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Alexy

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Posts posted by Alexy

  5. Posted · Report reply

    What is the biggest challenge to your business right now?

    Unsure of the future costs associated with the industry. We are growing but with commercial credit literally stopped we must pay as we go for new equipment and vehicles which makes it a exercise in planning. Aslo the price of chemicals has gone up as well as transportation ( gas and vehicles in general) and we will not absorb any more of the costs, the margin of profit is too small to allow it.

    What can you do or did you do to overcome that challenge?

    We plan large purchases in advance and have done gradual purchases. One area we have greatly benifited from is purchasing equipment with low hours as opposed to new rquipment. The cost savings were over 40% and the name brand equipment has held up with no problems. With a high turn over in this industry right now there are excellent deals to be had on equipment without the new and dealer mark ups.

    Was your effort successful and why or why not?

    So far we have been sucessfull with our efforts to grow but it all goes back to planning out EXACTLY what you want and going from there in a systematic way.

    If the challenge is beyond your control what are you doing to try to manage your business in spite of it?

    Nothing is out of reach, never quit and never give up.

    Where is your business right now compared to where you thought it might be at the beginning of the year?

    We are growing not as much as we would like but in these times we are blessed to be on a upswing in buisness.

    Where do you see your business in the next 12 months based upon your specific area?

    Staying a steady course of growth.

  6. Posted · Report reply

    I can't belive anyone drinks starbucks coffee.

    It is terrible, burnt on arrival from the roasters poorly ground, tastes bad and is overpriced.

    Dunkin Dougnuts and Mcdonalds have a better coffee at about 1/2 the price.

    Also coffee has no more than 3 ingredients coffee creme and sugar , thats it

    if you are putting anything else in it you need to grow up.

  8. Posted · Edited by Alexy · Report reply

    Actually if you have a buisness out of a vehicle you need a marine inland policy to cover contents unless things are specificly insured.

    Inland marine insurance indemnifies loss to moving or movable property and is an outgrowth of ocean marine insurance. Historically, ocean marine insurance held the transporter responsible for property loss before, during, and after the completion of the voyage. In the 1800s the non-ocean portion of the journey grew as cargoes were transferred to non-ocean vessels (such as barges) and the term "inland marine" was coined.

    Inland marine policies became known as "floaters" since the property to which coverage was originally extended was essentially "floating." The coverage has grown to include property that just involves an element of transportation. The property that is insured under inland marine coverage is typically one of the following:

    • Actually in transit

    • Held by a bailee

    • At a fixed location that is an instrument of transportation

    • A movable type of goods that is often at different locations

    The following coverages represent a wide range of the types of coverages typically called "inland marine":

    • Accounts Receivable

    • Bailee Customer's Goods

    • Builders' Risk

    • Communication Towers and Equipment

    • Computer Coverage

    • Contractors Equipment

    • Commercial Floaters

    • Dealers

    • Exhibitions

    • Fine Arts

    • Furriers

    • Golf Equipment

    • Guns

    • Installation

    • Jewelers

    • Leased Property

    • Mobile Medical Equipment

    • Motor Truck Cargo

    • Museums

    • Musical Instruments

    • Processing Risks

    • Rigger's Liability

    • Scheduled Property

    • Transportation

    • Trip Transit

    • Valuable Papers

    • Warehouse Legal

  17. Posted · Report reply

    I am the "another guy" in Ant's post. Prior to last month. I had no web presence a yellowpages.com add and advertised with monthly postcards.

    Since the web page went live I landed the largest cleaning job we have ever done in less than 48 hrs after the site went live. They found us thru a google search for hood cleaning. the web page paid for itself for the next 8-10 years with one job in 48 hrs so it does work.

  18. Posted · Report reply

    I have a Ford E-350 diesel box truck for the majority of our work (KEC).

    I have a F250 4x2 ( gas) that has a Reading cap on the back that can do 99% of the work the box truck can do and can be parked ina city space with no CMV restrictions so it is very usefull in tight urban areas. We also have a enclosed 8x4 haulmark trailer with a electric machine in the back that works well and can be hooked up to the p/u to allow 2 jobs to be done at the same time if they are close together.

  23. Posted · Edited by Alexy · Report reply

    Great!!! I will see what is involved on my end and see how it parallels with your advice. So basically, get the warning out first. Then Start the dirty work.

    If they were all like him I wouldn't think twice about becoming a milkman right now.

    Thank God they are not. He's a real class act.

    When you write the letter be sure you write out exactly the amount due and when it needs to be to you. DO NOT ACCEPT a PARTIAL PAYMENT. When you do this you have then extended him credit to pay the bill and can not pursue the judgement in the same way. ( You can but it is much more involved).

    If you want a example of the letter I use PM'm me and I will e-mail it to you. I do commercial exhaust cleaning only so it is diffrent as far as who you are sueing ( a buisness as opposed to a person) and the judgement can be attached to a bank account their sales tax bill or state income tax returns. I have actually been luck I did this to a restaurant that closed and had a judgement against the corp for the amount. when they filed bankrupcy since my judgement was allready in place I was paid first and got my money . If you did not have your money by 12-31-08 you can write the bill off as a loss on you 2008 taxes but it must be documneted as both income and a loss to claim it.

  24. Posted · Report reply

    Send him the bill and a demand letter giving 10 buisness days to pay the amount due or you will begin a civil suit against him. The letter needs to have your bill copy and needs to be sent registered mail retun recipt required ( will run about 13 dollars at the post office) The return is considered legal service to him of a debt owed and if he does not reply to it you then go to small claims court where you are licenced to do buisness and file a warrant in debt for the ammount in question. You will need to fill out the paperwork write out a bill of particulars ( what happened) and file it withthe court and pay fro the sheriff to serve it ( here in VA the filing is 35 dollars and the service is 25 dollars) ONCE SERVED IF HE DOES NOT PAY OR GO TO COURT ONCE THERE YOU CAN BE COMPENSATED NOT ONLY FOR THE BILL BUT YOUR TIME AND COSTS TO FILE THE PAPERWORK. If he doesn't show the judgement will be issued against him and any tax money he gets the following year will go to you first to stisfy the judgement and the court will enforce it you will not have to do any furter once the judgement is issued by the court.

  25. Posted · Report reply

    I have a feeling the majority of folks in the trades especially pressure washing and painting have never heard of an 'Income Statement' nor a 'Balance Sheet' or even a cash flow report.

    I think most guys have a checkbook mentality of running their finances - as long it's positive, they're ok.

    Well, as bold as the statement is - I think contractors that don't have an intimate understanding of what those items are, or don't even make monthly reports to keep track of how their business is doing - I am willing to state they aren't professional and don't deserve to be in business. All these threads that go into battles over price - I think are totally useless. It just proves to me that my peers aren't truly in business, if they did the books, or paid someone to do the books and make reports back to them - they'd know whether or not something wasn't worth doing or not.

    ..Ok then......

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