Philadelphia, PA
- Every business venture has to start somewhere, and Philadelphia is a great place to set up a machine shop, with a strong local economy and ample opportunity to win over clients as a newcomer in this space. To turn your ambitions of running your own machine shop into a reality, you’ll need to plan carefully and do your research, so here are some tips to start you off down the right path.
Figuring Out What Equipment You’ll Need Upfront
Every machine shop needs equipment to serve the needs of clients. Which types of machinery you choose will depend on the kinds of jobs you want to complete, and also on the skills and expertise that you’ll have at your disposal.
If you’ve already got experience with a particular type of equipment, this is a good starting point. You can also factor in budgetary limitations at this point because machinery costs will be the main outlay for all startups in this sphere.
That’s where second-hand gear can be your best bet, and with Revelation Machinery’s used CNC mills catalog, you don’t need to overpay for powerful, efficient, and modern equipment.
Looking Into The Market & Choosing Prospective Clients
Another important move is to scrutinize the market and get a sense of the types of clients you’ll be serving once your machine shop is up and running.
There are a number of industries that flourish in and around Philadelphia, including manufacturing, natural gas, and life sciences. Being set up to cater to one or more of these areas from day one will stand you in good stead.
Securing Funding
We talked a bit about your budget earlier, but what also matters when launching any business is where the seed money comes from.
The option of injecting your own cash into your machine shop is always there, but this does leave you exposed to the financial fallout of the firm failing in the short term. Getting a business loan from a bank or other lender is ideal if you are eligible, but being approved for this type of package is not always easy.
You could also look to third-party investors, or ask friends and family for assistance. Whatever you do, having a solid idea of how you’ll proceed and what equipment you’ll need will demonstrate that you understand how to spend your startup capital wisely.
Investigating Competitors
Every major city has its fair share of machine shops, and Philadelphia is no different. This means you can look into your competitors and see what you are up against as a fresh face on the scene.
This is an especially good idea as a little research into rivals might reveal that there’s a niche that is as yet unfilled in the local market, and which you could slot into as a newcomer to get a leg up straight away.
Being Patient
In the long term, you’ll want to grow your business and make it a sustainable success. However, it’s not helpful to think that your machine shop will hit the big time overnight, and if you aren’t patient then it’s easy to get disillusioned when it takes months or even years to gain momentum.
The best entrepreneurs are not those who give up at the first hurdle and move on to something new, but those who stick with a project they believe in and go above and beyond to see that it succeeds. If this sounds like you, then opening a machine shop in Philadelphia is a noble and attainable ambition to pursue.
