Car wash business is one of the most lucrative businesses in Nigeria that many people have overlooked. Even as a university graduate, you can start this business and make a lot of money instead of wasting time searching for a white-collar job. In this article, we will show you how to start a car wash business in Nigeria.
Car wash business is a worthwhile business in Nigeria that you should consider.
The truth is this; car owners consistently wash their cars.
I have a car, and I know how often I pay to wash it in order to keep it spotless.
Every month, car washes take a whopping ₦10,000 from my income, and those who own more than one car are likely to spend more.
Actually, no one would like to drive around with a grimy and dirty car, so car owners wash and keep their cars clean as often as they take a bath.
And the best way to keep their car clean is to engage the service of car washes.
A car wash business can generate up to ₦150,000 to ₦200,000 per month depending on the location of the workshop and number of customers.
If your business is in a busy area, you can make much more than that washing people’s.
At my place, I pay ₦1,000 to get my car washed, and the man that owns the business wash an average of 10 cars per day; which is 10 × ₦1000 = ₦10,000 per day.
That means, in a month, he will make 30 × ₦10,000 = ₦300,000.
Now, tell me how many graduates in Nigeria that earn such huge amount of money per month?
The good thing about a car wash business is that you can start it at different locations, become a manager, and use people to do the job. Or you can buy automatic car wash machine if you have the money.
So, it is not necessarily that you do the job by yourself. Although, I don’t see anything wrong washing the car by yourself.
Why start a car wash business in Nigeria?
1. There are many car owners in Nigeria, despite the declining state of the economy.
Nigerians who cannot afford a new car go for fairly used car which is cheaper.
And one person can have up to 3 different cars. The more cars we have in Nigeria, the more profitable car wash business becomes.
2. According to statistics, 80% of car owners in Nigeria pay to wash their cars. This means you will have steady customers.
3. Nigerian environment makes car wash business to thrive. Be it in rainy or dry season, the environment in Nigeria encourages car wash business to thrive.
In dry season, cars get dusty and dirty.
During rainy season, cars get stains and muddy, and required to be washed. So, every season in Nigeria favour car wash business.
4. After washing a car in Nigeria, it can last for a maximum of 2 to 3 days before it gets dirty, and need to be washed again.
With the above stated facts, you can see that car wash business is a lucrative business in Nigeria.
Now, let’s look at how to start car wash business in Nigeria.
Best guide to start car wash business in Nigeria
Below is the most effective method to begin a car wash business in Nigeria.
1. Get a Capital
The principal thing that you have to think about when starting a car wash business in Nigeria is capital.
You need money to get the vital devices and hardware to work. Car wash business can cost about ₦150,000 to ₦550,000 to start.
If you need to make profits as quickly as time permits, you need to spend much more money for purchasing car wash business equipments.
2. Carry out a research
Car wash business is not what you just jump into. You need to carry out a proper research about how the business works.
The best way to do this is visit over 5 car wash business centres, see how it works and ask questions.
3. Choose a good location
This is crucial for survival in a car wash business. Choosing a location requires a careful consideration.
You need a decent area where there are a lot of car movements. You would not last in this business if you choose an off-sight area because there will be few or no customer.
4. Get authority’s approval
It is important to seek for approval from the authority after getting a good location for your cash wash business.
Try not to begin your car wash business without getting endorsement from the authorities in charge. However, this might not be a big deal in many.
But it is necessary to find out if you need approval from any authority; because authority might want to check if the place has good drainage or gutter to take care of grimy water that will flood the road if not in place.
5. Get a water tank or borehole
You need water to wash people’s car. And as a result, you need to make adequate provision for that, maybe by buying a big water tank or sinking a borehole.
If you buy water tank, then you should get a bigger one, and contract a water vehicle driver that will constantly fill it.
6. Electric Power Supply
You need power to pump water from your borehole. You can purchase a little generator.
Small generator costs around ₦35,000 to ₦50,000 depending on the capacity of power it generates.
Apart from using it to pump water, you would also need it to light your workshop when it gets dark and to operate your car wash machine if you have any.
8. Buy detergent
Buy good detergents to wash cars. You should know that not all detergents are car friendly. Find out good ones for washing cars.
9. You need Containers
You need containers such as buckets to start a car wash business.
Buckets will help you mix detergent and bring water from a borehole or tank to wash vehicles.
10. Get a car wash machine
There are different car washing machines in the market; those that can be manually operated, and those that can be automatically operated. The one you get depends on your budget.
Car wash pressure pump machine
Using a pressure machine will attract lots of customers to your business because many people into a car wash business do not use it.
Also it makes work easier, the machine would help you clean some car part that could not be possibly cleaned without using them.
The costs for car wash machines varies. You can get the one of ₦60,000; ₦70,000; ₦120,000 or ₦500,000.
Semi-automatic car wash machine
11. Other things you should get are; Towels, brushes and bowls.
Free tips for a car wash business
Be patient to your customers. If you treat your customers well, you will constantly make money from them.
Quick view: Best guide to start car wash business in Nigeria
1. Get a Capital
2. Carry out a Research
3. Choose a good Location
4. Get authority’s approval
5. You need borehole or water tank
6. Power (Electricity)
7. Buy detergents
9. You need Containers
10. Buy car wash machine/Pressure Washer
11. Towels, Brushes and Bowls
The above are our best guide to start a car wash business in Nigeria. What do you think about this post? Please, tell us in the comment section.