Starting my Mobile Business But super scared

please do yourself a huge favor and buy the Mike Phillips 'art of detailing' book

possibly the best $20 you'll spend
 
I actually am going for business and have completed al
It's all business courses. As for the mike Philips book already got it along with the DVD. And the tools I speak of are tools like carpet extractors and things like that
 
Thanks for clarifying. I think that will help get you some advice. When you are vague in your original post it's hard to know what you are looking for.

I can understand being scared. Do you have any regular customers or customers at all?
 
C. Charles Hahn said:
High volume is where the "real" money is, but it's very doable to earn a decent living on high end cars if you play your cards right. It's harder to enter that market segment though, so beware.

This business is not always as glamorous as some guys make it out to be.


Past that I would suggest looking into some business classes at the local Community College. It is a documented fact that 86% of small business start-ups fail within a year. You will need to get some business skills if you don't want to become a statistic. :dblthumb2:
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I agree with Charles here. It's not all about high end exotics. For me, and a lot of other detailers...simple full details with a one step AIO exterior makes up 75% of sales.

Location plays a HUGE part in this. I'm in NH...no exotics here, ha.

As for the business name. If they in fact trademarked their business name...it doesn't matter if they are slightly spelled differently. If the USPTO declares it a close enough match to cause confusion...it's infringing on a trademark name. Doesn't matter if you're in different states.

Most basic trademarks are for the entire US. It costs more to lock it in outside the country. So if they trademarked...and you use the similar name, they COULD stop you through court.

They may not. You may decide to carry on with the name. But, say you continue growing your business and get a great reputation. You decide it's time to trademark this name for protection. Guess what? That similar name has the rights. Yours wouldn't get approved due to obvious confusion between the two names. Especially since you're in the same business. You absolutely would not get approved.

It's something to think about. Cause why go into it possibly having that problem down the road. Change the name now before it becomes an issue.
 
I've been on this site for a while and to tell you the truth you have to learn on your own. People can recommend the latest and greates stuff but it's what works for you that matters. When starting you want to buy everything under the sun but if you don't use it, it's useless. In my opinion start off with a pick up truck, 50 gallon water tank, a 5-10 gallon vacuum (minimum 5hp), tornador! Cuts your work time!, 6-8 gallon air compressor, a 3000-3500 watt generator, a used pressure washer gas or electric, ONR, Tons of micro fiber towels, 1 spray bottle of glass cleaner, 1gallon APC+, 1 gallon silicon free dressing, 1gallon of spray wax, paste or liquid carnauba wax, two buckets, two grit guards, soap, a good on demand pump, and optional bissell little green pro heat and spray bottles. Those are the things that if all my equipment blew up I would start with. Not everyone wants a wax, not everyone wants a carpet shampoo. Start off small and if you need to move up, trust me it can be a pain to haul a bunch of stuff around that you don't need. If you need any more help you can IM me, don't take what others are saying in a bad way, I'm sure they are just trying to help. It's not easy, but you have to start off somewhere.
 
I agree with rolop6 on the equipment. His list almost matches what I have. I would suggest the little green machine w/heat sooner rather than later. It will pay for itself after two or three uses. Mine lasted about one year and was money well spent. I made almost $2000 on carpet alone last year unitl I broke the handle. Having said that I will buy a Mytee Lite II now.

Licenses and Insurance is a must. Add that to your business card and flyers. If you have an iphone or a droid get the square app so you can do credit cards. I added some more clients when they found out I could take credit/debit cards. Some people don't do cash.

Its OK to start small but you have to reinvest your profits back into the business. Buy equipment when you can.

Goodluck
 
Jumping on what Kristopher1129 posted, "Texas Roadhouse" is a national chain restaurant (love the ribs, rolls and sweat tea). In rural Texas was a little mom & pop type restaurant/ beer hangout that used the a name real similar to Texas Roadhouse. This little place offered no threat in any way to the big national chain. The national guys took the little guys to court and won. I'm just saying be careful.
Good luck man
 
SATracker said:
Jumping on what Kristopher1129 posted, "Texas Roadhouse" is a national chain restaurant (love the ribs, rolls and sweat tea). In rural Texas was a little mom & pop type restaurant/ beer hangout that used the a name real similar to Texas Roadhouse. This little place offered no threat in any way to the big national chain. The national guys took the little guys to court and won. I'm just saying be careful.
Good luck man
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Exactly. Infringement can be considered similar enough to cause consumer confusion. So if one customer will confuse your name with another company offering similar services or product...they can't co-exist.

The only time they allow any flexibility on this issue is when the two companies are offering completely different services or product. But, when two places are offering the same service...similar is enough to only allow one name.

That being said. If this other company doesn't have a trademark, and you trademark first...then they will have the problem and not you. Whoever obtains the trademark first, is the one who has the rights. A trademark will surpass any loophole where they could have the rights to the name.

So say both of you are operating in different states as the same name. It's not a problem because you can register the same name in different states. But, if you were in the same state and one of you has been using the name in commerce before the other...the company using the name first has the rights because there's no trademark involved. They would still have the rights even if they allowed the name to dissolve, and you picked it up. As long as they had proof of prior use...they could legally take the name back.

This is why trademarks are so important. If you have a name that you want to keep...trademark it! Without a trademark, your name can be taken at any moment by someone simply trademarking the same name. In that case, any prior use doesn't matter. Even doesn't matter if you're registered under the name. Trademark is above all of that.
 
Very interesting reading this morning. I haven't been on in a while, but I will put in my .02. I learned nearly everything I know by working on my own vehicles. My first new car was waxed monthly and slowly I learned how to use various waxes, polishes and compounds by hand. As time went by, my friends would ask how I kept mine looking good and eventually they'd "invite" me over to "wash our cars". It usually ended with me buffing THEIR car and them paying for beers. About 3 years ago I had my brother-in-law's car for a couple of days. He had been ill and I thought "let me clean up his car for him, maybe it'll brighten his day a little" This was a turning point for me. The car had pretty severe oxidation on the paint and the clear coat had deteriorated in a few spots. I spent the entire day on the exterior but when it was finished, it looked AMAZING. Last year my wife pushed me over the top. She had started a small business of her own and little by little has gained customers. I had my first customers last year. I was nervous as hell because they gave me 2 vehicles in the same day. Just wash and wax, but I wanted to make sure that the vehicles left looking great. At the end of that day, the customers returned and they were FLOORED. They paid cash, tipped, and said " we'll see you in a couple of months". The following week their daughter called and I did her car as well.
For me, daily drivers are the way to go. It gives me great satisfaction to see a car that was in need of TLC drive off in style. Doesn't matter if it's a Dodge Caravan or a BMW - That's someone's car and they've trusted me with it and I appreciated every minute of it.
As for the getting started - Get the trademark for your business name so you don't lose it. Research your products and stick with what works for you. You will get a lot of advice right on this site and you can also find the stories of screw ups and you WILL learn from them. 1 item of advice that I do for myself - go to a junkyard and buy a door or a bumper on the cheap. PRACTICE on it. It will enable you to figure out a technique that works for you. It will also (as I am going to be doing shortly) allow you to experiment with paint correction and some blending if you ever need to do it.
I wish you luck, there are a lot of dirty cars out there.....
 
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