Starting A Locksmith Business Part One
Added at 13:27 on 06 October 2023
Starting A Locksmith Business Part One
Introduction
Just a quick introduction to myself, my name is Derek Mercer and I own and run a general locksmiths business called Lockkeys Locksmith Services based in Merseyside. We have been trading since 2009 and in 2019 started to also offer locksmith training.
Before you even look at locksmith training courses I want you to understand what is involved in running a locksmith business so you're going into the business with eyes open and not blinkered with the idea you will have a successful business from day one because most business start ups fail in fact Ive read that nearly 90% of business start ups fail within the first 5 years.
Business Planning
Just like any other business you should do a business plan to gain an understanding of what you need to do to give yourself and business the best chance. I would suggest you do a swot analysis and be brutally honest with yourself.Swot is initials for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats.
Before you do this let me explain what you will need to know and have as a locksmith.
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Savings or income to last at least 6 months (for paying household bills and food) when starting your business. (Unless very lucky you will not be earning much when you first start)
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Locksmith Skills (Obtained from previous experience or completing a training course).
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Ability to use a variety of hand and power tools.
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Locksmith Tools (what you need and costs)
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Locksmith Stock (what you need and costs)
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A suitable vehicle (We suggest using your car if big enough when starting out as vans can be very expensive and you will have other costs to budget for)
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Suitable Vehicle Business Insurance and cost.
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Suitable Public Liability Insurance and cost.
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Marketing and Advertising Knowledge e.g. websites and social media (People will need to know who you are and what you do before they can contact you for work) You still need to know about this even if thinking about paying someone else so you don't get ripped off.
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Whether to be a sole trader or limited company. (read up on the differences and decide for yourself).
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Suitable work clothing for summer and winter including safety shoes and a hi viz vest in case you work on a building site etc.
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Health & Safety Knowledge (To protect yourself and others)
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Basic knowledge of the law in respect to gaining entry to property.
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Basic knowledge of fire requirements in respect to doors and door hardware.
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Basic accounting knowledge so you will know how your business is doing on a weekly/monthly basis and not after a yearly meeting with your accountant.
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Stationary such as business cards, receipts and invoices for customers.
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Think of a business name then do an internet search to see if anyone else is using it. Also do a search on the company's house to see if someone has already registered the name you're thinking about using.
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Work out your prices for your services.
This list could be used for both deciding your strengths and weaknesses.
Opportunities
Would include few competitors in your area, underserved markets for specific products (eg if there was no keycutters in your area), emerging need for your products and services (eg already have contacts that would need locksmiths for example letting and estate agents.
Threats
Would include emerging competitors, little or no need for your services in the area eg how big is the population around where you live if only covering a few villages then your not likely to get much work and will need to cover a wider area.
Conclusion
If youve been honest with yourself and the Swot Analysis hasn't put you off then you could start looking at training centres.