Oh, how many wonderful discoveries we have
They are preparing the spirit of enlightenment,
And experience, the son of difficult mistakes,
And genius, friend of paradoxes,
And chance, God is the inventor.

A.S. Pushkin

This question is asked by all brave people who decide to enter this business. It would seem that this is it - the cost of equipment, the cost of canopies, the cost of the construction part...

Look like that's it. Now we count how many cars we wash and how much we spend on energy resources. By the way, how to count? Another question. Question for another article about the cost of programs at self-service car washes.

"Skoka-Skoka" and "turnkey"

The World Wide Web is replete with a lot of information on how to open such a business. But 80% of this information was written by journalists for various business resources who, a priori, do not understand anything about building a turnkey self-service car wash. When you read these “opuses”, the remnants of hair on your head begin to move slightly and a legitimate question arises: how?!?, where do such numbers come from?!? Some authors have gone so far into the wilds of their imagination that they are ready to promise their readers the opening of a 5-6 station self-service car wash for 2-3 million rubles. The remaining 20% of articles are written by equipment salesmen, who are, of course, professionals in their field, whose main task is sales, sales, sales. Although among sellers there are those who are ready to share real figures on the costs of organizing a business.

So, let's start with a clean slate, forget what we read earlier on the Internet and try to take an honest look at the real costs.

Although we offer all our clients to open a turnkey self-service car wash, in fact, we are an engineering company. Those. We are good at installing this equipment, servicing it, and advising our clients, but we are not builders. We know a lot about construction, but we don’t build it ourselves. We prefer to trust this to specialists in their field. Therefore, we always warn our customers about this, including the fact that the opportunity to buy a turnkey sink will be more expensive than if the customer wants to build it himself from scratch.

The vast majority of our clients built sinks themselves. Of course, we see all our projects through to completion and always try to help at every stage. Not only consultations, but also proven contractors. Therefore, we have the cost figures. In addition, over the past 2 weeks, we have spoken with many of our clients and friends who have built a car wash in the last six months to find out the full extent of the costs that had to be incurred before launching the business.

Let's start with small digressions.

First retreat

And experience is the son of difficult mistakes... There are practically no twin projects; each project is an individual decision. Our clients are proof of this. Even those who were not afraid to build three or four self-service car washes with us. The likelihood that you will exceed your planned expenses is very high. Therefore, it is Ostap Bender’s job to name exact numbers.

Only Ostap could easily name the cost of saving the father of Russian democracy. We won't do this. We can estimate your costs: separately for the construction part, separately for canopies and technological equipment, which need to be given the closest attention. Because it's like a person's heart. It is important that it is healthy for many years of life.

Second retreat

The most popular project today is a 6-post self-service car wash. Based on this, we will systematize expenses. But you need to take into account that it is impossible to get the correct cost of one post by simply dividing a 6-post car wash by the number 6. A two-post self-service car wash will cost half the cost of a 6-post turnkey car wash. And a 4-post post will be cheaper by only 20 percent. But if we increase the number of posts, then here we can really divide and multiply without fear of error, since an increase in the planned estimate is inevitable.

Third retreat

Many people mistakenly believe that the most expensive thing when opening a turnkey self-service car wash is technological equipment. In the case of the most budget equipment, this item will be about 15-20% of the total costs. If you purchase premium equipment, it will take up to half of the total costs.

The main costs will be for land. Not only in the sense of purchasing land or long-term lease rights, but also other investments in the land plot, namely: approval, technical support, communications, construction itself, landscaping, etc. The vast majority of these costs are sunk. And if you are unlucky with the choice of location, then this money will remain “buried in the ground.”

Let's look at real examples of self-service car washes.

Let's start with the most popular self-service car washes today. What can be succinctly called “collective farm-collective farm”.

Kolkhoz-kolkhoz

To build such a sink from scratch costs from 1 million rubles for each post.

I don’t want to offend either the owners of such car washes or agricultural workers. Typically, such car washes are opened by people who either have a significant lack of initial capital, or they simply do not understand what they are getting into by opening this type of car wash. At the same time, despite the single term, they can differ significantly both in appearance and in cost.

They can be like this:

Or they could be:

The latest washes, despite the significantly better wrapper, carry approximately the same filling. Not very edible...

Why do we call such sinks not very impartial, despite their visual appeal?

They have one thing in common: they are often created in violation of a number of building codes and unwritten rules. The legislation does not have any clear rules for the creation of self-service car washes. And everyone does whatever they can. Although Europe has already accumulated vast experience in creating the right objects. As a result, in attempts to save money, or out of ignorance, all these sinks have a short service life.

Of course, the reader may object: ours is not Europe, the dirt is not the same. Let me note right away: this is why we are not Europe because we are not accustomed to complying with basic safety standards, saving electricity, water, and cleaning agents. Such sinks can be significantly cheaper, especially if they are built in circumvention of the law and in violation of all possible construction standards.

We do not deal with such car washes and do not advise anyone to open them. Why?

Despite the relatively small costs, this business, not having time to break even, is already beginning to ask for small funds to be poured into it.

Budget equipment has the highest cost of washing programs. In addition, due to the lack of safety margin and the use of inexpensive materials, minor repairs must be regularly carried out, and this is not so much a cost as it is downtime. And as soon as competitors appear, it turns out that such sinks have a minimum of competitive advantages. The only thing left to compete is price. Which, given the high cost, begins to resemble business for business’s sake even more.

