Discussion
Hey guys,
Hope everyone is well
.
I've just started working for a company, in the Go Karting market and i'm throughly enjoying it so far. First day was hell, but reasons for that were explained and i'm completely happy with my working conditions etc.
Now, for the ambitious part!
After being there for 2 weeks now it is quite clear to me that the owners, with relatively poor business acumen are doing well for themselves, they seem to work hard and are doing there best while having a family to run (6 kids!) and a separate other business. However, i believe, that i could run the place myself to a much higher standard and generate a lot more revenue.
I'll give you a few things i would improve:
1. At the moment their son works as the mechanic and to be fair, most of the time he does try his best but countless times i've caught him just on the phone to his mates which i would deem unacceptable, most probably it's favourtism, i know for sure i'd be given a good talking to if i spent the majority of the day on the phone and not doing what i was supposed to do e.g. Work. Now by all means this is not my main concern, my main concern is his lack of knowledge of the Karts and his ability to fix them. I'll give you an example, today we had 4 karts brakes fail while out on the track, 1 chassis snap, 3 cambelts go etc etc! If Karts are breaking down constantly it immediately tells me either they need to be replaced or he does!
2. Promotion- I live maybe 1/2 a mile from the track, not once, in 16 years of being a resident here have i ever seen or heard a whisper about the place. They simply do not advertise! In my opinion they could generate huge revenue from just a little bit of advertising every week, speculate to accumulate if you like. At the very least i'd advertise on the local radio and the local paper. However, in saying that, they do get a lot of custom from much wider areas.
3. Presentation is everything- In my opinion aesthetics can make a big impact on a customers opinion of the place they are visiting. Uncut grass, littered car park and no reception are not what i'd call a great first impression. Simple things like this really quite bug me and i think they are important!
4. Go after the corporates- An experience such as Karting should thrive in the corporate market, by targeting larger businesses from in an around the local area at first, i truly believe they would generate huge revenue from doing this. The facilities are there, boardroom, restaurant and changing areas. However, the owners in their own words 'cannot be bothered' to run the restaurant and the boardroom. Hardly the right attitude in my opinion but in their ignorance and complacency , their loss!!
To conclude:
I do generally feel i could run this place much better than the current owners, however, i'd need a massive loan/investment. With the economy in the current state i'm not likely to receive that, however, in maybe 5 years i plan to be in a position to buy them out. For the moment, i guess i will have to struggle on, gain some more experience and look into more of how the place is run.
'Why titled Slim Chance you may ask...'
Because i'm 16.
All help/advice/guidance is very much appreciated.
Mike
Hope everyone is well
.I've just started working for a company, in the Go Karting market and i'm throughly enjoying it so far. First day was hell, but reasons for that were explained and i'm completely happy with my working conditions etc.
Now, for the ambitious part!
After being there for 2 weeks now it is quite clear to me that the owners, with relatively poor business acumen are doing well for themselves, they seem to work hard and are doing there best while having a family to run (6 kids!) and a separate other business. However, i believe, that i could run the place myself to a much higher standard and generate a lot more revenue.
I'll give you a few things i would improve:
1. At the moment their son works as the mechanic and to be fair, most of the time he does try his best but countless times i've caught him just on the phone to his mates which i would deem unacceptable, most probably it's favourtism, i know for sure i'd be given a good talking to if i spent the majority of the day on the phone and not doing what i was supposed to do e.g. Work. Now by all means this is not my main concern, my main concern is his lack of knowledge of the Karts and his ability to fix them. I'll give you an example, today we had 4 karts brakes fail while out on the track, 1 chassis snap, 3 cambelts go etc etc! If Karts are breaking down constantly it immediately tells me either they need to be replaced or he does!
2. Promotion- I live maybe 1/2 a mile from the track, not once, in 16 years of being a resident here have i ever seen or heard a whisper about the place. They simply do not advertise! In my opinion they could generate huge revenue from just a little bit of advertising every week, speculate to accumulate if you like. At the very least i'd advertise on the local radio and the local paper. However, in saying that, they do get a lot of custom from much wider areas.
