29.03.2024

How to open a car wash?

Strangely enough, not to wallow in the debt hole, it is necessary to feel the ground under your feet. Really evaluate your own capabilities, is there time to create a business from scratch or better to think about buying a franchise that will greatly facilitate the opening.

Want to open a car wash, but do not know where to start your own business, so that it brings a visible income? Read the article, it will answer all your questions and help you successfully start.

Confucius argues that the most difficult and difficult is the first step, but if done correctly, the rest of the way will seem easy and even to some extent easy. Agree that if a person has managed to overcome doubts and the matter is started, then it is much easier to continue it. But what is the first action to be taken by a novice businessman, so that the car washing business can start successfully and subsequently give a substantial material income, not everyone knows.

Where to begin?

Think about how well you understand this area of ​​activity, because in the future you will have to control the process yourself.

Take it seriously, do not rely on third or fourth persons, your income depends on the quality of the services offered, so you need to be a real professional in the business.

Starting a long but interesting way into the world of business, it is worth removing the rose-colored glasses and stop hoping that all the expenses will pay off in a week, and on the ladder to success you will be a pioneer without competition. Unfortunately, it was healthy competition that destroyed many naive establishments that initially did not take it into account. Remember, you need to know your enemy in person, even before you meet his eyes in the face. Carefully and zealously assess the situation associated with the car wash market.

To create the most complete picture, do not be afraid to ask yourself the following questions about other car washes:

  1. Price policy;
  2. Quality;
  3. Speed ​​of service;
  4. The effect of detergents;
  5. Cleanliness of the service;
  6. A set of services offered.

It will be nice if you personally become a customer of a competitor and take note of both good and bad points associated with the service. A look from the outside will help to turn the competitors’ disadvantages into their own pluses. If you do something, then it’s best to be in it, is not it?

Next, you need to know for whom the institution will work. Usually in Russia the main clients of car wash are men or women from 18 to 55 years old with stable earnings.
What can you offer to this target audience so that they become regular customers of your car wash? At this point in time there are six models of car washes, you can choose one of the examples listed below or develop something new:

Type of car wash pros Minuses
Manual Budget, high cleaning efficiency, sufficient demand. Long service times, relatively small incomes, high risks of damage to car paint.
Brushed Saving on staff, high-quality cleaning of cars. Expenses for the purchase of equipment.
Non-contact Gentle cleaning without damaging the car paint, saving on the number of employees. The need to purchase special chemicals and equipment.
Dry Ideal surface treatment and polishing, minimum equipment costs. The need to find qualified specialists or the opportunity to spend on their education.
Automatic portal Possibility of carrying out not only washing, but also drying, cleaning of wheels and other services. Large costs for equipment and cleaning supplies.
Automatic conveyor belt The ability to serve even large transport. Expensive equipment, as well as the need for competent technicians, managing the process.

Often, one car wash combines several types, which makes it accessible to all layers of the population. As an option, you can consider a mobile car wash. In many respects it is similar to manual, but it is more mobile. The minimum costs, but also business, this can hardly be called, it is rather a side-work for students.

Investment size

The volume of investment largely depends on the chosen model of car wash. So, for example, when choosing a manual type, you only need to buy a mop, rags, detergents and find a person who will do the work. Then the opening will take less than 50 thousand rubles. But you will agree that it is not serious. If a person wants to do real business, then it’s worth paying attention to sinks with specialized equipment.

It is necessary to take into account that there are initial, that is, one-off spending, and permanent, which are necessary to support the case.

The initial expenses for the opening of a car wash are:

  • Compressor – 15 thousand rubles;
  • Rent – 50-100 thousand rubles;
  • High-pressure device for water supply (one work station) – 25 to 50 thousand rubles;
  • The device of high pressure with water heating – from 120 thousand to 150 thousand rubles;
  • Washing vacuum cleaner – 20-30 thousand rubles;
  • The system of wastewater treatment – 300 thousand rubles.
  • Sewing workwear with the company logo – 10 thousand rubles.

