Well since firing up the paint gun to do the bikes (first time since we quit painting planes), and getting decent results from a makeshift booth in my garage, I started thinking of going on my own again and doing restorations with a focus on painting/upholstering bikes and boats. 

So we got a small bike shop in town.  The owner is a former dealership mech and flat track racer.  Long story short, he offered a 5,000 sqft shop adjoined to his, with offices upstairs for a decent rate with no lease for a few months as a trial period, for me to set up and do my work.  SKY, the talented seamstress she is, said she was game for me to bring her up to speed on upholstery pattern making and she may put her hand in part time to see what happens as well. 

So I got a shop laid in my lap, with a great seamstress to run the stitches, all my paint equipment, he said he would give me his bead blasting cabinet until I found a bigger one, I also can do chrome, copper, nickel plating and anodizing, and can seal old tanks that have pinholes.

No lease up front and he is slammed with business which could parlay into serious traffick to me and vice versa........plus I could do internet orders for skins and other small plating items.

Also, I went to him with this idea (because he is a no frills straight talker like me so I trust him)  thinking I would just operate out of my garage for a few months and see how it went. He thought about it overnight and came up on the wife and I on our bikes at a stoplight yesterday morning and asked me to come back over to his shop and talk to him.

This is one of those,,,,"what the hell am I missing here" moments when shit is too tidy.     

WHAT IS THE COLLECTIVE CycleFish "GUT-Feeling"?  
 

it sounds very good indeed from yer post.
how does prospective customer base looks?! ya focusing on bike & boats ya say...
sorry, i'm too far away fer an informed opinion, but kudos and the best of good wishes ta ya in yer entrepreneurial venture!

do not rush into it, do all the homework, run all the numbers, if anything doesn't add up, slow down and do it again. have you done any canvassing around to see what the general concensus is about what your shop would have to offer? are there any shops like what you are planning to do in operation near you? how is their traffic flow/customer base? how well established are they? it is hard to be the new kid on the block especially there is an old timer in operation with a good reputation. keep the real job and run it on the side for a while, see what it generates.

I agree with Road Dog!! But it sounds great! Give it a shot! Me being cloce to you guys I will put the word out and throw some of this Dayton buissness your way. Hell my motor home needs the interior done.

It sounds like a good thing. You only live once and you never know what will happen if you don't try and may wish you had when it is too late. I wish you the best.

I'm rolling with badinfluence and volcanrider on this one. Make sure you don't rush in eyes closed, do the home work, and if it all the planets align, make sure you don't have to kick your ass down the road for not doing it!

sounds great, if you run into anyone that wants dimensional graphics let me know. I can even bring ya a fender with a skull on it as a sample. It would be just one more service you could offer that no one in Ohio is doing.

I've been told I don't know how many times, "Never look a gift horse in the mouth"... But... Damitt.. I still check their teeth! Like you, I still get the "This is too good to be trues" from time to time... Do yer homework, you'll know what to do....

after having started, built and sold several business over the years as well as still owning 2 businesses (real estate investment consulting & Internet hosting & design), I can tell you starting and running a business from the ground up is a bit of a rush, and can be alot of fun as well as rewarding.

Note: It can also be very taxing on you, your relationship and lifestyle (not to mention sanity)

As has been stated crunch the numbers, find out who and where your competition is as well as potential business feeds such as this bike shop...are there others looking for your type of services?

Since you seem to have the equipment already and there is no lease on the shop, there would appear to be fairly low risk, however remember too that you will need a few things that are often overlooked - like insurance, merchant accounts to take credit cards, security system or service for the shop - remember you may well have customer items in your possession besides your own equipment.

Marketing can be done pretty well for starters via grassroots approach - get out and hand out cards and or flyers, set up a decent web site, etc.

As has also been stated, you may not want to quit your day job to fire up the new venture unless you have a good supply of reserves.

Take a few min. and write up a business plan - even if it's only a basic one, it will serve as a guide for you when things get rolling - it also should have the markers for shutting down the venture should it fall short of expectations.

Do yourself a favor - start it up as an LLC (limited liability corp) for several reasons:
1 - as the name implies, it is designed to limit personal liability - if someone gets hurt for any reason, something gets lost or broken, etc - your personal assets cannot be attached from operation of the business.
2 - it is an inexpensive way to seperate church & state (personal from business) - never use your personal bank accounts for business or vice versa
3 - it allows for easier dissolution of the venture - either by sale or closure
4 - LLC's offer essentially the same protection as a corporation, but as an advantage there is no double taxation - income/losses are pass-through as a sole prop or partnership would be.
5 - LLC's can be started very inexpensively, under $150 in most states if you do it yourself (most states it's a 1 or 2 page form) or you can have a lawyer or service do it for you for between $200-$400.

there are many other reasons and I would be happy to talk to you about how it may protect you better.

