Brian wrote: <<"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.)">> Brian; When you are not the lead dog on a team your forward view is somewhat limited.. :-) But changing locations is not something that needfully be traumatic especially for a single person.........first your outlook on the "store" situation. Going to work "for" someone is not the same thing as working 'with' them. When you work "for" someone they set the rules and actions and determine the renumeration to a large extent....however when you work 'with' someone you set the rules and actions and determine the renumeration to a large extent. There is a vast difference between them saying be here at 9 AM and 'them' saying..........could you do it at 9 tomorrow morning? Developing a working 'relationship' with a store(s) is a very good way to start in a new location and can be beneficial to all concerned. Such arrangements are not needfully an anchor on developing your personal clientle and you should not allow it to become so to the largest extent possible. "Floor" tunings and "free service" tunings are not "low paid" jobs in the begining...... they are a fantastic opportunity to get paid for your own advertising.....make use of this paradox until, and if, it becomes more hinderance than help. When working with a store just make sure that your clients know that it is 'Brian' doing the tuning/repair and not KEYBOARDS Etc. or whatever. I have always held that one can make more money doing just tuning and minor repairs then one can in doing just rebuilds/major repair 'if' one works alone. The only way to really make copiuous amounts of money at rebuilding is to do a lot of it and if you do a lot of it you need help and if you have help you become more of a manager and less of a technician and lose some of the things you were looking for when you wanted to do mainly rebuilding....whew! There is a happy medium between tuning/service/rebuilding but....I don't know where it is. I choose to do mainly rebuilding for other techs, myself and a few stores........but I also do a 'little' outside tuning to keep my sanity massaged from being in the shop all the time. Tuning is one 'main' source of rebuilding work....after all it is these customers, that in the begining, who will provide your access to the pianos that need repair/rebuild and the opportunity to bring up the matter. So go to your new location...... meet, the store owners, local techs, music teachers, etc., let them know you are in town...don't wait for them to call you. Develop a good realtionship with as many of these as possible and you will be surprised at what will happen. Don't sit around waiting for these new 'contacts' to pay off, though they will, go out and find some business on your own...churches/hotels/resturants/bars/schools/private owners........the rest will come by itself and your efforts. Casual partnerships/realtionships will fuel your business if you will allow them to and the network you build in your new location is large enough................... Just remember..........., you have to give at least as much as you take. There is an old Chinese proverb that says: "It is better to be a branch on a large tree then to be a root on a small bush".......... :-) I'm not sure that it means what I think it does but it has always appealed to me. My Thoughts. Jim Bryant (FL)
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