what are the franchise fees? Those can be a killer

I think location would be a plus when compared to other local shops. Some of the good shops are out in the boonies yet still manage to do business like Redline and even the Harley dealer which are both out in Yorktown. Most of the other local shops are in shitty neighborhoods or ghettos or you have to go through a crap area to get to them

Before I'd open anything I'd make sure I had a background/experience/education in business management or management in general before I threw all my $ at it. I've known way too many people to come into $ or open up businesses and have them fold because they weren't prepared for all the costs and didn't have the experience. Only a couple ways to set yourself apart from the half-dozen other shops is to have excellent customer service, better prices, and more stuff in stock.


Having just a physical store would be hard to make it but if you also sold online then it would be that much easier as well as having a small repair/mod shop out back. You're going to need a ton of start-up capital to get it going and to get a lot of stuff in stock for even a store on the smaller side. I don't know how people are even suggesting a huge shop like the size of a k-mart. That would take millions to get going. Also zoning, permits and regulations would prohibit a lot of things being incorporated into the store because VA is a commonwealth and overregulated when compared to many other states. So no bar/tattoo parlor/go-go dancing all in the same building. Probably going to need a hefty amount of savings until it starts operating at a profit which could be months or a year away depending on season. Winter will be absolutely dead and little money will be made so spring and summer will be absolutely essential since this is a 6 month riding season for many (unlike florida and cali where the majority of successful MC related businesses are which benefit from a nearly year round riding climate).

Probably a weekly bike night at the shop would be a good way to get exposure. A not-so popular suggestion would be to do all makes of bikes and try and get a small section of the Harley crowd who makes up a large percentage of the riding public. They're where the $ is and work or parts for a few dozen HD's would help a lot.