Need advice on moving and piano business...(long)

[Brian Trout]

Hi List,

I'd appreciate some input if you have a minute.

It appears that I may be moving to another part of the country, far enough
away that it will basically be starting over.  And I'm ok with that.

Most of you know that I tune and also get into rebuilding work as well,
mainly belly work.  I tune because I have had to do that, not because I like
to do that.  I am most content when working in the shop, building something.

I have a few thoughts about how the business I am in now has gone that I'll
share.  You can comment if you want to.

1)  After starting my own business a little over a year ago, I continued to
work as a subcontractor for a local store.  It was a blessing in that it was
steady income.  It was a curse in that it kept me from other things which
could have perhaps made more money.  Honestly, a job doing the "Here's your
McFries & McShake, come back McSoon" might have paid as well as a lot of the
subcontract tunings.

2)  I have not been all that successful in marketing the rebuilding type
work, and that bothers me, because that's where I'd like to be.

3)  I took on a sideline of rebuilding old reed organs (pump organs) that
has worked out pretty well.  I had been surprised at how much of that type
of work there seems to be.  The biggest negative on that is that it doesn't
usually pay as well as piano work.

So.....  Here I am, with perhaps the opportunity to start over, fresh, with
a fairly clean slate.  And I'm puzzling about how to attack the situation.
I will be spending some time in the new location before I would go, likely
several occasions, so I do hope to become more familiar with the
surroundings and the local people as time goes by.

The way I see it, I have several options.

1)  Find a large store (?) and go to work for someone like that while I try
to build business on my own.  (The big negative about that...  more tuning
customers, going in the wrong direction...  I don't want a tuning business.
The positive, it would likely be fairly steady work.  Another negative...
low pay.)

2)  Find a regular job somewhere and do piano work on the side until there's
enough of it to support quitting the regular job.   (I don't like this one,
but I could do it.)

3)  Go for broke and start fresh with the new piano business in the new
area.  Sink or swim.  I have been thinking about ways I might be able to
offer my services to other tuners in the area who may not get into major
shop type work.  (I'm thinking of you, Jon Page, if you're tuned in...)

I believe I have a few advantages over someone starting fresh for the first
time.  I do have the experience of knowing a bit more realistically how some
things may work, such as subcontract tunings.  (They don't pay as much as it
sounds like!)  I have had to keep a set of books, and am familiar with that
aspect of things.  I am no stranger to the actual piano work.  I've been
doing it for quite a few years.  I pretty much have a basic collection of
tools that I normally use.  (We can ALWAYS use more tools... but that's
another story...)  And I've also been able to develop some relationships
within the Guild, and I think that really makes a difference.  So, really,
I've got some things going for me.

Ron Nossaman, (if you're reading), you gave me some advice in mid '99 about
getting myself as 'unencumbered' as possible and starting over.  It took me
a long time to get around to that line of thinking, but I'm getting there.
And I do thank you for that advice.

So...  Now that I'm starting the planning stages of actually doing
something, I would truly appreciate any input you might care to send along,
things that have been helpful to you, things that haven't worked out as well
as you'd thought, things that worked better than you expected...

Feel free to respond on the list if you think it would be beneficial to the
people reading.  Or write to me privately if you want as well.  I didn't
want to clutter up the list any more than need be, but there may be others
who might be thinking of asking the same type of question.

Thank you again, one and all for your help and input.  I look forward to
hearing from you.

Best wishes,

Brian Trout
Quarryville, PA
btrout@desupernet.net