Starting a scooter rental business



Alright. So I was wrong, it isn't technically a scooter place. What they do is rent pedal mopeds, which look exactly like a scooter but you can use pedals as well. They can get up to about 32km/hr and supposedly people love them. They are great for montreal with traffic and what not. As far as insurance goes, they are classified as bicycles so they don't need insurance. If you damage it they take it off of your visa. Thats pretty much it, the guys says it does well.
 
Why do you have to start with 15?

I'd start with 3 or 5. If you can't rent 10 of the 15 every day, it doesn't make sense to tie up that much capital until you work out the bugs, costs etc with the business.

#lean
 
Why do you have to start with 15?

I'd start with 3 or 5. If you can't rent 10 of the 15 every day, it doesn't make sense to tie up that much capital until you work out the bugs, costs etc with the business.

#lean


I agree with this, great idea.

Maybe you should see if you can start smaller then slowly ramp it up.

Ensure that theres business there before you plop all of your cash down and put all your eggs in one basket.
 
here's a wild and crazy idea I had. 6 steps to riches!

1) say no to scooters
2) make a website
3) write compelling content
4) monetize other than adsense
5) ???????????
6) profit

then you don't have to worry about a ton of risk that is involved in an offline biz.

Well I'll Be... We've got a smartass.

What happens when this happens to your site?

No risk?
 
I'm just looking to throw ideas around with other like-minded people before I just invest $12,000 in scooters.

Here are things that would need to be considered:

To start off, 15 scooters @ ~$800 each. Gas powered, street legal.

There is a pretty good location for rent with a shitload of foot traffic at $1100/month.

What kind of insurance would I need? I feel like this would work like rental car insurance, somewhat. Renters pay a small fee for full insurance coverage, if they wreck the thing, its covered. What about bodily harm if involved in an accident, Is there a release for that?

I'm figuring $30/6 Hours or $45 for the day

:arcadefreak:

Thoughts?

This will be esoteric.

Stop and think about experience.

Customers want experiences more than a transactional reward.

If you can find a sweet spot and market it right, you will actually create a niche, not just exploit an existing one.

Think of places that people would enjoy visiting on a scooter and try and build an association with that location.
 
Another thing.

If you market the experience for the right customer base, you can charge up the nose for the service you provide.

If you want to see this first hand, go visit a Panera Bread or a Starbucks back before they lowered their prices.
 
I think you're right that insurance will be the key part and probably very expensive.

I've spent a lot of time in touristy places in Thailand where everyone and their mother rents out scooters.

Consider that you're going to get a lot of repairs and damaged bikes. People rent these things without thinking it through and then crash it. For this reason, you probably need to take a large security deposit on card or in cash. Also look into how much you can get selling the older bikes off once they break down more than they run.

I think it can be very profitable though if you get a good deal with a mechanic and insurance. It's very little work at that point.

Of course a lot of those places in Thailand make their profits on extorting tourists who get a small scratch on the bikes and the shop makes them pay to replace the entire part or a new paint job. Very profitable business model but probably can't get away with it in civilized countries.
 
The biggest thing I'm interested in is insurance. Foremost, if I have employees I will need work-comp. Then there is general and liability for the physical business. Then insurance for the equipment while being rented, then insurance if someone drives the scooter off a cliff, is unfortunate enough not to die, and racks up 2.7million in medical bills getting "better"

So why don't you call some insurance companies right now and get a quote? don't be an all talk no action guy.
 
No action, please refer to your mother about my "action"

Of course I'm going to find out about the insurance. It is one of the most important aspects. Do you think it would be best to go through the same local people I have my homeowners and other insurance through or to branch out?
 
inb4 massive scooter theft

qHK7L.png
 
+ D/L on file + CC on file + One pissed off owner who can and will track your ass down = FAIL
 
Like Guerilla clearly said why take on so much risk? It's pretty fucking scary the amount of people around here who lack the basic concept of risk management.
 
Well I'll Be... We've got a smartass.

What happens when this happens to your site?

No risk?

come on man. there are always those news reports you hear about where an innocent man goes to jail for the rest of his life too.

some guy could come and rob your scooter store, steal all your scooters at gun point too.

scooter store is a bigger risk with time and money than a website is. I think time is key.
 
come on man. there are always those news reports you hear about where an innocent man goes to jail for the rest of his life too.

some guy could come and rob your scooter store, steal all your scooters at gun point too.

scooter store is a bigger risk with time and money than a website is. I think time is key.

Someone else who fails to understand risk management. It's not about the size of the risk, it has everything to do with your ability understand and control that risk.

You do not control Google or your traffic source, you can influence it at best. Therefore you are in a high risk business, is that seriously that hard to understand? Your business is fill of bottle necks, risks you can't control, and by the looks of things risks you've yet to fully understand. I'd much rather put $10,000 into a scooter business with someone who fully understands the risks involved, than invest $100 with someone who hasn't the clue what the fuck they are doing.
 
the approach is the same as for any other venture -- know all your potential costs inside & out (especially for the worst case scenarios), and realistically project revenues based on actual market research and taking ramp up/seasonal effects in to account. then do the math. figure out your return on capital & time... and if its not the absolute best return you can find, don't do it.

the only situation where the above process doesn't apply is when you're talking about doing something you love, that you'd do for free, that is more a passion than a biz. i'm gonna go out on a limb & guess scooter renting isn't your passion, so only do it if its the best biz option you can find.
 
Of course a lot of those places in Thailand make their profits on extorting tourists who get a small scratch on the bikes and the shop makes them pay to replace the entire part or a new paint job. Very profitable business model but probably can't get away with it in civilized countries.

This. Not sure if Key West is considered civilized or not but you would be hard press to find more scooter rental density in a 2 x 4 mile area. You can do a top end on a typical 50cc 2 stroke in less than 30 mins for cheap. BUT many of those places are also dealers. Which means the parts they use internally are not subject to the typical 600% markup. This can make a huge difference to your bottom line over the course of a year. Also what geomark said. On the island there is a saying that the money is not in the rental but the repairs. The locals give odds as the tourist leaves the bar on whether he goes down or not. Even if the rental company is legit, people will drop the scooters and if you don't keep them pretty it's hard to rent them and more difficult to point out new damage. If you can't buy your parts and plastics at wholesale and your competitor can you will be at a disadvantage.