Have you ever bought or sold a mobile car detailing business?

[patman]

I am in the middle of business negotiations to buy a mobile car detailing business. I want some information to use in my negotiations regarding what is the market value of a mobile car detailing business. Could you share how much did you pay for a mobile business? How much did you sell your mobile business for? Please share as much info as you are willing - gross, net, selling price, equipment value, years in business, etc. If you feel more comfortable private messaging me the details, I could really use the help...or if you know somewhere where I can find records of the selling price of mobile car detailing businesses.

Or, if you haven't bought or sold a mobile business, what would you pay for a business that is grossing $80,000 and netting $40,000... 1-2 employees, 15 years in business, extensive regular clientele, 1-2K in equipment, training from owner how he has run business. Also I've been working for this business since Apr 2011 and am confident I can keep most of the clients. How much would you pay for it and/or how much would you take for it?

[Znig22]

Welcome to AG! I would say the business is worth a years gross and in addition to all the equipment and vehicle used along with the owners business cell phone number.

[dcjredline]

I agree with the above

Sent from my SCH-S738C using AG Online

[patman]

Thank you both for your quick replies. It feels good to get feedback on this. I agree that it's worth 1 years gross ($80,000). At the same time, I'm going on the premise that a business is only worth as much as you can sell it for...have either of you bought or sold a business? If you were selling this business, what's the lowest you would accept? If you were buying, what would you be wanting to buy it for? Thank you much

[mechanic380]

I had the opportunity to buy an existing lawn care business recently. The information above is spot on to what I found. One consideration that was always brought up. You are really buying the previous owners contacts and customers loyalty. In fact a lot of lawn businesses are sold without any equipment. Just the accounts. Do you really want the unknown equipment issues? Adjust accordingly. Mobile detailing should be similar.

Ask him to introduce you to all of his commercial accounts. Comercial accounts that you can maintain after the transition are more valuable than personal business that may not be loyal to a new owner, or that is how it was described in relation to lawn care businesses.

If you have the time there is likely way more information available about buying lawn care businesses. I think it should be fairly relevant to a mobile detailer as it is a similar service industry.

In summary the one year of gross was very similar to lawn care business value. You should come in with the understanding you may not maintain that level. Also, make sure you base your value on legitimate business records. Not "ehh its mostly cash and I make about $100,000 a year". Otherwise you are just trusting their word.

Other important questions are
"why are you leaving the business"
Evaluate his menu to make sure it will make economic sense for you. Is he underselling and loosing profit? This may be hard to change if his customer base is used to that pricing. The lawn forums where you can find this information have dozens of others that may or may not be relevant to a detailing business.

Apologies if I answered questions that were irrelevant. I didn't read your last paragraph at first.

[patman]

Someone shared their opinion with me that they don't think this business is worth much because its more like owning a job rather than owning a business. The owner is only making enough for his own wage. Any comments on this?

How do we look at mobile car detailing businesses? Is it how much the owner is making or how much the business would make after paying the operator salary?