How did you become a repair shop owner?

[Felix]

Hi everyone!

 

I am a quite a young guy (20 years young to be exact) and I am currently working as a mechanic. I really want to start my own repair business in the next couple years so I would love to hear how you guys got into it and what education is needed to become an independent shop owner.

 

Did you go to business school in college? Or did you work as mechanic before and decided at one point to become self employed? Did you just open your own business and just learned everything along the way?

 

I would really like to hear your stories!

 

[xrac]

I had a college education and about 20 years of experience running other businesses. I had never worked on cars or been employed in a car related business. During a moment of temporary insanity I decided to purchase an auto repair franchise and open an auto business. We started from the ground up buying land, building a building, equipping it, and hiring employees. We started as an exhuast and brakes franchise but quickly found out that limited model would not work. After about two years we switched to a full service model. It was 5 plus years before we did not lose money.

[5 Star Auto Spa]

We ended up investing in a car wash that was a lease buy back. The investment went bad and we went to court and had to kick out the original owner. The car wash was equipped with a separate 8 bay garage that the previous owner had only used for full details. We installed lifts, became an inspection facility, and entered into the automotive repair arena. That was 5 years ago. We are lucky that this facility was making money through the car wash as we did not make much money from the automotive repair business for the first 4 years. If this was a standalone automotive repair business, I do not know if it would have made it. The business is owned by myself and my sister. We are both college graduates with no automotive background. She was a lawyer and I developed software prior to working here.......

Edited November 27, 2016 by 5 Star Auto Spa

[skm]

I can only offer my advice from a mechanics stand point who has many years 26+ of being in the field.. there are a lot of things to consider.

 

1. do you want to be a mechanic or a shop owner? or both? takes a very dedicated hard working person to be both

2. what kind of shop do you want? are you planning on having several techs or just your own one man band?

3. if a small one man band, is it possible to find a place where rent/utilities and equipment needed to repair to days cars will be less than your income where you can make a profit?

4. are you prepared to invest countless hours and years of dedication to get the reputation to have a profitable long lasting shop?

5. if you plan on being just a shop owner would it be wise to find a turn key shop and take that over? (I would recommend some sort of business class if that is the case)

 

those are just a quick few.. but you most of all the one main thing I can't emphasize enough is reputation, quality work, and putting yourself in the customers shoes, understanding what the general public thinks of mechanics and try to show them that it does not relate to all mechanics.

 

My advice to you would weigh all your odds, don't rush into anything, work towards your goal of owning a shop as you become the best mechanic you can be. I am sure a lot of others can confirm for you this industry has changed so much over the years. Cars are not what they use to be and it takes a very well trained person to fix them. It also costs a lot more to fix them to both the mechanic/shop as well as the customer. That being said research research research, I wish you the best in your ventures and the best in your future shop. You are a very young man and still have a lifetime a head of you . You can get there and achieve your goals just don't rush them, but don't put them on the back burner either or they may never happen. Best of luck to you

[HarrytheCarGeek]

I have had a colorful journey which I will spare you much of the details.

I had extremely early success, I began in the mid 80's just when cars were making the transition to fuel injection and solid state electronics.

Since childhood I had been around trucks and buses, my grandfather owned a very large fleet of them.

In my teens during my extremely rebellious period there was a small garage that I rented out, and across the street there was a parts store owned by an older couple.

They saw me work there every day, and they extended me credit. By the 18th month thereabouts I had more work that I could handle, lucky an older guy from Central America made himself indispensable.

In those days cocaine from Florida was making it up into NYC and there was a lot of car maintenance demand, I was lucky to sell the shop to a Dominican guy.

Went into the Army for a few years, and when I came out used the GI bill for college. ( I want to say that was a waste of time and money, but it made me who I am)

I was basically expelled from one university for questioning my economics professor's dogma. I have a somewhat analytical mind.

Worked for some shops, one where the guy was a complete crook, which taught me that you can make an infinite amount of money legally than illegally.

Got married and divorced, got extremely sick and got betrayed, got cleaned out and basically homeless. Started again.

Lessons learned?

