Biz Opp…!

[sjb]

What if you were approach by a professional detailer that wants to rent space and grow his existing biz…?

He/she/it would have their own insurance and indemnify you…

What are the other downsides to this agenda, and is it worth the pursuit…?

Because the next challenge will be to find them these hard working entrepreneurs….!?!

 

[MEP001]

I get approached all the time. I've had experience with them, all bad. First guy was supposed to keep the wash clean and were only supposed to use one bay at a time, they pay to wash and minimal hand washing/NO detailing in the bay. Not only did they not keep the place clean, they'd leave a huge mess in their area and left my paying customers no place to park and clean their cars. I showed up on a busy Sunday and all the cans were overflowing, they were detailing a car in a bay and had two more bays block with cars just sitting there staged. The guy got his workers to rush and get the trash emptied, but they showed they weren't keeping things clean. It took me many hours over several days to get all the trash cleaned up.

Second guy had workers who would spend an hour or more detailing in bays after being told over and over not to. The last time I saw him do it I told him I'd call the police next time and issue a criminal trespass warrant. Suddenly he couldn't pay rent anymore and wanted to use the place for free. A friend of mine has the next nearest wash and he jumped through hoops to make the guy happy by running electric and water for him, but the guy did the same to him wanting to use his wash for free. I haven't seen him again, but my friend had to have him trespassed.

Last people were leased the dirt behind my wash by the owner, I agreed to let them have an area on my concrete in exchange for picking up, but they only keep their area somewhat clean. I had all kinds of trouble with them parking three or four cars on my lot, detailing in a bay when it was busy, soliciting my customers, I finally laid down the law and told them one more tiny issue and they're gone. They still aren't cleaning anything except their area, but I haven't had any trouble in a while and they pay to wash their cars so I make a few hundred off them a month.

IMO it's not worth it, but for an underperforming wash it could work out well, especially if they can help your customers when there's a problem.

 

[sjb]

WOW, thanks for reply. Sounds like a few nightmares and headaches to avoid….

I was thinking it might be a positive evolution of the biz, but your personal response's say other…

like with all situations, it will probably boil down to the individuals, but I should probably focus elsewhere for additional profit centers, etc…

 

[CarWashBoy]

I get approached all the time. I've had experience with them, all bad. First guy was supposed to keep the wash clean and were only supposed to use one bay at a time, they pay to wash and minimal hand washing/NO detailing in the bay. Not only did they not keep the place clean, they'd leave a huge mess in their area and left my paying customers no place to park and clean their cars. I showed up on a busy Sunday and all the cans were overflowing, they were detailing a car in a bay and had two more bays block with cars just sitting there staged. The guy got his workers to rush and get the trash emptied, but they showed they weren't keeping things clean. It took me many hours over several days to get all the trash cleaned up.

Second guy had workers who would spend an hour or more detailing in bays after being told over and over not to. The last time I saw him do it I told him I'd call the police next time and issue a criminal trespass warrant. Suddenly he couldn't pay rent anymore and wanted to use the place for free. A friend of mine has the next nearest wash and he jumped through hoops to make the guy happy by running electric and water for him, but the guy did the same to him wanting to use his wash for free. I haven't seen him again, but my friend had to have him trespassed.

Last people were leased the dirt behind my wash by the owner, I agreed to let them have an area on my concrete in exchange for picking up, but they only keep their area somewhat clean. I had all kinds of trouble with them parking three or four cars on my lot, detailing in a bay when it was busy, soliciting my customers, I finally laid down the law and told them one more tiny issue and they're gone. They still aren't cleaning anything except their area, but I haven't had any trouble in a while and they pay to wash their cars so I make a few hundred off them a month.

IMO it's not worth it, but for an underperforming wash it could work out well, especially if they can help your customers when there's a problem.

 

[CarWashBoy]

It’s Huge Train Wreck! I finally learned 20 years ago!

 

[Waxman]

The problem with detailing as a business is that there are very low barriers to entry. This means you get under committed individuals who don't want to spend much money getting into the business and then they can get greedy with their prices and cutting corners. The right way to do detailing is with your own building, all the equipment like extractors steamers buffers oxone machines etc.

because you can get into detailing without any of this equipment, you get under committed individuals attempting to "start a business". I guess a written contract would be a good place to start but then you're investing money and time into a lawyer unless you do it yourself and still a lot of people won't honor the contract.

I have my own freestanding detailing shop next To my car wash. I have a manager who handles the detailing and making appointments etc. In my opinion this is the way to go. You either run it all in control it all somewhat tightly yourself or don't do it at all. There's no in between that will be a success in my opinion.

 

[soonermajic]

I had a detailer use my wash once. I wound up hiring him as my full/part time guy. He took care of the place, was around all the time while detailing, & he was also my employee. The guy never left a mess, cleaned the place up & ran it like it was his personal wash ( w/ his own money invested). It wound up being a great deal for me!

 

[Kimberly Berg]

I'm located on a busy corner in town, and frequently approached by mobile detailers. Problem is I don't KNOW any of them or their quality of work. If they're working on my property, they become an extension of my business - for GOOD or BAD. Its called "guilty by association". Choose wisely. I would rather skip the extra $ than damage the reputation of my car wash. I could only imagine the 1-star reviews if they were rude to a customer or damaged their cars paint.

 

[designflaw]

I have been approached by a few and I refuse to keep one. Mostly because I know they will fall short and I dont want to be responsible for them. I rather not take that money. It seems like a hassle to me thats not worth it.

 

[MEP001]

If you can find a good detailer, it's win-win. I've seen it work out, it's just unlikely to in my experience. I'm looking at doing it at an underperforming wash, but I'll be super picky about it. They'll have to keep the wash clean, they'll have strict rules about not stealing away our business, they won't have access to the equipment room, or at least not until I feel they can be trusted. I think ideally they will have a trailer, and there's already a place for them to hook up water and electric. Since it's so underperforming I'd assign a bay for them to use. This is all IF I can find someone who isn't a scumbag or a thief, and I'll be watching them on video.

 

[Creole]

We've done details at our ss wash in the past. The beginning was great, had a self motivated guy that was experienced at detailing, we supplied the space, insurance, tools and supplies and he scheduled, detailed and met with customers for the pickup of their vehicles. We set the pricing for services together and we got a small percentage of the job to cover our part of the agreement, he kept the rest and whatever tips. He was also supposed to help customers and keep the bays clean. It was apparent that the car wash stuff was too hard for him to keep up with and detail 3 cars / day, so we hired separate car wash help and left him to his details. This arrangement worked out great for a while, he needed the work and it was a nice income generator to our car wash. However, after things got rolling along and schedules were flowing, he had some money in his pocket, didn't need to work anymore. So we were left to finish out his commitments because they were our customers also. The first guy was really good and could handle 3 or so details a day by himself, but for some reason just let it go. We then tried to replicate it three subsequent times with other "detailers". Our experience was that other people who claimed to be detailers, were not nearly as detail oriented as they needed to be or simply worked too slowly or needed us to tell them what to do next all the time, or they couldn't manage time/ schedules. So the payout was not good. All in all the failure of each detailer left us to finish up their schedules and we simply couldn't do it all ourselves. In my opinion, for this to work, it absolutely takes the right individual who can manage all the little nuances to this business and won't quit in a few months. It's very hard work no doubt, but very satisfying also. I think most people who get started in it only see what the payout can be, but don't realize the amount of labor involved. It's massive. Very few people bring "easy to clean" cars to be detailed or they would do it themselves.