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Suggestions Moving Out of Miami- Where should i go?

ARGENTO

ARGENTO

Advanced beginner
Hi Guys!

I am planning to leave Miami, Florida.
Tired of it.....Market has become a cheapo "looking for price" customer land.
And I am also sick and tired of reggaetton in every corner.

I want to move my shop to some other city. Maybe some other place in Florida, Maybe Colorado.
I am trying to decide.
I mostly do Signs+ Branding+ Wraps.
No electrical signs.

What would be a good place to move to?

Thx

Leo
 
BROWNDOG

BROWNDOG

New Member
Sounds like every town in "merica" right now. I think if anyone had the answers to your question it'd be like the Oklahoma land rush, take a nice vacation, come back at it Monday
 
C

Carlos Valencia

New Member
ARGENTO said:
Hi Guys!

I am planning to leave Miami, Florida.
Tired of it.....Market has become a cheapo "looking for price" customer land.
And I am also sick and tired of reggaetton in every corner.

I want to move my shop to some other city. Maybe some other place in Florida, Maybe Colorado.
I am trying to decide.
I mostly do Signs+ Branding+ Wraps.
No electrical signs.

What would be a good place to move to?

Thx

Leo
Click to expand...
Hi Leo,
We represent about 1800 sign shops across the country. We have guys doing great business in places like Orlando, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas and LA. Among many other places. Its just about exploiting every revenue source possible for your company.
thx Plottermaster
 
R

Ready

Ready To Go
ARGENTO said:
Hi Guys!

I am planning to leave Miami, Florida.
Tired of it.....Market has become a cheapo "looking for price" customer land.
And I am also sick and tired of reggaetton in every corner.

I want to move my shop to some other city. Maybe some other place in Florida, Maybe Colorado.
I am trying to decide.
I mostly do Signs+ Branding+ Wraps.
No electrical signs.

What would be a good place to move to?

Thx

Leo
Click to expand...

Hello Leo,

If Florida works, I have a store in Clearwater, Florida - Tampa Bay area - Cell - 727-520-2255

Thanks... Bob P
 
myront

myront

Dammit, make it faster!!
Choose a city that has a large military unit or two, a big name college or two, multiple schools, churches on every corner, huge real estate market, a major airport or two, big hospitals and only 1 or two "sign" competitors.
 
T

TimToad

Active Member
What quality of life factors are most important to you?

What social amenities are of value to you?

Are you intending to work for yourself right off the bat, or work for others?

I've moved four times in my adult life and have done extensive research into each and every place we've lived in BEFORE we even openly expressed an interest in moving. There is no utopia, every place has its warts and you're going to encounter people of color everywhere in this country except in a few isolated communities here and there.
 
Gino

Gino

Premium Subscriber
I would think you need to decide based upon if you are married or not and if your partner can just pick up and move..... and if you have any little ones. You can set up a sign shop anywhere, USA...... this place proves that. It's more important that your partner and kids can just go anywhere. A race to the bottom is gonna be most likely anywhere USA and as mentioned, that horrific music blares everywhere, USA. Don't use those statistics as your basis for a move.
 
ARGENTO

ARGENTO

Advanced beginner
THANK YOU GUYS!

I am still deciding....in The meantime I am still in Miami.
Trying to focus more in attending West Palm Beach customers.

Miami is a very very PRICE first city.

Today a woman called me ..... " I am sick and tired of losing magnets on the highway"
I asked her "Did i make them for you???"
"No, some other shop did... they charge me $50 dollars for the pair 18x12"

I said..."I can make a great quality one...0.20 musclemag..... the pair for $80 18x12"

Response "No...too expensive...I will make it with the other shop again"

Calls like that one...make want to faint and wake up in some other town.

Most signs you see in Miami...have shrinking lamination and vinyl.

Most Van Wraps are done with regular vinyl.....horrible design.