1. Business is about making a profit. Buy low, sell high, the difference after all your costs are covered is your profit.
2. All games have rules, referee are not always impartial. In the game of life law is the rule and judges are its referees. Learn law.
3. Government enforces the rules for those that know how to play the game well.
4. Money changes people, if they have to choose between being loyal and money, the very vast majority will choose the money over being loyal.
5. Know yourself well. Which type of man are you, one that would sell water or one that would sell the container that holds the water?
6. There are two types of wealth getting one by innovation and service and the other by usury.
7. Choose the people around you well, toxic people will destroy you.
8. You cannot make good deals with bad people, or bad deals with good people.
...

 

 

edit:spelling

Edited November 28, 2016 by HarrytheCarGeek

[mmotley]

I would love to hear how you guys got into it and what education is needed to become an independent shop owner.

 

I can only offer my advice from a mechanics stand point who has many years 26+ of being in the field..

 

Jesus Christ when did this forum turn into 'Auto Shop Owner and those who just have an opinion about owning a shop'?

 

I literally find myself spending more time on another forum due to this issue. It's really a bummer, because there are so many insightful shop owners on here like mspec, Joe, xrac, and others, but to have to sift through people's opinions who have never looked through a P&L, cash flow statement, file for an EIN, or got a bank loan really sucks.

 

I feel l'm not the only one on this forum who would love to see all members submit an EIN in order to continue posting. Everyone else can go jump on Reddit or make a facebook page. Hell, I'd even pay a membership fee as long as I knew I was reading advice from an actual shop owner who has been there and done that.

 

I know this is way off topic, but it's really been getting under my skin lately. Rant over!

 

 

Felix,

I worked at 2 dealerships for about 3.5 years each (7 total) as a technician before my dad finally pushed me to start my own shop. He had absolutely no automotive experience, but had worked for a HUGE company for about 25-30 years before they laid him off on Christmas vacation. He didn't know what he was gonna do, so he started his own business and instantly regretted not doing it earlier on in life. So between his advice and a few other mentors, I decided at 25 (no wife, kids, and only student loans), I was never gonna have a better opportunity. So I turned in my 2 weeks noticed and never looked back. Started out really small and cheap and grew it from there. Almost all my shop equipment was purchased used on craigslist except for my lift. I will say this, before I left, I had it in my head that the dealer was making a killing off me and I would be able to open my own shop at half the labor rate and still make a killing. Boy, was I in for a rude awakening.

 

If there is one bit of advice I could give, it would be to attend as much training as possible. RLO, ATI, Elite, or one of the many other companies out there, take AT LEAST one. Elite as some AMAZING videos on youtube (can't believe they are free for the information they are giving you), RLO has some old videos out on youtube that still have valuable info, R&W magazine is a great resource, Elite has a 'blog/article library' on their site which is a goldmine. Sure, one company might be better than another, but your biggest mistake would be delaying signing up with one of the companies. I can personally vouche for an RLO course that I think would be a perfect fit for any new shop owner, but again, any course/coaching will do wonders for you. I know of 2 very successful shop owners on here who are still active in training/coaching.

 

I'm sure many of the successful shop owners on here will agree with my above statement, in fact, another member on here actually encouraged me to sign up for my first RLO course (and man am I grateful he did).

[JamisonAutoGroup]

This has been a good thread, and regardless of what status or income level a person holds (shop owner or not), I feel that you can learn something from just about anyone. I am a one man shop that has been in business for a little over 2 years. I still work from my home and have pretty small expenses. I am working hard to build my brand as an honest and ethical shop owner, putting customers first. I started my business because of a bad experience as a customer at a local shop, and do not regret it a minute. This business is hard as hell, but worth it! I am a college graduate, and spent the last 9 years working as an Operations Manager in the building material industry. I began my career in the auto business working in a parts department for Mercedes-Benz of San Diego, have worked as a parts man at several auto parts stores, worked as a technician for dealerships and repair shops. I find that you absolutely must do your research before committing to owning a business, and develop a clear plan for success. Finding a way to separate you from the competition will prove to be a profitable decision. And make sure you take time to sharpen your skills, as well as feed your dream. Most importantly, your dream (reason why you are building the business) has to be stronger than your fear of failure!

[Felix]

All these posts are really interesting and gave me a lot of great insights but also things to think about.

 

Its fascinating to hear how you actually got where you are right now and I am grateful that all of you made the effort to share it!

