starting a business where to actually start?

Hades said:
Why would it be ridiculous? If someone can use a cheap tablet for browsing, shopping, email, facetime/skype, etc, then over time I suspect that the traditional PC repair business would start declining.

Yes most of us on this forum will continue to have a PC or laptop. But people like like mum would prefer to get rid of that old ugly box in the corner. when it breaks they may be inclined to simply not replace it if the tables has replaced the functionality it offered for them.

Although not exactly an analogy look at the traditional role of a TV repair man in the 70's. I recall us having to get a guy around every few months to take the back off and solder something or replace a board. It seemed like a lucrative business looking back. But nowadays the TV is simply an appliance and when it fails we simply buy another one as they are relatively cheap.
Click to expand...

Indeed. It's much more to do with the cost of PC's that the rise of tablets etc.

Why pay some guy to fix your PC for £250 when you could buy a new one for £200 ...
 
Basher said:
Why pay some guy to fix your PC for £250 when you could buy a new one for £200 ...
Click to expand...
Bingo. Repairing PCs was my bread and butter up until 2008. I could pretty much place the exact death of this kind of work in the first half of 2008. Around the time a decent laptop (C2D etc) could be picked up for ~£400.

I went from being busy all the time with people wanting their computers fixed to looking for other employment between January and April of that year.

The only home market that still exists really is in the boutique high-end or data recovery. All of your family photos were saved on that £400 laptop you bought in 2008 whose hard drive just died? Oooh...
 
Yamahahahahaha said:
The only home market that still exists really is in the boutique high-end or data recovery. All of your family photos were saved on that £400 laptop you bought in 2008 whose hard drive just died? Oooh...
Click to expand...

Exactly, but even that is limited now as many won't store documents/images etc on their own PC.
 
Richdog said:
Starting a video game shop in an environment where online sales are dominating, and major players with serious capital and buying power are going bust?
Click to expand...

I would say the buying power of a lot of these "major players" came from cheap finance i.e. highly leveraged debt, rather than from actual revenue or profits.

I used to part-own a small fishing tackle shop & bait company in Oxfordshire, I made the mistake of trying to use my own money whilst competing against companies who have million pound turnovers, but are tens of millions in debt to the bank.You will almost definitely never be able to compete at that sort of level, these companies will buy thousands of any particular item and have to sell a huge amount to see a return as the margin will be tiny. You'd, say, buy ten of such an item, then manage to sell nine of them yet all your profit is lost on the tenth item that went unsold.

Retail is a mugs game i.m.e., I'd recommend you try and do what somebody else mentioned earlier and stick to selling an in-demand skill of some sort.
I'm back renovating listed buildings as it's highly specialised and unlikely to be outsourced or become obsolete, so far so good on the whole.
 
Last edited:
AshD93 said:
Done market research to know if they area is worth trying to make money from which it is. The market is only getting bigger, with more people wanting similar services carried out. And the potential audience are the type that will pay for this service.

Got a rough idea of prices I should be charging for my services looking at competitors (which tend to over charge) which I'm taking advantage off.

Drawn up basic forecasts based on a low sales amount and still would make profit even after factoring energy costs, stock and so on.

My market area isn't already saturated with other competitors.

Already have potential customers lined up and booked in and set up means for business contact. Also started advertising using various means including business cards and social media.

Created accounts with companies to get cheaper stock (so the customer is satisfied among other things).

Organised from the start, using invoices for customers and having all relevant financial paper work (the misses is doing more of that side though, I just made the templates and give her all details).

I can also talk 'business ********' as it were. I have a habit of convincing people to get extras done (which has been the case recently).

I could go on but a) it's only a small business (I'm focusing on studies but doing stuff properly) and b) I see no need to prove myself to you. Just be rude not to answer.

Also, if there are any mistakes above, I'm on the iPad so may have hit keys by mistake.

Edit: A lot of business is common sense so I've probably missed bit you may find vital out but I've already considered.
Click to expand...

That sounds very enterprising but I would suggest you don't actually know what you're doing until you've done it. I do genuinely wish you the best of luck (as I do to anyone wanting to start a business) but I just think you, me or anyone doesn't actually "know what they're doing" until they start doing it.

5 years down the line when your business is a success you'll say to yourself "wow, I had no idea all that stuff was going to happen but I adapted and I managed".
 
Last edited:
Yamahahahahaha said:
Bingo. Repairing PCs was my bread and butter up until 2008. I could pretty much place the exact death of this kind of work in the first half of 2008. Around the time a decent laptop (C2D etc) could be picked up for ~£400.

I went from being busy all the time with people wanting their computers fixed to looking for other employment between January and April of that year.