3. Presentation is everything- In my opinion aesthetics can make a big impact on a customers opinion of the place they are visiting. Uncut grass, littered car park and no reception are not what i'd call a great first impression. Simple things like this really quite bug me and i think they are important!
4. Go after the corporates- An experience such as Karting should thrive in the corporate market, by targeting larger businesses from in an around the local area at first, i truly believe they would generate huge revenue from doing this. The facilities are there, boardroom, restaurant and changing areas. However, the owners in their own words 'cannot be bothered' to run the restaurant and the boardroom. Hardly the right attitude in my opinion but in their ignorance and complacency , their loss!!
To conclude:
I do generally feel i could run this place much better than the current owners, however, i'd need a massive loan/investment. With the economy in the current state i'm not likely to receive that, however, in maybe 5 years i plan to be in a position to buy them out. For the moment, i guess i will have to struggle on, gain some more experience and look into more of how the place is run.
'Why titled Slim Chance you may ask...'
Because i'm 16
.All help/advice/guidance is very much appreciated.
Mike
Help, advice, guidance?
I just checked your profile to see if you live anywhere near me, as I would give you a job on the spot.
You have an eye and flair for business beyond your years in a way which is much more valuable than I have seen from Business A level graduates.
All of what you say is correct. What you will find in business though is those that have drive and those who have maybe inherited a business or got lazy and are happy to plod along. The difficulty you have is that people like that may never give the chance to a 'young upstart' like you.
I have no doubt that there will be a day that you run your own business(es). Entrepreneurs don't usually like working under or for others for the reason above. As you say though, finance can be a problem. Your first issue is that you cannot be lent money by a bank until you are 18. Secondly, as you have correctly worked out banks are hardly falling over themselves to lend money, in fact they are looking for ways to call funds in!
That said, not every business needs tens or hundreds of thousands to start. When I left uni I had about £15k of debt before I borrowed to start my business. I think it was about £3000 which I started my business with. I worked for that with a part time job. So, maybe get your head down, pick up experience, and wait until the time is right to start your own business.
The reason I say that rather than a 'buy out' situation is that banks won't lend to businesses without collateral. When I left uni I was looking for about £10k, and went in with a business plan and my newly printed business degree certificate from a good uni. I got sent packing as I didn't have a house to put down as security. At 21 being lent a few hundred thousand may be unlikely.
My advice would be to find your own niche and go your own way, until you know what that is, bide your time and get experience - even if that is experience from others of how *not* to do things right!
I just checked your profile to see if you live anywhere near me, as I would give you a job on the spot.
You have an eye and flair for business beyond your years in a way which is much more valuable than I have seen from Business A level graduates.
All of what you say is correct. What you will find in business though is those that have drive and those who have maybe inherited a business or got lazy and are happy to plod along. The difficulty you have is that people like that may never give the chance to a 'young upstart' like you.
I have no doubt that there will be a day that you run your own business(es). Entrepreneurs don't usually like working under or for others for the reason above. As you say though, finance can be a problem. Your first issue is that you cannot be lent money by a bank until you are 18. Secondly, as you have correctly worked out banks are hardly falling over themselves to lend money, in fact they are looking for ways to call funds in!
That said, not every business needs tens or hundreds of thousands to start. When I left uni I had about £15k of debt before I borrowed to start my business. I think it was about £3000 which I started my business with. I worked for that with a part time job. So, maybe get your head down, pick up experience, and wait until the time is right to start your own business.
The reason I say that rather than a 'buy out' situation is that banks won't lend to businesses without collateral. When I left uni I was looking for about £10k, and went in with a business plan and my newly printed business degree certificate from a good uni. I got sent packing as I didn't have a house to put down as security. At 21 being lent a few hundred thousand may be unlikely.
My advice would be to find your own niche and go your own way, until you know what that is, bide your time and get experience - even if that is experience from others of how *not* to do things right!
JustinP1 said:
Help, advice, guidance?
I just checked your profile to see if you live anywhere near me, as I would give you a job on the spot.
You have an eye and flair for business beyond your years in a way which is much more valuable than I have seen from Business A level graduates.