 

What was the hardest thing you had to face in your business? Building a loyal customer base and good reputation? To overcome your competition?

[Handson]

 

What was the hardest thing you had to face in your business? Building a loyal customer base and good reputation? To overcome your competition?

Learning to charge enough, realizing there is no way in hell a small shop can compete with the franchises on price.

[Handson]

This has been a good thread, and regardless of what status or income level a person holds (shop owner or not), I feel that you can learn something from just about anyone. I am a one man shop that has been in business for a little over 2 years. I still work from my home and have pretty small expenses. I am working hard to build my brand as an honest and ethical shop owner, putting customers first. I started my business because of a bad experience as a customer at a local shop, and do not regret it a minute. This business is hard as hell, but worth it! I am a college graduate, and spent the last 9 years working as an Operations Manager in the building material industry. I began my career in the auto business working in a parts department for Mercedes-Benz of San Diego, have worked as a parts man at several auto parts stores, worked as a technician for dealerships and repair shops. I find that you absolutely must do your research before committing to owning a business, and develop a clear plan for success. Finding a way to separate you from the competition will prove to be a profitable decision. And make sure you take time to sharpen your skills, as well as feed your dream. Most importantly, your dream (reason why you are building the business) has to be stronger than your fear of failure!

Please tell me you carry liability and workmans comp, nothing pisses me off more then someone undercutting legit shops by not being licensed and insured.

 

I think you should have to submit an EIN and proof of garage keepers insurance to be a member on this site, unless it is becoming how to become an auto shop owner instead of autoshop owner.

 

I would like to know this other forum that was mentioned if you can PM me please.

[Alex]

I'm going to chime in on this topic and just make sure that everyone is aware that this site has always been open to those who are current shop owners, future shop owners, managers, technicians, service advisors, etc... We've created specific forums for members to participate in as they like. This topic was posted in the General Automotive Discussion forum, which is fine. I like these types of scenarios because it gives me an opportunity to rethink some of the categorization of forums and what we have available. However, I don't think alienating prospective new owners is part of the strategy, but as I mentioned to another member, I can create a forum for "getting into the business" or "starting a new shop", something like that, which may help categorize these types of topics.

 

Our registration form has always included other shop decision makers, other than actual owners. See screenshot below.

 

[JimO]

My brother signed the lease for a three bay gas station when he was 23 and I was 15. He had already graduated college with a buisiness degree and had previously sold cars at a local Chevrolet dealer. At a very early age our father taught us how to work, he taught us right from wrong and he led by example to always be honest. For the most part my brother ran the office and I worked in the shop. My father was a machinist by trade and I suppose I inherited more of his genes than my brother did since I was mechanically inclined at a young age and my brother was not. According to my father "If man made it, man can fix it" and I heard that quite often growing up. When I graduated High School I was going to get a place of my own but our father brought us together and asked us to consider a partnership. The next week I bought half of "the station" from my brother and a few years later we purchased our building and property. We have seen many changes over the years and I have to question if we would be able to achieve the early success we had if we we starting out now. Start-up costs and knowledge were minimal back then compared to what is now required. And Dad was right, being self employed requires that you wear many hats and it is difficult to do that alone, our partnership made us stronger and successful. We recently celebrated or 45th anniversary!

[EXP Frank]

This has been a good thread, and regardless of what status or income level a person holds (shop owner or not), I feel that you can learn something from just about anyone. I am a one man shop that has been in business for a little over 2 years. I still work from my home and have pretty small expenses. I am working hard to build my brand as an honest and ethical shop owner, putting customers first. I started my business because of a bad experience as a customer at a local shop, and do not regret it a minute. This business is hard as hell, but worth it! I am a college graduate, and spent the last 9 years working as an Operations Manager in the building material industry. I began my career in the auto business working in a parts department for Mercedes-Benz of San Diego, have worked as a parts man at several auto parts stores, worked as a technician for dealerships and repair shops. I find that you absolutely must do your research before committing to owning a business, and develop a clear plan for success. Finding a way to separate you from the competition will prove to be a profitable decision. And make sure you take time to sharpen your skills, as well as feed your dream. Most importantly, your dream (reason why you are building the business) has to be stronger than your fear of failure!

