Sticky work situation - what would you do?

mattyprice4004

mattyprice4004

mattyprice4004

Soldato
Joined
24 Apr 2007
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Southport
Basically, as a lot of you will know I used to have my own laptop repair / refurb business, before dropping it due to the incredibly slim profit margins and supplier issues. I then went back to work in retail part time for a few months, and then back to call centre work in November.

I scored a job in Burnley, around 40 miles from home. As I'd planned to move there in the future this wasn't too bad, the area has a good few ISPs and call centres I could work in so this seemed the logical idea.

Since then, however, I've had a lot of family illnesses and have decided to stick to my roots. This means 40 miles each way, I leave the house at 7:45 and get in at 19:00. With the cost of fuel removed I take home around £800 a month after tax etc.

I also run my own part-time business selling Rover parts, which actually makes a similar amount, but of course takes a lot less time and I don't have to travel for it.

Long post short - do I scrap my job to keep my Shop and focus on that, enjoying the extra time I have with my family?

Thoughts appreciated.

Edit: The parts business is busy and suppliers are stable. I have many sources for parts, so supply isn't going to be an issue. I also have a good and expandable customer base.

I also want to go into teaching, so I'd have the time to start my course for this.

Thanks guys.
 
That's the thing, I made the leap and left my last call centre job for my other business, which didn't work out for the reasons above. That business relied heavily on a business partner who turned out to be a **** though.

The main reason I don't want to move is my Nan has cancer, and I'd really like to spend more time with her. I live a mile up the road but barely have time to visit due to work. :(
 
Scurra said:
As koolpc said, seems to be an easy choice, best of luck!
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Seems to be on paper, thank you. :)
And thank you koolpc. :)

cm1179 said:
i'd keep both jobs
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Interesting, why do you say that? I'm after all perspectives. Thank you. :)

Hades said:
If you can afford to drop the job then that seems the logical choice. Would that allow you to grow the parts business and then make more money from it?
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I can afford it, I'd have about £500 spare per month with my partner's income.
I would be able to make more from it too, well I'd hope so. I'd be able to do trade stands at shows and such. Thank you.
 
-westy- said:
On the teaching note, which courses are you thinking of taking? Which level of teaching are you aiming for? I've done a decent amount of research on teaching courses etc, give me a shout on Facebook if you need to know anything :)
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Cheers mate :) I'm aiming for KS2, however may think about 3/4. Not too sure yet, although I'm lacking any Uni qualifications so it'd be a long road.

Westyfield2 said:
I'd keep both until you've got a good amount saved up, and only then considering doing the switch.
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I have a fair bit in the business already, I can draw on that if needed. I have enough to make the transition, I also need to work 4 weeks notice.
 
Exactly - £800 just isn't enough for the distance I travel.
I enjoy the job, however cannot see any real progression path.

The business is quite scaleable, my only concern would be the declining number of British cars on the road. However this is of course combatted by the fact I'd be a 'specialist' and would cater to the K Series Lotus community, as well as other Rover enthusiasts likely to own their vehicles for a long time.

Also to add, the business is registered with HMRC (well, my partner is registered as self-employed as it's in her name for now) and tax will be paid as needed.
 
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I'll be honest, I really don't enjoy the job as much as I did.
The shop is currently making ~£1200 a month, however with extra time I could scale it. Don't forget I spend around £250 a month in fuel alone getting to work, which out of my wage is around 25%.

I need to have a 'backup plan' and think about it all carefully, however it'd be quite easy to scale the business - go to MG Rover shows with a boot full of parts and business cards, sort out proper advertising etc. It's quite a potent market, as British stuff breaks a lot... :p
 
Another update - after having my panic attacks come back after a holiday (when getting ready to go to work) I made another appointment with my GP, and he recommended I put my health first. He offered a sick note, however of course I wouldn't be able to keep the Shop open with this so I declined.

Looks like I'm leaving.
 
Quick update for you all - still working for myself and going very well.
I now have a fully functioning online shop over at Link Edited - no business promotion please! - any feedback (apart from the awful pictures, I'm fixing those soon!) is welcome.

Currently taking around £400 per day, and looking to attend lots of shows and meets in the New Year.

Thanks to all for your support!
 
Just a quick update - I've been 'solo' for a few months now, and it's still going well.
I'd encourage anyone considering something similar to give it a bash - couldn't be happier.
:)
 
Another update:
Today I found out that at my old call centre job staff now have to put their hand up for help, and have to ask if they can go to the toilet!

Over at my gaff I've just secured a rather large contract for the supply of spares for other marques - first I'll be going Jag and Ford. Moving onwards and upwards. :)
 
Another quick update - all working well, and I encourage others to pursue self-employment if practical and you're sure you have a field that'll pay the bills.
It's the best thing I've done so far - every day is a new challenge, but since leaving my job I've moved into a 4 bedroom house, finally got the ZT-T automatic I was after and have more time to spend with my family.