All that said, as long as you think it through - go for it!

Sound like you have a good opportunity J. On the plating “copper, nickel” you did not mention how you where plating, cyanide or acid solution? out of a bucket or a hundred gallon tank? The one thing I would be concerned with is all the EPA regulation. The cost to store chemicals and the discharge water. It’s been a few years sense I ran a plating shop but I’m sure the regulations have not gotten lighter. Just something to think about.
Good luck bro

Man you have gotten a lot of good solid information, and a hell of a family full of knowledge. I hope it works out for you, and I wished I had had this family around when I tried to start a business a year and a half ago. Maybe I would be working now (like I enjoy) instead of sitting here writing to you clowns......LOL

Thanks to all for the input. We owned an aircraft refurbishment company for a few years but I decided to shut it down because I couldn't find reliable help and was working 90 hours a week. With aircraft, the stakes are high and the FAA has a microscope on everything, so it was more than I could handle without a good manager since I was acting as the primary painter, upholsterer, mechanic, test pilot and depending on local labor for disassembly, stripping, masking, etc. My wife ran the office but there was too much going on for me to manage in the production side of things.

Very familiar with the EPA as we chemically stripped the old coatings off the planes and had to deal with paint sludge, waste water disposal, etc. My plating will be small quantities acid solution to keep in the Small Quantities Generator Status with the Fed's.

We were an S-Corp before because of the high liability with aircraft and employees. This will be 100% family, no employees outside wife, oldest child and the others when they are old enough and myself. Except for contracting to SKY. She is set up as a vendor on her own, s I won't have to 1099 her, it'll just be invoiced to her business. So the LLC is probably where I am going to put this.

As far as competition. There are only automotive shops. Most of the work I've seen from them on bikes has way too much orange peel, inadequate clearcoat, runs, etc. You can feel most of the lines of the graphics under the clearcoat. So , I'm very confident that I can make a name, at least locally, when put next to their work.

Since my first job in the Navy was aircraft electrician, I'll be doing custom and replica harnesses for bikes and boats, but that won't be until I can train one of the lder of the tribe to solder and use a harness template board.

Bullmoose, I would like to talk to you more about the dimensionals. I got a close up of our Sporty at the Dayton show last year and love what you did with the skulls.

I appreciate the input, got to think this through. I know what the drain will be at first and I would definitely be keeping my regular job until I feel it can support our current lifestyle. But, I'm working my ass of now and would prefer that my family reap ALL the benefits of this kind of effort.

Has anyone had any experience with a Health Savings Account type of plan with a high risk policy rider? My biggest hurdle is healthcare planning for my family.

sounds like you got it down brother. wish you the best of luck

This may be a great opportunity for you. If it were me, I would hate to have regrets of not at least attempting the venture. Bulldog has some important points and I think you are looking at this with your eyes wide open. You're an intelligent man. You'll make the best decision for your family.

OK, we're going to roll with this. Company name will be a jumbling of the kids names. LOL Kinsey, Kiernyn, Kian and Kierce = Kinsierian Customs and Restorations.

Now I gotta convince them they HAVE to work in the family business cause their name's on it!!! ALL of them...LOL

I think Kierce (3 yr old) will be in charge of the Crayola tank and fender division.

Ya but first get yer god dammed finger outa yer nose LOL...ya'll aint touchin my bike with a booger stuck to yer fingerha ha ha ...hells just pullin yer leg Bro....

Anybody know a custom pipe cleaner mfg? I need a stuby one made in my ring size. LOL

i do a bit o painting also ,i had my own garage for a bit ,i was a car spray painter for 11 years .niver had ma garage long never had the time was always out on my bike when i was not working at my full time job.

James, looks like some good sound advise, and ideas here. Just don't make it so tough on yourself, that you spend all your waking hours, working. It sounds good from what you have described. I did the self-employment thing for a couple of years. What I found out was, I was a jerk to work for, but I was working alone. The 12 to 18 hour days got to be too much. You're a smart man, go with your gut.

                                
Dragon

LOL....I find that photo very attractive James.... I see why Creative Mama loves you so...............bwakkkkkk!!!!