trade vet

Hi CPM Out of interest,what was the deal.Cash Price,cash deposit,swapper,amount financed,term,APR etc,did you sell them a warranty or put it on the bill,same with road tax.....

I am sorry,but I think selling an old Mini Cooper to a ‘special needs’ sub prime punter is asking for trouble.I think we get enough agrovation in this job without dealing with sub primers,especially with old stuff.Some people only do sub prime and are good at it,but it just gives me a headache thinking about it.Also,you have to make sure all the paperwork,invoices,finance agreements match or the finance company will just void the deal and it’s a full refund to them.

I have just come out of retirement for the second time.How stupid is that.You actually miss all the daily agrovation.I think one thing is certain,I won’t be making any money.

That’s just what you need at Blackbushe,arrive with your wagon,get the keys then send the dog to find and bring your car !

I see now,I think I can recall the last time we discussed this.I think most of us told you to have a go last time.Your Dads garage is an up and running established business with probably a good customer base so why do need a business plan.Is he going to charge you £25k rent ?.Forget your wife’s money,go to the bank and personally borrow what you need and get on with it.

I had not realised you were already in the trade.However,I am with your wife on this one.If you are doing 2 or 3 per month on top of what you are earning now,there will be a lot of people on here dreaming of having that situation.If you think packing in your day job and running your own business funded by your wife will be easier and make you more money,think again. She is right to ask for your business plan under the circumstances.Incidently what do you intend to do,be a home trader or work from premises,how many will you stock,who will supply you and how much do you intend to invest.I would imagine she will want you to incorporate as a limited company and she will know what the average returns are.

Could you give us an indication of what you are earning from your present job.

I can understand Ebay,a multi billion dollar Corp,taking Motors.Its up and running with a customer base and probably very cheap and most of the trade has either heard of or tried Motors.As Ebay would probably be disallowed from buying AT which in any case is valued at over £3b ,they just tack Motors onto Ebay motors and Gumtree and then spend millions on marketing.For a Corp. like Ebay it is virtually petty cash.

This maybe the second or third time Motors has been disposed of in a short period of time.

Vasanti.Lad@Autotrader.co.uk

£50.!...Up north..Only if it was metallic.We were still getting full shoots then in solid colours for under £200.Then water based paint came in and the end of full shoots.Nicks guy is probably an old school star,the sort who doesn’t mind swapping a g/box in the street in a snowstorm.

Our original pitch pays out a fortune to AT.However at our new one ,for the moment we have a 5+2 AT starter pack and I think it costs just over £2 per day per car.I don’t know whether this is a special deal but I found that the lady I dealt with at AT was very helpfull and as good as her word which is quite rare these days.If anyone is interested I can get her contact number as she works from home and has been with AT for many years.

I am with the video stars.We are practicing but it might take a while.

Your right,If it is not gone tomorrow we will,we are just trying to get this trading idea going.We have bought a dozen ‘ untradables ‘in from BCA to retail to get a bit of stock to start off with until our website goes live and we can buy more stuff from the public.

Hi You can get in touch with our guy Arthur 0191 2763737 he will keep you posted.When our website goes live we think it should be OK.I was only at BCA briefly today.I am Ian on 07836 799822,give me a call anytime. Thank you,that is the plan when we get up and running properly to email photos with good descriptions and our cost price.Get in touch,see previous post.

........what about the traders.We have now opened our car buying pitch with the idea of buying/nicking stuff at the door and trading them on cheap.Last night our guy nicked for £1500, an 08 T/Auris 1.6 T Spirit,55k,2 owners,fsh,new mot,just needs a machine polish.It would be cheap retailing for £2950.This morning at the local BCA I saw traders bidding big money for similar stuff and not as good.I had a word with one or two and mentioned we wanted profit on £1500.What do I get,bad sellers,wrong colour,no luck with Toyotas etc.One guy later did have a look and studied the service history,could not fault it and then bid £1650 ( £1750 would have bought it) but would not improve.I am thinking this might not be a good idea after all.

If I was doing a business plan,I would just download a template for free with plenty of bullshit.Mission statements,vision statements,e cycle sales projections,some technical stuff.I remember applying to our bank for funding,I was offering them loads of security and they knew me and the business.It was not good enough,they needed future sales and cash projections.So I got our accountant to knock them up,loads of numbers and bullshit jargon.I think he charged me £200 and the bank manager thought it was excellent and it did the trick.

What does it say on your purchase invoice.

If you are doing mobile bodywork stuff like scratched bumpers and small locals,I agree with Justin.If you are any good you should be in constant demand.We know a guy who spends a day doing 2 or three for us on our premises and gets around £400.He is always busy and picks and chooses who he works for.

You must have a lot of contacts at franchised dealers.They are the ones to buy cheapies from.

I would be trying your local cricket,tennis,golf and rugby clubs which have secure parking,a lot of them are run on a shoestring.

Hi True Trade Where are you.........Mark deserves your reply for his honest account,he is clearly very experienced.

That’s a bit unfair,you don’t know the circumstances.My understanding was that it was a sizeable operation.You don’t know how the losses were accumulated,there could have been some extraordinary items,then there is depreciation,it happens.The guy was just pointing out his experience.Several years ago we were hit with a large HMRC assessment after we had invested in a connected party deal from 5 years earlier.HMRC were right but agreed we were innocent in that we had received mistaken professional advice so they waived any penalties.It could have been a lot worse but it was bad enough and it showed in our results.

Yes Len I think it is.To give you an idea of how tough this job is,take a look at Big Motoring World.Huge operation,vast stock and debt but a successfull company in your area.If finance commission and sales of warranties were removed from their financial results it appears they would not make any money.I know it is hard for electrical contractors with all the regs (we have plenty also) plus I understand you guys need £5m insurance liability cover which is expensive so you can quote for good jobs etc .You should take note from the guys on here,they are genuine with their advice.

Hi Lee Rather than ask your friend to show you his annual accounts,you could casually ask how much VAT he paid last quarter.Tell him how much you pay etc.