Good morning. I posted last week for the first time trying to get some info on the Sparkle Wash franchise idea. I have spent some time on your forum and similar forums but have not seen much info. Someone suggested i was a Sparkle Wash rep, so I figured I would tell you a little more about my situation. I am a 50 year old accountant and have been in finance related jobs my whole life. My boss is near retirement age and I am planning on the future as I do not want to be 55 years old and looking for a new job, hence the interest in looking at franchise options, not just pressure washing but others as well.
I am trying to learn about the economics of residential washing which is where most people start out I assume. Can y’all give me some idea as to the amount of revenue a truck or trailer produces. I have gotten some quotes on trailers in the 4GPM and 4000PSI size.
I know this is a very general question with many variables. My goal is to be able to eventually have enough trucks/trailers that I can pay myself $100,000 and I have no idea if it will take a fleet of 3 or a fleet of 10. I am in Georgia if that helps. Thanks in advance for your help.
Well, what I took away from the previous thread was a franchise was a very bad idea in this industry. That a person could run circles around the franchisee for less money. Just my take.
Here in the northeast, a smooth operating 2 man crew should generate $180k+ gross. That’s working 120 days per year with a daily average of $1500. I know some guys who (claim) are doing much more.
So $100k net for the owner, depends on your operating expenses and how much work you want to put in. For a properly operating business, true absentee owner should be able to take 10% as their salary. So you would need $1mil gross sales.
Or, if you’re a motivated owner operator, you could pull down around $135-$150k solo, and have your $100k salary and take the winters off.
As an accountant, I think you will have better luck getting these questions answered through books or elsewhere. EMyth, Profits First, and Simple Numbers are a few good ones to start with.
And I think after a little research and number crunching, you’ll find that there are very few service businesses where buying a franchise actually works out well for the franchisee. You’re almost always better off building your brand yourself.
The most difficult element of this industry, IMHO, is maintaining a full calendar. With 200 days per year at $1000 per crew, one could likely finish the year assuming 1/3 net profit of a little over $70,000 per year per crew. HOWEVER, the real challenge is marketing and sales. I’m still working on my marketing strategy, with an online and social presence at the center.
While this is an exceptional place to get help regarding the technical aspects of the business, there is an unfortunate dearth of help and information about the marketing aspect. I concur with @squidskc that we need to focus more on marketing to help our brothers and sisters on this site.
SO, to answer your question, with the right marketing mix one might easily cherry pick the most profitable jobs while referring the less profitable to subcontractors and net well over $100,000 in a 200 day year with only one crew. However, ONLY WITH THE RIGHT MARKETING MIX!