The other path is the path for serious investors who know how to count money well. And not in the near future, but for many years.

So, if you want to build a normal car wash that will work for many years, there are two options: optimal and uncompromising.

The best option

In this case, the cost of a car wash will be 1.9-2.5 million rubles per post. The difference may be due to the completeness of the equipment, the favorable location of the site, or investments in attractiveness and beauty.

The result will be a somewhat standard wash, but with reliable equipment and a good low cost washing program. And also with a sufficient set of competitive advantages so that you can not only work for many years, but also earn money. And if necessary, it could be sold without financial loss.

Uncompromising option

And the genius of paradoxes, friend...

The most expensive project costs can fluctuate around 2.7-3.3 million rubles per post. But you get not only the most beautiful car wash in the city, but also the largest possible set of competitive advantages for the future, when competition intensifies significantly. It is your sink that is guaranteed to survive in this competitive struggle. Tested in the highly competitive European market.

Cost items for opening a turnkey self-service car wash

Land plot

We will not dwell on this point, because... it is absolutely individual. Moreover, it is simply impossible to estimate average costs. They can be from conditionally zero (if this site already exists and is idle, or there are very favorable conditions for its lease) to four tens of millions of rubles if you buy it in the Moscow region as a property.

Creation of a project, approval and obtaining a construction permit

Usually the most time-consuming stage (at least a month), but not the most expensive. It is necessary to obtain technical conditions for communications (water, electricity, sewerage and, if necessary, gas). It's free. In addition, the project itself is necessary.

Serious manufacturers provide a standard design, but in all cases it is necessary to adapt it and link it to the area. The cost of such a service is up to 150 thousand rubles. The cost of a full-fledged project is from 150 to 400 thousand. We recommend ordering it from the “correct” organizations that recommend it in local “architectures”.

You can coordinate it yourself or entrust it to lawyers. Often in the regions such services are quite inexpensive (from 50 thousand rubles). Total estimated costs for this article are from 350 thousand rubles.

Site preparation

Or, in other words, the removal of utility networks from the construction site. A very individual expense item. Usually it is directly dependent on the cost of the site. The cheaper the site, the more networks with corresponding security zones are laid on it.

Our clients' costs ranged from zero, when no networks ran through the site at all (which is very rare in an urban environment), to the extortionate 7 million rubles that local city power grids charged for the removal of a high-voltage line.

Communications supply and technical connection

The reverse side of the previous paragraph. If there are no networks nearby, then you will have to conduct them yourself. One of our clients had zero costs (everything was on site), and for another client, just supplying water and storm sewerage cost 3.7 million rubles. Another of the clients, who built 3 car washes, said that if you count very roughly, then for each of the car washes you spent 3 million for the supply of electricity, water, sewerage and gas.

Construction costs

We will talk exclusively about the construction of “open self-service car washes,” and, more specifically, only about those construction works that take place at ground level and below. We will list the construction of the canopy as a separate expense item and talk about it later.

A very interesting article in terms of rampant pseudo-economy, as well as for the profit of unscrupulous “builders”. The numbers fluctuate a lot. This is where those who want to open a “collective farm-collective farm” car wash most often try to save money. Often with disastrous results already in the first winter.

Some equipment sellers promise costs of only 1.5-2 million for a 6-post car wash. Only when it comes down to it, the estimate doubles and sometimes triples.

So, let's try to figure out how much it costs, using the example of construction using ready-made slabs with integrated heated floors.

First, the area needs to be prepared and removed. And also remove the fertile layer of soil, and fill the place of the removed soil. There are no average figures in this case. These can be either zero costs or very, very decent ones. For example, construction work on one site is now ending. There, the rise in level of a large plot (about 30 acres) was 2.5 meters. It was necessary that it be level with the road. All this cost the owner 3.5 million rubles.

Then you need to lay the slabs themselves. A set of slabs for 6 posts, including the slab for the technical room and installation, costs 2.2 million rubles. Excluding the cost of delivery of these slabs to the construction site.

In addition to laying the slabs themselves, it is necessary to carry out some excavation work to lay and connect communications, buy all the necessary building materials, rent special equipment, fence the site, etc. The costs for the circle will be at least 2.5 million rubles.

Based on the real experience of our clients, construction work cost them from 2.6 to 3.5 million rubles.

Is it possible to save money? Common sense dictates that you shouldn't, but many people do it. Someone saves on concrete and disrupts technological processes. Even though this is strictly forbidden to do this at a self-service car wash. In the aggressive conditions of a car wash, acid and salt corrosion of concrete occurs much faster than usual.

An illustration of the "frugal" approach. Photo taken after first winter use:

Some people save on the thickness of the power part of the slab when casting it themselves. Some unique people manage to make heated floors without a power unit. As a result, they save from one to two million rubles, but get a car wash that will work, if you’re lucky, for 5 years. And if not, then until the first winter.

Some save on heated floors or do not cooperate with normal heating engineers who can correctly calculate floors for a specific climate. Or they will hire the cheapest contractor who will do it in violation of technology. Some even try to work without them and because of this, they miss the busiest season, when the temperature fluctuates and the greatest number of car wash visitors.

Here is a clear example of such savings:

True, in this case the person saved not only on heated floors, but on everything in general, including equipment. But this is a common occurrence at car washes of this type. It's enough to ride on them in cold weather.

