Business expansion.

[treevolution]

From my own experience its worth looking at your hourly rate as a company owner. 

 

For example at present you are running a 3 man team with yourself Inc and say working a 9 hour day 5 days a week which will Inc quotes and paper work. 

 

Once you take on a secord team and if you stay on the tools I'm sure that you will find you will have to put in more hours a day to keep the work coming say 11 hours a day plus possible Saturday mornings. 

 

If you're hourly rate increases with the second team then you're on the right path to building a bigger company but if it stays the same or even possibly goes down then it might be worth staying as you are. 

 

If you don't try it then you will always be thinking what if and it doesn't work then at least you tried. 

 

Again from my experience I have found that the most profitable tree company's are the ones that keep it really small with the least amount of overheads or the guys that push to go much bigger with multiple gangs. 

 

Good luck on what ever you decide to do. 

[Dan Maynard]

Turnover is vanity.....

Well someone had to say it.

[Ty Korrigan]

What is the projected net profit likely to be for the extra investment and is it sufficient to offset the extra stress?

 Best of luck.

    Stuart

 

Edited February 27, 2021 by Ty Korrigan

[skyhuck]

5 minutes ago, Scottish Cleaning Service said:

 I think there is plenty of work out there at the moment.

Thats another consideration, if work slows you can find you dropping your prices to "keep the lads busy" this can in time can lead to "buying work" waiting for the good times to return.

 

I'm happier with more work coming in than I can handle, pricing it to make good money and not worrying about paying the bills.

[AHPP]

The person whose input could really benefit this thread is Benedict Edmonds. I've learnt more about business from him than from anyone else on arbtalk.

[Dan Maynard]

I'd probably get another 150 in all honesty. Cheap to buy, easy to fix/service yourself, covers 90% of domestic work and can get most parts next day. Saves spending out on a more expensive new machine or having monthly payments.
 
But agree with running another subbie and being able to rest from climbing.

Have you tried a 230 with sharp rollers? If you're chipping straight stuff it's just the hp and so maybe not a huge difference but give it something gnarly and the 230 gobbles up stuff you'd have to dress and fiddle about with to get the 150 to take.

Huge difference to throughput, I think if you go with a four man team anywhere then a 150 could easily become a bottleneck whereas a 230 won't.

[topchippyles]

Surly a second trusted gang you could pull in as and when work gets busy and just put your cut on top.I help out a roofing mate and when they are snowed under he pulls in a couple of extra guys on a subbing basis. 

Edited February 27, 2021 by topchippyles

[Benarb]

21 hours ago, Stere said:

Could have both working at same time on a bigger job?

Yes would be the plan, would turn 2 day jobs with 3 men into 1. Would definitely up efficiency.

 

16 hours ago, Con said:

I think it all hinges on whether you can get the right people.  I've had some cracking fellas work for me (when you're there). Go and take some chip to tip off and nothing seems to get done 🤔

Be interesting to see how it goes. 

Yes will take a while to to find the right people!

[5 shires]

Just keep it simple as said befroe...find a good set up of what you need 2/3 man team with all there own equipment,agree a day rate and when you go to quote for jobs which you need them on put what you want on top and you should be like I have said a few times now be wanting to make at least £500 for yourself and obviously on certain jobs double or more and befroe anybody starts cherping on about that’s unrealistic and giving it all that...it works for me and I keep it simple,pay what there worth,pay yourself a good % of the job and if the money isn’t in it just leave it.

[Retired Climber]

1 hour ago, 5 shires said:

Just keep it simple as said befroe...find a good set up of what you need 2/3 man team with all there own equipment,agree a day rate and when you go to quote for jobs which you need them on put what you want on top and you should be like I have said a few times now be wanting to make at least £500 for yourself and obviously on certain jobs double or more and befroe anybody starts cherping on about that’s unrealistic and giving it all that...it works for me and I keep it simple,pay what there worth,pay yourself a good % of the job and if the money isn’t in it just leave it.

Whilst it may work for you, it's not good business advice. You are simply engineering disadvantages into your business.