how would one go about starting a shop/store?

[hongsukjune]

i know that some of u guys who post on zilvia own shops and know people who have successfully started their own import performance businesses. i am very interested in starting a shop or a store for import performance parts and etc. but i dont know where to begin. if you guys know anyone i can talk to, or know information please let me know.

is there anyone in the san diego area that's willing to let me work at their shop to gain experience? im seriously interested in learning the ropes. i'll work for free if it'll be too much trouble!

[NeLO aNgeLO]

market in san diego,ca would be very very tough. u got so many top quality import shops already. heres a few speed alliance, group 5,mckinney motors, jim wolf tech,etc.......-dave

[hongsukjune]

yeah i know, there are a lot. it would be nice to learn how places like group 5, pann, and speedalliance started up. then maybe i can go somewhere else, like my home town corona, cuz there is not many places there yet.

[brianglawson]

well you could always open an internet business and take over what
www.autoimaging.com just gave up. they had a bunch of stuff but now they are leaving, if you would supply what they did and more on the net for better prices you would be kicking. i would be buy8ing from them right now if they didnt close:wtc:

[zero.counter]

The search function brought about a previous post that I remember as very informative.

Old Thread (http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?s=&threadid=29953&highlight=starting+a+business)

Read the forum rules as well to cut down on posting previously discussed topics.

P.S. Don't take offense to my suggestion. It was in no way meant as an offensive. :D

[hongsukjune]

thanks for the search. i guess i didnt put in the correct words.

[240Dave]

IMO, anybody without enough...something...to do research on their own will never make it running their own business. As a small business owner you have to effectively run marketing, accounting, and business sides of your business as well as being good enough at what you do to provide a quality product. This requires a great ability to research along with stellar networking and people skills...then you have to know something about cars.

I'm not trying to put you down, not at all. I respect anybody willing to put themselves out there and do with it takes to start their own business, however small it may be. But I think you need to do a lot more on your own before you can even begin to consider undertaking something like this. Use google.com to your advantage, searching anything you can think of. Go to barns&noble(or other local bookstore) or amazon.com and look up books on starting and running your own business, management, leadership, marketing, customer service, etc, etc, etc...
Then you have to find out what legal steps you have to take to run your own business and do proper taxes and such.

No smart business owner will help you compete with them...but you can still learn from them through observation.
Autoimaging failed because they sucked, don't be like them.

Good luck :)

Dave-
Who was almost a business owner about three times but after MONTHS of research decided to wait a few more years.

[TokyoDrifterXo7]

i might be able to help you out. E-mail me at [email protected] and we can talk more
thats if your seriously interested

[hongsukjune]

thanks for the help and input guys. im still going through school (third year at ucsd) so its going to have to wait, but while i go to school i want to learn the ropes by working and observing what others did or are doing. i will be doing a lot research too. i understand that this isnt going to happen overnight, but i do have a passion for cars and also for import performance, a job like this would be a great one to have. i would be doing what i love. so i will be doing what i can during my four years to gather as much info as possible. i appreciate your replys. please keep them coming...:)