Anyhoo, I guess it sounds like I am being anal about the trust thing, but look at it from this perspective---Audionutz is a big deal to me. The biggest deal of my life, one that I have a lot more than money riding on! I have>?my reputation?a boatload of money?a boatload of product?a legally binding lease and landlord to answer to?legal and binding dealer agreements?the IRS?the State of FLorida department of revenue (sales taxes!)?a boatload of materials?customer service standards?a boatload of bills?a boatload of cradit cards and loans?etc?etc
??Basically, Audionutz is my whole life (well, the better part of it anyways) and when it comes to how much i have invested in it, it goes beyond money to involve personal aspects as well as blood,sweat, and tears. Heres the main point--- find someone who does NOT have this same level of commitment that will genuinely place YOUR and YOUR SHOP's best interests in their highest regard, and you have the person you need on your payroll. Trainignand experience is one thing. Having someone you can TRUST and COUNT ON is worht more than anything. I cant do it all, infact, I can hardly do any of it all by myself when it comes to running a business. If I cant be there b/c I am at my main job or other reasons, I need to rest assured that business will still be handled PROPERLY as if I were there. Can you guys feel me on this? If you are constantly worried that shenanigans are happening around you or things wont get done right if you arent there, you will end up in a counselor's office because it is gonna affect you adversely!
??OK, enough about the trust and friends thing, lets get to something else...the NEW SHOP!
??After we decided "hey, we are getting too big for this 1500 ft^2 place! And, we need a showroom!", I found a place on a main road that was AWESOME! Although the move would prove to be problematic as we will see, I was STOKED! Here was the chance to have a nice big storefront and do a showroom that we could have a car in and demo the high-end stuff in an airconditioned environment! What could be better, right?
??THe place had been a copy center, 3000ft^2, ALL a/c'ed (WOOHOO!) and good access, huge parking lot (GREAT for shows), large windows to show off "the goods", it was a newer building too. Other things that drew me to it was the surrounding businesses were thriving, there was large A/C business on one side, a daycare on the other (potential baby boomer customers???), a church (so we could ask for forgiveness for making fun of the Re's), and entertainment provided by the Re-farm on the other side of us. (FOr more info on the Re-farm, please see BobG,schreibers,BTA,stevcha,etc,etc).
??After finding out the landlord wanted 4X the rent we were paying, I was like "whoa, wait a minute, I cant afford that". We were paying 500/mo for a 1500ft^2 with a small office and a two car work bay. THe new place wanted 2000/mo!! WHOA! what are the pros and cons>>?Old place is- ?affordable?NOT dependant on retail sales?off the beaten path?small?no sound board?no a/c in work area?small parking area
??New place is-?not affordable?very dependant on retail?on a main road?large showroom?all under roof a/c!?can make showroom to rival all others?had separate office?high visibility?great parking area?etc
??Well, the place had been vacant for nearly 2 years, so I approached the owner with an offer...my offer was I would move in immediately and sign a 3 year lease, IF I could stagger the payment amounts as follows>?1st year 1500/mo +tax?2nd year 1800/mo +tax?3rd year 2200/mo +tax
??YES in FL rental properties ARE subject to taxation and it is bullschit!
??Also, I knew I'd need some time to A) move in B) set up shop C) build the showroom D) remodel the place E) renovate the flooring F) etc etc so,?I got him to agree to give me the first two months free!!! It seemed like everything was falling inot place I was happy as hell, but......
??Next issue, ZONING. THis place was NOT zoned as an automotive service center, even though it had two large garage bays. It had simply never been zoned for anything other than retail sales and computer service. In my county, which is run by a bunch of crooks, my occupational license places me firmly within the "automotive service" category, therefore because I am "stereo installation and sales", I must be in a building ZONED for "automotive service". Well, this was a predicament that was gonna cost me $2k and a series of inspections by the county. RATS! So now, I have to come up with first months rent, a $2k security deposit, new deposits for electricity (more on that later), AND cough up 2K just because the corksuckers at the tax office have to re-zone the building! DAMNIT! I wanted the building badly, but I didnt have the coin!
??Soooooo, I had a thought...hey, it isnt MY building, it's HIS! THis zoning thing is for his buildings benefit, not mine. He should have to pay this right? Well, recall I had already hit him up on the rental payment stages, and I was gonna have a hard time convincing him to help me with this zoning. After a lot of talking and coaxing, I got him to agree to SPLIT the zoning costs with me. Hey, somethings better than nothing right? But even still, this maneuver exhausted all liquid cash I could come up with...now how the hell was I gonna pay the rent?
??Enter the "business partner" who wants to "share space"..........
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