 

 

Think its hard now, imagine if you had to pay all the expenses of a legit shop.

[tdmart]

For me, I grew up in my Dad's garage back in the sixties and seventies. I held the light while he worked, I pumped the brake pedal while he bled the brakes out. I turned the engine over while he was checking compression on an engine. He would have me pull an engine out and take it apart for rebuilding. In looking back, that is perhaps the easiest way to get into the business. So, by the time I was ready to go on my own, I had a number of years of experience and had pretty well mastered the basics. When I went on my own, I bought an old ambulance and made it into a service vehicle and went out to the owners places to work on their vehicle. While it was not an efficient way of going into business, it gave me a clientele list that a few years later when I bought a property, I had a list of customers. A few years later, I expanded and bought another shop out and now, I am at the place I need more room for the demands of a growing business. You might say I have a family business because my sons now work in my business and the plans are for them to eventually take it over.

There is many thing I could say. One, in this business, you will not get rich. Two, treat your customers like you want to be treated if you were the customer. Three, stay current with developing automotive technology. Four, keep options open relative to location, size of building facilities, employees, etc. Five, focus on what works for you and not what other shops are doing or not doing. Six, do not be gullible for every salesman that comes in the door. Sort them out, pick the ones with the best service. Seven, do not become linked with a parts franchise.

My suggestions will not assure success but these are some guiding principles that have worked for me.

[HarrytheCarGeek]

 

There is many thing I could say. One, in this business, you will not get rich.

 

Why not?

Edited November 28, 2016 by HarrytheCarGeek

[HarrytheCarGeek]

We recently celebrated or 45th anniversary!

 

Congratulations, JimO! And kudos to your dad for having the vision to unite you with your brother!

[tdmart]

 

 

Why not?

 

My thought when I said that was not to have getting rich as your main objective and goal, customers real fast pick up on that.

[mspecperformance]

 

 

Jesus Christ when did this forum turn into 'Auto Shop Owner and those who just have an opinion about owning a shop'?

 

I literally find myself spending more time on another forum due to this issue. It's really a bummer, because there are so many insightful shop owners on here like mspec, Joe, xrac, and others, but to have to sift through people's opinions who have never looked through a P&L, cash flow statement, file for an EIN, or got a bank loan really sucks.

 

I feel l'm not the only one on this forum who would love to see all members submit an EIN in order to continue posting. Everyone else can go jump on Reddit or make a facebook page. Hell, I'd even pay a membership fee as long as I knew I was reading advice from an actual shop owner who has been there and done that.

 

I know this is way off topic, but it's really been getting under my skin lately. Rant over!

 

 

Felix,

I worked at 2 dealerships for about 3.5 years each (7 total) as a technician before my dad finally pushed me to start my own shop. He had absolutely no automotive experience, but had worked for a HUGE company for about 25-30 years before they laid him off on Christmas vacation. He didn't know what he was gonna do, so he started his own business and instantly regretted not doing it earlier on in life. So between his advice and a few other mentors, I decided at 25 (no wife, kids, and only student loans), I was never gonna have a better opportunity. So I turned in my 2 weeks noticed and never looked back. Started out really small and cheap and grew it from there. Almost all my shop equipment was purchased used on craigslist except for my lift. I will say this, before I left, I had it in my head that the dealer was making a killing off me and I would be able to open my own shop at half the labor rate and still make a killing. Boy, was I in for a rude awakening.

 

If there is one bit of advice I could give, it would be to attend as much training as possible. RLO, ATI, Elite, or one of the many other companies out there, take AT LEAST one. Elite as some AMAZING videos on youtube (can't believe they are free for the information they are giving you), RLO has some old videos out on youtube that still have valuable info, R&W magazine is a great resource, Elite has a 'blog/article library' on their site which is a goldmine. Sure, one company might be better than another, but your biggest mistake would be delaying signing up with one of the companies. I can personally vouche for an RLO course that I think would be a perfect fit for any new shop owner, but again, any course/coaching will do wonders for you. I know of 2 very successful shop owners on here who are still active in training/coaching.

 

I'm sure many of the successful shop owners on here will agree with my above statement, in fact, another member on here actually encouraged me to sign up for my first RLO course (and man am I grateful he did).

