Helping A Good Buddy Start A New Biz???

MILSAPS118

I have a childhood friend who is a lineman for one of the largest energy providers in are area for about 8 years now. He pitched me with a business idea he wants to do but doesn't have the start up funding. His idea is to venture out on his own and start doing parking lot lighting maintenance, IE. replace bulbs, replace poles, etc.. He asked me if I would buy him a used bucket truck to get started and in return I would own 90% of the biz until he pays me off. I own a successful landscaping/snow plowing company now for the past 9 years so he figures I could help back him.
I guess my question is...is this a profitable business? I have no realistic idea of what this type of work really entails hence the fact that this industry is foreign to me. He buttered it up when he pitched me with his plan, but I'm skeptical. What do some of you fellas think who do this type of work?

Thanks in advance!

JamesNLA

keep the 90% but also keep something that he values like his pink slip(s).
When it's OPP (other peoples money) where's the risk? where will the determination to keep a start up sucessfull in 6 mo or 2 years come from?

If it was me, thanks but no thanks.

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Flacan

I'd also make sure that he was invested in as well. He has to share the risk somehow.

Surely after 8 years on the job, he has something saved up, or some asset which he can use as collateral. If he doesn't have anything to invest into the business, then maybe he won't be successful.

I once had a partner who became a 9 to 5 guy. After a while, it didn't work any more.

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PressurePros

If he doesn't have the money to buy a truck:
1) It means he also doesn't have the neccessary money to market that business and set it up properly.
2) He should be able to go to a dealership or a bank and finance the truck. If he doesn't have the credit, it means he has problems managing his finances. Umm, not the greatest credentials for a business partner.

Ninety percent? That's ridiculous. You are seriously a business owner ? First off, 90% of nothing is still nothing. The first two years of a startup one is lucky to break even. Second point.. Even if the guy could make a profit, how the hell is he going to earn and feed himself if someone is leeching 90% of his effort? How long do you think before he loses interest?

I find it kind of hard to believe that a business owner would entertain this for more than the few seconds it would take someone to spill it from their lips. Perhaps you are actually the guy that is thinking of starting the business and wanted to ask questions about getting it off the ground?

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Ken Fenner
Pressure Washing PA
Roof Cleaning Services PA

wireless

The OP did not say" Hey, I just invested in this great business". He is here asking questions why is he getting criticized for not knowing every negative that everyone else thinks of. Generally the good side of a deal clouds the mind to make it hard to see the negative , which is probably why this business owner is asking advise instead of grabbing 90% of a business for nothing!

PressurePros

wireless, if you ask someone for advice would you want to hear "sounds great" (that's validation, not neccessarily advice) or would you want to hear the foreseeable issues BEFORE you invested time and money into it?

Don't read too much inflection into my words. I am not trying to ridicule the OP or make him feel bad, just make him think. I've been in business long enough to get gut reactions to things. If he and I were face to face I wouldn't scream or jump out of my chair or give him condescending glares. I would explain my viewpoint and experiences and let him determine things for himself. Written down, things are perceived much differently by the reader. If my (or anyone's) words on a screen affect someone so negatively that it affects their emotional wellbeing.. well, business is pretty harsh, how will that person respond to other stresses that come along?

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Ken Fenner
Pressure Washing PA
Roof Cleaning Services PA

wireless

Pressure, these quotes are what I was referring to: "You are seriously a business owner?" and "I find it kind of hard to believe that a business owner would entertain this for more than the few seconds it would take someone to spill it from their lips. Perhaps you are actually the guy that is thinking of starting the business and wanted to ask questions about getting it off the ground?"

Your advise is sound and what the Op needs and probably wants to hear I would just leave these quotes out. (just my opinion)

L. B. Condulet

Not a week goes by that some knuckle dragging moron doesn't pitch me on a new business idea. The plan usually involves me funding their harebrained business ideas.

Buying a bucket truck and getting 90% of a business that doesn't make any money sounds like a great opportunity! Who's going to pay for the marketing of this business?

It's a scientific fact that all linemen are retards. Being a lineman and a retard does not give him any credibility when it comes to running what is in fact, a very competitive business.

Have you noticed that the only people who want you to invest your money in their ideas are people who have never succeeded at running a business? The people who actually own and operate successful businesses never go around pitching these nutty ideas.

wackman

Bad idea in my opinion. Probably would destroy your friendship. If anything went wrong at all it will strain it bad at the least.

