How to Start an Appliance Repair Business

For someone who is good at fixing machines, learning how to start an appliance repair business is a great match. If you are mechanically adept and able to fix things, you’re probably already doing so for your family and friends, so why not go into business for yourself and get paid for appliance repair?

People who really know what they are doing in the area of appliance repair are in demand, and this can be a very good business that allows you to set your own hours and take on only as much work as you want.

What You’ll Need to Succeed

When you start out in the appliance repair business, you can work from your home. You’ll need a workspace in your garage or another building on your property, and you will need all the tools necessary to repair a wide range of appliances, and they should be professional grade so they last the life of your business. This creates a larger expense up front, but it is worth it in the long run.

You will likely go to customers’ homes for a lot of your repairs, so you’ll also need a way to transport your tools, and you should have a truck to transport appliances to and from customers’ homes as well.

While some people who start an appliance repair business specialize in specific types of appliances, other offer repairs on just about any home appliance imaginable. Your choice of what to offer will have to do with your abilities, as well as the demand in your area. For instance, if there are a number of repair shops in your area offering large appliance repairs, but only one or two that work on small appliances, like toasters, blenders, toaster ovens, etc., it might make sense to make this your niche.

Check with your local regulatory agencies to determine what kinds of license and permits you might need to start an appliance repair business. In most cases, a business license will be all you need.

Marketing Your Appliance Repair Business

While thinking about how to start an appliance repair business, consider how you will get the word out about your services. Ultimately, you will likely gain most of your business from customer referrals. As your reputation as an honest, skilled repair person grows, you’ll gather testimonials, and people will tell their friends and family who are in need of appliance repair about your business. But in the beginning, you will need to do some marketing.

Start by approaching owners of appliance stores that do not provide repair services. They get a lot of calls from consumers looking for appliance repair. Many of them will have a relationship with a repair shop, but they might not be happy with their quality of work or turn around times, so don’t let the idea of competition stop you from getting out there.

Once you have built up a good reputation and business is coming in, consider expanding your business to offer repairs on other items, or bring on other skilled repair people to take on some of the work. At some point, you might even be able to sit back and let a manager and a few skilled technicians run things. Then you will be very glad you learned how to start an appliance repair business.

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