Thus, about 1-2 million Russian rubles will be spent for the opening of the car wash. If the building is not leased, and built independently, then you need to add another, at least 1.5 million rubles.
If a person wants his business to start making profits immediately, then he should take care of advertising. Initially, for advertising promotion can go from 50 to 100 thousand rubles, this article costs should be ready.

How to open a car wash?

Permanent expenses include:

  • Salaries of employees – 60 thousand to 120 thousand rubles;
  • Payment for water supply and sewerage – 5 thousand rubles;
  • The purchase of special chemicals for car washing – 18 thousand rubles.

Constant waste can be optimized in own favor. So in the summer, when the demand for car washing falls to minimize waste, entrepreneurs hire students who can pay less as unskilled specialists.

Step-by-step instruction

A rational entrepreneur is distinguished by rationality, as well as the consistency of the actions carried out. Do not expect that everything will turn out somehow by itself. It does not work, you need to calculate your own actions correctly.
The first step to realizing the business is to prepare for the opening. Since this is a rather broad question, we should divide it into concrete steps. Let us consider each of them in detail.

Arrangement of premises

In addition to a special room for car washing with equipment, it is necessary to take care of the availability of a place for resting the client. After all, usually the process takes from 20 to 40 minutes, and the visitor needs to wait somewhere. A convenient hall with a coffee table, a small TV and a coffee machine will not only set your institution apart, but also make it more comfortable.
It is also worthwhile to think about room for workers. In a place where they will have lunch, change clothes or take a break, there must be a lavatory, a small closet, a sink, a mini fridge, a table and chairs.
Do not forget about the development of the rack with a reselling, where the visitor will pay for the service.

Search for suppliers of equipment for car wash

Quality equipment can accelerate the washing process of the car, so do not save on it. In our country, the use of foreign equipment is especially common. The most valued Italian and German firms, namely Portotecnica and KARCHER.
Note that when searching for suppliers, it is necessary to ask them to provide a license that confirms the validity of this technique. It is better to install directly dealers, they must have their own master, who understands the details. After carrying out the installation works, it is necessary to obtain a user manual and train the staff process.

Keep in mind that in the washing chemistry the alkaline composition does not exceed the permissible norm for the corresponding type of car.

So for trucks chemistry is more aggressive, but cheaper, so many car washes use it. Interacting with a fairly brittle lacquer coating of a car, such a substance disrupts the integrity of the layer and leads to the formation of cracks.

Business promotion. Advertising.

Promoting business in this area has both standard ways of attracting customers, and quite original. To the usual advertising are:

  • Bonus cards;
  • Certificates;
  • Leaflets;
  • Bright signboard;
  • Promotion on the Internet;
  • Discounts, promotions;
  • Radio or TV commercials.

Creative ways are aimed directly at car owners. So you can place an ad in the magazine about vehicles or arrange a rally at the opening, offering first customers special lottery tickets.

Do not forget that the best advertising is quality and comfort. If a person is comfortable, he will return to the place again and again.

Staff recruitment

Personnel is one of the most important components of a successful business in the field of car washing, so it is worth to approach responsibly to the search for candidates. Understand that if a person is not good at navigating in the process, then he can harm the owner of the vehicle, scratched the car, then you will have to pay for expensive repairs. To avoid this, it is necessary to make the following demands:

  • Accuracy and attentiveness;
  • Basic knowledge of cars, stamps, vehicle structure;
  • A responsibility;
  • Endurance;
  • Friendly, sociable.

Higher education is not a mandatory item for directly washing workers, but it is necessary for the chief foreman and accountant.

Work organization

To ensure that the staff worked smoothly and did not make mistakes in the procedure, it is necessary to organize the working activity correctly. Since the washers normally work around the clock and without days off to increase their own income, the development of shifts must take into account the length of the work. The best option is to create a shift for 12 hours.