Pressure pro nailed it.

If he's really serious he should fix his credit (obviously bad since he can't finance a truck) put together a business plan and pitch it to a hard money lender/venture capitalist. If he's actually got a decent plan and something to invest then there are guys out there who do finance start ups.

You're a small business owner not a money lender.

Wack

MILSAPS118

A lot of good, interesting responses from ya all. I get a few business ideas pitched to me from time to time from people I know. Some from who I've known for 20+ years, some from who I've known for 20+ hours. I look at all of them with no intent or interest at all, but love hearing what people have ideas of (hell even my wife pitches me with a new idea almost every couple months).
Now.. my buddy who wants me to front him the $$ for a bucket truck went through a divorce almost 9 mo. ago and to make a long story short, his ex had some pretty bad spending habits using plastic that they had jointly. The judge ordered the house to be sold and the outstanding debts to be paid off and what ever was left if any was to be put in a trust fund later to be disbursed after the courts reviewed the case again. Anyway... I listened to what he had to say about this whole idea of fixing parking lot lights and thought to myself ...."their can't be any $$ in this industry for a guy just starting out, how many light bulbs would a guy have to replace to break even??" So I did a little searching on www to see what I could find (that's when I found CT) just out of curiosity and all I found was huge corporations who covered all the bases in this line of work. I found one add on craigslist from a (seemed to be a scabber) guy who advertised this type of work out of CA if I remember right. To me, I agree...not a good business move for me, but the one thing that caught my interest was the bucket truck. If I were to buy one and he goes belly up, I keep the truck, add it to my fleet and use it for tree work. Currently we only offer tree pruning as high as we can reach with our pole saws. With a bucket truck we would have the capabilities of offering a neither level of tree services to our customers. It would also give me a reason to buy another toy.
In all seriousness, I know this is a bad deal all the way around. All the bs that gets pitched to me are all bad deals. WACK mentioned friendship being a factor and that's so true. I seen a few partnerships go south in a hurry and years and years of friendship down with it.
All and all I just wanted to get a little info and a real world perspective from some of you pros who do this type of work. Thanks for all the replies, it was interesting reading everyones input.

MILSAPS118

wackman

Your not by chance a big fan of Davi Milsaps are you?

mdshunk

I have a couple comments:

1) The parking lot light maintenance gig is so competitive that I'm not sure it will support bucket truck ownership on its own.
2) I would not want to be the owner of record of someone else's bucket truck, since the liability for such a truck is great.
3) People that specialize in this sort of work normally drive far and wide (cover several states), so it would take a GOOD bucket truck; not some piece of junk.
4) Among your competitors would also be Sylvania and GE (manufacturers of lamps), who do parking lot light maintenance as a unit of their business.

Does your buddy a business plan with any market research? Make him prepare one just like he's applying for an SBA load, and maybe he'll see the handwriting on the wall for himself.

dirt diggler

this guy is a mess!!! stay away from him.


childhood friends get to almost be like family. Not worth messin that up.


he won't be able to afford to fix the used truck he bought after it breaks down after 6 months

KillerToiletSpider

If buying a boom truck can benefit your existing business, and help grow it, buy it, and rent it to your buddy on days you don't need it till he grows his business to afford his own. Don't enable him to use your money to establish a business, offer him a way to establish it himself, while growing your own business at the same time.

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MILSAPS118

I watched him all thru his amature career, he's one of my favorite pros!! My Buddie who is a pro/am went and trained at MTF 2 years ago. You must be a moto fan???

MILSAPS118

That's not a bad idea..although I have already made up my mind I won't be making any large investments soon.

MILSAPS118

No...he's a good guy. His ex-wife was the bitch of all evil. I'm glad he has nothng to do with her anymore.

excellencee

I bought a bucket on ebay a year and a half ago with the same parking lot idea. I now have 2300 mi. on it including the 4 hour ride home. I did not try to start a new business, just expand my existing one. Parking lot lights is a tight business, in my area sign companies have a lot of contracts. I thought I had an in with an existing customer (80+ locations) but no good. I just use it to make my life easier and maybe trim a tree for family.

Floordude

He could start out by changing bulbs on water towers and radio towers. They have a ladder.

Believe it or not, they have a hard time, finding people to do it.

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POOLMANinCT

private parking lot biz?

he should really check with the mob first.

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