 

 

Please tell me you carry liability and workmans comp, nothing pisses me off more then someone undercutting legit shops by not being licensed and insured.

 

I think you should have to submit an EIN and proof of garage keepers insurance to be a member on this site, unless it is becoming how to become an auto shop owner instead of autoshop owner.

 

I would like to know this other forum that was mentioned if you can PM me please.

 

 

I feel you guys I really do.

 

I would caution to say that you have to expect this from a public forum. The forum operators are here to make this an open environment so that the members can share information freely which will in turn get some really good info from a lot of great members. The flip side to a public forum is you have a lot of people from different places in their career and differing levels of expertise. I do agree there are some completely jaded A-holes that need to be banned as they seemingly are covertly hostile or openly hostile.

 

I do not believe the OP to be someone that is out sabotage any shop owner but rather wants to join the ranks! That should be applauded.

 

If you guys are looking for more expert level advice and participation I urge you to join a 20 group or mastermind group. Yes it costs money, but if you can't afford it then maybe you aren't ready for that step and will have to deal with a free forum such as ASO.

[HarrytheCarGeek]

My thought when I said that was not to have getting rich as your main objective and goal, customers real fast pick up on that.

 

I am not trying to be obtuse or dense, but still don't get it. If you want to get rich in this business, you certainly can, just like in any other business. And what do you mean customers pick up real fast on that?

 

If I am giving them great value, fast and efficient service why would they care if I get rich off this business?

 

Granted, we haven't defined what we mean by rich, so yeah, we have to define and set the minimum parameters of what "rich" would be in this business.

Edited November 28, 2016 by HarrytheCarGeek

[Wheelingauto]

All these posts are really interesting and gave me a lot of great insights but also things to think about.

 

Its fascinating to hear how you actually got where you are right now and I am grateful that all of you made the effort to share it!

 

What was the hardest thing you had to face in your business? Building a loyal customer base and good reputation? To overcome your competition?

 

 

Be a businessman first. Sit down with a retired (or active) accountant and understand financial statements. Understand Gross sales, gross profit, expenses and net profit. Understand the industry benchmarks you want to follow so you can measure, adjust and baseline against. It's easy to say I want to make a profit. There is a huge difference in 3% and 20%. Figure out how to measure the businesses performance.

 

Next, sit and dream about what your business is. Who you cater to and who you do not. Figure out who you compete with and who you do not. Because your in business does not mean you must compete with every shop./offer/special.

Before taking the leap be financially stable. If you cant go a month without a paycheck and are going to always work from a position of fear it wont work.

 

Know the 80/20 rule. 80% of you headaches come from 20% of your customers. 80% of your profit comes from 20% of you customers. MOST IMPORTANT THING I can tell you...figure out who you wish to cater to, the top 20% or the bottom? Understand what value is and how to deliver it to the top 20%. ( I gave away my answer to the last question)

 

Building a business takes a long time. The more you know who you are (as a business) who you cater to and keep score of how you do it the more profitable you will be and the more fun it will be.

 

Dont bend your beliefs to gain a job.

 

Trying to manage cash flow on 3% net profit is not fun and takes many years off your life.

[HarrytheCarGeek]

 

 

Be a businessman first. Sit down with a retired (or active) accountant and understand financial statements. Understand Gross sales, gross profit, expenses and net profit. Understand the industry benchmarks you want to follow so you can measure, adjust and baseline against. It's easy to say I want to make a profit. There is a huge difference in 3% and 20%. Figure out how to measure the businesses performance.

 

Next, sit and dream about what your business is. Who you cater to and who you do not. Figure out who you compete with and who you do not. Because your in business does not mean you must compete with every shop./offer/special.

Before taking the leap be financially stable. If you cant go a month without a paycheck and are going to always work from a position of fear it wont work.

 

Know the 80/20 rule. 80% of you headaches come from 20% of your customers. 80% of your profit comes from 20% of you customers. MOST IMPORTANT THING I can tell you...figure out who you wish to cater to, the top 20% or the bottom? Understand what value is and how to deliver it to the top 20%. ( I gave away my answer to the last question)

 

Building a business takes a long time. The more you know who you are (as a business) who you cater to and keep score of how you do it the more profitable you will be and the more fun it will be.

