New Concept

First the Updates:

Fort Car Wash: Updated scheduling information has been obtained for the renovations and it appears that the vending machine wall addition and concrete planter installation should take place almost immediately. Door upgrades will require one full day for installation, steel painting will require several days, as will equipment stand recoating so these changes will take place during our low season.

Edson Car Wash: Updated pictures from our recent site visit are available at http://edsoncarwash.blogspot.com. The next few weeks will contain some very important work - sump and underground piping installation, as well as the installation of concrete floors with a 4% slope in some areas. We will have to watch this closely to avoid oversloping the floors which can lead to vehicle damage.

Urban Market: Research and refinement ongoing. One interesting idea that has come to bear is the allowance for only one brand of company in our space. For instance, should one person wish to sell Watkin's products in our marketplace, for an additional fee we can ensure they are the only person with Watkin's products within our walls. However, other non-Watkin's brands would not be affected by this premium even if they compete with this product. This would still allow the consumer to rule in terms of which brand they buy from, but would allow the retailer the satisfaction of knowing that all Watkin's sales in that space would stem from them.

Advertising revenues are also being researched and an updated logo is well on it's way. This updated logo will potentially end up on the site as well, once it is complete.

The other major refinement has been the inclusion of local artists to entertain (and work for tips) while at our locations. From this, a more beneficial layout has been developed which allows for a greater number of booths while still providing the flexibility we require.

Parking and location will of course be our major concerns - but several good sites are currently available.

New Concept Truck Wash:

I have several locations (previous posts list as many as half a dozen) in mind for a new concept Truck Wash. As I dig further and further into this new concept - while cash intensive to some extent, it does look more and more feasible the longer we research it. A recent example:

A major soft drink company (one of the big two) has a location in Edmonton. This is their major distribution center for our area. This distribution center is home to more than 60 highway trucks, and at present they are all totally unclean. The company has been diligently trying to find someone to hire to clean these vehicles - but such a person would require a Class 1 license. Even at the $30-$40 per hour this company wishes to pay they cannot find anyone because anyone with a Class 1 license right now is interested more in hauling as it pays considerably more than $40 per hour.

One option for such a company would be to make use of our New Concept Truck Wash - which will clean the Truck within 20 minutes while the driver sits inside and (potentially) does paperwork. A company of this type usually employs a variety of paperwork and this could save the company a massive amount of money and allow for good public image as a side benefit - not to mention the tax rebates the company would recieve for keeping their vehicles free of dirt and debris and the extended lifespan of the outer portions of the vehicle. Here's a brief look at the numbers involved:

Typical Wash time = 60-90 minutes ($75 as an average cost)
Washer wages = $35 per hour x 2 hours (1-1.5hours for washing, plus travel time, plus waiting time = $70)
Average cost/wash = $145

New Concept Wash Time = 20 minutes ($50 as an average cost)
Truck Driver Wages = $0 (they would be filling out paperwork at this time which would normally be paid for by the company - additional cost is nothing except travel time - $25)
Average cost/wash = $75

Additionally, with such a large fleet a discount would be more than prudent with this client. We could potentially knock $10 off the per wash price - netting the total cost to $65/wash. This company could potentially provide 1 wash per vehicle per week (or more depending on travel arrangements and time of year) = 280 washes per month or just over 9 washes per day. With one or two of these large accounts using our facilities, our break even of 12 washes at $50 per wash would be easily achieved.

At 20 washes per day (14% occupancy), profit is somewhere around 20% based on our assumptions and what we are currently achieving in the Fort Car Wash location. Keep in mind there are still some bugs in terms of how such a system would work - 75% of which will be answered at the car wash show in Las Vegas, but some others will only come from operation. Well, here's to the future - and making it all happen.