Newly refurbed self serve neighbor opening at $1 for 5 minutes

[denduke]

Hello! My closest self serve neighbor has totally refurbished over the last 8 months and is re-opening soon. He's opening at $1 for the first 5 minutes wash. Not sure what the next dollar will bring yet. I have owned for 30 years at my car wash and I have lots of repeat business. I'm steady at $2 for 4 minutes and $1 for 4 min on the vacs. My prices have not changed in more than 15 years. Has this happened to you? Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated. Thank You, Dennis Duke

 

[BBE]

Is he an experienced operator, or is he new to the carwash game? If he's a new operator, I say don't change a thing and just wait it out, he'll lose his shirt all by himself. Just make sure all of your equipment is always fully functional, you fix things in a timely manner, you address refunds and customer complaints promptly, and that your facility and parking lot stay trash free and clean.

 

[denduke]

The car wash has been there for many years and I think this may be new owner, possibly a chain operation. The wash was owned my an older man and his son prior. Thank You BBE.

 

[Earl Weiss]

When you take over a beaten down place the biggest challenge is overcoming bad juju and getting people to try you. The $1.00 is a way to do this. I would expect that he will need to raie prices over time. But to survive he needs to get people in.

 

[Waxman]

I would go the other way and raise your prices a bit. $2 wash and $1 vacs is low. i doubt the $1 price will last very long.

 

[chaz]

I agree with raising the $2 wash price to $3, for 4 minutes. I'd like to raise my vac price but am having trouble pulling the trigger I'd like to stay in increments of $1 as I dispense dollar coins. But I'm thinking $2 is pricey start on vac. Thoughts??

 

[rph9168]

If it is a chain wash they may be able to keep their pricing lower for a longer period of time than an individual owner but they cannot keep that price long term. Like others have said, keep high standards at your wash and hang in there. You will probably lose some business short term but in the long run they will have to raise their price.

 

[cantbreak80]

I agree with raising the $2 wash price to $3, for 4 minutes. I'd like to raise my vac price but am having trouble pulling the trigger I'd like to stay in increments of $1 as I dispense dollar coins. But I'm thinking $2 is pricey start on vac. Thoughts??

How about $1 for 3 minutes? It's working for me.

 

[6t7gto]

Check the county records on line and find out the new owner.

 

[denduke]

Thank to all for your input. There are plenty of cars in my area (near LAX) and I have done very successful social media advertising in the recent past as well. This will, at a minimum, encourage me to have all my meter box plates refurbished in the near future. Other than that, our place is very well maintained.

 

[Randy]

Just how close is this remodeled car wash to your car wash?

 

[chaz]

At 1$ for 3min on vac, are you seeing more vac income or just folks working faster to beat the clock?

 

[Randy]

I’m at $1.25 for 3 min. on the vac’s and as soon as the next school levy passes, they always seem to pass, it’s on the next ballot. I’m going to $1.50 for 3 minutes on the vac’s and $2.50 for 3.5 minutes in the bays.

When the last school levy passed we put up this sign on the front of the bill changer. “Thank you for supporting the kids by passing the school levy. It is unfortunate that have had to raise our prices to stay competitive. Thank you for your understanding”

 

[chaz]

Wow...we are getting away from the thread here... But I've got to ask.....

What does the passage of a school levy have to do with raising prices to stay competitive? Maybe you mean you are raising your price to cover the increased tax??

When it comes to price adjustments , I just do them. No announcement, just change the signs as subtle as possible, change the price and move on.

 

[cantbreak80]

At 1$ for 3min on vac, are you seeing more vac income or just folks working faster to beat the clock?

2015 vacuum revenues were up 16% over 2014. The "clock chasers" can get another 45 seconds for their quarter. Must have been a bunch of them because quarters accounted for 34% of the total vacuum income! [Head Shaking]

When it comes to price adjustments , I just do them. No announcement, just change the signs as subtle as possible, change the price and move on.

DITTO!

 

[robert roman]

Predatory pricing means selling a product at a price that is lower than cost of producing it.

Since there is no economy of scale in wands, competition faces basically the same necessary expenses. In other words, only the carwash without a mortgage could survive a price war.

So, the advice given about staying on course is probably very good.

I also agree with raising price. 15 years without price increase in other retail sectors would be akin to charity.

Gasoline prices change daily. 15 years ago I paid $0.75 for a candy bar, today its $1.49.

One criteria of highest and best use is maximally productive use. This implies the current use results in the highest net return to the developer.

I’ve estimated that a sustainable price for typical wand (with debt) is about $0.75 per minute. Sustainable means achieving normal profit in the long-run including reinvestment to offset obsolescence.

$0.50 per minute might generate normal profit but it’s not enough to keep up with wear and tear.

$0.35 per minute or less, the wash becomes an expensive job or worse.

 

[txheat]

Price varies i guess ... We have been $1 for 4 minutes on wash and $0.75/3 min on vac. i think you should be fair on pricing but maintain your wash site/equipment is more important. Secondly dont worry about the other guy/competitor if he lose the shirt on his back but worry about your business. $1/4 min vs $1/5 min isnt a big factor/difference in my opinion. If you claim your equipment is working well you shouldnt be worried.

 

[getnbusy]

It has to be a new operator. No way to survive at $1 for 5 mins in north carolina. I doubt very seriously it can be done near LAX. I say stay the course

 

[Wet Spot]

I wouldn't be surprised if it isn't the Australian guy that's notorious for $1 for 5 min washes. I've seen a few of his in the SoCal area . He rehabbed the one on paramount opposite another wash on other side of 91 freeway. Really hurting pricing in industry, but he's banking on volume, packed with cars waiting all day long. I spoke with owner of opposite wash that was also nicer and bigger and he lowered start time to 25 cents. This was a few years ago., don't know how that worked out , Ask awc for opinion. Good luck

 

[denduke]

Thank you all for your comments. Well, I had a chance to drive into my neighbor's newly opened "$1 for 5 minutes" Car Wash the other day. To my surprise, the sign that you can see from the street is very misleading. As I got closer to the sign it had some small, fine print on the bottom, which read: "Night Price 11pm to 6am". Their "day price" is actually $1 for 3 minutes! Not sure what they are charging for the Vacs yet, but I'll be monitoring their business in the future. Slight chance now that I will change my prices. Just keep and maintain my wash in excellent condition, as I have for the last 30 years!