Key manufacturing as a business cannot be called a new, small-scale or low-competitive business idea. It refers to working methods of earnings proven over the years, which do not require serious initial investments.
Almost everyone has keys. Their loss is an ordinary thing, but very unpleasant. Sometimes people find themselves in very difficult situations, for example, having lost the key to the house.
If every member of your family has a key, and you came before everyone else, then you will have to wait until someone returns home.
This is not so scary, of course, but there are cases when a person’s time is scheduled in minutes, and he ran after any documents, and there is no way to get into the house, except to knock the door.
To avoid such an unpleasant situation, duplicate keys should be made. Developing this business idea may seem like a waste of time, but it is not entirely true.
How to organize a key manufacturing business?
A desire and a certain amount of money is all that is required of you in the first stage. Most of the finances will go to the premises, and such a thing as a key-making machine should not be the last in line for the purchase. If you have a suitable place to work, that’s fine, but if you don’t have one, you will have to rent or buy “square meters”.
The second stage will be the purchase of blanks for future keys, which can be purchased in the same place as the equipment.
And the final stage, but no less important than the previous ones, is advertising. You must attract potential customers, without which there can be no question of any profit.
Market analysis
Key manufacturing as a business, like any other type of entrepreneurial activity, cannot but have competitors. Therefore, before organizing it, one should analyze the market for the presence of competitive firms providing similar services, determine the possible scope of work and the future location of the workshop.
Room
The choice of premises should be made based on the volume of future business. If you plan to buy one machine for making keys and work with it, then the place is 3-4 m2 will be quite enough. It is best to rent or buy a room in a crowded place. It can be a market, metro, supermarket, underpass. A small parking lot for customers will be very helpful. In the future, with the expansion of the enterprise, you will have to look for a new room for work.
Equipment
Making keys as a business requires certain equipment for which a decent amount of money should be allocated. Of course, you can use the old grandfather's way, making a cast from the key, but it is unlikely to even earn money on renting a room. Today, each person has a wide choice: purchase of machines of Chinese, European or Russian production.
Their cost is proportional to quality. For example, if you decide to purchase an Italian-made machine, then be prepared to spend at least $ 1,000.
The high cost is due to the convenience of managing the key manufacturing process.
A more economical option is a Chinese machine, the cost of which does not exceed $ 500. The problem is that this equipment is of poor quality and reliability.
The best option is a key-making machine of a domestic manufacturer. Its purchase will cost $ 800.
The quality of domestic machine tools is at a fairly high level.Among the advantages of the domestic version, it is worth noting cheap spare parts and inexpensive maintenance.
For the first time, it is advisable to purchase a pair of machines for the manufacture of keys of two types: horizontal and vertical. In the future, the scope of services can be expanded by acquiring special machines for the manufacture of car and intercom keys.
Blanks
Blanks for the manufacture of keys are divided into:
- core (garages, safes);
- Finnish (apartments);
- contact (intercoms);
- vertical (with a laser notch);
- English
- automobile.
A starter pack with all the necessary blanks will cost $ 300-400. For the smooth operation of the workshop, it will last no more than 3 months. The cost of procurement is very low - from 2 rubles. They sell keys with a wrap of 300 percent or more - from 50 rubles. Depending on the complexity of the product, it takes up to 3 minutes to make it.
Optional equipment
Key manufacturing as a business requires additional support equipment. You will need:
- a shield for key blanks, on which it is convenient to place blanks of various types;
- files, files, sharpeners;
- measuring instruments, glasses for eye protection.
Activity Registration
After choosing a room and equipment, you need to register a business. Making keys, oddly enough, also requires a work permit. The optimal legal form for such entrepreneurial activity is an individual entrepreneur, and the taxation procedure is a single tax on imputed income.
When filling out an application for registration of an individual entrepreneur, the OKVED code corresponding to the type of activity should be indicated. OKVED 28.6, 28.63, 28.7, 52.4 should be indicated. They correspond to “production of cutlery, cutlery, tools”, “production of locks and hinges”, “production of other metal products” and “other retail trade in specialized stores”, respectively.
If you plan to use wage labor, then, having hired the first employee, you should register with the off-budget funds of the PFR and the Social Insurance Fund as an employer. In the future, you will pay insurance premiums for your employees.
Registration with law enforcement agencies is not required, since you are only engaged in the manufacture of the key, and not opening the doors of apartments and cars (within the legal framework, of course). Otherwise, registration with the police will be required.
Staff
If you do not plan to produce keys yourself, then you will need staff. The average salary of a master is about 10,000 rubles per month, excluding a percentage of sales. An inexperienced worker should be trained to work on the machine. There are no such courses in our time, although equipment manufacturers provide video tutorials on making keys, and in some cases they can train your employees.
Advertising
The last stage is advertising and promoting the workshop. If you are the only housekeeper in the city, then this is useless to you, as the clients themselves will find you. If the competition is decent, then you have to break through. You can pay special attention to product quality, speed of service, an individual approach, but nothing attracts better than good advertising.
It can be placed on bulletin boards, in the media or on special advertising stands. It should be remembered about the Internet, the effectiveness of which is much higher than the above methods. You can do your own business promotion yourself or turn to the services of a specialized PR company.
The second option is expensive, but it is more effective. It should be remembered that advertising is the main engine of trade.
Cost effectiveness
Here are the approximate monthly maintenance costs for the workshop. They include:
- rent for premises - 8,000 rubles;
- the wages of the master - 10,000 rubles;
- procurement costs - 5,000 rubles;
- advertising costs - 3,000 rubles.
Total monthly expenses amount to about 26,000 rubles.
Calculate the income. For a large city, the flow of customers can reach up to 30 people per day. Take 15 people. Suppose that the cost of procurement is 15 rubles, and the price of the finished product is 100 rubles. Given 15 orders per day, we get 1,500 rubles per day.
Monthly income will amount to 45,000 rubles, respectively, net income is equal to 18,000 rubles. Based on these data, we can conclude that the purchased equipment will pay off in about 3 months.
Development prospects
Over time, when you gain a foothold in this industry, it is advisable to open a few more points. In a small town, it is hardly worth holding several workshops, since no one will guarantee a significant increase in profits. With all this, the costs of their retention will increase significantly due to the hiring of new craftsmen, rental of premises and purchase of equipment.
Both private individuals and representatives of various institutions (hotels, shopping centers, etc.) can contact your service. Therefore, in some cases, the manufacture of keys in bulk can attract additional customers.
It is advisable to expand the scope of services provided. Do not dwell only on the manufacture of keys. Here you can also provide the services of repairing shoes, clothes, installing locks, sharpening knives, selling accessories and more.