Treatment plants

These are structures that clean wastewater from self-service car washes for subsequent discharge into the sewer system. There are several options. Firstly, buying the cheapest cleaning equipment just for the sake of the certificate that is needed to obtain permission to operate a car wash. In fact, such treatment plants clean almost nothing. It’s a matter of a fairly short time before the water utility wakes up and takes a sample of the wastewater and charges the entire volume passed for additional treatment to MPC standards, or imposes fines. Therefore, we do not recommend going this route.

Normal real treatment plants cost from 350 thousand rubles. The final price depends on the requirements of the water utility or the type of sewerage system. For example, to discharge wastewater into a storm drain, more serious treatment facilities are needed, the cost of which is about 1.5 million rubles. For most of our clients they cost 400-500 thousand rubles.

Canopy

This is also quite an interesting expense item. It well reflects the banal ignorance of building codes not only by customers, which is excusable, they should not know them. But also contractors. Quite often, “collective farm-collective farm” class car washes use painted 70x70 pipe, which in the designs used does not withstand any serious snow and wind loads and is only suitable for cemetery fence posts.

Depending on the region, you need to use a pipe of at least 120x120, depending on the thickness of the metal.

In addition, painted metal in self-service car washes begins to rust very quickly due to constantly high humidity, large amounts of alkali and reagents.

This is what the painted metal frame looks like after 9 months in a self-service car wash. Photographed in Moscow:

A hot-dip galvanized canopy, created in accordance with all SNiPs, of a standard design, with guy wires between posts, a technical room, corrugated sheets on the roof and a simple frieze costs from 1.2 million rubles. And it becomes proportionately more expensive if you add rigid partitions between posts, more beautiful advertising friezes, lighting, etc. I'm sure everyone has seen this type of self-service car wash.

They look like this:

If you focus on design and cover the metal with finishing materials, then the cost increases significantly, easily exceeds 2 million rubles and has practically no limits. The final cost of an individual canopy will depend solely on the customer’s imagination.

In addition to the "square design" there are a large number of variations. For example, such a canopy will cost the customer 1.4 million rubles including technical premises.

This type of canopy, made in Russia, together with the technical premises, will cost approximately 2.7 million rubles.

Imported designer canopies, as well as Russian stainless steel canopies, exceed the uncomfortable level of 4 million rubles and can cost up to 6 million rubles. This will depend on the manufacturer, materials, design, color scheme, some customization elements, etc.

There are no average prices; everyone decided for themselves how much their canopy would cost. Therefore, our customers’ prices ranged from 1.3 million rubles to 5.8 million rubles.

Improvement

For some reason, many, especially equipment sellers, forget about this expense item. These costs are atypical and highly dependent on the piece of land itself. The most expensive thing in this article is asphalt paving. The average price of asphalt paving (with preparation) is about 1.5 thousand rubles per square meter. And if you have a large plot, for example 20 acres, where there is bare ground, then be prepared to spend at least 1.5 million rubles on asphalting alone. Money can also be spent on lighting, landscaping, advertising signs, etc.

Naturally, the cost of improvement may be minimal. For example, if you rent a parking lot near a hypermarket.

Our clients' landscaping costs varied greatly, because... There are practically no identical plots, and ranged from 200 thousand rubles to 3 million rubles.

Optional equipment

In this expense item I lump together all equipment that is not directly related to car wash equipment. These include vacuum cleaners, boilers for heated floors, video surveillance systems, and other equipment.

There is also no average cost, because... Each customer determines their own needs. How many vacuum cleaner posts does he need? What kind of boilers will it cost: simple household boilers for 150 thousand rubles or professional pellet boilers stuffed with electronics for 600 thousand rubles. Does he need a simple video surveillance system for 100 thousand rubles or does he need a serious system with FHD cameras, a file server and remote access for half a million rubles.

From 500 thousand rubles to 1.2 million rubles are spent on this item.

Equipment

I deliberately put this article at the very end to show that the main costs are the costs associated with the land plot. Moreover, they are one-time and for the most part non-refundable. If there is an error in choosing a site, the equipment can be transported to a new location. But asphalt and other costs will remain buried in the ground, literally and figuratively.

At the same time, in the future, all these costs will have little impact on the car wash’s earnings, unlike equipment. You need to understand that all this is auxiliary to the main car wash equipment. It is the equipment that influences most of the factors of future earnings.

For collective farm-collective farm type washers, the cheapest equipment for 6 stations is purchased, which costs at least 2 million rubles including delivery and installation. In principle, prices vary greatly in the equipment market. Sometimes you can find equipment with absolutely identical components, but with a price difference of one and a half times.

It is very rare to find high-quality equipment at car washes of this class. More often it's the other way around. Sometimes you come across car washes where everything is really built to last for many years, plus everything is very beautiful. That is, a person invested more than 10 million rubles in his facility and at the same time installed budget equipment.

I understand people who buy such equipment. And I respect their choice. But it seems to me that they simply were not aware of what exactly they were risking and why there was such a range in prices on the equipment market.

By purchasing a turnkey self-service car wash for 6-10 million rubles, they unknowingly put themselves in a very precarious position. After all, in pursuit of savings, they have lost any serious competitive advantages. Moreover, even such serious ones as the cost of washing programs.

