Basic setup for $1000?

There's some awesome advice in this thread for someone who is just starting out in this venture. A couple of really good different avenues to take depending on how much money someone has/wants to invest into the business.

If you're quite serious about it, $1000 really isn't that much to put into the business. And if you were wanting to buy a lot of this stuff anyways, then it's really not too much sweat off of your back if you find out doing it as a business might not be all that you thought it was.

I think I started out with $300, and to be honest that was because that was all I had at the time, (I basically got a cheapo shopvac, a couple buckets, a hose an APC, wax, a couple MF's, a window cleaner and an ad on Craigslist and called it good. I think I put my first $2000 or so all right back into the business and the for the next 9 years it's slowly built itself up. Since I was doing on my days off, this worked great for me. If I had $1000 at the time, it probably would've been a little easier (a DA would've helped for those first few jobs), but some times you gotta work with what you got.

Keep us posted on how it goes as you get things up and running.

Oh, and another great book to read is "How to Start a Home-Based Car Detailing Business" by Renny Doyle
Detailing Book Combo, auto detailing business plan, car detailing books, renny doyle book
 
thebamboo23 said:
Good advice, but I'll explain my take:

Your prices aren't related to the products you use

You should base prices on how much value you're driving to the customer

I always like to think about this quote (probably gonna mess it up): "it's not how you started, it's about where you're going"

People don't need to start with every tool and product for every imaginary situation that comes to mind
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I wouldn't buy a horse just because it's cheaper transportation than a car, even tho they both MIGHT take you to where you THINK you are going. Sorry, a car is way better and spending $1000 is going to give way better results than spending $100-200, there is a point of diminishing returns on the investment, but obviously $1000 or even $5000, isn't that point.

INVEST the money, work smarter, not harder. If you are truly interested in starting the business and making it work then $1000 in revenue isn't that hard to make back.
 
Just wanted to say there is a lot of great no-nonsense advice in this thread and is going to help me tremendously on what to do should I pull the trigger on detailing for extra income.
 
Great stuff. I really don't want to go cheap...just not something I want to do. I'll be 44 next month and just work 14 days per month in law enforcement. So, I have a very stable job with benefits yet still have 14+ days per month to work detailing.

I wouldn't enjoy just doing basic stuff. I'm looking at a basic steamer and generator as well. Probably at $1500-$2k now.
 
Scott@IncrediblyDetailed said:
I wouldn't buy a horse just because it's cheaper transportation than a car, even tho they both MIGHT take you to where you THINK you are going. Sorry, a car is way better and spending $1000 is going to give way better results than spending $100-200, there is a point of diminishing returns on the investment, but obviously $1000 or even $5000, isn't that point.

INVEST the money, work smarter, not harder. If you are truly interested in starting the business and making it work then $1000 in revenue isn't that hard to make back.
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That's not to say that it won't work out with a minimal amount dedicated to supplies.

The guy with less equipment and more drive will trump the guy with all the bells and whistles thinking it will do the work for him.

That left over money could be better spent on life necessities, if necessary.
 
Dean407 said:
Great stuff. I really don't want to go cheap...just not something I want to do. I'll be 44 next month and just work 14 days per month in law enforcement. So, I have a very stable job with benefits yet still have 14+ days per month to work detailing.

I wouldn't enjoy just doing basic stuff. I'm looking at a basic steamer and generator as well. Probably at $1500-$2k now.
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I completely understand your idea.

I spent that same amount when I started off too.

I haven't built a 7 figure business yet, but I've read a bunch of stories of people that have

For instances, Noah Kagan... he was employee #30 at Facebook, #4 at Mint, and is now a founder of two 7 figure
businesses

His current company is AppSumo and I think he said he grew it to 7 figures within 2 years.

When he first started, he spent less than $65 validating and starting his business.

He didn't write any code, he had no fancy software, he didn't have any helpers, etc..

When someone bought a product, he would get the purchase email and manually send the email that contained his purchased item.

He would then call that customer and ask a bunch of questions to see why they bought.

When things picked up, he got some help, bought fancy software, started automating processes, and hired people.

His companies are tech startups as opposed to service based businesses like detailing, but the same framework can be applied to our line of work.

So yes, you can in fact spend that much money, but that doesn't make you any more "ready" or "prepared" to being successful.

Another example is Uber, which I think is at a $41 billion valuation.

Travis Kalanick, founder of Uber, said when he had the idea, he and his friends were driving around the city calling friends to see if they wanted a ride.

The point I'm trying to make is you don't need everything to start off. Once you get things rolling, spend as much money as you'd like :dblthumb2:
 
How about we just give him advice on how to most effectively spend what he wants to spend? He ever asked whether he should spend the money or not, he already clearly stated he wanted to invest $1,000+.

I would get the basics plus steamer, air compressor, and possibly tornador. There will be plenty of grungy interior starting out.
 
thebamboo23 said:
I completely understand your idea.

I spent that same amount when I started off too.

I haven't built a 7 figure business yet, but I've read a bunch of stories of people that have

For instances, Noah Kagan... he was employee #30 at Facebook, #4 at Mint, and is now a founder of two 7 figure
businesses

His current company is AppSumo and I think he said he grew it to 7 figures within 2 years.

When he first started, he spent less than $65 validating and starting his business.

He didn't write any code, he had no fancy software, he didn't have any helpers, etc..

When someone bought a product, he would get the purchase email and manually send the email that contained his purchased item.

He would then call that customer and ask a bunch of questions to see why they bought.

When things picked up, he got some help, bought fancy software, started automating processes, and hired people.

His companies are tech startups as opposed to service based businesses like detailing, but the same framework can be applied to our line of work.

So yes, you can in fact spend that much money, but that doesn't make you any more "ready" or "prepared" to being successful.

Another example is Uber, which I think is at a $41 billion valuation.

Travis Kalanick, founder of Uber, said when he had the idea, he and his friends were driving around the city calling friends to see if they wanted a ride.

The point I'm trying to make is you don't need everything to start off. Once you get things rolling, spend as much money as you'd like :dblthumb2:
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I think you've confused starting a "start up" and starting a business, and you're applying outliers to the average.

Auto detailing is not a new idea, most of these companies or products you're talking about are NEW, therefore they are on a different growth curve than a normal business.

Comparing apples to oranges.
 
VP Mark said:
How about we just give him advice on how to most effectively spend what he wants to spend? He ever asked whether he should spend the money or not, he already clearly stated he wanted to invest $1,000+.

I would get the basics plus steamer, air compressor, and possibly tornador. There will be plenty of grungy interior starting out.
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Because I asked a bunch of people what I should buy when I first started off and looking back at it, I would have not spent $2000 on products and tools Im the MAN
 
thebamboo23 said:
Because I asked a bunch of people what I should buy when I first started off and looking back at it, I would have not spent $2000 on products and tools Im the MAN
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Not everyone has the same experience, expectations, or goals as you. I spent wayyy more than $2000 to start out and have never regretted it.
 
I think that managing expectations of what you can and cannot handle is what seperates spending 200 from 5000. If your gonna spend 1000 make sure you know what your spending your money on don't go practicing paint correction on a customers car, or a new leather conditioner on someones seats until you know. start spending money in the areas you know something about and then as time progresses and you do good work venture into spending and investing into other areas, keep it simple till you can't anymore
 
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