All of what you say is correct. What you will find in business though is those that have drive and those who have maybe inherited a business or got lazy and are happy to plod along. The difficulty you have is that people like that may never give the chance to a 'young upstart' like you.
I have no doubt that there will be a day that you run your own business(es). Entrepreneurs don't usually like working under or for others for the reason above. As you say though, finance can be a problem. Your first issue is that you cannot be lent money by a bank until you are 18. Secondly, as you have correctly worked out banks are hardly falling over themselves to lend money, in fact they are looking for ways to call funds in!
That said, not every business needs tens or hundreds of thousands to start. When I left uni I had about £15k of debt before I borrowed to start my business. I think it was about £3000 which I started my business with. I worked for that with a part time job. So, maybe get your head down, pick up experience, and wait until the time is right to start your own business.
The reason I say that rather than a 'buy out' situation is that banks won't lend to businesses without collateral. When I left uni I was looking for about £10k, and went in with a business plan and my newly printed business degree certificate from a good uni. I got sent packing as I didn't have a house to put down as security. At 21 being lent a few hundred thousand may be unlikely.
My advice would be to find your own niche and go your own way, until you know what that is, bide your time and get experience - even if that is experience from others of how *not* to do things right!
I just checked your profile to see if you live anywhere near me, as I would give you a job on the spot.
You have an eye and flair for business beyond your years in a way which is much more valuable than I have seen from Business A level graduates.
All of what you say is correct. What you will find in business though is those that have drive and those who have maybe inherited a business or got lazy and are happy to plod along. The difficulty you have is that people like that may never give the chance to a 'young upstart' like you.
I have no doubt that there will be a day that you run your own business(es). Entrepreneurs don't usually like working under or for others for the reason above. As you say though, finance can be a problem. Your first issue is that you cannot be lent money by a bank until you are 18. Secondly, as you have correctly worked out banks are hardly falling over themselves to lend money, in fact they are looking for ways to call funds in!
That said, not every business needs tens or hundreds of thousands to start. When I left uni I had about £15k of debt before I borrowed to start my business. I think it was about £3000 which I started my business with. I worked for that with a part time job. So, maybe get your head down, pick up experience, and wait until the time is right to start your own business.
The reason I say that rather than a 'buy out' situation is that banks won't lend to businesses without collateral. When I left uni I was looking for about £10k, and went in with a business plan and my newly printed business degree certificate from a good uni. I got sent packing as I didn't have a house to put down as security. At 21 being lent a few hundred thousand may be unlikely.
My advice would be to find your own niche and go your own way, until you know what that is, bide your time and get experience - even if that is experience from others of how *not* to do things right!
I looked at where he lived as well!Ok. Nothing can happen until you're 18. Get that in your head first.
I would use the next couple of years to plan. By the way, if you're anything like I was at 16 you'll think of a new money spinning idea every bloody week!
My part time enterprise while at school was mobile car valeting.
If you're serious about the karting track, just spend lots of time absorbing what is happening in the business. The more they let it slip, the cheaper it will be to buy
If they aren't really that bothered with building the business, they may be interested in an earn-out. That's where they agree to sell you the business for a low upfront payment (that you could potentially finance from the assets - Karts, Buildings, Computers etc.) and then the current management agree to guarantee the turnover for 6 months, maybe a year while they still have an involvement and you pay them off month by month.
There's all sorts of ways to get people their money.
Of course, after all your plotting, they may not want to sell
In that case, go and rent an industrial unit down the road and build your own track, then wipe the floor with them
Hey guys,
Thanks for the kind words.
I'd 100% agree with you that the owners are quite happy with what they're doing at the moment, simply providing an average service that they can run relatively easy. Now, there's nothing wrong with that at all, it's just not in my nature. I will always strive to be the best i can in anything i do and love to dream big.
I just know the place could be so much more than it is, it's located in a perfect place: situated in a air field that is no longer used, easy access from the M4 and ample space for car parking. Outside however, is dirty, dingy and overgrown.
I've always thought that if i was to run a business, i'd need to find a business in the industry i'd want to set up in, gain some experience in that industry and then branch off on my own and set up a business that would wipe the floor with the rest. I guess i've started doing that younger then i thought!
