Fresh New Small Business Ideas…..

By Melinda Johnson

My husband and I were motivated to start this business in 1999 while working in a manufacturing plant. Eric, as a supervisor on salary (means being paid for 40 hours and working up to 80) and me, an hourly worker where overtime was required. We always had a ton of “to do” items on our list that we could not find time TO DO. Of course most things just kept getting put off because we simply did not have the time. We kept wishing that we could find a way to start our own business that would help others in the same “no time” boat as we were in.

After much searching we heard of one company that offered on site oil change services. We kicked that idea around and mentioned it to various friends, family and co-workers and everyone thought it was an excellent idea! The list of who could benefit from a Mobile Oil Change Service continued to grow.
Fleet owners, apartment complexes where people are not allowed to do their own oil change in the lot,
as a benefit that human resource managers could provide to their employees, even the average individual who simply did not have time or the knowledge to do it themselves, the list was endless!

The start-up costs for this type of business are very low. It could be run from home using our own garage for product so there is no added overhead for a “shop”. We were able to fumble our way through getting our trade name, business license, insurance - all the “legal” things. All we needed was a van, some equipment to do the job, our garage, inventory (oil and oil filters) a computer to print brochures, fliers, and price lists. We had some business cards and invoices that we designed made up by a local printer. We used a free site to build a website (low cost to have banners removed) and we were on our way.

The first couple of years were tough, no denying that, we had no idea of how to advertise and no one to turn to for help. With much determination and prayer we learned what worked and what was a waste of time and money. Eventually we found our “niche” and our business became such a success that we added a wider variety of services. From tire rotations, air filter and wiper blade replacement, to bulbs, headlights and serpentine belt replacements also.

Our customers love the service and we were glad that we were able to leave our factory jobs and start
helping others save valuable time. Word of mouth is the best way to promote this type of business, so we started out by telling family, friends, our insurance agent, dentist and other businesses about our services we now offered. Once we had our foot in the door with some fleet owners word of mouth then spread to other fleet owners also. Starting our own business was challenging, there was no info out there to tell us what we needed to know so we learned the hard and costly way. However, we are living proof that if you set your mind to it, you can do it.

Eric Johnson co-owner with wife Melinda of Melrics Mobile Lube Started their Mobile Oil Change
Business in Oct.1999 and found no resources out there to help them with their questions. After
finding out on their own by trial and error they started helping others via email. In 2002 They decided to write their own copy-written version of “How To Start A Mobile Oil Change Business” manual. They continue to update the manual as needed and have helped countless numbers of people to start their own Mobile Oil Change Business. To read more about this business please visit their site at http://www.melrics.com

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