Good luck with the business.
A few thoughts coming from a guy who has run a business detailing yachts, and has a good friend who runs an auto detailing business:
1) Good luck getting people to work around your schedule...!
2) The quality of the detail is only as good as the conditions...this means water hardness, sun, temperature, etc. If you are travelling on fixed days, and working outside, you have no control over this. Working in your garage will help. How good is the water quality at your garage/driveway?
3) You bought the buffer, but how about the rest of the stuff...you'll need a rotory polisher, several different types of polishes/waxes/compounds/sealers, a variety of touch up paints, a carpet cleaner (not just a vacumn), a million other products too. You can build your stock as you do more jobs which helps.
4) How are your skills? Are you good with the buffer? How about using a variable rotory on a black car to get rid of scratches/heavy swirl marks...? Ever burn paint before and know how to avoid doing it? Knowledge on wet sanding comes in handy too, particulary to clean up after bad/sloppy bodywork/finishing.
5) How fast can you work? I ran a car audio business for a couple of years while I was in college, and I learned quickly that it is one thing to love to do something on YOUR car, and it is another thing to love to do it on EVERYONE ELSE'S car. And, it is yet another thing to do it fast enough that you are actually MAKING MONEY. I used to do jobs that literally in the end I was making 8.00 an hour because of unseen snafus, trips to the parts store, etc.
6) Get in good with some body shops and some used car dealers. They always have a lot of cars to turn over for detailing, they have facilities, they may provide the products, and they will pay well. Also , if you can find some persons who will be regular customers, you may be able to work a nice deal out...it is actually cheaper and more effective to detail a car 3x a year then to do it once!
7) You may want to hook up with a distributor to get professional-grade products. You are going to find the freak here and there that wants Zaino, etc. but chances are if they are that picky they'd clean their own car. You can save a lot buying in bulk. My friend uses 3M, and a few other brands. You learn over time what works and what doesn't. Maybe you can get an account and terms at a auto body supply shop and get some product samples.
8) Get a system down - learn what pads work with the right products, on which color cars, in what shape. You can literally save hours if you know for example a white car with clearcoat can get away with a 1 step versus the black car which needs the 3 step. Helps you price out jobs better.
9) Make sure you take pride in your work. I hate to say it but my friend who details hsa lost his pride in his work. He still does awesome work, but he cuts corners and it shows when you are picky enough. I use him because he cuts me a good deal and he is a wiz with the buffer on my black SVT.
Good luck!