I'll be biding my time for now, still with ideas running through my head. I'm so focused on what i want to do, i'm studying double business and economics next year at 6 form and for once, i'm throughly looking forward to the impending school year.
Besides, i'll have to attend 8 hours a week, that's a lot more time a week to spend thinking of more ways to make money.
Thanks
Mike
Thanks for the kind words.
I'd 100% agree with you that the owners are quite happy with what they're doing at the moment, simply providing an average service that they can run relatively easy. Now, there's nothing wrong with that at all, it's just not in my nature. I will always strive to be the best i can in anything i do and love to dream big.
I just know the place could be so much more than it is, it's located in a perfect place: situated in a air field that is no longer used, easy access from the M4 and ample space for car parking. Outside however, is dirty, dingy and overgrown.
I've always thought that if i was to run a business, i'd need to find a business in the industry i'd want to set up in, gain some experience in that industry and then branch off on my own and set up a business that would wipe the floor with the rest. I guess i've started doing that younger then i thought!
I'll be biding my time for now, still with ideas running through my head. I'm so focused on what i want to do, i'm studying double business and economics next year at 6 form and for once, i'm throughly looking forward to the impending school year.
Besides, i'll have to attend 8 hours a week, that's a lot more time a week to spend thinking of more ways to make money.
Thanks
Mike
Small update:
Being a bank holiday you'd expect them to do a special promotion or at least be fully booked for the day.
No!
I arrived at 11.30 and we was done at 2.30, the owners then refused to let customers come in! Said they had better things to do.
I sincerely hope they run this place into the ground and i can buy it off them for pennies.
Mike
Being a bank holiday you'd expect them to do a special promotion or at least be fully booked for the day.
No!
I arrived at 11.30 and we was done at 2.30, the owners then refused to let customers come in! Said they had better things to do.
I sincerely hope they run this place into the ground and i can buy it off them for pennies
.Mike
iMike said:
Small update:
Being a bank holiday you'd expect them to do a special promotion or at least be fully booked for the day.
No!
I arrived at 11.30 and we was done at 2.30, the owners then refused to let customers come in! Said they had better things to do.
I sincerely hope they run this place into the ground and i can buy it off them for pennies.
Mike
Hmmm, it's on a small disused airfield? Being a bank holiday you'd expect them to do a special promotion or at least be fully booked for the day.
No!
I arrived at 11.30 and we was done at 2.30, the owners then refused to let customers come in! Said they had better things to do.
I sincerely hope they run this place into the ground and i can buy it off them for pennies
.Mike
Get it re-licensed as an airfield and invite glider clubs down, rent it out to air cadets, charge landing fee's, maybe rent the strip out to a flying school, run pleasure flights etc etc. Run the karting track like a pro. Loadsa money in that! If you've got the room you could start a karting shop, sell cheap refurbed karts. You could get a right little empire going there!
Don't wish too hard for the business to fail. If it fails too quickly you could miss out... You don't want someone buying it out of recievership and doing all those things you dream of doing with it.
Bide your time, work hard for them and offer your support. Even tell them that one day down the line you would like to make them a proposal for the business and you'll do everything you can to help them in the meantime.
Don't forget, the better shape it's in when you buy it, the easier job you'll have turning it around. Ok, so you may not get it for pennies, but a bank will lend you the money easier for a healthy business than a cheap one that loses money. Don't make life hard for yourself. Also, you might want their expertise on hand after you buy, so don't burn those bridges
Edited by KingRichard on Tuesday 6th May 11:58
You are unlikely to get a loan even when you hit 18, 20, 21 etc without further assets. The banks will require security in the form of the site and almost certainly from charges placed on your own property.
So maybe consider involving your parents, and relatives if they are in a position to help. They would offer their property as security in return for a bank loan, they would then become shareholders (majority) in the venture, with you as the main man / MD.
Over time you would pay them back their capital with a return from the profits.The downside is if it goes t1ts up, they may loose their home.
Consider this, if this is such a good business oppurtunity somebody at some point will spot it too! and they may be in a position to proceed.
