who would go...

[mikefate]

...if there was a place that was open until 2am daily?

basically a hang out spot. something part pool hall, part arcade, part cafe, part import enthusiast meet spot.

drug and alcohol free.

something constructive to do besides hang out at malls and get hassled by the police.

i am getting older, and considering opening a small cafe of sorts for ages 16-30 to hang out and BS at. it would be mainly import car oriented, as there is a huge number of people in nj from the honda peeps to the lexus peeps to the suuby peeps.

just wondering of everyone could spit some input as i look further into this idea.

[ElusiveIS]

Mike,

Few things..

1) You need a location that has a decent size parking lot
2) You DO NOT want neighbors.. they'll complain about loud music.. loud exhaust.. etc..
3) You need a building that is by itself..
4) It has to be easily accessible

[Dtrip77]

i always thought of something like that when i was a teeanager. Cause theres really no place for them to go so that would be a good idea. But since im in my 20s now i kinda wouldnt want to hang out with teenagers. Obviously drug free but alcohol could bring you more money. (just something to think about). The thing is with haveing a "hangout" spot for car enthusiast is that you want them to spend money inside. Cause if its just car clubs that wanna meet up and just chill ur not making money that way.

[Dtrip77]

lol theres to many options on that poll...i dont know wat to pick

[ElusiveIS]

^^ you can pick as much as you want.

[mikefate]

yeah, i made the optino to pick more than one. feel free to add any thoughts here.

and with the no booze/no drugs standpoint, it gives the police and community less reason to put it down becuase its somewhere we can be constructive with our time rather than people getting into trouble.

plus a liquor license is major bucks.

[Dtrip77]

gotcha......


u just answerd it.

[whitetezza]

no liquor?

f that shit.

[ElusiveCBR600]

getting alcohol license is expensive and hard. Mike, places like fusion the bubble tea place is the perfect thing to do.

pm me and eric about it, we want to get into business.

[mikefate]

^thats what me and eric discussed the other night briefly. theres no overhead really. and without major operations, employees are easy to handle, especialyl with more than one owner, and not having to offer health benefits. im still looking to keep my day job to pay the bills. this is just to step into owning my own business an d not doing the 6 to 6 the rest of my life. shits takign a toll and im barley 30.

hey willie, you want a job? hehehehe

[ElusiveCBR600]

Mike and Eric
We need to sit down one night either ONLINE CHAT, or in person on how we should start a business.

let me know bros.

[BrokeAZZWillie]

^thats what me and eric discussed the other night briefly. theres no overhead really. and without major operations, employees are easy to handle, especialyl with more than one owner, and not having to offer health benefits. im still looking to keep my day job to pay the bills. this is just to step into owning my own business an d not doing the 6 to 6 the rest of my life. shits takign a toll and im barley 30.

hey willie, you want a job? hehehehe


ill work for awhile .........;) part time ....the plaza where my resturant is would be a nice spot because the parking lot is huge...

[ElusiveIS]

Good read...

Different approaches to starting your own business


Introduction

Every year, thousands of people decide to set up their own business.

This guide looks at why you might opt to run your own business and different ways of making the move.

It considers the positive and negative aspects of each approach, and tells you where you can find out more.

Subjects covered in this guide

* Introduction
* A good business idea (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789245)
* A tried and tested business model (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789246)
* A specific business opportunity (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789248)
* A business with social aims (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1077499966)
* A change in circumstances (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789249)
* Taking control and changing your lifestyle (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789250)
* Going into business full time (http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789266)
* Going into business part time
(http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?r.l3=1073862288&r.l2=1073859137&r.l1=1073858805&r.s=sc&type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073789258)

MORE - http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/layer?r.l1=1073858805&r.s=tl&topicId=1073859137

[BDR]

I thought about it..... but it wont last more than a few months. Who is providing security? What happens when fights break out? What happens when someone is injured or killed? What is the Maximum capacity for a parking lot. How do you plan to make money to pay a staff and pay rent by just having kids "hang out" ? or drinking bubble tea? You need a low-overhead revenue generator

It all sounds good until the lawsuit-frenzied society comes looking for you.


