Parking garages are profitable business ventures for entrepreneurs. If you’re interested in launching a parking business, understand the essential steps for building a parking garage empire from beginning to end.
Understand Business Elements
Guarantee you successfully build a parking garage empire by understanding important business elements, specifically costs, profits, and legal requirements.
Consider Costs Involved
Building costs depend on a parking garage’s size and type. Costs involved in building a parking structure include labor, equipment, and materials. An average parking structure costs about $9,750,000; however, prices range anywhere between $7,500,000 and $12,000,000 based on the number of levels and whether the garage is above ground or underground.
Ongoing expenses also occur, including rent or mortgage payments, employee wages, utilities, insurance, and supplies, costing $5,000 every month. Maintenance is a major ongoing expense for parking garages, involving repainting lines, repairing concrete, and much more, costing approximately $500 per space every year.
Estimate Potential Profits
Estimate your potential profits by calculating the average amount of daily revenue for a parking space. Multiply your daily revenue per space by the number of parking spaces and days in a year. Subtract your ongoing expenses, specifically rent and wages, to uncover the gross profits for a parking garage.
Obviously, profit potential increases significantly based on a parking garage’s size and available spaces.
Complete Legal Requirements
Complete legal requirements to protect your business from liability.
Register your business and obtain an EIN for state and federal taxes. Carefully record your business’s expenses and income to track your overall success and simplify annual tax filings.
Form a legal entity, such as an LLC or corporation, to avoid being held personally liable or enduring lawsuits. Discover resources for forming a business structure to create a legal entity yourself or recruit a professional service.
Obtain proper licenses and permits to prevent substantial fines. Different state and local laws exist regarding licenses and permits, so research your area’s specifications. Generally, a certificate of occupancy is required to prove your parking business fulfills building codes, zoning laws, and government regulations.
Lastly, acquire business insurance by researching different types of coverage. At a minimum, purchase general liability insurance and workers’ compensation coverage to protect your business from property damage or personal injury liability.
Choose a Quality Location
Location is essential for every business, so choose a quality location for your parking business to earn customers and increase profits. Search for prospective lots in areas containing high traffic, specifically near businesses or entertainment centers. Research local zoning laws and real estate prices to guarantee your preferred location works.
Evaluate Your Market
Once you’ve selected a location for your parking garage, evaluate your market.
Understanding your potential customers allows you to determine prices, create customer experiences, and develop marketing efforts to effectively reach them. Your target market uses a parking garage to conveniently park near something else, meaning you must discover what they’re parking near. Analyze your intended consumers needs, wants, habits, and expectations to learn better methods for serving them.
Additionally, understand your local competition, especially regarding their services and prices. Recognizing your competitors assists you in choosing strategic ideas for surpassing the competition’s success.
Enhance Customer Experiences
Enhance customer experiences to elevate your parking business empire by improving security and recruiting management services.
Improve your business’s security to prevent crime, allowing your customers to feel safe and secure. Methods for enhancing a parking garage’s security include installing security cameras, upgrading lighting, and hiring security personnel.
Recruit parking management services to significantly strengthen customer experiences. Management services possess advanced knowledge and skills related to automated parking technology, industry advancements, and guest services to create an efficient and effective business. Visit Propark.com to understand how Pro Park provides over 35 years of guest services and parking management experience.
Market Your Business
Market your parking garage to ensure you receive and retain customers. Ideas for marketing your business include:
- Developing a business logo
- Creating a business website
- Participating on social media
- Offering discounts to new customers
- Building a rewards program for returning customers
- Purchasing traditional advertisements, such as signs or banners
Discover the best method for marketing your parking business to guarantee success.
Open Another Parking Garage
Once you’ve built a successful parking garage, start the process over again to build a parking garage empire. Follow the same steps, specifically choosing a location and providing quality experiences, to earn more customers and double your profits.
Build a parking garage empire by following the simple steps for success.
