Thinking on starting a business need help

[Tractor_man2012]

I'm thinking on starting a small engine salvage yard for lawn mowers, garden tractors, atvs, snowmobiles, mopeds, and anything with a small engine. i would be selling parts off them. anyone have any advice and doing this and tips? what paper would i need and need to keep in order?

[Business Attorney]

First, I'd try to make sure that there is enough of a market to sustain the business. When I was growing up in the 1960's it was was not uncommon for someone in our small town to replace a small engine on a lawnmower or garden tractor themselves or try to fix it themselves with salvaged parts. I can remember my dad doing it. Or there was a local fix-it man whose garage was filled with all sorts of things from old toasters to old lawnmowers. He could find or make a part to fit nearly any need. Then, there was a market for salvaged parts.

Today, though, I don't think I personally know anyone who takes the do-it-yourself approach on a small engine. Everyone takes it to the local lawnmower or snowblower shop and gets it repaired. With the cost of labor being the biggest factor, I would be pretty upset to find that the Toro dealer put a used part in my snowblower to save a few dollars.

Perhaps in other areas there is still a market for salvaged parts for small engines. Or maybe for bigger ticket items like snowmobiles and ATVs there is a larger market. There certainly is still a market for used auto parts.

If there is a market, then I think that you also need to try to learn what parts move and what parts sit on the shelf for ages. If people tend to replace lawnmowers but fix snowblowers, you might want to be sure not to buy up too many lawn mower engines. Keeping the inventory turning over is a critical issue for any business. You are losing money every day your inventory just sits on the shelf both because of storage costs and the fact that there is a constant march to obsolescence.

If you decide there is a market, you need to figure out how to reach your potential customers. Is there a common thread that makes them easier to find and to communicate with? If only one person in 100 is even a potential buyer, you probably can't afford to address your advertising to everyone in the hopes of reaching that 1%.

Just a few thoughts.

[phanio]

To get started, you should go down to your local city clerk or county clerk's office to see if you need a license. If you are running this business as a sole proprietor that is probably all you will need. If you want to create a formal business i.e. LLC, Corp, etc - then you need ot contact your Secretary of State's office for their applications as well as for any sales tax infomarion you might need - and always get a EIN from the IRS (this can be done easily and quickly online at the IRS's website).
You might also think about talking with your local SBDC or SCORE office to get some help on marketing your business and managing your company. Their help and advice is free.

Remeber to keep your new startup business lean - meaning only spending money of items that will actually bring in more money or more customers. Lastly, look for free ways - local ways - to market your business to let people know that you are out there and what you offer.

Running this kind of business is great. You can start it out of your home (keeping your costs down) as well as start it part-time until it gets up to spend and starts earning profits. Just knwo that it will take time but it will be time worth it.

[carsten1966]

Having an idea and loving it in a way that you can imagine doing this on a full time basis is for me the first question I have for you. Your motivation will be the number one indicator of your business being successful or not. Understand that if you would not be able to make this business successful that idea would not have come to you in the first place.

If you indeed live in the country side I can imagine that there is a need for the kind of services you want to offer. I would recommend to go with that idea for a while and analyze your immediate market, better even the possibility to sell certain parts online, as you can access a much larger audience.

If you do not have any kind of prior business experience I highly suggest to do some research on some general business skills before you even start. Being in business by yourself requires as much learning and gaining experience as any other job, however it can be much more rewarding if started in the right way. Success leaves clues and everything you will ever do has been done by somebody else before, so also research your competition and see what kind of market share you might be able to gain.

To your success, i know you have it in you!