day number..add in some help doing two more...thats a great day for less physical work on yourself...add in extras for those slow days even better (tint, ECU tuning, clear bra - stuff you sub out and get a referral bonus)
 
As someone who has had 3 employees and a few other contractors. I wish anyone looking for good help the best. It is incredibly hard to find quality people. When you find someone good and honest, do all you can to keep them. That tends to mean pay them "more".
 
Agreed JC. Good people are really hard to find. When you have a good person, do whatever you can do to keep them while not making the other workers feel jealous/spitful. Every morning for nearly 5 years I used to pick up 2 of my guys and take them into work with me. This added almost an extra hour to my commute time. They were hard workers and produced good quality and the last thing I wanted was for them to be late because they had to catch 2 or 3 buses into work. The last thing you need when you start your day is having lot full or cars and nobody to do the work!!
 
If there is real money to be made someone needs to show me because I don't see it. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy what I have and it is worth the money for what I do. That being said after I pay my helper, my business expenses and put some money into the business account there is not much left for me. Someone asked about 100k that's nothing. It would take that much in volume just to pay the owner of a one man show a decent salary plus decent benefit package. You would need another 100k to pay a helper, business expenses and have money to reinvest. Now you also want the business to make some money so now your looking for another 50k. Someone school me on how a small detailing business with one guy and a helper or two are doing Over $250k in annual sales. please don't tell me volume because that means they are doing over 9 cars a day(that's assuming they can actually get the dealer to pay $100 a car) As far as I see there is no "big money" in detailing. Good thing I enjoy it and I'm not trying to get rich.
 
The bigger your operation the more revenue you need to bring in the front door. If you have a shop and 10 guys working there your going to be laying down some serious cash. If your paying your guys good and covering their benefits then yes you need to take in that kind of revenue. If your doing 700k yr in volume and have expenses of 650k that still leaves the OP's question Where's the good money in detailing?
 
rustytruck said:
If there is real money to be made someone needs to show me because I don't see it. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy what I have and it is worth the money for what I do. That being said after I pay my helper, my business expenses and put some money into the business account there is not much left for me. Someone asked about 100k that's nothing. It would take that much in volume just to pay the owner of a one man show a decent salary plus decent benefit package. You would need another 100k to pay a helper, business expenses and have money to reinvest. Now you also want the business to make some money so now your looking for another 50k. Someone school me on how a small detailing business with one guy and a helper or two are doing Over $250k in annual sales. please don't tell me volume because that means they are doing over 9 cars a day(that's assuming they can actually get the dealer to pay $100 a car) As far as I see there is no "big money" in detailing. Good thing I enjoy it and I'm not trying to get rich.
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I can't see how a detailing business doing anywhere near $200-$250K with 2 total people isn't running a on atleast a %50 profit margin. It's very uncommon for an operation this size to have that much overhead as you stated.



rustytruck said:
The bigger your operation the more revenue you need to bring in the front door. If you have a shop and 10 guys working there your going to be laying down some serious cash. If your paying your guys good and covering their benefits then yes you need to take in that kind of revenue. If your doing 700k yr in volume and have expenses of 650k that still leaves the OP's question Where's the good money in detailing?
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What came 1st...the chicken of the egg? If you're doing 700K per year and your overhead is $650, you have NO business being in this business. The break even point of a detail business doing $700K per year is generally pretty low. The more volume you do, the more profit you are earning.
 
gmblack3 said:
For those who dont have a shop or want to hire employees: One steps and coatings. Upselling glass and wheels with the coating is icing on the cake.
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Exactly right. My son and I can knock out three full details in a day if we are doing just one polishing step and the vehicles are in the same location or do two (maybe 3) Opti-coat jobs assuming we don't have a full on correction to do first. I like doing paint corrections too, but the market here is a bit flat for that right now due to the incredible amount of road construction going on all over the DFW area. The complaint I get from people is that with all that going on, why bother having a perfect finish? On the other hand, it makes upselling Opti-Coat easier.