Go for it - you never know if you don't try. :)
 
Cheers guys!
To be honest a lot of the reason was an 'out' to working in Burnley with nearly 100 miles of driving a day - even if as a short term endeavour.
MonkeyMan, you can tap MG Rover Spares into Google and I'm the first result. I can't put a link in, as last time I did, I got told off. :p

I do like the 260, however I've always wanted a well-specced ZT-T Auto, preferably diesel. Not many were made, so finding one was a right struggle - the extra 'T' denotes estate - and most people after something a little sporty went for the saloon version of the car.
Finally, I found one a while ago. I paid £1,500 for her, but given the joy I've had I've since sold all of my other MGs, and have since ordered a private registration too. Excuse the awful Vistaprint door magnets...!
I spent a bit more to avoid the usual sheds - full history, not written off, good overall condition and most importantly, all tests passed on the T4 kit I took with me when purchasing the car.



Finally, I have to say it again. If you're good at something, make something of it. :)
 
Thank you - I forgot to finish that one, I ran out of time. :D
Fingers crossed, I'll have to move on eventually (going to move to Jaguar parts, seems logical after dealing with the 75/ZT), but for now it's going well. :)
 
ilcp said:
No, you can get a job in the call centre again if your ROVER business doesnt work out but will you get another nan again?
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Forgot to add, I do spend a lot more time with her now too. She's also very healthy now, which is good news.
Also, there's no risk (in my mind, anyway) of me having to go back to a 'regular' job for a long time - I'm moving into Jaguar parts in a few years, with an XF on the drive to tie in. :)
Currently building a portfolio of parts, suppliers and local Jaguar specialists I can contract to.
 
Quick update - almost a year later!
This month one of our products made the cover of Car Mechanics magazine - fantastic news!

The kit on the cover:


Close up:


Part of the article:

** No business promotion **

It's a good step in the right direction!
 
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pastymuncher said:
I am really glad it worked out for you. Then again, someone who is as passionate about Rovers as you are was always going to succeed.
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Thanks mate. I always thought it was just a useless hobby, turns out it's not! :p

Caged said:
Just so you're aware, none of your login / account creation stuff is protected by SSL until you hit the Shopify checkout page.

Google are going to give sites that use HTTPS across the board better scores when it comes to ranking them in search results, so you might want to explore your options.
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Shopify do allow HTTPS on the whole site from what I remember - I'll see if I can get it changed over. Thank you mate. :)
 
In b4 gay... :p

I wrote a bit about the company's plans for the future - thought I'd post a copy here so you can all see what we're up to these days. :)

We have a lot of customers, both old and new, that seem to worry about future parts availability. A post on a well-known forum has inspired this particular message - so sit back, and prepare to relax in the knowledge that all isn't as bleak as it seems for our cars.

Our main focus is on the 25, 45, 75, ZR, ZS and ZT models - so this post will mostly relate to those. It doesn't mean we won't work on spares for other models in the future, however.

In 2 years we've grown from a small office set up in a spare room, to a company with over £500,000 of turnover in the last 12 months - and a staggering 80% of our profit goes back into either R&D for re-designing parts, or in buying stock from SAIC MG and their dealers to store for future use. We buy around 250% more stock than we sell (roughly worked out on my tea break!).
We now have extensive stock of items that simply weren't available 12 months ago - for example 75/ZT Rear Number Plate Lamps, 75/ZT Rear Upper Arms, and various other essential bits and pieces - a saviour for owners come MOT time.

Our plan is to continue buying and warehousing stock from SAIC MG over the next 2-3 years, making sure it's all sealed and stored in an environment that'll preserve both the metal and rubber components. We're constantly expanding our storage network - we use a network of warehouse space leased from other companies to keep costs down.

Once we've bought all available stock of essential parts from SAIC and other sources, we'll then focus on having difficult-to-find but essential parts re-manufactured. At the moment we have a few projects on the go in this regard (75/ZT Fuel Tank Straps, and a few rubber bushes) - but this will be stepped up massively once we've finished buying and warehousing stock.

Finally, as numbers dwindle, we'll keep working with owners across the globe to continue building our reputation as the source for hard-to-find spares, but also as a company that will take any requests for parts to be re-made - and will do our best to make sure this happens. This may be through club-organised 'Group Buy' projects, or funded by ourselves upfront.

Our main aim is to supply OEM-quality parts at realistic prices - I'm more than acutely aware that every company on the planet seems to promise this, but our incredibly low returns rate of around 0.15% within 12 months shows the quality of our parts.

Remember, it's never really over for Rover. Let's keep our Viking Longships and MG Octagons moving for many years yet. :)
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