Bonj87 Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 i work in IT. im a systems administrator.. been doing this for over 10 years. but, im burned out.. i think i need a change. ive been seriously considering a career in detailing. I love what im reading here.. dylan gives great advice. i know its not an 'easy' job.. but i do have so much fun detailing my car (as best as i can since im a total amateur), my wife's car, and so on. so, maybe i need to turn my new passion into a career.. Dylan, what do you think.. can a good detailer make more than 30 grand a year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krambo Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 can a good detailer make more than 30 grand a year? Absolutely. There is a guy near me that brings his stuff to your house and details the vehicle. Charges $250 for an inside and outside detail. He does one car a day 6 days a week from March - November,...You do the math. BTW, cash is "preferred" to him,...you can figure that one out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonj87 Posted October 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 sweet. but i was thinking of working for a company m-f 9-5 kind of thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hankg42 Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 The tough part is building up a good reputation. You can advertise, but nothing beats word of mouth recommendations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSThunder Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 IT jobs pay good so why not so something else in IT? I've went from programmer/analyst to data mining analyst which is a different beast all together. I do some hard core programming but not much anymore. I thought about starting up another business but my current business got old after 4 or 5 years(eBay seller...not nickle and dime either). I might get back into the eBay things more or concetrate more on my web site. I would start your own detailing business part time and keep the IT job for now. This will give you more options if you do want to do it full time. Something to think about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oo p0op oO Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 I would start your own detailing business part time and keep the IT job for now. This will give you more options if you do want to do it full time. Something to think about. exactly what i was thinking keep ur job and start detailing on the side. you need a good reputation to get clients..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterp Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 I hear you, I hate sysadmin stuff; I like building it, someone else can run it. If I had to do that day-in/day-out I'd become the BOFH for sure. Lately I'm trapped in this forensic computer job which was dumped in my lap and I am so burned out I can't stand it, I wanna go back to building something! My advice, detail on the side and make it worth your while. If after a few months you still like it then yeah see if you can make your side job your main job. Do more than wash cars, become a paint finish expert that will help a ton. Mr. P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonj87 Posted October 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 yeah i have to learn the right ways to do the cars any how. i cant just jump into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungman Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 can a good detailer make more than 30 grand a year? hell yea a detailer can make money. i used to work at a detailing shop coupla years ago and they were chargin like 450/car. and had cars all day long. they were set up with the porche and jag dealerships near buy. they washed them when they came off the boat. they had 3 guys that were working there. http://www.autospa.ca/ it was pretty cool there. one time the big boss did a porche carrera gt for the owner of the dealer ship there. it was the 2nd one in canada. so yea they can make good money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterp Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 yeah i have to learn the right ways to do the cars any how. i cant just jump into it. You know what I've seen that works - detail your own truck to perfection and go to the local car shows every weekend. Keep your own rig spotless EVERY day, never be seen with a dirty SS. And print some business cards, display them on your truck for others to take home and call you. Mr. P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan06SS Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 (edited) If you think an IT job has got you burnt out try spending all your time detailing. I think its cool you're passionate about it, but I'll be honest... unless you are working for a very high end client base, and doing corrections with a rotary buffer, offering color sanding, and all other manner of HIGHLY skilled services you won't be making $30k a year after expenses. Theres a reason I'm only doing this part time... its not going to provide me with enough disposable income to feed my expensive tastes. Not trying to rain on your parade, but all things will "burn you out" so don't think detailing will be a life of happiness... again, theres a reason I only do it part time. Keep your job, keep the benefits, keep the CONSISTANCY of income (detailing is anything but consistent) Try to do side jobs for a while and see how it goes... but don't expect to make a fortune in detailing. Also, keep in mind detailing does better in some markets than others... So Cal, Florida, and areas like that have the best base for detailing businesses... the weather stays good most of the year, theres tons of people, and those people have disposable income to spend on their cars... detailing is a luxury service... you need to approach it as such if you want to be successful. You wouldn't open a Ferrari dealership in the middle of Nebraska farm country. Edited October 2, 2007 by Dylan06SS (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS Silv Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 If you were to "open" your own car detailing business and want to make a decent amount of cash, I would concider offering other services besides just detailing. You could possibly do detailing, window tinting, and vinyl work. It would be a good idea to hit up local car dealerships and offer your services to them, on location. I know a local guy who does this and makes great money. Convenience is key when it comes to working on people automobiles, especially car dealerships. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bad Bowtie Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 I agree with Dylan above, I LOVE working on my VHO and my old Thunderbird on the weekends. I have a few friends who became mechanics after high school (1990), 1 just up and quit and went into the oil feild recently. They NEVER understood why I didn't go to a technical school and become a GM Tech. IMO, I simply figured that if I worked on vehicles for a living, ALL day, on other peoples cars, it would eventually KILL what I had held so dear to me and had loved so well to do as a "hobby". Today, they both think I was right in my decision.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_bnoon_SS Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 I want to know what a systems engineer with 10 years experience is doing only making 30K a year??? You've got to be making more than that now, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterp Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 I want to know what a systems engineer with 10 years experience is doing only making 30K a year??? You've got to be making more than that now, right? No doubt, even in Phoenix you could make more money than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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