hi i am thinking about renting this mechainc shop across the street from me and i have a good buddy i grew up with who wants to be partners with me.. we have all the right ideas and for what i want to open there is a market in my area...

but i need help from someone who can teach me how to do a proper buisness proposal to bring to the bank and try to get a loan to go ahead with my dream of opening my own buisiness. i know there are members on this club who have knowledge in this so i am asking for help from the best..maybe someone that has even done this before.. that would be execellent....

what i want to do in the shop is several things as listed below.

inspections--im going for my license to do so
tune ups
brakes.
detailing (new cars for dealers under contract & personal cars as well. (contracts pending now)
audio & video install (with sub box building and aftermarket speaker mounting.
tint
wheel allignment & flat repair

but the main things will be detailing and audio & video installation as we have spoken to several dealships who agreed to give us a contract if we get our shop going... gm was not one of them.. i keep trying to convince there over paying there detailer..

no offense, but how do you expect to run a shop when you don't know how to do the brakes on your own car?

http://www.bonnevilleclub.com/forum/...ghlight=brakes

Maybe the buddy/partner would be the mechanical side of the business, while he focuses on sound and tint?

I can't help from the business side of it, but it sounds like a decent idea. It all depends on the area, I guess. A shop tried something similar around here, but only with the tint/body/rims/sound/etc. side of it, nothing mechanical. I'm pretty sure that was a flop. They're still open I think, but I think it'* more of a hobby than a money-maker for them.

One of the local colleges here has a small business development department. You can meet with them for free and they will help you prepare a business plan. Might want to tyr a few of the colleges in your area and see if any og them offer this too.

A Google search turned up this:

Lehigh University in Bethlehem
http://www.lehigh.edu/~insbdc/index2.htm

Have you had a chance to figure out all you variable and fixed expenses as well as what type of salary both of you expect? In other words do you know what your break even point is? Have you determined your objectives? What your financial goals are and the potential of this business venture? Have you researched all and I mean all your competition? What do you have that your competition does not offer? Do you know how much capital you need to survive for one year? Most new small businesses don't last 3 years so you'll have to keep this in mind. These are some questions you may want to answer before you head out into the New Business World. Do you want to enter into a business partnership or incorporate to give you limited liability?

Edit: I forgot about insurance, what type of insurance and costs, keep that in mind.
Good luck

i will not be doing that stuff.. my partner would.. i will be doing the detailing and audio & video install..

plus i plan to learn more as i go along. it would be me, my partner, and a mechanic...

Make sure your mechanic is ASE certified (I believe that'* it). I wouldn't bring my car to a shop where the mechanic just "knew what he was doing" so to speak.

There is inherit trouble in this plan.

There are not that many shops that I know of that are a "we do it all" setup. Most shops specialize in several areas (like a shop doing brakes, wheels, alignments, while another shop does tint, detailing, audio). So instead of taking clientel away from a few businesses, you will be taking away clientel from ALL businesses in the area. And that is not the way to make friends in the business.

Before doing this union, I suggest looking at the local competition. Are there alot of mechanical repair shops in the area? If so, the detailing business would be the way to go, as you would be filling in a niche, and vice-versa. Also shop around and see what the local businesses charge. Then do a cost analysis to see how much lower you can go on your prices and still be able to turn a profit.

There is no way two guys can handle a business like this by themselves. You WILL have to hire help, which now puts you into another realm of owning your own business - compensation. You will also need to hire a cute secretary that doubles as your commercial spokeswoman. That is a MUST.

my mechanic that i know is an ase certifed lincoln tech graduate who has gruated 7 years ago and have been working on cars ever since ecpecially honda and acura is his best... and in pa honda and acura is what everyone but me is driving..