My wife and I were just told by our boss, she's closing doors on the business and moving it to another town. We were going to purchase this business at one time but the asking price was way beyond the inventory in this shop. We passed on it and I think she got angry about this and thats when the decicion came to close doors.
We love this work and feel we are good enough at it to make a living. We need advice on the best course to begin the process of startup. Anyone have any suggestions on the least costly way to get started. We have the office machines for running the business. However, we have to purchase a vinyl cutter. Any suggestions on a good cutter? Any other suggestions you may have to help us get started would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you:) David and Jenna Nyman
Posted by Doug Allan (Member # 2247) on :
Without your boss knowing, look into getting the lease on the existing location if it is suitable it will bring you lots of business. Did your boss have the business name registered with the Dept of commerce & consumer affairs? Sole Proprietors in Hawaii are not required to & if your old boss didn't you may want to attempt to take over that name (or more likely just a very similar one) Also the existing phone number may go up for grabs as well, but I think retired #'s are kept out of circulation for a while. You may be able to take it over by going through the old boss, but not without their knowledge. It would probably be worth some money (assuming the business was doing well & had a good reputation) & may be worth offering some money for the opportunity to take it over.
I have a graphtec CE1000-60 that I bought 5 years ago. It was one of their less expensive models but has served me very well with no problems.
Posted by glen & julia terry (Member # 3520) on :
i agree !! her place of bus will save alot of work. a 24'' lynx from signwarehouse.com will be only about 1500.00 and works well-- though i find that if you call sales they have even better prices then the web. i bought one for backup and use it all the time. GO FOR IT !!
Posted by Steve Aycock (Member # 3612) on :
This may be a 'no brainer' but sufficient operating capital is an absolute must ! However much you think you need, double it !
Create an imaginary budget for the months ahead and go over it repeatedly !
Take into account who your suppliers will be, what sort of shipping costs are involved with ordering, minimum orders, the quality of materials etc...
Think about advertising, from flyers, newspaper ads right down to the cost of business cards.. ohhh, and don't forget the PHONE BOOK ! often a costly yet needed expense.
What/who will your sales force be comprised of ?
Do you have a target clientel ?
What is your specialty ?
What is your competition ?
What is the competition's specialty ?
Make sure you are very familiar with pricing !!! ** I can't stress this one enough **
Review what sort of license/permits are required for your area.
familiarize yourself with current sign code and regulations, this can be daunting but very necessary.
Think Think Think until you are about to burst, do it some more, write everything down and discuss it with someone, learning is associated with doing. You have a much larger chance of retaining information if you write it down.
Try to cover everything and be prepared for the fact that you cannot.
STAY FOCUSED ! HAVE FUN !
I have been very happy with a Summa D-60 it was in the same price range as many other entry level plotters I researched with the bonus of being able to cut thicker material (sandblast rubber), and didn't require that I purchase a proprietary software package. (co-cut came with it, I use Corel Draw, I believe adobe illustrator is also an option.)
Remember this old quote: Failing to plan is planning to fail.
Hope this helps ! Good Luck !!
Steve
Posted by Jon Aston (Member # 1725) on :
Great advice above!
Doug:
You are a shark!
Steve:
Welcome to Letterville. I think that is the best first post I've seen yet!
Posted by Kent Smith (Member # 251) on :
On the other hand, investigate the business that is closing to see if there are some other reasons. Sometimes it is better to start fresh with your own name and develope a reputation as being the one who did the work at - sign co. Not to cast a bad light on the former employer but to reinforce your abilities. If she is still close she might be your competitor as well. Get the book small time operator from SignCraft and run your business plan by an accountant. That might cost a little but a set of eyes without a vested interest might catch some pitfalls in your plan. Good Luck, self employment is not for the faint of heart.
Posted by Monte Jumper (Member # 1106) on :
It's not every day someone creates a niche in the market...makes you wonder why!
Be a little careful and fall back on your common sense and you will do fine.
Back up capitol is nice but don't hock your soul for it...just keep rolling the jobs over and never spend more tomorrow than you made today.Lay back 20% of ecerything you make and you'll have no problems making your fed income tax and social security.
The rest is just hard work...if you're not willing to put in the extra hours it will take for a year or two...don't even start this venture.
Check e-bay for equipment ther is plenty there...don't be afaid to spend good money for good products...itwill pay you back in spades.
Move forward now and "Make it so".
"werked fer me it'll werk fer you"
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
there is a roland PNC-1000A on ebay right now i day left its priced right now at $355.
Posted by Doug Allan (Member # 2247) on :
That Roland is just like the PNC1050 I started my first 2 years with. I eventually bought the Graphtec to cut 24" material but the Roland still works & I'll always keep it for a backup.Lots of good advice here. Like several have said, plan to give up free time & social life for a couple of years, but if you can do that, don't worry too much about monet. Just go for it.
Posted by Bill Modzel (Member # 22) on :
Ditto on Monte's tax comment. My partner and I started this b uisness in 1980. Up to that point I had been doing my own personal income taxes. At the end of the year, (which was onoly a half year of the new business), I looked at the gross and figured, great, I should actually get money back, hardly made anything. Then our new accountant asked if we saved anything for SOCIAL SECURITY! What?? Flat out 14% of your gross. I had to borrow from my mother in law to cover it, the ultimate humility.
Posted by old paint (Member # 549) on :
the pnc-1050 was a 15" sprocket feed. hard to come by today just as much a workhorse as a 4B. the pnc-1000A is friction feed, and is capable of cutting from 2" to 20". the A was the improvment on the pnc-1000 which will only cut 15", 18" or 20".
Posted by Doug Allan (Member # 2247) on :
guess I meant to say... that Roland model number is number is kind like my PNC 1050
Posted by ScooterX (Member # 2023) on :
Look into a lease on the equipment -- that way you can get a bit more, and not tie up your cash.
If she had a thriving business, then taking over the current space might be a good idea -- at least its already set up to be a sign shop, and you might cut a deal since the landlord wont have to refurbish it.
If her business wasn't so great, then you might be better with a different space.
Posted by David Nyman (Member # 3399) on :
Hi Folks! My wife and I would like to express our thanks to all of you who offered suggestions. We appreciate the feedback and will take many of these opinions to mind. We are in a tuff spot with this situation, but we bounced off alot of the ideas here from this post. Again, much appreciated!
David and Jenna Nyman
Posted by Bob Burns (Member # 268) on :
If you want to buy outright, a basic start-up "kit", I'd look at the full-service Sign Supply houses. They can usually set you up with everything you need at a somewhat reduced price.
For starters you need a 24" plotter, a P4 computer with 512 RAM and a 40gig Harddrive, a desktop printer ANDE a decent scanner, plus vinyl. You can get all this together from one place (in your vicinity, if possible) at a reduced price.
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guess I meant to say... that Roland model number is number is kind like my PNC 1050