If you price your work right and have steady business, you can make a pretty decent living.
 
rustytruck said:
The bigger your operation the more revenue you need to bring in the front door. If you have a shop and 10 guys working there your going to be laying down some serious cash. If your paying your guys good and covering their benefits then yes you need to take in that kind of revenue. If your doing 700k yr in volume and have expenses of 650k that still leaves the OP's question Where's the good money in detailing?
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That's why I like keeping my business small. Much less overhead. Plus with using ONR and everything fitting in my car, that greatly cuts down on overhead (like a pressure washer) and a truck and trailer that get 12 mpg vs over 20 mpg my car gets. I will always be mobile, don't want the headaches or costs associated with a standing location. If it rains for two weeks, I might not make any money, but I also don't have rent on a shop to pay, or workers to pay so they don't quit on you. Plus it gives me the ability to travel out of state if we have a bad stretch of weather here.



If you have a fixed location, you have to rely on a lot of volume to make money. And then you have car dealers who are always try to negotiate lower prices, take forever to pay, etc.
 
Volume.

I haven't buffed a car in 6 months. Washes, vacs, spray wax. Made more this year than any of my last 6 in this biz.

Haven't spent crazy money on fancy polishes or waxes so costs are down. Processes and time management is key.
 
toyotaguy said:
Plus, you can get 3 one steps with poliseal, blacklight, KAOI done in one day...at $200 each,
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Scottwax said:
Exactly right. My son and I can knock out three full details in a day if we are doing just one polishing step
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When you guys say one polishing step, what pad/polish combo would you use? Is that more of a gloss enhancement than correction work?
 
Mush-Mouth said:
I would have to guess it would be close to impossible to make 6 figures detailing by yourself right?
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Not necessarily. The last three years before our economy tanked in 08, I was grossing around $110k a year. I had a small shop to keep rent low and had a mobile unit as well so I was capable of "chasing the money". It did however take about ten years to build up a client list of people who would spend a good chunk of change 2-3x a year to enable me to make that kind of money.
 
detailfanatic said:
When you guys say one polishing step, what pad/polish combo would you use? Is that more of a gloss enhancement than correction work?
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Usually Optimum Hyper Polish and an Optimum microfiber cutting pad, subbing HD Polish on softer paints. Minor defect removal and a lot more depth. Honestly, most people just don't look at paint the way we do. If it looks deep and shiny, that's enough. They don't want to pay another $300+ to have a flawless finish on a daily driver they are going to run through the local tunnel wash once a month.
 
Scottwax said:
Usually Optimum Hyper Polish and an Optimum microfiber cutting pad, subbing HD Polish on softer paints. Minor defect removal and a lot more depth. Honestly, most people just don't look at paint the way we do. If it looks deep and shiny, that's enough. They don't want to pay another $300+ to have a flawless finish on a daily driver they are going to run through the local tunnel wash once a month.
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Thanks Scott. How long does that ( the polishing portion ) usually take? I haven't offered that type of package before. Right now I just do wash n' waxes and correction work.
 
I am not a professional detailer (and have no aspirations to be one), but I just wanted to make a comment that this thread brings a smile to my face. It's always nice to see our Autopia community sharing their experience and posting personal tips to help another detailer.



I tip my hat to you guys...
 
MCA said:
I am not a professional detailer (and have no aspirations to be one), but I just wanted to make a comment that this thread brings a smile to my face. It's always nice to see our Autopia community sharing their experience and posting personal tips to help another detailer.



I tip my hat to you guys...
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Thanks!

Sometimes the word volume doesn't like to exist with the word professional around here. Why? I have no idea.

Glad to see a LOT more open minds here now.
 
detailfanatic said:
Thanks Scott. How long does that ( the polishing portion ) usually take? I haven't offered that type of package before. Right now I just do wash n' waxes and correction work.
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2-3 minutes per section, so 30-40 minutes? With full on corrections, you can spend twice that on just a fender. But it gives the paint a lot more pop and with the newer polishes and MF pads, you can actually get some correction without a huge time investment.
 
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