Guide: How to Buy a Car Wash Business

Car Wash Industry

Did you know that the car wash industry is growing faster than any other retail segment? According to the National Auto Care Association, consumers will spend $13 billion on car washes and related services in 2019. If you’re thinking about starting a business as a car wash franchisee, this growth is good news for you—and your bottom line!

Things you need to know before buying a car wash business

As you begin the process of opening a car wash, there are several important things to keep in mind. First and foremost, it’s critical that you develop a solid business plan. Your goals should be well defined, as well as your short-term and long-term objectives for running the business. If possible, start by researching what other car washes have done in order to get an idea of how much money they made during their first year in operation and how competitive their prices were compared with others in their area. You may also want to consider hiring an accountant or attorney who has experience with small businesses so that they can help guide through this process. Make sure all licensing requirements are met before opening day: This includes making sure permits have been obtained from local authorities (if applicable) such as sanitation inspectors or fire marshals; obtaining proper liability insurance coverage; acquiring any necessary licenses; registering vehicles used by employees (this varies by state).

Financial Commitment

Before you buy a car wash, make sure you’re ready. Do your homework and be prepared to find the right location, equipment and services for your business.

If you are buying a used car wash, there are many factors that determine whether it will be profitable for you or not. For example, if you have never worked in the automotive industry before, it’s important that the seller provide training on how to operate all of the equipment and software at their location(s). The seller should also be able to show proof that they were making money when they owned this business.

Location Matters

Once you’ve decided that the car wash business is for you, it’s time to find your location. Location is very important for car washes as it can make or break a business.

While location is important, there are many factors to consider when choosing where to place your car wash. You’ll want to make sure that:

The location is easy to get to
The location is visible from the road
The location has plenty of traffic (highways and residential areas)

Existing car wash vs building a new one

You have a few options when buying a car wash. You can buy an existing car wash and expand it, or you could buy the land and build from scratch.

Buying an existing car wash is a great way to get in on the industry quickly and with minimal investment. These businesses are often for sale because they’re not making enough money to justify their owners’ time or energy anymore. This means there’s less competition for you in this market. In some cases, there may even be other opportunities for expanding your business after you purchase it (for example, selling snacks or offering detailing services).

However, purchasing an existing business also comes with its own set of challenges: namely that you need to know what you’re getting into before taking on another company’s failures as well as their successes (regardless of how well they did). This can be difficult because most sellers aren’t going to tell their buyers about all of their problems unless directly asked—which means buyers must do research on their own! It also means that if something goes wrong later down the line due to hidden issues like bad equipment or structural problems while under construction then new owners will likely be held accountable by local authorities since they would’ve been responsible during construction anyway but didn’t know anything was wrong until later when something happened beyond repairable levels because nothing broke prior so nobody ever checked thoroughly enough beforehand

Services

As you plan your car wash, you’ll need to consider what services will be offered. Not all customers will want every service, but it’s good to have a range of options available. The more services you offer, the more money you can make—but it also means that your customers are more likely to have something they don’t like about their experience with your car wash. So here are some questions to ask yourself:

What services do people most commonly request at other car washes? Which ones are most profitable? Why?
Which of these services would be easiest and/or least expensive for me to provide?
Are there any environmental benefits I can gain by offering a certain type of cleaning or waxing technique over another (for example, a waterless dry shampoo)?

Conclusion

If you’re ready to start your own car washing business, it can be a great investment. You just need to follow these steps and make sure that you buy the right equipment and layout for your location.