considering starting a part time boat building business

I understand it's not easy, but I have to jump in. Thanks for the insight.

 

No its not easy, but it is very rewarding if you get the numbers and your customer base sorted first. If you want send me an email and I will share with you the mistakes that cost me dear. So you will not make them yourself. I suppose it boils down to self belief and what your goal is.. Regards Jonathan horacewimm@yahoo.co.uk

 

Acceptable Level of Sacrifice.

Sir,

In response to your question regarding "Can you start a boat building business." I beleive the most important question to ask yourself when considering starting a business, is "What is your acceptable level of sacrifice" if your level of sacrifice is low your probability of success will also be low. If your acceptable level of sacrifice is high, then you probability for success will also be high. I find this to be a far greater predictor of success , than money, experience, a place to build, or even good luck. All these prior things certainly help and we all know folks who have had success because of the positions they were born into or married into, but nonetheless if you look at people who start and run a successfull business from scratch you will see a pattern of sacrifice that is unacceptable to most folks these days. Consider the Indian man who came to America and dreams of owning a convience store (not a racial thing just a example) he finds he can purchase the store and run it but wont be able too immediatly pay himself enough to buy a home for his family, so he just converts the back room of the store to an apartment for his family.. You see his acceptable level of sacrifice if high enough for him to fore go a decent home and salary right away so he may be in a better position later...Just as now you see Mexicans living 10 deep in one house. It is not because they like to share a bedroom with Jose, and Juan, but most likely their acceptable level of sacrifice is so much higher than the average American of the same age and sex that they will own there own busuness in a few years and probably have half their cousins working for them...I know I used examples of Indians and Mexicans but this has nothing to do with race or ethinicticity. The truth is for the most part Natural Born Americans have become so comfortable and have such a perception of entitlement that they lack for the most part the will power to sacrifice to the extent neccessary for success in business. My humble advice would be study youself, ask yourself, what do I need in life to really be happy. Do I need a new car, Big House, or new furniture, How much am I willing to work, Am I willing to work in dangerous conditions, you will also have to consider your wifes acceptable level of sacrifice if she isnt on board with you life could be a little ruff..Remember this. The American Dream is not a McMansion, a couple of new cars, a wife with implants ,and a fat 401k....The American Dream is simply the ability to pursue your dreams, achieving them is just icing on the cake...Good luck...Eric

 

I'm actually working that angle now. Took ½ a year off to get going and spent thousands on my materials to start the prototype. Hired a N/A and modified a stock plan to something new using modern materials. Still working on the prototype and went back to work to support my project. Not as much fun when it goes from a project to a job! Once the prototype is done, and it does well on the water and around the course, then on to the next step. I worked for several boat builders while in college and have friends in the boat building business. Some have made it big but it only runs for a awhile then they sell, and in 10 or less years the money is gone. My thought is that you have to have something different, cool, and a boat that people what to spend their money on now that the economy is rough. That is why I scaled my plans back some, working on the prototype, and want to get one out there.

 

Good I'm still in the running for the American Dream!

 

If it was easy everybody would be doing it.

 

ok,
i have to agree with everyone else as im in the boat building business. South texas all we use is shollow running, tunnel hulls or modified V hull. Ill just give you my cost for a 16 long, 6.5ft wide bottom beam tunnel hull with 18 inch sides with a gunnel, we just finished. the mold cost me very little in outside labor as i own a constuction company so i paid cost for alot of work plus i put my time in it. i have over 10,000 man hours logged and about 20k in material. The molds came from a plug and everything had to be perfict before you cast a mold off the plug so we paid someone to lazer shoot the plug for squareness.( $900.00) we had a specially built metal level bed that we can adjust when making the plug.( $1250.00) them we built a frame, bondo'd and sanded till we were blue in the face, lazer shoot it again and TADAAAAA. a plug.. then we used special resins in the mold for production( any supplier will inform you of what that is) and laid the mold up 3 times thicker in gelcoat, resin and glass to make it last and then added ALOT of thin wall metal tube ribbing that we fitted around it and welded it together and then glassed it to the mold so it wouldnt warp over time. theres a ton of details....... all in all if i put my number together and see what ive spent, its comes to $101,657.98 total for this mold WITHOUT adding my labor, only the reciepts i have for this mold and labor i paid out for sanding. NOW. as for a business model. You have to have a market for what your selling. Example, my market covers the intire coast from texas to florida. we also make 9 other boat styles from skiffs, scooters and bass/ river boats. Do we make money? 6 years down the road id like to say yes, but it goes all into the employees, and growth, more designs and such. You have to have a design everyone likes. so have several. only make 2 or 3 of each design you have and have them for sell and only make them as there sold. idea.... sell a design you think poeple like in your area. Study the different boat builders designs that out there. choice things you like from both designs, get input from owners and then build your plug from that info. as for space... you need. Complete dried in area with concrete floor perfered for the plug design and storage of plug for future. ad vents for all the dust you'll make from sanding. you'll then need an area for pruduction... MORE room the better

 

"see what ive spent, its comes to $101,657.98 total for this mold WITHOUT adding my labor"

So, what is the square footage of this mold? I ask because around here molds from designs are running $225/sqft. (1/3 plug, 2/3 mold constructon)

-jim lee

 

Go For It!

You have been given some fair but not practical advise, if this is your dream GO FOR IT! I too am starting a boat company, be smart about it, buy a used mold from someone else, don't try to design your own just yet, then give it to a operating boat company and have them build it to you specs, you can then buy it from them under your own private label,and resell it, NO OVERHEAD!, once you build up your brand and quality, you can design and build your own hull, and open your own factory if thats what you want. Many current boat companies have started with this method. In this tuff economy many name brand companies could not survive because of their massive overhead. When the economy returns (and it will!) the larger boat companies (brunswick etc) will be looking for good small companies to buy and expand their market share. You and I will be ready!