I know many on here run or own shops. I've been wanting to start my own shop for the longest time, only part time to start and if the money is good to move to full time, I'll go that route. What I'm wondering, whats a good starting amount that yall started with when yall started, 20k, 25k, 50k etc. Thanks for info.

Are you talking about Paul Jeremy. How's his shop doing?

Yeah, 40k would get you top of the line stuff that would last you for a while plus a decent amount of inventory. 

If you start with used equipment and decent inventory and some halfway nice displays you could probably get by on 20k.  If you've never been in the industry before you would be crazy going out and buying new everything to start.

Be careful regarding inventory.  You can tie a bunch of cash up that sits, and sits, and sits, waiting to be bought. 

In today's environment of "the latest and greatest" balls out every 3-4 months you will be best served to have some polyester (10, 12, 14, 15 lbs.) in stock, and mostly 15 lb. performance or reactive stuff on your wall, with some 14s in stock.  Lighter weight reactive stuff will sell occasionally, but your avid buyers aren't usually throwing them.  Order those as needed, too.

Most customers don't care if you have every wrist brace/support on the market as long as you can get one within a few days.  Keep the everyday things like tape, finger inserts and popular sizes of shoes on hand always.  A good inventory of finger inserts can add up fast.  The performance shoes can also be ordered as needed.

I have helped my friend in his shop for over 10 years now, and see the challenges he faces from day to day.  Good luck.

+1

Is this at home or in a center?

$40k is WWWAAAYYYY too much unless you're going into a center where the shop is going to do at least $150k annually.  If you shop smart you can get everything pretty cheap...you don't need a brand new drill press...buy a used one.  Shops are going under left and right.

I opened my shop in February 2011 and only spent $18k.  This was inventory, press, remodeling, everything.

Over the next 2 years I have reinvested in inventory and now have gone from $7k in stock to over $15k in on hand inventory.  You can buy yourself into a hole right away....ONLY BUY WHAT YOU NEED.  You don't need to put a 12lb Defiant Soul in stock....put 18 reactive balls (2 at each price point and a few more entry level) and 2 of each weight plastic balls to start (vary the colors to make the wall LOOK full).  This gives the customer options, but if they want something else you can order it.

True, I suppose we all just assumed it was going to be in a center.  And it really depends on what kind of equipment he's going for, a Jayhawk Tri-Oval would be most of that 18k you spent right up front.  I'll echo the rest.  We carry a mix of 14 and 15 lb reactives, a few 12s for like the Cyclones and Misfits, then an assortment of White Dot colors, but you also have to pay attention to what sells in your area.  We don't stock any Track, any Ebonite (besides the Cyclones) or any Columbia because we just aren't able to sell it here.  Storm, DV8 and Motiv are our big sellers.  So within the 18 reactives that Russell suggested, make sure that you've done your homework on what sells in your area.  Posters are big too, if people don't know it exists, they won't order it, so putting Viz-a-ball posters up, and assorted fliers from the ball companies (who will send you 8x11 graphic posters for new balls) up will still showcase balls that you don't have in your inventory.  The smaller stuff can be pretty big for you too.  When we started ordering the scented Storm grip sacks, we can't keep them on the shelves, they're super popular with the kids. 

Thinking you need a NEW Tri-Oval to open a p/t shop is a crazier idea than opening the shop in the first place.

OK, I'll say it.  Why would anyone want to open a pro shop in the first place?  I'd estimate I've physically been in somewhere between 20-25% of the shops in the country.  The shops that amount to a profitable business (something greater than just paying wages) is probably around 5%.

I get the whole "enjoy what you" do argument, I've been there.  But there isn't much enjoyment dealing with the public who thinks you work on normal retail markups and are making money hand over fist when in reality you can barely pay the rent.

Don't need one, but if you're trying to make it your business, I myself would rather get something new and top of the line than to keep buying new ones or upgrading every couple years, you'll spend more money that way.  Our shop still runs the same tri-oval that was purchased when the shop and center opened 12 years ago, and the repairs have been just normal maintenance and wear and tear. 

You make good points though.  With the MAP pricing, we sell stuff for as cheap as we're allowed to, which means we hardly make anything on equipment, but people come in and see the prices and think we're gouging them.  It's even harder to start because most distributors have pricing tiers depending on how much you order from them annually, so you're going to pay more to start out with.  When somebody comes in and buys a ball for 160 and complains about it, they don't realize that you paid 140 for it.  Need to sell 8 balls a day just to pay salary, and I can assure you that doesn't happen unless you're in a really big market. 

It's a lot easier to make money if you as the owner are working it yourself.  You won't make much money at all if you're paying someone to work for you, but that more often happens when you have several shops or have made your money and are retired.  My boss owns 6 shops, runs one himself, and recently co-purchased the center that our shop is in, so now he's making a fair amount of money, but he's spent nearly the last decade in getting here, and laid a lot of groundwork while he was in college just to get started.  So it's not easy, and quite frequently frustrating, but getting started is the hard part.  If you do good work, you'll build it to the point you'll wish you could walk into the alley without people meeting you at the door asking for stuff once and a while.  Really depends on how busy you are too, if you get to the point where it's full time, you won't mind so much.