However, all people are adults. And if they are willing to risk a very large non-refundable amount, then this is their risk.

Russian equipment, which can provide a good cost of washing, starts from 4 million rubles. But whether it can provide other competitive advantages and reliability is a big question.

The simplest imported equipment costs approximately the same money. But it is the simplest. Therefore, it is worth stopping at it only if you do not have enough funds. Although here you can seriously think about what is better, a simple imported one or a Russian, but “sophisticated” one. On the one hand, there are more risks with Russian equipment, on the other hand, there is a greater choice of functionality for the same money.

If we take equipment from the best European manufacturers, then prices for equipment for 6 posts will vary from 5 to 9 million rubles.

Although it is more correct to write in euros, because... The ruble exchange rate is not constant. In euros – from 70 thousand euros to 140 thousand euros.

Our clients chose Aquarama costing from 5 to 7 million rubles at the exchange rate at the time of purchasing the equipment.

How much does a turnkey self-service car wash cost?

A brief summary of the above, or how much a 6-post “project” will cost.

The cheapest self-service car wash, with a certain amount of luck, will cost at least 1 million per post. What we call “collective farm-collective farm”.

The optimal cost is from 2 million per post.

If your choice is an uncompromising car wash, then get ready to shell out at least 3 million per post.

In conclusion, I would like to note that everything in life is relative. Some people live without thinking about the future. And today’s financial result, albeit small, is today’s. And some people think globally and for years.

Oleg Logachev

Roman Korolev

July 29, 2017 collapse

Due to the constant increase in the number of cars, the demand for maintenance and care services is increasing. Therefore, many businessmen have the corresponding idea and question: how much does it cost to open a car wash from scratch? Considering that a certificate is not required, a car wash business is easy to start and quickly pay for itself. But you can’t call it simple. Given the increase in the number of cars, competition is constantly growing. The big advantage is the high payback of this project from scratch - a year is enough. There is no need to hire highly qualified specialists: any student, using installed equipment, can learn how to wash a car from scratch. What is needed to start a business and which type is better to choose?

What type of car wash can you open from scratch?

Car washes come in several varieties: manual, portal, automatic, mobile and mobile.

Mobile and mobile car washes are becoming more popular, without requiring large financial investments, and the high quality of services provided contributes to a rapid return on investment. A great addition would be the opportunity to open a dry cleaning service from scratch. You can establish contact or non-contact complexes:
In contact car washes, cars are cleaned manually. Due to the low cost of the process, such sinks are easier to open, but they are significantly inferior to their contactless counterparts. With this method of washing cars, there is a risk of damage to the body and the throughput of manual car washes is lower. Although a high level of quality, service, variety of services offered and an individual approach will help increase the level of competitiveness and income.

There are two types of automatic car washes: portal and tunnel:

In portal car washes, the car is washed with an automatic device in the form of an arch moving along the body, cleaning it with brushes or using a high-pressure jet;
In tunnel washes, the machine is installed on a transport belt and is cleaned by washing units installed along this belt.

How much it costs to start a business depends on the type of business you choose. The advantage of automatic car washes is relative independence. As a result, you can save a lot on hiring employees - a staff of two employees will allow you to open a business. The disadvantage is the financial costs of equipment, construction or redevelopment of existing premises from scratch - if they do not meet the requirements of this business. Recently, mobile car washes have begun to appear, without the use of water. Cars are washed using effective chemicals. Dry cleaning has worked especially well. The washers come themselves to provide the service. The financial investment is less than when opening a regular car wash from scratch.

You can start a car wash business by purchasing a franchise. As a result, the question of how to start a car wash is simplified, and the use of a well-known brand contributes to the quick payback of the project. Dry cleaning on a franchise basis is a great way to establish your own business and quickly increase the level of your business. An interesting option is to start a car wash with a self-service system. True, this will bring in less money, but it will attract many new customers who want to save on washing their cars, which ultimately increases the profitability of the business. You can open self-service from scratch using the dry cleaning method.

A competent plan for opening a car wash

Opening a car wash business means taking into account many important factors. Location is the most important thing in creating a point; it must be visible.

The best place to open a car wash is on the side of a road with a lot of traffic or in a shopping center with a parking lot.

An important condition is the absence of competitors in the selected area. Choosing a place for a sink should begin by making a list of suitable places. It is recommended to discuss the list with employees of the local administration, sanitary and epidemiological station and environmental service. After approval, you can safely open a business from scratch, settling on a suitable option. If something happens, this will allow you to insure yourself against business closures in the future due to government dissatisfaction. services The processing time for an application to open this business is about a month. Choosing a car wash. Here you have to choose from two options:

High performance with a minimum number of additional features.
High quality with a wide range of different services. For example, polishing, dry cleaning, engine washing.

There is a huge selection of equipment on the Russian market. The leaders are German manufacturers Karcher, Kranzle, followed by Italian companies: Ceccato and Comet. An excellent choice from scratch is equipment from Spanish manufacturers Wedner, WAP and Islobal. It allows you to open dry and traditional dry cleaning. Business plan - with its help it is best to decide how to register your business, calculate the costs of creating a car wash, study the market where you plan to open a business and make an approximate calculation of the profit from the work.

The question of opening a car wash is how much does it cost?

