how to make money in this hobby?

[kryptonite5b]

im serously thinking about it. i own a construction company. my back hurts. my knees hurt. my shoulders hurt. my hands ache. and its a rat race. i do it not becouse im a good contractor, but becouse i can sell anything..the rest is all guess work. and it was easy at the time(7 years ago!). ive been researching what is involved in opening a retail store.. (again). i just don't know how profitable it is having a hobby shop. i have a strong background in networking, sales and human resources. its the only thing i know. there is a good demand for it in my area. we have 2 active long standing nitro tracks and 1 shoty toy/hobby store 25 miles away with another guy that sell parts out of his garage on the side(locals only). i don't have that much money in the bank, but i can fix that. i also don't have much debt. the other positive note is i live like a rockstar on $3500.00 a month. my mortgage is $500.00 and no car payment(09' matrix, paid for:cool2 or credit card debt. my wife doesn't need to work, no kids, and im only 33 years old. i can carry a shop while running my construction company for a while, but my end goal would be to stop killing myself slowly while swinging a hammer.. somebody please talk some sence into me or ask me why i haven't opened the doors yet!!
this place is on a main road and is $500 a month. was a bait-n-tackle shop.
https://www.largescaleforums.com/newattachment.php?do=manageattach&p=

 

[Kamitiro Fan]

If you really love the hobby and put in the effort, I bet you could make money there.
GO FOR IT

 

[[AK]Zip]

If this is something you really want to do I say go for it, but as a business owner myself (not RC related) I can tell you that you will need a nice web site where customers will be able to go and place orders along with very competitive pricing or you simply won't make any sales.

Good luck to you!

-Alex-

 

[kryptonite5b]

If this is something you really want to do I say go for it, but as a business owner myself (not RC related) I can tell you that you will need a nice web site where customers will be able to go and place orders along with very competitive pricing or you simply won't make any sales.

Good luck to you!

-Alex-

thats one of the things im having a hard time finding out about. were do i begin to look for someone to design a website?

 

[[AK]Zip]

thats one of the things im having a hard time finding out about. were do i begin to look for someone to design a website?

I have a large background in web development so I built my own site, but otherwise you have to look around. Price depends on what all you want on the site and who does it. Don't skimp out on a web page as more than likely you will get more orders through that than people coming in.

I know a guy who builds web pages who I can get you in touch with and you may be able to work something out with him. Send me a PM with your email address.

-Alex-

 

[csp1971]

KRYPT! Live the dream.

I worked in a hobby store in the late 80's early 90's. It was a blast. We carried everything from RC cars, to HO trains to art supplies. Some stuff I hated dealing with.

I would say also focus on a mail order/ebay operation as well, especially if you are only going to plan on being open part time. Make certain hours are convenient for people. I hate it when a place is only open until 6pm or 7pm. WTF? I'm not a retired flyer, I have things to do all day.

Hang out at the race tracks, find out what people are driving, what they use for batteries/fuel, speed controls, etc. It's always changing, new cars, new parts, new this, new that. You get people that female dog because this or that isn't in stock. When you do get it, no one buys it. I did the above when I raced and worked in that store for a few years. Reported stuff to the owner, who would then complain that his profit on certain items wasn't worth purchasing it because he wasn't making enough. Sometimes he would just order a bunch of crap and then we had to sell it because he got "a helluva deal". Well duh, no kidding, it's because Horizon/Great Planes couldn't sell it!

Make certain you talk to an accountant/bookkeeper about keeping track of inventory, taxes, insurance, what software to use, etc. as well as some general advice. I'd find someone that has retail clients that have a good understanding. I'm sure you are already aware of that having your own company and all. My wife started her photography business a year ago. There was quite a bit to it. She handled all of it and it's been going really well for her. She had a bookkeeper look at her books to make certain she was inputting things correctly, correct categories, depreciation, etc.

Also, good for you if you don't plan on having children. They take up a chunk of free time. I've been getting my Rampage set up now for about a month because any time I get started, I get pulled in some other direction. Same with going to run the damn things. Go get fixed if you want to prevent any "surprises"!

 

[pipeous]

you could also consider getting a mill and make parts, eventually going cnc. or go cnc right away. as you build up programs for making parts, your business will increase... you'll have to learn some software or buy a 3d scanner right away or better a combo of both.

just an advocate opinion to consider as well. powder coating or anodizing, vac forming bodies, painting bodies. there are many ways. I got together with an electronics guy a few years back and we ordered shipping crate loads of products. I sold about 20,000 servo extensions on rcu. now I help develop products and get to test things and provide feedback. lots of ways to make money.

 

[roadrashracing]

I don't think there is much money to be made in r/c, unless you build a track or sell something else besides are r/c. I mean you could make a few dollars but not enough to make a living. Like others said you would be better off like doing a machine shop, so someother aspect, besides selling r/cs. There is just so much competion out there be local, or online. There is a family that ran a shop out of their basement and have been doing it for 10 years.

 

[looker2756]

Low margins & major competition in the market make it rough in the hobby business. It takes tons of sales to make any real profit. Especially if your used to having 3500$ a month right now. I would hate for you to become dissapointed with a great hobby, over a business decision, but that is for sure your choice. I have had the same thoughts myself & nearly acted on them many times in the past. I now work for a hobby distributor / dealer & know way more about how things actually work. Meanwhile a LHS has come & gone in our area, due to high overhead & low sales. I would certainly be supportive if you decide to give it a go though. Keep me in mind if you need more advice, or inventory. hone:

 

[crawlercrazed]

inm my area in michigan riders hobby shop did plastic models, pine derby, airplanes, telescopes.......... and rc in the past few years they closed a couple stores due to the economy.... but yeat a hardware store that did hobby opened a new store thats strictly hobby..... but honestly i buy most of my stuff online.... over on another forum that does the baja 5b n 5t, most of the guys that sell stuff make their stuff n sell it on there.

 

[kryptonite5b]

well, im not going to dive right into opening a shop because of the over head and how much time it would take away from my main source of income. but i did do some homework and found some products that have a higher profit margin. 1/10, 1/8 scale nitro and rockcrawlers seem to be the hot thing on the net. so i'll dip in and see how it goes. i had to change my tax id info, apply for a fictitous name licence and got my dealers licence. i guess i'll just turn "another" spare room into an invontory closet. see how it goes..

 

[GreenLep]

I don't know if anyone said anything, but if you can get a track built with the shop. Im sure you could make some money off of that as well.