 

Dont bend your beliefs to gain a job.

 

Trying to manage cash flow on 3% net profit is not fun and takes many years off your life.

 

 

Wheelingauto, what a beautiful post, thank you!

 

$1,000,000 Gross Sales x 0.03 % Net Profit = $30,000

$1,000,000 Gross Sales x 0.2 % Net Profit = $200,000

 

20% profit is over 6.5x the 3% profit.

[Gavilan]

i would call myself rich if i had $10 million.

Edited November 29, 2016 by Gavilan

[Wheelingauto]

i would call myself rich if i had $10 million.

 

 

So would I, what does that have to do with this post?

[HarrytheCarGeek]

 

 

So would I, what does that have to do with this post?

 

I think he was replying to my post on #19.

 

Gavilan, $10 million dollars how?

 

See, being rich is not only having $10 million. But for the sake of simplifying let's say you meant $10 million cash. Okay?

 

Now, Felix, with your permission not to hijack your thread, I would like to show one of the many ways, you become "rich" in this business. Okay?

 

See, your way of thinking also has a lot to do with being rich.

 

For example, poof, there, you are sitting on a pile of $10 million cash. What now?

 

If you don't know what to do next, you are not alone, a good 97% of the population would jump up and run out and spend it. That's not being rich.

 

Someone with a little bit of life experience would open a Treasury Direct account and place it there for safekeeping and income.

 

But if it was someone with business experience, he would plan how to get the best return on his investment.

 

But in our example, we are not there yet, we need to figure out how to be $10 million cash rich.

 

So, I will show you one of the many ways I would do it if there is no objection.

[JamisonAutoGroup]

To respond to Handson, as he quoted, "Please tell me you carry liability and workmans comp, nothing pisses me off more then someone undercutting legit shops by not being licensed and insured.

I think you should have to submit an EIN and proof of garage keepers insurance to be a member on this site, unless it is becoming how to become an auto shop owner instead of autoshop owner."

I am really not concerned with feelings, only taking care of my family and building my brand. I do carry a hefty commercial insurance policy, have registered my Articles of Incorporation with the Secretary of State (Bus. ID #1065964), also have an IRS EIN # and pay my taxes to the Mississippi Dept of Revenue on a monthly basis. But that's not all, I also am licensed by the county in which I reside with a business license (privilege tax license) and retain the services of a CPA. I run Mitchell 1 software, and am truly a one man show. I do everything I can to maintain a legitimate shop. I do not cut corners, and also do not like shade tree businesses either. I am a little confused on one thing though, you made reference to another forum, but I do not recall that. Would you mind refreshing my memory on that please?

 

Thanks

Jamie Jamison

[JamisonAutoGroup]

 

 

Wheelingauto, what a beautiful post, thank you!

 

$1,000,000 Gross Sales x 0.03 % Net Profit = $30,000

$1,000,000 Gross Sales x 0.2 % Net Profit = $200,000

 

20% profit is over 6.5x the 3% profit.

MSPEC, Wheeling Auto, and Harry the car geek, are all right on point! I applaud you guys, you have your stuff together. After reviewing my previous post, I think that maybe I didn't paint a very good picture of what our business really looks like. Yes, we are small, but everyone has to start somewhere. I work from home because I bought my home and 3 acres specifically to expand on what was already here, and build my shop on it, which I have done. I searched for 6 months to find a place where zoning requirements would not be an issue. I am outside of city limits, and that benefits me in numerous ways. The taxes are cheaper, repair shops are 20+ minutes away, and I specialize in European vehicles (separate yourself from the competition). We are a bedroom community about an hour from New Orleans, and there are a ton of Euro cars here on the coast. I didn't simply go rent a shop and roll the dice. I bought a home in an area where I could build my business, my shop, and my brand. I do this full time, this is our family's only source of income, and we are definitely making it. I hope to have a nice commercially zoned property in a high traffic area in the future, but for now, this is what we have to do so we can get to that level. Felix, don't ever be ashamed for starting small!