How much does it cost to arrange a car wash? Entrepreneurs, especially in large cities, prefer to establish an enterprise with imported equipment. Approximately 85% of the equipment is purchased from the Germans - the famous company Karcher. Russian equipment is purchased more often for mechanical water purification. Estimated cost:

Equipment for supplying high pressure water – $400-1400.
Units with a water heating system – $1700-2900.
Water filtration system – $4500-6800.
Washing vacuum cleaner – $400-600.
Compressor – $200-300.
Consumables (car shampoo and products for dry cleaning the interior). When servicing 30-50 cars – $250-300.
Equipment that allows dry cleaning of the interior.

When included in a business plan With the cost of construction (design, survey work and connection to city communications), the price of creating a car wash business will increase by 2,500,000 - 3,000,000 rubles. It all depends on the location, area and other conditions, as a result of which the payback period for investments increases. To start a car wash from scratch, you will need to specifically build a building when planning an entire complex designed to provide a wide range of services. Additionally, a spare parts store and workshops can be established. But given the high price of the property, if necessary, it will be difficult to sell.

It is better to open a ready-made premises that is most suitable for this business, without large investments. This will save you a significant amount and get your money back faster.

It takes a long time to build a car wash from scratch and the lease should be for a long period.

Ultimately, the situation of a premature demand by the landlord to vacate the premises is eliminated.

Required documentation for the provision of services

A document confirming the entry into the Unified State Register of Legal Entities.
Extracts from the Social Insurance Fund, Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund and Pension Fund.
Agreement for rent or purchase of real estate.
Ecological passport.
Permission from regulatory organizations to conduct activities (SES, fire protection).

What other documents will need to be presented? It depends on the region where you plan to do business. Registration of the necessary documents can take a long time – months or even years.

Additional services

Beginning businessmen have related questions. What is a car wash as a business? Typically car washes provide the following services:

Body wash.
Dry cleaning.
Dry cleaning of car interior.
Polishing.

Additional services allow you to increase your income and competitiveness:

Applying a layer of wax to the body.
Blackening of car wheels and bumpers.
Car engine cleaning.
Washing a dirty radiator.
Body polishing using abrasive.
Tinting.
Cleaning plastic.
Pre-sale preparation.
Other services that attract more clients.

Idea for work: open a tire repair shop at a car wash. This will attract additional clients.

Important business features

To open a business from scratch, you will definitely need:

Coordination with regulatory authorities - if all rules are followed, this will allow in the future to deprive competitors or dissatisfied customers of an excuse for nagging.
Personnel - workers must know the structure of the car and be friendly, sociable, responsible and have good physical shape: to wash cars by hand, endurance and strength are required. And often you have to work the night shift.
Choosing the right location and advertising - it is better to start a business and establish a car wash closer to traffic flows in areas with high population density. Advertising is an important aspect that requires large financial investments, but if you choose the right place from scratch, the cost of your advertising is much less. In any case, the idea of conducting a competent advertising campaign will attract more customers. The price is negotiated with the advertiser.
Considering that used water is discharged into the sewer, an agreement must be concluded with the local water utility. It indicates the volume of wastewater and stipulates the inadmissibility of discharging environmentally hazardous substances. Installation of water purification equipment is required. Its price is quite reasonable.

Cost recovery

The profitability of an enterprise depends on certain costs and important conditions. The washers are paid piecework. On average - from 15 to 35% of revenue. This amount is divided among all employees working on the shift. Additional services are provided for a fee, resulting in increased income. Profitability can reach 100% and higher. It is influenced by location, level of competence, ability of employees to communicate with customers, seasonal factors and equipment used. Cost of services (approximate prices):

Body wash – 400-600 rubles.
Cleaning the interior with a vacuum cleaner – 400-500 rubles.
Washing the car body followed by cleaning the interior with a vacuum cleaner – 1000 rubles.
Dry cleaning of the interior - 4000-6000 rubles.
Dry cleaning – from 500 rubles.

Is it profitable to open this business? A manual car wash brings in 250 thousand rubles a month if 35-40 cars are serviced per day. Costs include:

Rent of land (300 m2) costs $150.
Overhead costs (purchase of chemicals, spare parts and other materials) – $550.
Utilities (electricity, sewer, water) – approximately $435.
Recycling of used water – $250.
The salary of 10 employees will be approximately $4,000.

In this example, expenses will be $5,385 and revenue will be $8,000. Before taxes, revenue will be $2,615. If the premises and equipment are rented, revenue increases, which will increase income. The idea of opening a car wash business allows you to start working from scratch by purchasing a ready-made facility or using mobile/modular washes. Many people say: I want to open my own car wash complex, with little idea of what they are talking about. Any business requires attention and in-depth preliminary analysis.

The car wash business is becoming an increasingly profitable activity. Every day new cars appear on the roads all over the world, the owners of which strive to maintain the cleanliness of their iron friend.

A car wash can generate income all year round. With the right approach, the business will pay off in the shortest possible time. What you need to know before opening a car wash.

Choosing the right location for a car wash

How profitable a car wash will be depends on its location. It is best to locate a car wash where there is heavy traffic. A large number of visitors is also guaranteed for those who decide to locate a car wash in a residential area of the city, not far from service stations, gas stations and parking lots. Pay attention to the road leading to the car wash and the immediate access to it. If, for example, the establishment specializes in trucks, then the entrance to the car wash should be appropriate.

