Im hoping to open a shop in the Sacramento area by the end of the year and would love any feedback from other shop owners as to what to do or any suggestions they may have.
Get to know your competition.
Get to know your demographics (your customers)
Stock a little of what YOU like, and a LOT of what your customers like.
Have an advertising budget.
body shops, car lots, tint shops, and your local law enforcment.
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Where abouts in the Sacramento area? There is intense competition there already.
I would say, establish the kind of clientele that you want. Do you want to be known as a high-end shop or a low end budget shop? Will you be making your own boxes or buying pre-fabricated boxes?
If you are planning to lease a place, make sure that you work out a contract so that you have more control and not be stuck at a bad location for a long time. Try to look for the best location that you can find with some nice traffic and good parking for potential customers.
Watch out for the distributors/reps, some will try to take advantage of you and say that you have to purchase $30K in products to be able to sell them to you....or, they'll sell the same thing to your number 1 competition at a way cheaper price.
Make sure that you have a very good insurance policy as well.
Make sure you get your name out there too. Advertising is a necessary evil.
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Studying for MECP basic certification and looking for job at an install bay.
Hey, I'm in Sacramento too. What area are you in and what kind of work are you looking to do?