[xrac]

MSPEC, Wheeling Auto, and Harry the car geek, are all right on point! I applaud you guys, you have your stuff together. After reviewing my previous post, I think that maybe I didn't paint a very good picture of what our business really looks like. Yes, we are small, but everyone has to start somewhere. I work from home because I bought my home and 3 acres specifically to expand on what was already here, and build my shop on it, which I have done. I searched for 6 months to find a place where zoning requirements would not be an issue. I am outside of city limits, and that benefits me in numerous ways. The taxes are cheaper, repair shops are 20+ minutes away, and I specialize in European vehicles (separate yourself from the competition). We are a bedroom community about an hour from New Orleans, and there are a ton of Euro cars here on the coast. I didn't simply go rent a shop and roll the dice. I bought a home in an area where I could build my business, my shop, and my brand. I do this full time, this is our family's only source of income, and we are definitely making it. I hope to have a nice commercially zoned property in a high traffic area in the future, but for now, this is what we have to do so we can get to that level. Felix, don't ever be ashamed for starting small!

Jamie, congratulations. I have a neighbor about 1/2 mile away who started the same way. He was a dealer mechanic and built a shop at home. He started moonlighting, moved to working half time at the dealer and then went full time. After about 5 years he built a nice modern shop over in town.

[JamisonAutoGroup]

Thanks Frank, I appreciate it! I am working on getting my wholesale dealer license to enhance my business and create an additional income source. I also make it a point to do sales calls to the used car dealers in the area, and am working to gain some of their repair business. It gets a little easier every day just by taking baby steps and being proactive.

[AJFA]

I was into cars since 15 years old, took shop in high school 3 years, went to tech college 2 years for an AAS degree, worked at a large Chevy, Subaru, BMW, Volvo etc.

dealer for 34 years as tech, foreman, manager then had enough when it was bought out for the 4th time & I spent all my retirement money

13 years ago to buy an established shop. 47 years repairing cars! I think my next business will be a candy shop, NO unhappy customers!

Has not been easy but I am making way more money than if I was still at the dealer environment & I have an investment. DEALERS USUALLY SUCK.

Advice: charge enough so you are happy, 60% GP works.

Dave

[Jay Huh]

My complete story is here: http://carmedixnc.com/history/

 

Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do something.

The only mechanical experience I had was working on my own car from time to time. I have a B.S. in Supply chain management but worked at Carmax as a service advisor. Decided to just quit one day and work out of my garage and advertise on Craigslist to do mechanic work (really simple stuff like brakes).

 

HOA notified me that I couldn't work in my garage so 3 months later, I am on the road and doing mobile mechanic stuff. 3 months after that, I rented a bay from another business for $1250/month. 8 months later, I sign a contract for my very own 6 bay facility. Now I have 4 employees and run a full shop and share the same wall with major franchises.

 

I didn't need any capital, didn't have any special training, no one helped me. Just gave it my all and watched a ton of YouTube vids and made people believe I was the best damn mechanic to have ever touched their car.

[alfredauto]

I've seen many good mechanics give themselves a good paying job as a shop owner. That's called being your own boss. Most struggle to keep any of the money they are raking in. Being successful in business requires a lot of effort and time doing mundane boring pencil pushing tasks that most techs don't want to do. I used to hate spending time figuring out profit, I really just wanted to fix cars. It used to bother me to pay employees to do what I can do myself, but that's part of shop ownership.

 

I've come to the conclusion that it takes an endless amount of time and money to be an Auto shop owner, but my shop provides a good living for good people who deserve it and provides a needed service in my community and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

 

My next business will be a liquor store. Everything is sold as is no refunds. No comebacks.

Edited December 11, 2016 by alfredauto

[Trealubit]

Great replies from all the shop owners here. Check out Carm's podcasts as he showcases shop owners and their advice. "Remarkable Results Radio"

 

Ultimatley if you want it go for it. Also understand that Owning your own business is a lot of hard work. It will test your patience, your strength and wits. Being an entreprenuer is hard! This is why not a lot of people go into it or quit after some time. My advice is do not ever give up. Make it happen, learn as much as you can and continue learning and again never give up.

 

I started my business from a pick up truck full of tools, i was 19 years old then. Now i have a thriving business married 3 kids great employees, weekends off and stable. This may noy be considered much in reference to others peoples successes but from where i came from...its a success nonetheless.

 

Goodluck with your choices in life and may you reach what you want to attain