The only home market that still exists really is in the boutique high-end or data recovery. All of your family photos were saved on that £400 laptop you bought in 2008 whose hard drive just died? Oooh...
Click to expand...

I have noticed a shift on repairs moving from desktops to laptops, which is just down to the nature of them now being the same price if not cheaper than a desktop. Both are more reliable than they used to be so have declined a bit due to that. I still get a lot of software issues and general setting up, wireless installs, etc.

Just need to follow where the work is really.

To the OP though, it doesn't sound a good idea unless you can get the overheads very low. The high street is dying off so would be aiming to set up somewhere cheap such as an indoor market sort of place. You need to give people a reason to pick you over just buying goods online.. good luck with that.
 
AshD93 said:
I consider it 'giving the customer what they wanted but didn't know they wanted'

Does that even make sense?
Click to expand...

Yep, anti virus (resell a decent one - good mark-up on that) and memory are the top two and easy to sell.
 
op, don't open a pc repair business, nobody cares about pcs. Most people who care are capable enough to fix it themselves.

If you msut get into a computer repair business. Learn to solder realy really good and consider getting into tablet screen repairs/replacement. This is something the average user can't DIY and is a common problem.

failing that, get into an ebay business, sure it;s a tough grind and not everyone is succesful but the risks are a lot lower than fitting out a shop for 1 grand.
 
Why risk going into a tight gap in the market, I can't see how its worth all the effort. Small profit margins and an unpredictable forecast... not something I would invest time and money into.
 
Golf1.6 said:
whats the consensus on computer repair. I think I may be able to get leads of the internet for relatively cheaply, maybe £10 per customer on online advertising costs. I can start off working as an individual so won't need shop. Will go out and collect computer from customer bring it home and fixe them up.

It will only be short term and I'll use this to dip my toes in the water and test this out. then if it's viable I'll set up shop.

Though, I need some insiders knowledge from someone whose actually been involved in this line of what. What the money like? Is it a viable business these days when someone can just buy a whole computer for £300?

I was watching the watchdog programme with that dodgy computer repair shop, and it felt to me like you have to charge £200 with fake repairs with replacement parts that dont need replacing, just to make money.
Click to expand...

Golf1.6 said:
op, don't open a pc repair business, nobody cares about pcs. Most people who care are capable enough to fix it themselves.

If you msut get into a computer repair business. Learn to solder realy really good and consider getting into tablet screen repairs/replacement. This is something the average user can't DIY and is a common problem.

failing that, get into an ebay business, sure it;s a tough grind and not everyone is succesful but the risks are a lot lower than fitting out a shop for 1 grand.
Click to expand...

Are you trying to knock out your competition early doors?
 
Metalface Mark said:
Are you trying to knock out your competition early doors?
Click to expand...

No that was honest advice. I was thinking of a pc repair business as I have a tech related company and I'm the "computer guy" in the family as our most of you probably. So I get word of mouth referral from people who want their computer fixed and we do fix them. But these are hot leads and usually family or other business owners. So the work is worth it, hassle free and I enjoy fixing stuff.

I did consdier it, but now I'm firmly opposed to getting into PC repair. But I do think tomtom, tablets, smartphone repair could be a great business to get into. I'm not going to dissuade anyone from getting into either of these businessses even if I was a "competitor". The industry is so big another cxompetitor will be just a dip in the ocean I think.

The screens on these things are really prone to breaking, they're made of glass, and they shatter. Plus as tablets grow, so will the market for tablet repair.
 
Tbh, I think any business can succeed if someone is able to put enough energy and plans it out well enough, the temptation with a computer business is mixing business with pleasure, but it really is saturated, you only have to see the number of little computer shops in every town, I think we have about four, its the same with web design, with both types of business if you are good enough you can succeed though.
 
Metalface Mark said:
Tbh, I think any business can succeed if someone is able to put enough energy and plans it out well enough, the temptation with a computer business is mixing business with pleasure, but it really is saturated, you only have to see the number of little computer shops in every town, I think we have about four, its the same with web design, with both types of business if you are good enough you can succeed though.
Click to expand...

Web design is pretty lucrative if you have the skills. That's the point isn't it, web design is a high skill job. While computer repair does take some skill, it's a common hobby and it's easy to DIY fix a home computer. (Businesses are different though, businesses with complex networks that need to be set up and "repaired" can be decent money), but I don't know if I said this already (I've got a paralell discussion about this on a business forum), to get access to computer/network repair for businesses you need to have skills and certification.
 
Forget selling video games, it's ultra competative. Most online retailers sell at break even or a loss.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom