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Posted on: October 3rd, 2017

Limit the Variables for success

In the book Rework by by Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson, they talk about planning.  “Unless you are a fortune teller, long-term business planning is a fantasy.  There are just too many factors that are out of your hands:  market conditions, competitors, customers, the economy, etc.”  What are all of these factors?  They are variables!  They are right – all of these things are out of your control, and in the car wash business, you have to add weather.  When was the last time you controlled the weather?  With all of the things out of your control, what variables are in your control?

  • Location
  • Equipment
  • Layout
  • Building
  • Operations
  1. LOCATION…LOCATION….LOCATION

Do you know what C-Store stands for?  Convenience Store!  Today’s market is all about convenience. If your prospective site does not provide convenience, you are going to struggle.  A great site provides good visibility, easy access in and out, sufficient property size for traffic pattern, AND they are on good traffic streets with sufficient population.  Don’t make this harder than it has to be – analyze these simple components:

  • Competition
  • Ingress/Egress
  • Visibility
  • Population
  • Property Size
  1. EQUIPMENT

Choose simple equipment that is simple to operate and repair. In its natural state, equipment is not at work- we must provide energy to make it move.  When we do that, it tries to go back to its natural state-NOT WORKING!  While equipment looks good and can produce a clean car while working, you need to start looking at things as if they are broken and visualize how you will fix it.  To produce volume you have to be operating….down time costs you operation, time and volume.  AVW lives this principle.  SIMPLICITY IN MOTION.

  1. LAYOUT

This goes back to location but you can take a great location and make it bad.  Layout of the site for flow, processing, employee efficiency, and customer experience can greatly reduce or increase your cost of operation, production, and profitability of the site.  Don’t take a great opportunity and turn it into an anchor around your neck.

  1. BUILDING

A building not only provides cover for your equipment, it determines your operational capacity.  From work flow, chemical storage and tool storage, all the way down to gravity flow to your pumps.  Stop trying to figure it out on your own!  Tommy Car Wash Systems has the building that answers all your questions and then some.

  1. OPERATIONS

Did you accomplish all of the above?  If so, then you would think this is on cruise control!  Not so much!  You have maintenance, employees, ‘books’ to keep, the city to deal with, marketing, and don’t forget, customers.  All of these things fall under the operations umbrella for you as the owner.  This is where some consider a franchise- if this is you, click here. If not, why develop your own manuals, maintenance schedules, damage claim process and marketing needs?  Let our experience get you working on your business not in it.

Risk is something that comes with every business venture – there is no way around it.  Variables cause risk, so why not limit the variables that are in your control and, in turn, limit your risk!