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I’m considering starting a boat repair business for using on electrical installs, minor repairs (engine, glass, general), and engine maintenance. Any tips? I’m in Florida, seems to be a plethora of boat owners that don’t do this own work, and backlogs at all the repair shops. Any suggestions? What part of the country are you in?
Comment by Embarrassed-Comb6776 at 28/01/2025 at 16:54 UTC
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I'm in the Boston area. Here there is almost unlimited work. They are still begging me 3 years after I retired. In Florida, there may be more competition but also more boats. I expect that you will still do well. Many kids getting out of trade schools want to work on cars but are literally missing the "boat".
If you are already good at electrical, then that is a great place to start. I would assume that you can at least use a meter and troubleshoot a pump that is not working. To do it over again, I would be more specialized. There is a learning curve for everything you do. Expertise for even an oil change changes from boat to boat.
Unlike working on houses, you do not need a license to do wiring on boats. However, you need to do it correctly according to ABYC rules. You may want to consider getting their certification.
To get started, you will have to investigate what business licenses are needed in Florida. Register a trade name and get a sales tax exemption for products to resell. You will need Marine Artisans insurance. Three years ago, this was $2k minimum a year. You will want to establish accounts with wholesale vendors such as Kellogg Marine (Land and Sea) and West Marine Pro.
You will also want to find marinas that do not have their own service departments and would be willing to refer you to their customers. Some may ask for a cut. 10-15% is not unreasonable if they give you a stream of work. Even better if they would do the billing by charging the customers’ credit card and then weekly cutting a check minus the cut.
This is the nutshell but feel free to ask any questions.