Why not bring back the 1950's style drive up malt shops :) that would be hot

[ElusiveCBR600]

^ life is a risk my friend

[ElusiveIS]

Why not bring back the 1950's style drive up malt shops :) that would be hot

http://www.streetsports.com/club/meets/parkette/080504/parkette2.jpg

http://www.streetsports.com/club/meets/parkette/default.htm

[ElusiveCBR600]

problem is when dealing opening those places, you have to deal with crowds that are there to hang out rather than buying shit from you.

you'll need security, because nowadays, kids are just rude.

[ElusiveIS]

Mike, you need to do it Tokyo Drift style.. meet at a parking garage and have a DJ spinning music. Charge an entrance fee. hahaha.

[SamanthaIS300]

I'd definitely go, Mike. :D

There are a lot of nights when Chris and I are either down here at school or at home and feel like we have "nothing" to do, so we wind up spending the night in. (Don't get me wrong; spending the night in has its perks. ;)) I do wish there was a local place to just go to and relax, maybe have some good food, pool, etc.

What is this about needing security? Mike is the security, bitches. I wouldn't mess with him. (Actually, I would but not in a way that would get me kicked out of his club. ;))

[na_2door]

I owned a internet cafe out in colorado. It was a hang out spot and if anyone wanted to play some computer games they can come in an use my comps for $3 an hour or $20 all day pass. It was a great business and I thought about opening one out here but theres already waaaay to much competition. But for NJ hmmm ....


Internet Cafe + Bubble tea/non alcoholic beverages = 1 chill spot


I already came up with a name for the place ..... "Bubble Cafe". Hmmm ...............

[SamanthaIS300]

I want to open a place for people to take power naps at. There's some place in NY that does this and supposedly generates a nice buck. I suppose that there is also more of a market for it in NY, though.

[ElusiveCBR600]

I owned a internet cafe out in colorado. It was a hang out spot and if anyone wanted to play some computer games they can come in an use my comps for $3 an hour or $20 all day pass. It was a great business and I thought about opening one out here but theres already waaaay to much competition. But for NJ hmmm ....


Internet Cafe + Bubble tea/non alcoholic beverages = 1 chill spot


I already came up with a name for the place ..... "Bubble Cafe". Hmmm ...............

that's my idea... we had one here in south jersey, but they didnt know how to run the biz and went bankrupted in 5 months.

[SamanthaIS300]

I have never even heard of this so-called "bubble tea". It sounds good, though. I'm a big tea drinker. I must be missing out.

[na_2door]

that's my idea... we had one here in south jersey, but they didnt know how to run the biz and went bankrupted in 5 months.

People need to understand when you first open a business doesn't matter if its a internet cafe, restaurant, or a shop you will NOT be making money the first 6 months so get your rent money ready prior. Shit maybe not even the first year depending on advertising.

Man, the more i think about the more i missed my net cafe. It was a fun place for everyone. I use to host tournaments for warcraft, starcraft, and most importantly counter-strike with cash prizes. Word of mouth got around and people from all over colorado was coming to practice for the tourneys. Hopefully i'll be able to open another one in the coming years.

I have never even heard of this so-called "bubble tea". It sounds good, though. I'm a big tea drinker. I must be missing out.

Sammy if you like drinking tea you'll LOVE bubble tea.

[ElusiveIS]

^^ there you go Mike.. lets get the plan ready. Internet cafe will have a big starting cost though.. for pc games, you need the latest and greatest pc's.. plus you need to keep updating them. hmmm...

[na_2door]

^^ there you go Mike.. lets get the plan ready. Internet cafe will have a big starting cost though.. for pc games, you need the latest and greatest pc's.. plus you need to keep updating them. hmmm...