So maybe consider involving your parents, and relatives if they are in a position to help. They would offer their property as security in return for a bank loan, they would then become shareholders (majority) in the venture, with you as the main man / MD.
Over time you would pay them back their capital with a return from the profits.The downside is if it goes t1ts up, they may loose their home.
Consider this, if this is such a good business oppurtunity somebody at some point will spot it too! and they may be in a position to proceed.
jamesuk28 said:
You are unlikely to get a loan even when you hit 18, 20, 21 etc without further assets. The banks will require security in the form of the site and almost certainly from charges placed on your own property.
So maybe consider involving your parents, and relatives if they are in a position to help. They would offer their property as security in return for a bank loan, they would then become shareholders (majority) in the venture, with you as the main man / MD.
Over time you would pay them back their capital with a return from the profits.The downside is if it goes t1ts up, they may loose their home.
Consider this, if this is such a good business oppurtunity somebody at some point will spot it too! and they may be in a position to proceed.
James, that's not strictly true.So maybe consider involving your parents, and relatives if they are in a position to help. They would offer their property as security in return for a bank loan, they would then become shareholders (majority) in the venture, with you as the main man / MD.
Over time you would pay them back their capital with a return from the profits.The downside is if it goes t1ts up, they may loose their home.
Consider this, if this is such a good business oppurtunity somebody at some point will spot it too! and they may be in a position to proceed.
If he puts forward a good business case to his bank, and is only putting down a small deposit on the business, with a guarantee from the vendors of turnover for X months for their earnout cheques.
As long as there is collateral within the business, and he can demonstrate his knowledge and experience in either the sector or in business in general (I accept the latter will be hard for an 18 year old) I don't see a problem with him raising the finance from his own back.
We are forgetting something here. The owners reluctance to invest in the business / site may be because they are waiting for something else to happen. IE the sites true value may lie in its development potential for housing / industrial. Why bother investing money when:
A, its all going to get flattened.
B, You will never see a return on that investment
C, Any return will be far far less than simply selling to a developer.
Given the current market conditions any application for planning is unlikely for the time being. Might be worth checking though to see if any applications have bben lodged in the last few years, if the site does indeed have potential. If its "in the middle of nowhere" then its unlikely.
If the above is correct then the business is simply not for sale anyway.
A, its all going to get flattened.
B, You will never see a return on that investment
C, Any return will be far far less than simply selling to a developer.
Given the current market conditions any application for planning is unlikely for the time being. Might be worth checking though to see if any applications have bben lodged in the last few years, if the site does indeed have potential. If its "in the middle of nowhere" then its unlikely.
If the above is correct then the business is simply not for sale anyway.
Small update guys:
Was at work again tonight, finally had a corporate 'do' on.
Was working with a guy today who has been there longer then the current owners, digging deep into his knowledge tonight. Here's what i found:
The current people running it DO NOT own the place.
The guy who used to run it STILL owns it.
The current people running it aren't even breaking even, the owner estimates 2-3 months they'll go bust.
So the guys running it now are just leasing it for the moment.
Regards
Mike
Was at work again tonight, finally had a corporate 'do' on
.Was working with a guy today who has been there longer then the current owners, digging deep into his knowledge tonight. Here's what i found:
The current people running it DO NOT own the place.
The guy who used to run it STILL owns it.
The current people running it aren't even breaking even, the owner estimates 2-3 months they'll go bust.
So the guys running it now are just leasing it for the moment.
Regards
Mike
So, you need to find out who owns it.
How much the current managers are leasing it for pcm or per annum?
If there are any other financial obligations, i.e. profit sharing with the owner?
How much the owner would be prepared to lease it out to someone else for..
Where they're going wrong and how you could improve it all..
Who owns the stock, karts of course and all the other stock, i.e. drinks/snacks/race suits/other..
Computer timing system?
How much the current managers are leasing it for pcm or per annum?
If there are any other financial obligations, i.e. profit sharing with the owner?
How much the owner would be prepared to lease it out to someone else for..
Where they're going wrong and how you could improve it all..
Who owns the stock, karts of course and all the other stock, i.e. drinks/snacks/race suits/other..
Computer timing system?
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