Good luck with the business! I guess for local "installs" the key is LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION along with getting people to TRUST your work. Once you have those two things down, then you need to start worrying about TRUN AROUND TIME. Don't take on more jobs than you can actually do and you should be able to do fine. So long as prices are fair.

To have a full blown shop AND to do retail sales local or internet, you will need a lot more man power and you will have a lot more overhead. Unless you have a lot of capital to work with, it might not be as easy as 1 2 3.

Regardless, good luck with the new business idea.

 

1. I think you would be better off looking to put a shop in Lancaster/Palmdale rather than Valencia.
While you may think that Gravana isn't anything special there is no reason to have a solid competitor with in driving distance. You'll get too many, "Gravana will sell me XX for $YY." people. Also around Valencia gateway there is a dyno already (Diesel place, but they have one none the less).
In the Palmdale Auto Mall there are brand new commercial buildings that you purchase available with both retail and industrial space in every building. In a worst case situation you can always fall back on an asset that can be leased or sold to repay investors back. It establishes a serious overhead obligation from the start, but it's a serious commitment banks and customers look for.

2. Focus on a few services initially and expand later. If you can expand with something new (and the resources to support it) every 6 months then you can keep people coming back again and again. A list of 5 or so impressive expansions can keep you in the lime light for 3 years before you have time to think about what to do next. Start with a single lift and basic install work to support a ~1500sq/ft retail shop then expand to new stuff every 6 months.

3. Pick a specific trade and focus on it. You'll have a lot more success doing something you know exceptionally well rather than dabbling in everything just because some guy comes in and asks for it. If you know tuning then get a dyno and just be a dyno shop. If you know mechanics then just get a lift and tools to do installs.

4. ADVERTISE in more places than you can afford and when you think that you are everywhere advertise more. Limiting your business to word of mouth and forums is a guaranteed way for your business to fail in less than a year. If one person crap talks you on this forum..[search "SCdyne"] then faster than you can run the 1320 you'll be the bane of the community.

5. Don't alienate any make or model of vehicle if you can get the hardware all the same. The sport-compact (read I4 domestic) tuners' biggest beef is that the local Rice-burner shops flat out refuses to order (let alone stock) parts you can use. You'll have an account with keystone and Options all the same so you might at well stock the parts that keeps the parking lot full and patronize every tuner weather they bring in a Kia or a Type R Integra.

6. Write a business plan already. If you are serious about doing this and you have a solid business plan THAT YOU WRITE YOURSELF banks and investors will come to you offering money. It's fun to ponder this idea of a tuner-shop on the forums, but putting pen to paper will quickly help you envision exactly what you want to do and need to do to have a successful business.

7. Join SEMA and the local chamber of commerce. SEMA will help you establish your retail presence and give you valuable information about the market's direction and the local chamber of commerce will help you build relationships with local businesses to support your business in the community.

8. Be willing to Change! When you get going something may redirect your path and you have to decide weather to focus on that path or stick to your guns. On one hand you don't want to miss a good opportunity and on the other you don't want to jump the gun and waste your time on a dead end. See #7 for a possible help with a solution.

9. Say NO. When you start up a business everyone will come at you with the best next thing from credit deals to business software to the next new MPG/HP device. Unless you have a bag of millions of dollars sitting around you should never accept solicitations because they will suck you dry faster than you can think.

10. Hire someone else to do everything! If you think you can make it by not having any employees then you are sure to fail. It's rare to find a one man show that is making anything more than scraping by at what they do unless it's a special unique trade. Don't hassle with the day in day out dealings of things, hire people to take car of it all so you can focus on growing the business. Every moment of every day you should think to yourself, "Is what I'm doing now directly growing this business?" If it's not then as the owner you are not doing your job.

 

Thanks for the encouragement and words of advice. Couple things to ponder on

 

strippers n stripper poles
i kno gene simmons would.
=p

 

Thats a whole different buisness and licences. Not to mention im in LA county wich makes it illegal