Amount to save to open a automotive tint shop?

[Prim3e]

I have currently been tinting for almost a year. I am currently working at the best tint shop in my city(5 tint shops in my city). 

 

I want to open up my own shop in a year or 2 once I feel that I can tint any vehicle that comes into the shop, I dont want to start a shop before I feel that I know everything there is to know about tinting so I plan to stay at my shop until I open my own. 

 

What I would like to know is how much I should save so I can open up my shop with no debt, have all the tools and supplies I need, and of course a plotter. 

 

I don’t need a huge building just big enough to pull at least one car into the shop. So anyone who has opened a shop I would greatly appreciate any advice given to a future tint shop owner. 

[jh812]

That's a really tough question to answer. So many different variables you'll have to think of. First off you'll need to figure how much you're comfortable paying in rent. Then double that for first month and security. Then lights have to be turned on or switched over, which I just did and was 500. Then is the building turn key ready to go, probably not. Depending on if you want to do a waiting area and things of that sort, that's upwards of another 2k. Also you'll need things like peel boards, maybe peg board, odds and ends to get the shop just how you need it, also signs for the road. Now if you're starting from absolute scratch with no tools, film, or plotter, that's an easy 5k and probably on the low side. If I'm in your shoes I start building up my tool, and film supplies over the next year. If not that's going to really drain you right from the get go, especially a plotter. So add all that up I think we're upwards of 10k. I can speak from experience as I just moved from my home after three years of full time work into a shop. It has definitely been so far the best decision I could've made, but time will tell

 

[Midtown Houston]

It is not about how much it cost to open a store...——-that cheap....

It is how much is your personal cost of living for the next year is how much you need.

 

took me about 18 months to say I’m making money in the film business and 6 yrs to be very comfortable...

[quality tintz]

50,000 cash no less hahahahaha

[TomTint]

Numerous other costs would come into play. ..Insurance, marketing and advertising, point of sale materials,  shop renovations, business license and state registration or LLC, upfront material stock, along with the other costs already mentioned. My guess is that a minimum of 10 k and likely quite a bit more depending on how professional you want to look when you open the doors. 

[southcentraltinting]

There are different stages in figure this out and the first part would be location. If you have a location in mind then you would want to walk the property with the mindset of what it will take to get it up and running.  Second, what is the overhead on this property?  Rent, Utilities, trash etc etc. Once you have a basic number to run your business then it comes time to inventory.  Do you want to buy film one roll at a time and replace as needed (recommended for new shops) only if your suppliers can deliver quickly does this apply.  So lets run some examples.

 

Monthly Recurring Costs (AP)

Rent: $1500

Utilities: $500

Trash: $75

Insurance: $120

Total: $2195

 

Your personal income needs:

Rent: $950

Utilities: $400

Insurance: $130

Phone: $120

Vehicle: $350

Gas: $175

Food: $300

Misc: $250

Total: $2675

 

Combined Total: $4870/month, $58440/yr

 

Looks like a large number....holy hell what are we going to do??? Break it down to daily...$160.11/day

That is just the cost of doing business and living expenses, adjust your numbers accordingly.  Once you get your numbers where they need to be, project them out 6 months, and in this example we would get,  $18245 add 10% for a safety net and we are looking at approx. $20k needed to save to open a shop and have 6 months of expenses.

 

This does not include things like marketing, inventory, tools etc etc  Those would be above and beyond the initial $20k.  Having started numerous retail shops over the years I have done this many many times.

 

[no ma'am]

On 6/3/2018 at 3:02 AM, Prim3e said:

I have currently been tinting for almost a year. I am currently working at the best tint shop in my city(5 tint shops in my city). 

 

I want to open up my own shop in a year or 2 once I feel that I can tint any vehicle that comes into the shop

Just curious....  what's the hardest car you've seen so far in your opinion? 

[Prim3e]

On 6/4/2018 at 11:06 PM, no ma'am said:

Just curious....  what's the hardest car you've seen so far in your opinion? 

 

Hardest I would say is a 1980s Pontiac firebird back glass, haven’t encountered any hard side windows 

 

[Prim3e]

On 6/4/2018 at 8:26 AM, southcentraltinting said:

 

This does not include things like marketing, inventory, tools etc etc  Those would be above and beyond the initial $20k.  Having started numerous retail shops over the years I have done this many many times.

 

 

20k! I’m 26 I don’t have that kind of money lol. I was hoping I could open a small little shop for around 5k, is that a realistic number if I get a small shop and can find a second hand plotter instead of buying a new one?

 

 

[Prim3e]

On 6/3/2018 at 8:00 AM, Midtown Houston said:

It is not about how much it cost to open a store...——-that cheap....

It is how much is your personal cost of living for the next year is how much you need.

 

took me about 18 months to say I’m making money in the film business and 6 yrs to be very comfortable...

 Before you opened your shop, how much did you save up?