PC's, Games, good internet connection (t1 usually runs for about 1grand a month), A network program to connect all comps to 1 main comp, comfortable chairs, and if you get good games you need to pay a licensing since your offering it to customers at a cost so the company of the games want a cut aswell, theres a lot more to it :o

[BDR]

Mike, you need to do it Tokyo Drift style.. meet at a parking garage and have a DJ spinning music. Charge an entrance fee. hahaha.

Now THAT would work....

Parking garage structure in the City by day (revenue generator), hangout by night...

Problem is ..... is the Mafia into the import scene :p

[LexIS77]

If I was to model a cafe out, I would first pick out a very low property rental cost in comparison to most areas of NJ. I couldn't see any kind of PC bong/Coffee house/Cafe bringing in high amounts of profit, because the most you can expect the average walk-in customer to spend is probably in the 5-10 dollar range. However, if anyone here knows the Fort Lee/Edgewater area, this is where I see the most successful cafe style businesses. For one, theres a really nice Korean Coffee house called Piola in Edgewater. I don't mind going there once in a while with a female and spending like 6 bucks on a cappuccino, so I could see theres a good profit margin there.

Just doing the math in my head, I don't understand how PC places operate. Heres my thoughts....Having commercial internet access is 200/month I believe. Electricity for a 16 hr/day business is around 5-600 bucks/month I think. Paying an employee maybe 7 bucks/hr x 16 hrs/day x 7days/week = 784 bucks/week payout x 4 weeks/month = 3136 bucks/month payout. The theres rent. I can't see the rent for any commercial building being less than 3.5-4k/month.

So my estimated overhead comes out to about 8k, and thats not including a bunch of other things like insurance, and inventory. Now, if you charge $3/hr for a computer, and the average person comes in and spends 2 hours in there and buys one drink for 2 bucks, coming out to pay 8 bucks in the end, you need 1,000 people to come in per month just to meet/make the overhead! I'd say on average there are 20 PC's in a cafe, so that makes an hourly revenue of maybe $70/hr. If you can assume to do well, and be full for a quarter of all the time in a month you are open, then how much do you pocket/payout? Take 30 days in an average month, 4 hours on a busy day of money making, and multiply 70x(30x4)=8,400 bucks......Its amazing to see that you've done well with business, and yet you are only up 400 bucks on the month, which is probably actually gone towards some sort of maintenance or bill...

Now, I know I just wrote entirely too much yet again, but someone please clue me in here. Where is the money to be made in this? It seems more like a place you would own just to have and split the loss with a few friends, because it'd be a kickass hangout.

[romyo247]

ya mike i def say find somewhere that currently might have some cars get together like edgewater or rt9 in marlboro. or somewhere in taht area...the only problem is cops and kids being kids and stupid shit happening but i def think you're onto something..

or even if u find a place that is in a good location and by word of mouth turns into a casual car hangout. and with things inside to do it wont be a big crowd outside.... i.e - pool tables, arcades, coffee/tea, some snacks a few tv's with racing channels on and i think ur set

so by day u have just a deli/coffee shop people could go on their way to work and the hangout area opens up at night when the tokyo drifters come out lol

[wenger828]

maybe open up a 24/7 dunkin donuts somewhere w/ a parking lot, and not complain about kids gathering on the outside?

[BDR]

parking lot doesnt belong to the DD. you need to house these foolish kids on your property.

[ElusiveCBR600]

maybe open up a 24/7 dunkin donuts somewhere w/ a parking lot, and not complain about kids gathering on the outside?

You obviously has no idea how LABOR INTENSE owning a Dunken Donuts....

[BDR]

^^^ HAHA yeah its not like its just coffee and donuts anymore.

you gotta be able to make egg sandwiches, smoothies and frappucinos on the fly with rather sharp accuracy :)

[BrokeAZZWillie]

You obviously have no idea how LABOR INTENSE owning a Dunken Donuts....

its have not has ;) ........just pick up some mexicans at the border or some asians at chinatown ...cheap labor .....how about opening up a go-go bar :D

[ElusiveIS]

^^ the idea is to run the place yourself to save $$$ on labor.

