# Buisness Question.



## Shearwater31 (Dec 27, 2006)

First off, I apologize if I'm posting this in the wrong section. This is my first post.
I have been in the Lawn and Landscaping buisness for 13 yrs now. In that time I have seen our two local small engine repair shops busting at the seams with buisness. I live in S. Florida so it is pretty much year round down here. Anyway, I feel they are run pretty poorly. They have managed to stay in buisness so long in spite of themselves. I don't know how much they make but they seem to be pretty well off. The demand is just so high they can get away with treating commercial guys and homeowners like garbage. It really is disgraceful the way they conduct themselves to paying customers.
I have been kicking the idea around of starting my own small engine repair shop. Just an idea in the infancy stage. I was just curious if anyone here owns their own shop? If so, is it a decision you are glad you made? What could one reasonably expect as a ball park figure running a small but busy shop? I know there are several variables to consider when answering that last question but I figured I'd throw that one in anyway. Has the headache been worth it for you or anyone you know?
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.


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## jetrail (Dec 7, 2005)

i have a part time small engine repair business , when i say part time i mean i have a small shop at my house and do all my work after my full time job , am i glad i did it ? sure but...... im glad i did it because i found i had a love for lawn mowers and small engines at a young age and it was something i truely enjoyed learning about and working on . i noticed you said both shops treat their customers like crap , may i ask how ? because i've heard customers say that about shops in my local area , and alot of times when i ask how they will say they are backed up 4+ weeks in the summer , or it takes them 3-5 days to get a part in , well unfortunitely those things seem to happen in every shop , and the going hourly rate to work on equipment in my area is between 40-50 bucks a hour ,of course i don't charge that much because i am a part time business and my turn around isn't as fast as the guy who works from 9-5 everyday . but if you seriously want to get into small engine repair be prepaired for everything and anything , when i say that i mean , customers who will come in and say " i want this fixed but i don't want to spend alot of money " , or customers who don't come back to get their equipment , and when you have a business of any type it can affect your personal life , you have to know how to keep things ballanced , and keep things in perspective . out of 5 yrs of doing small engine repair work i have only had maybe 3 bad customers , so all in all it has been great , but if you plan on getting a shop as in building you have to make sure you can make enough to afford your overhead as in invintory , and your rent , electrical bills ect , i read in a book called small time operator that if you want to start a full time business you should have enough saved up to be able to make it for 6 month w/o making any money . 
good luck if you decide to open up that small engine repair business 
john


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