RatherBeBrewing
New Fish
Sorry, brevity is not a strength of mine. If this reads like a Run the Damn Ball offense then skip to the bottom two sentences. In either case I’m done- I’ve more than spewed my spiel borne from the excitement of someone else getting a machining center they wanted and dipping into this field that’s been good to my family.
First of, I wonder if every business school has a professor that tells some variant of that story. My version of that professor spent 20 years as CFO for a large food manufacturer and his Eastside truck bed was Bentonville, Arkansas. They had to get a decent enough price to where selling to Walmart below cost would be recouped by the economies of scale from that. He told that story nearly every class. Much like declining axe quality they shrunk the size of their offerings. Capitalism, ah. I do like the axe example better, more violent imagery is my preference.
I know very little about motorcycles, but from what I do know that is a great market to break into. Like overpriced goods for pets, or drugs that cause withdrawal without a daily dose.
Anything where people are willing to pay the same cost for a luxury item as they are for the more utilitarian substitute is a great market to be in. Even more so if you’re manufacturing something for people who are knowledgeable about it and have a DIY culture.
One time the old man bought the plans for a product very loosely connected to the main business, he figured businesses would want them. Half the sales went to Guy Fieri looking middle aged dads that give their kids motocross bikes from infancy and blast 80s hair metal or country from their lifted F250. They didn’t hesitate at dropping a few Gs for a cool thing they probably wouldn’t use as much as they convinced themselves they would, but it might impress their friends since it was something new and cool looking. The profit margin on those things was quite healthy.
I have several friends and/or acquaintances with bikes, and although they ride 200 miles per year they’ve spent the ducketts for a Ducati so why not drop some more dough to maximize the enjoyment of each mile? They seem to want something new all the time, or at least talk about trades and upgrades more than they use the thing. Maybe my interpretation is totally off. I know little about the culture or spending habits, but if I had something cool to sell to that crowd it feels like that market segment is a cash cow.
Hopefully it works out for you when you get the chance and opportunity. I also have drywall to put up, so I know exactly how that goes. I sledgehammered and pulled the nails from the old sheetrock off like a year ago, had the new ones delivered that week, and I’ll start any day now. Not next week though, or probably the two after that either.
When you get another time sensitive idea, you already have the equipment and I’m guessing wouldn’t be put out too much by the materials - fucking do it. Find the time. Ha, I’d say practice with the machine but knowing me the prototype would also be practice. If you have the idea then at least have something close drawn up. I have a laundry list of things I was too late or lazy on, when you see someone succeeding with a shittier executed version of your idea it’s the ultimate business cuckolding.
I have no idea what a conversion kit for that bike costs. This top tree:https://cognitomoto.com/collections...2007-2008-billet-top-tree-for-fork-conversion is $130, easy to make, and selling 50 units is well worth the time for any one not having to take a break from alchemizing gold.
Make your body kits or unicorn conversion kits or whistle tips that wake you up when you’re supposed to be up cooking breakfast or whatever and even if you wind up with 98/100 units left on hand at least you didn’t strike out with the bat on your shoulder.
The original play was to sell the land/buildings and the business together. Facility built specifically for this, prime location. Proven extremely profitable for five decades but needs a competent owner or management. Old man thought he’d try retirement 20 years ago; made a Japanese garden, designed and built shit, started a different business with his Midas touch which I now realize is mostly effort with a side of intelligence/luck. It took him less than two years before he realized he’s bored as fuck and wants to work until the day he dies. Without his stern leadership and engineering genius the business was being run into the ground, used to need that 60k+ sq ft but by then it was half empty. I believe his explanation is that everyone is an incompetent dumbfuck except for him. That’s verbatim, not HH paraphrasing. More to it than that, but let’s call it human error.
We had a deal in place, the buyers financing didn’t work out. The property is just too expensive (trust owns half, fair market value, we wouldn’t sell for under anyway) for someone who would want to do this. National search, but will probably go separate and business itself will be sold/parted out for a fraction of its worth. Kind of sad. I’ve never even remotely considered it my path although I can do it, and there are no others of my ilk. It’s nothing imminent, but If there are any cool tools or machinery that might be up your alley I’ll try to remember to let you know and if you have any specific things in mind let me know; we have pretty much everything low tech and metal that’s ever existed.
