Per Month Income for Automatic and other questions?

[Bubbles Galore]

This has been discussed quite a bit....but I want to know again. How are the numbers showing for your autos?

My distributor is tossing me all sorts of great numbers, but I want to talk to the operators. Is your auto still averaging out to be equal to about 3 self serve bays? I

'm thinking about putting in a new Washworld Razor? Anyone have one of those?

What about auto cashiers?

I am pretty new to this whole automatic world and don't want the wool pulled over my eyes (assuming I was a sheep).

Thanks!

 

[Waxman]

I'd say it's a bit more than 2 ss bays combined. Mine takes credit cards and ss bays do not. I like my hamilton acw but have heard others do not. Mine has been fine for 3 years.

There's a certain customer who definitely wants an automatic wash. I can give you some specific #'s if you PM me. If doing it over again, I'd go with a slightly faster machine w/virtual treadle.

 

[Gabriel]

Ditto!!!!!!!!

 

[rph9168]

I have found it to be in the 3 times range but a lot depends on the location and the current customer base. Are there other automatics in your area? What effect do you anticipate on your self service business? Do you think you will expand your customer base or lose some of your self service revenue to the automatic? Will you expand your marketing efforts? Will the look at your wash be enhanced or will it look like an add-on?

 

[MEP001]

For the first few years we were open, our auto bay was three times the income of our average self-serve. A large grocery store chain opened an auto nearby, discounted and well-advertised as well as being in the center of a huge market that was almost all ours. Our auto is down a bit now, but self-serve average is up, making the auto equivalent to two self-serve bays.

We run a Hamilton Gold Line, which has been almost 100% flawless. The dial-up modem is a little slow, maybe 25 seconds for a transaction, but not too bad. We've opted not to tie it in to the DAN system, which would be so fast that it interrupts the "please wait" message but would add another transaction fee. Tokenotes are great for advertising, are affordable and can be used as free washes or discounts, but only work with Hamilton's validators and not Mars (which is a much better validator and even offered as an option when ordering). Mars coupons are expensive and aren't versatile or customizable.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Putting in an auto would definitely be an enhancement to the site.

We have a loyal customer base at the wash since we have been in business as strictly a self serve for 20 years. We might lose some of our self serve customers to the auto, but I don't forsee a huge loss in customers.

Through some very ambitious marketing, I would be able to attract an entire different clientele to the site.

There are other autos in my local vicinity, but they are not up to date by any stretch. I definitely have some more research to do, but it is looking like this will be the way to go.

 

[MEP001]

We have a loyal customer base at the wash since we have been in business as strictly a self serve for 20 years. We might lose some of our self serve customers to the auto, but I don't forsee a huge loss in customers.

You probably won't lose any self-serve business at all. You might even gain some once your auto has been running and established. I've seen first hand that customers who use a self-serve generally won't use an auto, and vice-versa, but there are a few who will swing by once in a while and get a quick auto wash between thorough self-serve wash visits.

 

[Ric]

John,
I am familiar with your site. I feel it is comparable to mine. I added an IBA (WashWorld) to mine after 22 years of self serve only. I am seeing revenue equal to 4-5 self serve bays. There has been no loss in bay revenue. Of course the added traffic adds to the vac/vending revenue. I know you have been thinking about a dog wash, but I think an iba may be a better payoff for you.

The new WashWorld Razor looks great. There are some neat improvements over my WashWorld High Velocity machine. WashWorld's factory support is fantastic. While some companies appear stagnant, they seem to be working hard to upgrade, improve and develop new products. They called me out of the blue a couple weeks ago and want to send me an upgrade to my machine...no charge. My unit is over 3 years old! I highly recommend them.

 

[Waxman]

You will be serving a new clientele,as well as converting some old clientele.

These 2 wash types can and should, IMO be thought of as different businesses because they really are.

People will wash in an IBA on super cold days, windy days, etc when it stinks to ss wash.

get credit card acceptance, virtual treadle, strong presoak, foam polish and spot free. photo eyes to shut down the blowers and start the next wash if customers blip thru. heated entry and exit pads. ro reject recovery. automated insulated doors w/NEMA 4 operators. you will have a bada$$ auto that makes $$ as long as you maintain and market it and you have a good location.

 

[robert roman]

I was involved with two mini-tunnel projects last year. Both are averaging over $9.00 a car. The most recent one is a 55' long conveyor in a 40' long building. It is averaging over $10 a car and has hit a 32 car hour. Would your proposed in-bay automatic be able to do this? Maybe you should consider the benefits of a mini-tunnel before diving in with an in-bay.

I am currently working on a mini-tunnel project in the NE; 55' long conveyor in a 60' long building. We anticipate this one will exceed an average of $12 a car.

 

[mac]

Q. How can you tell when a salesman is lying? A. When his lips move. I can say that because, believe it or not, I am one. I also own an automatic in a c store and have had several in the past. The last average I saw from the surveys showed about 5K per auto per month. But, and there's always a but, I have seen then do from 1K up to 15K per month. Location is everything, and it is not always easy to judge a site. I once had the only automatic in a town of 30,000 and it barely did 1K per month. I have seen a site with a 20 yead old touchless doing 50 to 80 cars per day in a wash on a one way street. I always tell customers to figure on the national average and if it cash flows positive from that, do it. That is assuming there isn't an overabundance of washes in the area.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Thanks for all the great advice guys!

With a daily traffic count of about 25k, I think that with some good marketing, I should be able to pull some serious traffic through the site. I have been doing alright as a self serve, but it is definitely time to do an upgrade. An automatic would be the most expensive upgrade, but the return is much higher than say a dogwash.

 

[bigleo48]

Bubbles...do both. Use part of your mechanical room for a petwash (8'x8'). I'm intrigued by Roman's mini-tunnel...likely worth a look.

BigLeo

 

[Bubbles Galore]

I would love to put a mini-tunnel in. I just don't want to have to deal with the building mods I would have to do. I can get the new Razor in my bay without any mods except for extending the floor heat. More cost effective than extending the building another 25 feet.

 

[Ric]

I chose a mini tunnel over an IBA in 1985 for the same reasons as you would today...mainly increased volume. It started as a 40' conveyor and an employee. Later it went to a 60' conveyor and more employees. Later again a new location down the road with a 120' conveyor and even more employees. After 20 years I sold that location and now I have a 5 bay plus one iba with one employee. I now have time to breathe. The tunnel was financially rewarding but it came with a ball and chain attached to my ankle. It's not for everyone. An iba (or two) and a few ss bays can be managed without the employee issues that tie you down...when your employee doesn't show up in the morning or has to leave for a dentist appt. it's not a big deal, your still rolling...24 hours a day.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

^ My thoughts exactly.

 

[robert roman]

Is it really cost effective to take a pass on modifyiing the building if you give up the potential to triple your income stream? Moreover, the trend with mini-tunnels is moving towards designing them so they can be operated without a full-time attendant.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

RR - Very valid point. I guess it would be a much more prudent business decision to approach all options before I just jump on the automatic bandwagon.