Is this guy for real?

Hi guys

I came across Bimmerfest forum and found this guy " Andrew " doing detail for prices that I never seen before. I don't know how is it possible. so maybe you guys can take a look and explain to me.

PLEASE NO ATTACKS on this person, I don't know him and am not here to judge. Just wanna know how he can offer services so cheap!

BIG "A" DETAILING Shop Introduction & Pricing - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums

 

Looks legit. But keep in mind his background was in automotive painting. When was the last time you saw a highly precise detailer come from a body shop?

That pricing mirrors corner "detail" shops; who often work at high volume with low margins.

 

Big A I believe is on here as well, though I don't think he posts. He has been around quite a while.

 

I lol'd so hard when I saw his "details" on e46 fanatics

 

Would you be worried about your business if he was a block away? I mean his even cheaper than the deals I give to my friends

 

to each his own.....

 

First off, did you look at the vehicles on his property? Do they have extreme gloss? How do you think they got that level of gloss?

Secondly - I also came from that same background - My Dad had a Body Shop along with his Gas Station and Repair Shop. i came up learning all those things, decided on staying in the Body Shop after I learned the Mechanic part, and did all those things this man did too. And decades later, I am still doing the Detail Side, and I have no dissatisfied Clients. At the Body Shops I worked at including my Dad's, they all turned out beautiful, swirl free paint all the time. It was just the way we did it. There was no other way. And this was way before the Porter Cable 7424, etc., was ever used for Paint.

Thirdly, having been exposed to the Paint and Body Work side of this equation actually gives one a more well rounded experience level at the Detailing end of this. You know how paint and bodywork is applied, you have spent the equivalent of years behind big Rotary Buffers, and you have pretty much seen it all many, many, times.
There are no paint problems that are so new or surprising that cant be solved pretty quickly. You dont need to try out hundreds of different products or techniques, because you have developed some mad skills over all the years. You had to learn how to be innovative way back when there were just a few products to choose from, compared to the hundreds of products today.

This man posts at AutopiaForums.com and perhaps here too. I have never seen his pricing and dont really care to know about it. All I can tell from looking at his pics, is that he appears to be very very good at what he is doing, and if he can do it very quickly ( a skill you HAVE to have in the body shop business), then more power to him.

This is a very disappointing thread...

Dan F

 

people need not be so worried with price.........especially if its not their own. Who cares if he charges $150.00 or $150.00 an hour. Too many preconceived notions on here of what "detailing" should be or what the price should "be".

I can see where one would be curious why he charges what he does, maybe you should ask him...... and let us know what he says? No?

 

I remember seeing him years ago on another forum, so I guess since he's still in business he must be doing well.

 

Did I read correctly that he charges $80 for a two-stepper? Bargain!

 

This right here is so nice to see acknowledged. While I am a firm believer in smarter work vs harder if it leads to a better relative result, I really feel like(and I suppose rightly so) many people get away from what Bob Willis consistently refers to as sweat equity aka putting in work. I think alot of people want to get away from actually having to bust a sweat on a detail job because reading some writeups make everyone think its all roses. Hard work and evaluation, skill developement and application of said repertoire are what brings results. Not shelves worth of crap.


I say this after using the same "cheap" 16 dollar paste(that outlasts all this hoohah new stuff - would bet the farm on it) for years and years and years and knowing my polisher is what gives that final look.

Good stuff Dan.

 

Congrats to him, looks like he's making a living.

 

Smarter, not harder........... I agree 100%

Its not how much stuff you have on your shelf, its how you use it.

 

And with a little help from camera and photo editing software too

 

I have seen some of his work posted on other forums. He is a skilled detailer and I believe that he is coming up in the industry. He works out of Queens, NY and I have seen him use 3M products as well as IW845. Seems to me (without knowing him) to be a good detailler and a good guy. I had asked him some questions about a black car he deswirled (since I was having trouble on my own black Infiniti) and got a professional acurate answer with an offer to stop by when I am in the area to be shown the tecnique.

I am not a professional detailer. Just try to maintain my own rigs as a hobby. We should flame poor work not sharp prices. Threre is a great saying in my industry "Your competition does not lower your price, You do!"

Sell what you got, if the public thinks you have a fair value proposition you will make it, if not, not.

 

Whatever his price structure his work is excellent - hey guys IM BACK! GTR teaser w- heavy holograms! - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums

 

why do i only see 4 before pics? is there a full write up?

 

After looking at some of his projects he has put in his post it seems he does pretty darn good work. His story is one that many forum members only dream of. Starting out as he has and growing his business in the last few years to what it is today speaks volumes about him in my opinion. As for his prices ,he is the one who determines what the local market will bear and if he can successfully run his operation on that amount. His selection of products appear to be working for him and he's apparently not caught up in the flavor of the month club. I know if my new detailing venture is half as successful as his I will be a happy camper.

 

I've followed big A for a while, I use to read his threads before I knew anything about detailing and I use to wonder how on earth he complied two polishes into one step. He often combines two polishes into one step and it looks great. Maybe his prices are on the lower end but his work is really high end and as Piet said $80 for two step, maybe I should go to him LOL

 

My self, I am more interested on how guys like Bob charge many times he going rate in an area flooded with guys in the industry. On top of the results, Bob's business acumen has to be oe of the best. Its easy to see how guys like Andrew work, charge similar prices with better results, equals a good customer base, but at a lower margin. One thing that is certain with any good business, it was built on hard work and consistent results over a decent duration of time.