Some Input Needed Please

[lokka]

After a quick discussion with Dave I have posted this here with his consent to hopefully get some input from you guys into my market research study's

Below is a link to a market research survey I have set up with Survey Monkey as I am doing a Cert 4 in micro business management and this is part of the learning/training I am doing

I am hoping to achieve a New Enterprise Incentive Scheme grant in the next few weeks once I have completed the training

I am looking at starting my own small Fabrication business here in Newcastle catering for people wanting custom fab work in alloy and stainless for their 4x4's vans and utes in the way of custom roof racks and storage drawers ute canopy's also side steps and bar work in alloy

Also I will be making dog crates and cages for utes and racks for pro shooters harvesting roos/pigs I can do all aspects of stainless kitchen/butchery equipment virtually amything you cant buy off the shelf I will build it in stainless or alloy

I will also be catering for the boating and caravan market as well as some camping gear and am willing to send gear to customers australia wide

Any other feed back or input you guys like to give post it up here

Link to survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DKDG95D

[justinc]

all done chris ! :)

pity you are so far away, but you never know i might be calling you yet:D

hope all goes well for the course and venture mate.

jc

[Vern]

Done:)
Good luck

[rijidij]

Survey done.

Hope it all works out for you Chris. Speaking from experience, it's very satisfying starting your own small business and making products that are'nt generally available.

Cheers, Murray

[Ian1878]

Hi chris,
Sorry to spoil your party but your questions appear to me as though you are trying to convince yourself that custom made parts are an essential item in the 4wd market.

i.e. 1. Do you prefer a Custom made product that will do what You want or
An off the shelf item that is a not quite what You want ?

Did you consider an answer - "an off the shelf product that suits my needs" ?

I know you will understand that mass production is more financially viable to both the maker and consumer and custom made products mean "ker ching".

Don't rely on a quick survey to determine the viability of your business. Develop a clear business plan with realistic running costs i.e. premises and utilities, materials, labour, custom versus mass production pricing etc etc

In an ideal world we would all love custom made quality products, made by our trusted local supplier . . . .but at the end of the day it will all come down to the $$$ people are prepared to spend.
The custom parts market you are trying to enter is niche and for you to survive I would suggest diversification into other elements of the fabrication industry.



Good luck.

[lokka]

Ian

Thanks for the reply this is the type of feed back I am after as this way I get a real feel for market trends and like you said what I am about to do is a niche market and costs to have this sort of work done is up there

As I posted in the first post I am doing a micro business management course I am only half way through the second week and this survey is the first one I have done there will be more and my training goes on for another 12 weeks and then if all goes to plan I will also get 12 months assistance in the way of mentoring and help from the business center here in newcastle

Also as in my first post I will be doing other fabrication work so I am not relying on one or 2 markets there are plenty of avenues I can work into and I have been in the fab game for over 20 years to know were to chase the work if need be

[FeatherWeightDriver]

Also as in my first post I will be doing other fabrication work so I am not relying on one or 2 markets there are plenty of avenues I can work into and I have been in the fab game for over 20 years to know were to chase the work if need be

Sounds to me like you are on the right track - work out what you want to do, know how to do it well, then fill your pipeline with work from wherever you can.

4wd may be a part of this pipeline, it could be small or it could be all of your work, but ignoring any segment before you have a full pipeline is a risk.

Good luck with your venture and keep pounding those avenues! :)

[rangieman]

Done deal ;) Good luck with your venture:cool:

[frantic]

Done. Pm sent.

[dullbird]

Chris I have done the survery...

Here is my feed back..

I dont think your survey was done in a way that could give you honest feedback.

because it felt like you moulded the questions to get the answers your want.

for example the question about a locally made good quality product or an imported poor quality product.

Of course im going to tick the locally good quality one (who is going to tick they want a poor quality item?) however who is to say that imports are always poor quality.

The crux of what I'm getting at is I want a good quality product however cost is a big factor for me and often prohibits me getting locally made, so I often import....I didn't really feel like I could get that across to you in my answers is all. :)