Most shops are charging around $1500- 1700 for a full van wrap. Like a Ford E-250

I try to sell good wraps...done with Slx by Arlon...or Illuminate by Arlon..... Or Oracal Cast..... But i have to charge around $2500 in order to make it profitable.

Lots of Price Searchers. Not so many quality seekers.

:(
 
nashvillesigns

nashvillesigns

Making America great, one sign at a time.
amazing that no one is complaining about the quality they are getting. i have a similiar problem up here near boston. all the non-speaking americans come in and ask for third world prices.
"why did you think after you came to america the prices for goods was the same as at home?" i say.
 
HulkSmash

HulkSmash

New Member
ARGENTO said:
THANK YOU GUYS!

I am still deciding....in The meantime I am still in Miami.
Trying to focus more in attending West Palm Beach customers.

Miami is a very very PRICE first city.

Today a woman called me ..... " I am sick and tired of losing magnets on the highway"
I asked her "Did i make them for you???"
"No, some other shop did... they charge me $50 dollars for the pair 18x12"

I said..."I can make a great quality one...0.20 musclemag..... the pair for $80 18x12"

Response "No...too expensive...I will make it with the other shop again"

Calls like that one...make want to faint and wake up in some other town.

Most signs you see in Miami...have shrinking lamination and vinyl.

Most Van Wraps are done with regular vinyl.....horrible design.

Most shops are charging around $1500- 1700 for a full van wrap. Like a Ford E-250

I try to sell good wraps...done with Slx by Arlon...or Illuminate by Arlon..... Or Oracal Cast..... But i have to charge around $2500 in order to make it profitable.

Lots of Price Searchers. Not so many quality seekers.

:(
Click to expand...


We've taken the approach of "client first".

We sell our quality of service, then our product. We don't even quote 2 magnets anymore - 0 money in it. We have a minimum that was HARD STICK to. It gets rid of the tire kickers and time wasters.

We played the bidding game for a while, then threw that concept in the trash - we started pricing hire than everyone else, and starting getting all the work. It's human nature to assume more extensive = better products/services. Give them a reason to use you.

also.. that reason is not ARLON - stop using that garbage for vehicles.

good luck
 
James Burke

James Burke

Being a grandpa is more fun than working
When in doubt.....

Just make sure you have a passport ready if you should happen to hit high on the map.

JB

maxresdefault.jpg
 
TheSnowman

TheSnowman

New Member
This is an interesting thread. I've decided that the world of walk-ins isn't for me anymore. Heck, I don't really even answer the phone anymore, my voicemail has my email address, and if you aren't capable of sending me an email, then I don't have time for you, because I have to work at all hours to keep up.

In 1980 my grandparents started my business, I bought them out in 2005, and moved into a downtown retail area instead of "in my shop at home" setting. It was a good move for a while, but by the time 2017 rolled around, I was so busy with what came in via email that I couldn't justify dealing with all of the tire kickers stopping in, so I locked the front door, put my contact info on it, and I just deliver all the orders.

All the good money came from customers I didn't have to prove myself to, that I already had a trusting relationship with, that didn't ask prices, and was way more worth the time invested.

Some of those came from walk-ins over the years, but most of them were like me, they were busy, so they just shot an email out because that was the most efficient way to get their job done. Fast forward to today...I have my final inspection on a shop I built at home, and plan to move back to the "shop at home" setting, that's literally 500ft from where it first started nearly 40 years ago.

You gotta do something to make it work for you. If you're miserable all the time, and all you do is deal with idiots all day, you might as well go work for someone else.

We're a small town, but we've had an influx of diversity lately, and when I started having people come in that couldn't speak english very well, the communication barriers went through the roof, and there was always some kind of altercation about what they thought they ordered, and what I made. They couldn't ever send emails, so most of the time they wouldn't want to mess with proofs...it was just a losing battle.

Hopefully you can figure out something that works for you. I'd guess Miami would be a tough place to be for walk-in work. If you could somehow focus on clients that are businesses that order regularly (for me it's auction company's) it might be a way to stay where you are, but just not have a "walk in store front".
 
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