Ever sold a mobile detailing business?

[precisionautosalon]

I've been putting some thought into moving on to something else for income. A little easier on my back really. I just wonder would it be possible to sell a mobile detail business? Name/tools/products/reputation/a customer list with a few maintenance clients? I been at it for a good 4yrs with a license and quite honestly I've had more business come then I would like to attend to at times. I just have other things that are more important to take care of. Any advice on how to go about this would be appreciated.

 

[Cosmin]

first of all , when you start building your company , is should be build to be sold , that means you have to separate yourself from business, is hard but not impossible.
to sell it , you better have it successful , no one will buy something that profit doesn`t come out of it.
if you have 4 years into detailing and not have help or employees than that`s a limited business, you can get waaaay more out of it , as income and the whole dynamic if is not 1 person show.
system , when clean a car, have a system that works and can be pass to others in case you plan selling it .
look into other detailers in your area on a few xx miles radius , they may fall for it, have a contract that they pay yo over a few payments etc
anyway, i have a friend who told me some wise words: know when to get in , and know when to get out of business and sell it.
everything can be sold as far as is market right

 

[precisionautosalon]

Thanks for the feedback cosmin. How would you determine the cost of the business though? You know like the price I should accept. My situation is probably very different from other guys out there doing this for money. I like to schedule about 15 maybe 20 hours a week worth of jobs so my total monthly income for doing this might not be very much to some but I could honestly say it has the potential to make about 3-4 times what I do make without much marketing effort. Some might think im crazy for turning down so many jobs but I just didn't need to take on them.

 

[jrs1418]

I too, one day would like to sell my business. But recently my wife purchased an existing service based business so I have recent experience with this from the other end.

When we purchased it, we purchased it based on what it was at the moment. "Potential", I dont feel it necessarily has any pricing merit unless its something new and proprietary, or the location (not for a mobile guy) All potential comes from the new owner working hard for it, and in that case he shouldnt have to pay for it. In a service based business, results rely on the person behind the wheel.. once the driver changes, so do the results. SO future repeat customers aren't necessarily guaranteed.

For my wifes business we purchased: Web site (1st page/first search result on google, yelp, bing, and yahoo), yelp & google pages with multiple positive reviews, business name and location established 2 years ago, client list with email addresses & phone numbers, and more. But we purchased with no equipment as we had our own. There was some extra "potential" value there based on the location, but we didnt factor it into the negotiations.

Honestly I think it'll be hard to sell a small mobile detailing business for any decent money other than what the equipment is worth used. Anyone can just make a logo, goto checkers or walmart and buy supplies and advert on craigslist to get started. Thats basically what I did. Now I have a fixed location with 5 employees.

 

[precisionautosalon]

Hmmm... Thats a little disappointing to hear. But it certainly does make sense... Something I'll have to factor into my final decision. I certainly wouldn't want to just sell it for my tools and products.

 

[jrs1418]

Sorry to be a downer, just my opinion.

Why not try and find a partner? maybe someone to "buy in" to those customers that you turn away? Or maybe a PT help to help to do most of the back breaking stuff.

Until about 3-4 mos ago I did all the polishing, but then decided to teach my guys. They love it, and with my supervision and help, do an awesome job. Not to mention it helps with my back and knees. lol.