[SamanthaIS300]

its have not has ;)

If you were going to correct the guy that makes posts about aliens, you should have picked up on the use of "intense" instead of "intensive".

Flash cards, Willie. Flash cards. ;)

[SamanthaIS300]

you gotta be able to make egg sandwiches, smoothies and frappucinos on the fly with rather sharp accuracy :)

Just buy a couple Tassimo machines. ;) Charge 3x the amount of what one "T disc" costs you.

http://www.tassimodirect.com/Tassimo/images/join/machine_430.jpg

[mikefate]

f that. we can sell hot water and tea bags.

[BDR]

^^ the idea is to run the place yourself to save $$$ on labor.

HAHA you think that can be your full time job? :) you need to hire help unless you plan to make tea and scrub the toilets too.

[mikefate]

it wouldnt be full time. id keep my day job. this would be somethign supplemental for the future a few years from now. i dont expect to add anythign to pocket for at least 18-24 months

[ElusiveCBR600]

If you were going to correct the guy that makes posts about aliens, you should have picked up on the use of "intense" instead of "intensive".

Flash cards, Willie. Flash cards. ;)

dont make fun of him cuz we asians

[ElusiveCBR600]

anyway, in any business Mike.... unless you're super rich and don't give a fuck. When you open up a place, it's almost always requires you to be there full time. At least for the first few weeks. The place just doesn't run by itself, and with help, you will risk the chance of them stealing, being lazy, closing early or opening late....etc.,

[BDR]

^^ Well Said.

[bgwillyis300]

Love the idea wish i lived closer to you and eric so we could go into business together.

Employees suck. If they are not supervised by a higher paid manager then they wont do shit. They dont care if they are on camera or not. Your not going to paying these people enough to care. They will miss work all the time for stupid shit. Leaving you stranded. My biggest problem at the lot is finding good people to hire. I have to fire Lot-techs every few months. And in reality i could fire each of them within a the 1st 2 weeks. For example i have salesman right now that has worked for me 3 months now. hes already missed 14days. only 2 were excused by doctors notes and that was for wisdom teeth. At that rate he is going to miss 56 days a year. Needless to say hes going to fired here shortly for that reason. Just need to find somebody to take his place quickly before that happens.

Ok my work rant is -OFF.

good work these days is very hard to find. And the bigger problem that im finding these days is it dont matter if you pay them miminum wage or 30-40k a year.

(Sorry NE guys 40k a year is about middle class where im from. )

[romyo247]

maybe open up a 24/7 dunkin donuts somewhere w/ a parking lot, and not complain about kids gathering on the outside?

you need between 500k and 750k liquid assets and 1.2-1.5 mill. net worth to franchise an dunkin donuts. My parents are trying to find one to open up but there arent any in NJ right now. If they do, u could be the manager and yell at all the mexicans...

[ElusiveCBR600]

There is absolutely no way I'm up for a Dunken Donuts shop....

too much initial fund and too much work.......

[mikefate]

i wouldnt give into anything corporate like a DnD.

id rather keep it small and be my own boss

[whitetezza]

(Sorry NE guys 40k a year is about middle class where im from. )
Damn.... you can barely do shit with 40k where im from...

[mikefate]

40k aint bad if you lived at home.

[SamanthaIS300]

you need between 500k and 750k liquid assets and 1.2-1.5 mill. net worth to franchise an dunkin donuts. My parents are trying to find one to open up but there arent any in NJ right now. If they do, u could be the manager and yell at all the mexicans...

Mexicans? All of the Dunkin' Donuts by me are run by Indians.

[AfternoonShift]

i'd def check it out =) mostly on the weekend though...if its during the summer than i'd be up for going during the weekdays.