<WBR>Paul<br> <br> There are two different ways you can buy the business. You can buy his piano service business, based on the profit he made the last couple of years, multiplied by a factor. The factor is determined by the "system" of his business. The system is how he kept record, his advertising, his reputation, his method of notifying his clients. If he has all of his customers in a computer, notified them by mail, kept accurate records, and had a stellar reputation, then multiply his profit by 2 or 3. If all of the above is nonexistent, multiply the profit by a negative number. <br> <br> The other way to buy his business is over a period of several years, and he gets a percentage of all the work generated by his clients. The percentage can be anywhere from 5% - 30%, depending on how valuable you think his customer base is. This income would not just be tuning, but also repairs, etc.He might have been urging a customer to rebuild the piano, but had been reluctant to do so. You walk in and recommend it, and the customer agrees. The other tuner should get a piece of that action. <br> <br> For a complete and more detailed description of what I just talked about, there is a chapter on buying and selling a piano service business in my book. <br> <br> Good luck. <br> <br> <div style="CLEAR: both">Willem (Wim) Blees, RPT<br> Piano Tuner/Technician<br> Mililani, Oahu, HI<br> 808-349-2943<br> Author of: <br> The Business of Piano Tuning<br> available from Potter Press<br> www.pianotuning.com</div> <br> <br> -----Original Message-----<br> From: Paul McCloud <pmc033@earthlink.net><br> To: Pianotech <pianotech@ptg.org><br> Sent: Fri, 24 Oct 2008 2:49 am<br> Subject: Buying Customer List or Existing Business<br> <br> <div id=AOLMsgPart_2_5eb85721-75e9-4a92-bbd4-d9c6ca0cdb7d> <div> <div>List:   </div> <div>    I have been offered first dibs on a piano business that has been gradually downsized over the past several years.  The owner, retiring at the end of the year, has been a technician for 60 years, most of which were spent here in San Diego.  He used to have a store location with various new and used pianos, but has given up piano sales, and does part time tuning.  What he's offering is his customer list, a few rental pianos (returned), tools and supplies, and a few odd piano benches and other accessories.  I know there has been some discussion in the past about purchasing an existing business or customer list, but I can't seem to find much in the archives.  Maybe I need a better search keyword.  </div> <div>    I'm leaning towards some kind of arrangement where I would pay for any customer on the list that actually becomes my client.  Paying for  a couple thousand names where most of them are dead, moved, or otherwise useless to me doesn't make sense.  I've got plenty of those anyway.  I'm thinking that I would pay a certain amount for any client I got from his list that actually became a customer.  I could put out a mailer that would introduce me to his clients, asking them to call me for their next service.  Someone suggested to ask if he has a list of his most recent customers, and how much business he has done in the last year with them.  That figure would tell me what I could expect to make if I did purchase his list.  I'm also keen to acqure his telephone number.  He has moved into the shop where I work, and has a corner of the room.  When I'm there, I hear his phone ring and I listen to the p! hone calls that come in as his answering machine takes messages.  </div> <div>    If any of you could offer advice, I'd be very glad to have it.</div> <div>    Respectfully,</div> <div>    Paul McCloud, RPT</div> <div>    San Diego, CA</div> <div> </div> <div> </div> <div> </div> <div>Paul McCloud</div> <div>Service Technician for PianoSD.com</div> <div><A href="http://www.pianoservsd.com/" target=_blank>www.pianoservsd.com</A> </div> <div>Created with free BlueVoda software:</div> <div><A href="http://www.vodahost.com/partner/idevaffiliate.php?id=9223_1_3_9" target=_blank>http://www.vodahost.com/partner/idevaffiliate.php?id=9223_1_3_9</A></div> <div> </div> <div> </div> <div></div> </div> <div id='MAILCIAMB033-92b249021e3bba' class='aol_ad_footer'><BR/><FONT style="color: black; font: normal 10pt ARIAL, SAN-SERIF;"><HR style="MARGIN-TOP: 10px"></HR>McCain or Obama? Stay updated on coverage of the Presidential race while you browse - <a href="http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100000075x1211139166x1200680084/aol?redir=http://toolbar.aol.com/elections/download.html?ncid=emlweusdown00000002">Download Now!</a></FONT> </div>