Suitable premises for a car wash

At the initial stage of business development, there will be enough space that can simultaneously accommodate 2-3 cars. Over time, the number of boxes can be increased. The main condition for the normal functioning of a car wash is a constant supply of water. When choosing a room, think about how expensive it will be to connect water and sewerage. After dry cleaning is completed, the car interior should be dried in a warm room. Take care of the heating system, especially since this will also be important for employees working in the cold winter months.

Choosing staff for a car wash

Every client appreciates good treatment and the quality of the services received, so the staff must be as polite and qualified as possible. Direct control over the work of employees will not be superfluous. Saving on staff salaries is not recommended, because it has a direct impact on the quality of work. The price of services will be justified by their quality, and as numerous surveys show, most drivers are reluctant to save on car care, not regretting paying a decent amount of money for a quality service provided.

Equipment for opening a car wash

To start a business, you will need a washing vacuum cleaner or dust extractor (costing about $500), a heated high-pressure apparatus (about $1,500), and a compressor (about $300). A cleaning system, which will cost about $5,000, would also be a good idea. This is not the most important element, but rather an investment that will allow you to save money in the future by reusing purified water.

Car wash services

The average car wash provides services such as dry cleaning of the interior, washing the outside of the car, engine washing, body polishing, dry and wet cleaning. Be sure to think about how to turn a casual client into a regular one. A good idea is to sell subscriptions for 10-20 washes, so that the cost of one wash is less. In addition to the basic services, you can provide some additional ones, for example, tire fitting, car service or a cafe. Please your customers with pleasant little things that will make them come back and use the services of the establishment again. After washing, you can, for example, fill the windshield washer reservoir with water (in summer) and frost-resistant liquid (in winter) for free. Such an interesting service as car washing by sexy girls in swimsuits will also attract new customers.

Advertising and promotion of car wash

It is very important to demonstrate to potential customers all the advantages of your car wash. It would be nice to come up with non-standard advertising, for example, with the participation of celebrities. The main options for advertising are traditional - media, Internet, billboards, signs, flyers, business cards, etc.

Income

Business profitability depends on the season. According to statistics, the most people who want to wash their cars appear in the spring and autumn. If the winter is warm and the summer is rainy, then income will be ensured during these high seasons. Approximately 30 percent of revenue is spent on staff salaries, the same amount on consumables and payment for rent, taxes, etc. Net profit is approximately 40% of revenue. Speaking about the number of customers depending on the time of day, it should be noted that most often they stop by the car wash at 8-10 am. Typically, the peak subsides by lunchtime to reach a maximum after 4 p.m., when many drivers stop at the car wash on their way home from work. Rarely does anyone visit the car wash at night. Weekends are characterized by a smaller influx of customers.

Your own car wash is a business whose success depends on its reputation. Providing quality services will allow you to gain a foothold among market leaders. The payback period for a business idea on average takes no more than six months.

Especially for KHOBIZ.RU

Today, having a car will no longer surprise anyone.

A personal car indicates the mobility of its owner, because to be efficient, you need to move a lot around the city and around the country.

The number of cars is growing in cities, which means that motorists will place demand on the services of service centers.

The presence of a recreation area, a cafe, and a car wash at them will make such an object a favorite place for drivers to hang out.

City dust in the summer and street dirt in the fall make the car unattractive, and the “clean city” events held

The traffic police force all motorists to keep their “iron horse” clean.

So the car washing service will have good profitability.

What does it take to open a car wash?

To begin with, it is important to answer the questions:

where to begin;
how to organize a business;
and how much will all this cost?

Any business requires careful calculations and justification, which are reflected in the business plan. This document should contain information about the enterprise’s planned expenses, payback and expected profit.

Firstly, The future owner of a car wash should have a good idea of what costs he will incur and whether it is worth spending money on it.

The most important thing is to agree and obtain the necessary documentation:

municipal permit;
certificates for washing equipment;
passport for the object;
license agreement;
environmental agreement;
conclusion with the fire inspection.

The list of such documents remains open, because it is no secret that in Russia it is difficult to start your own business due to the corruption component of the economy. But if a person has made a decision and is passionate about it, he doesn’t care about any difficulties, the main thing is to believe in your strength and love the work you are doing.

Next, it is important to decide on the location. The number of customers who will use its services depends on where the car wash will be located. As a rule, a convenient location for a car wash would be near busy highways, city avenues, city entrances, or next to a car service center. At the same time, it must be taken into account that in large transport hubs you may encounter an excess of clientele.

Thirdly, the work requires equipment:

compressor;
water supply device;
washing vacuum cleaner.

The best option for a car wash is to use imported equipment, which, although expensive, is at the same time powerful and productive. In addition to the equipment, you will need consumables for washing and polishing the body.

The profitability of a car wash is on average 40%.

But the income will depend on the season and time of day. Maximum customers use the car wash services during peak hours and evenings. If you properly organize the reception of clients, the profit will be maximum, which will allow you to quickly recoup the project and earn a stable income.

Any business needs workers - those who will directly perform the work of washing the car.

When selecting working personnel, it is advisable to be guided by two criteria:

knowledge and ability to use washing equipment;
ability to establish contact with clients.

Of course, in any business it is important to use the work of specialists in their field, but they are not easy to find. As you know, professionals don’t lie on the road. The main thing in specialists is not the presence of a higher education, but the desire to work, learn, grow and develop, and over time this will make people indispensable. It is important to motivate staff, so salaries should be determined based on the actual amount of work. The presence of 6-7 such washers with round-the-clock operation will be the best option for the development of this business and will allow you to extract maximum benefits.