Employees should have a good rest to be of use, so it is worth creating a convenient system of lunch hours and breaks.

So, if you have 4 washers working in one shift, then to not miss customers, their lunch time should be different. The ideal solution for medium-sized washing is the hiring of 8 washers for two shifts, 2 foremen and one accountant, whose working day lasts 8 hours.
The motivational aspect in the form of praise to the best employee is also capable of increasing the quality of work. Payment can be made according to the amount of work performed.

A place

The profitability and recoupment of the institution depend on the chosen place. The most advantageous places are:

  • Roads with high traffic capacity;
  • Large trade transport;
  • Car parking;
  • The gas station;
  • Entertainment centers;
  • Underground and above-ground parking;
  • Residential quarters and districts.

Do not choose as a place for distant routes with little traffic, or try to open this establishment in a small village. This is a losing option.

Documentation

The first thing that needs to be solved when opening a car wash is the type of registration: either an IP or an LLC. We recommend giving preference to individual entrepreneurship. First, clearance is faster, secondly, state support is greater, and thirdly, the collection of documents is less.

If the premises occupy an area less than 150 square meters, then you can use the right to a simplified taxation system. To date, offer two options for payment:

  1. 6 percent from all profits;
  2. 15 percent of the «net» income.

It is believed that the second way of payment is more profitable.

It is also necessary to know what other documents are required. Regardless of the region, the entrepreneur needs to prepare permits from the following organizations:

  • City Administration;
  • Fire inspection;
  • Sanitary and Epidemiological Service;
  • Architectural department;
  • Labor protection service;
  • Service for nature protection.

It is noteworthy that it is necessary to prepare the architectural design of the building, if it will be built. If, after renting or buying out a building, some re-planning was carried out in the building, they should also be fixed in special bodies.

The construction will also require an act of permanent possession of land and a written permission to start construction work in the area.

Check-list of opening

  • Market analysis;
  • Analysis of competitors (monitoring of services offered, average cost, location)
  • Determination of the class level of the institution;
  • Creating an approximate or accurate layout of the room;
  • Search for a premise or land for construction;
  • Estimation of a place of rent or a site for building, a choice of the optimum offer;
  • Search for a construction company or builders;
  • Purchase of building materials;
  • Conclusion of a lease or the beginning of construction work;
  • Registration of IP or LLC, registration with the tax inspection;
  • Making a loan (if necessary);
  • Search for suppliers of chemicals or detergents for cars;
  • Negotiations with suppliers and conclusion of a contract;
  • Carrying out of repair work in the room;
  • Development of an advertising discovery campaign;
  • Development and approval of a signboard;
  • Installation of signboards;
  • Purchase and installation of equipment for car wash;
  • Development of shares, bonus system, discounts and other marketing activities;
  • Search for an accountant for outsourcing;
  • Staff search;
  • Interviewing, selection of candidates;
  • Scheduling shifts;
  • Opening.

Is it profitable to open

The price policy largely depends on the competitors, your prices should be average compared to them. Actively use the bonus and discount system, then get permanent customers. On average, the cost of services is 400 rubles from the client. If a day to serve 30 cars, then the revenue will be 12,000 a day, in a month – 360 thousand rubles. With such indicators, a zero point can be reached within a year. Business is quite profitable.

The profit can be increased by adding services for dry cleaning of the passenger compartment or opening a gas station.

Often, next to a car wash, an entrepreneur arranges car service. Any services related to machines will find a response, but will require material investment.

Seasonality of business is marked, it develops better in the autumn and in the spring, when it is dirty. To reduce costs, you can leave in operation only one unit with equipment or reduce staff.

Business in a car wash is an excellent start for a beginner entrepreneur. Whether it is profitable to open it or not depends in many respects on individual abilities, on approach to business, on rationality. We hope that you will succeed!

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