Since it is impossible to know everything and immediately apply it, any business must begin with basic proposals. As the business grows, the car wash can expand its product line, and this will give the business an additional impetus for development and increase sustainability during the off-season, when there is little or no traffic flow.

The list of services is quite wide and includes external engine washing, dry cleaning, body polishing, and interior cleaning. In the future, you can further develop related services and new areas of development and improvement, for example: car tuning, a form of payment in installments, a system of discounts, promotions and prize draws among regular customers, etc.

How much money does it take to open a car wash?

So, the implementation of the entire complex of the above measures requires about 2 million rubles. Of these, 1 million is required for the approval of project documentation, and 150-200 thousand for renting land. It is possible to build car wash bays yourself, but it requires additional approvals and about 3 million rubles for the construction itself.

In conditions of high risk of doing business and limited free resources, many people prefer renting. Further, 230-250 thousand will be needed for the purchase of equipment, 9 thousand for consumables, and 200 thousand for staff salaries. As you know, the profitability of a car wash is 30-40%, which means that the average monthly income, taking into account expenses, will be about 200 thousand rubles.

These figures are averages as the market is constantly changing and prices may rise.

*Calculations use average data for Russia

Long lines of cars at car washes and dirt, as a feature of any Ural season, serve as a lure for budding entrepreneurs to open their own business in this area. But is this business really that promising?

In 2008, five new car dealerships will open in Yekaterinburg - despite the fact that as of January of this year there were already 52 of them. Among the “newcomers” are the Honda car dealership (Novosibirskaya St.) and Avtoban on the street. Metallurgists (land area - 1.6 thousand m2, showroom - 800 m2). Two more car showrooms will be reconstructed: Avtoland CJSC (Blyukhera 50) plans to expand the Mazda showroom in April; Toyota Center Ekaterinburg South is completing the reconstruction of the showroom and expanding the service station. A new Ford center with a total area of 12 thousand m2 was recently built. And these are not all new buildings in the local automotive industry.

A terrible deficiency or a slight deficiency?

All these cars need to be washed somewhere during dirty Ural everyday life. In 2007, about 20 car washes were opened, now their total number is 127. And, according to official data from the press service of Vice-Mayor Viktor Konteev, another 200 car washes are needed to properly service the number of cars in the city. Today, a three-post car wash is taken as the basis in Yekaterinburg; the construction project includes 40 similar projects. The main limiting factor for the development of this industry is the lack of available land plots, according to the city administration; it is necessary to allocate up to 40 plots per year.

This article may be out of date. More relevant articles on this topic:

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However, Mikhail Babin, president of the Resource Technologies group of companies, argues that the opinion that the car wash business is extremely profitable is nothing more than a myth. It was created by those budding entrepreneurs who looked at the long queues of foreign cars at an elite car wash one spring day and multiplied the average revenue of the most successful hour by 24 and 365 days a year.

However, Babin himself intends to “spread” a network of 60 car washes across four megacities in 2008: Samara, Tyumen, St. Petersburg and Moscow - and close up to 20% of the market in each city. Today, under Babin’s Fast Clean brand, there are 9 car washes on the Yekaterinburg market, by the end of this year there will be 20. However, the Resource Technologies group of companies would hardly have enriched themselves with another business if not for some know-how in the management system future network and personnel, which the businessman refuses to describe. What is fair: to get the secret of success, you either need to come up with it yourself, or pay significant money for it. Babin's team chose the first option - brainstorming combined with years of experienced observations of the market and human nature.

Ready ideas for your business

“Counting income without taking into account expenses is a distinctive feature of a Russian businessman,” Mikhail Ivanovich slightly ironizes. - We have been preparing to open this business for two years, and it turned out to be the most troublesome of all that the company has created (its arsenal includes a cargo transportation service, a help desk, a home-service service, a taxi, a credit consulting service. - Ed.). If we didn’t have our resources, the necessary base, if we didn’t ensure that our car washes were loaded at night, we would hardly have entered this market segment.”

The businessman emphasizes that if the market really gave super-profits, it would be much more saturated, and car washes, like, for example, cellular retail stores, would sparkle with neon on every corner. On the other hand, he considers the figure mentioned by Viktor Konteev to be absolutely incorrect: in his opinion, Yekaterinburg needs not 200, but only 30 car washes. This will be enough; at other growth rates, companies will begin to operate at a loss.

Ready ideas for your business

This business cannot be extremely profitable, if only because it is subject to seasonality and, in general, weather conditions. No one will go to wash a car in sub-30 degree frost, no one will go to wash it in rain and mud, because it is pointless. As a result, the loading of car washes is very uneven, moreover, it is difficult to calculate: theoretically it can be 30%, but in reality it is only 15%. On average in the city today, the annual occupancy rate is 40%, and this is the second answer to the question why this business does not promise crazy profits. Car washes are a small business, and by definition big money cannot be made here. How many car washes does oligarch Roman Abramovich have? As they say, no comments.

“The population of Russia received its first idea of a car wash from the famous comedy “The Diamond Arm.” The exotic vehicle washing enterprise was hidden from the masses of motorists in a deep forest, which, coupled with numerous rotating mechanisms, created an aura of a certain elitism, mystery and even danger. Most owners of four-wheeled vehicles, without further ado, washed their pets with a simple washcloth and water from an enamel bucket.”
Magazine "Autoinstruction"

How to become a champion of cleanliness

So, you are still determined to create a business in this area. The image of a beautiful car wash, needed by people, bringing comfort and beauty, warms your soul. What do you need to consider?

A businessman can consider two strategies: building a property and renting it. The first, naturally, requires large investments, and the payback for such a project is from five to seven years, while a rented car wash pays off from six months to three years.

To build a car wash, you need to solve a rather difficult issue in any city with a population of one million - finding and registering a plot of land. In Yekaterinburg, as you know, there is catastrophically little free land. Of course, the most profitable car washes are those located next to the gas station. However, you must take into account the mandatory requirement of the municipality about the maximum permissible distance to a residential area - 200, and preferably 300 meters. The choice of location determines both the level of profit and payback period, as well as the amount of initial investment. For example, a car wash at a large business center or an elite shopping mall will be almost 100% occupied, even if it operates around the clock, such as the car wash at the famous Antey complex. The cost of the building also directly depends on the cost of the land (even the quality of the soil is taken into account). The construction of an empty washing building for 3 stations from metal structures (without equipment) is estimated at approximately 100 thousand dollars. The average market investment in a car wash in Yekaterinburg is about 2 million rubles.

According to Tatiana Manchakidis, director of the Zakonoff law firm, there are no special permits or licenses for running a car wash business. However, this does not mean that everything is done easily and quickly. First you need to analyze the technical requirements of city legislation for this business, then draw up a specific project; in this case, it is better to seek help from special design organizations that already have experience in coordinating plans for this particular type of business with the municipality. Of course, you can simply submit an application to the mayor’s office for land for a car wash, but in this case you cannot count on a quick response. It’s easier to apply for a specific plot of land and bring a specific project, which takes into account, among other things, special equipment for wastewater treatment. By the way, the municipality today gives priority to full-cycle car washes: dirty water here goes through an internal purification system and goes back to work. An additional advantage of the full cycle is that you do not have to enter into a special agreement with the city water utility, which will take over the purification of dirty water. In addition, it is necessary that the SES, fire inspection, environmental services, traffic police, technical inspections, landscaping department, and architecture department give the go-ahead. The documents can be collected for one and a half years, or four, businessmen say.

Ready ideas for your business

Of course, you can simply buy a plot of land from a private owner, or you can purchase a share of the business in the owner company and thus become the owner of part of its land holdings. However, approvals from the authorities and various regulatory bodies cannot be avoided.

An equally “sick” problem is personnel. Work at a car wash is classified as low-skilled, the pay is low, and the contingent employed here is appropriate. Hence personnel turnover, theft, negligence, and absenteeism. To solve this issue, you need to invest a lot of money in a personnel training system and in additional motivational schemes, and not every entrepreneur has the capabilities or patience for this. Controlling quality standards across multiple locations is very difficult, especially when it comes to a network. Federal networks do not exist in Russia today precisely for this reason; what is often called a car wash network is actually nothing more than a network of auto repair shops or auto shops with associated car washes.

Hands or hooks?

Additionally, you need to ask yourself whether you want to open a manual or automatic car wash. Of course, an automatic one will cost you much more and will pay off twice as slow. For a minimum kit designed to wash one car, you will have to pay about 40 thousand euros. However, the point is not even in the high cost, but in the peculiarities of the consumer behavior of Russian people. He is characterized equally by both perfectionism and reluctance to pay for high-quality service. The Russian car enthusiast is not satisfied with an automatic car wash: it washes worse, it scratches, it can cover only certain areas of the car, but paying a lot of money for a wash is nonsense for this same consumer. So it turns out that for a more expensive automatic car wash you will have to ask for almost a smaller bill than for a manual one: you need to compensate for the “sloppiness” of the machine in the eyes of capricious motorists.

Therefore, now in Russia, hand washes predominate: cars are washed using high-pressure machines, then wiped with a sponge, and, if necessary, manually polished with wax. The foreign reality, where the classics of the genre are automatic portal or tunnel washes, and self-service washes are in particular demand, is most likely not for us. And besides, the Spanish climate allows you to simply water the car with a hose to wash off the settled dust, but not the Ural climate, when the dirt has to be literally scraped off even from the roof of the car.

Of course, in this business, in addition to directly washing the car and dry cleaning the interior, you can come up with many attractive nuances. Rest rooms at car washes, where they serve free coffee and tea with sweets, are no longer an additional attraction for anyone. In Moscow there are car washes where only women work, and they look like professional models. Demand justifies their higher salary costs compared to regular cleaners. Often found at car washes are shops selling spare parts, car accessories, car cosmetics, and small workshops for quick car diagnostics and minor repairs. This entire property can be rented out. Additional services can bring up to 20% of total profit if properly organized and interesting to your client.

Mikhail Babin, President of the Resource Technologies group:

– Yekaterinburg needs not 200, but only 30 car washes. This will be enough; at other growth rates, companies will begin to operate at a loss. And the super-profitability of the car wash business is nothing more than a myth. It was created by aspiring entrepreneurs who looked at the long queues of foreign cars at an elite car wash one spring day and multiplied the average revenue of the most successful hour by 24 and 365 days a year.

Marina Zhivulina

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