Question about Starting a Home Theatre Biz (1 Viewer)

[mentok]

Afternoon! I came here from Google, pardon my ignorance.


I'm a 25yo IT guy who works for a pretty large corporation looking for an out. As a kid I was always being asked in addition to doing computer work, installing car audio systems, which lead to hooking up televisions to old school cable boxes, VCRs, etc. During college I worked for a company that designed and installed massive audio rigs inside of churches (we actually installed a new audio system at the local university football stadium and a Minor League baseball park) Just last week I set up two home theater systems out of the box. One required 5.1 surround, the other 7.


I feel at this point I've got a good grasp of the installation of AV systems and was considering renting a store front below my apartment, and rendering home theater services full time. I do have a couple of questions however:


My experience in mounting televisions is virtually non-existent but I do know how to run and splice cable, solder connections, and make wire.

• For those of you who do this professionally, is it even a wise decision to outsource to a construction contractor mounting televisions for those customers who want one mounted?
• Aside from business/legal/tax obligations (which I have a close personal friend who works with the city and agreed to help me get proper permits), what are the major things I should consider in starting a business like this?

Thanks for your help, if this is in the wrong forum mods, sorry about that. Just move it and I'll find it.


Thanks!


Dave

 

[CB750]

This is a pretty much a do it yourself forum so it may not be the best place to ask questions about starting a business.

Are you a Licensed Master Electrician? Your are going to need to be one, or hire one if you are going to make any modification to a customers household 120V wiring like installing or changing electrical outlet boxes. Without a License you will have to stick with just setting up receivers and speakers and installing TV's to existing wiring, which will limit the scope of your business.

Mounting TV on drywall is easy provided you have standard construction with 16" centers. Brick, cinder block, or concrete walls are a bit harder as they require more fastening points. For flat screens over 52" it may be a two person job to pick of the TV and place it on the mounts. If you sub contract this out it is going to add to your costs as the sub is going to have to make his profit.


You are also going to need to carry liability insurance for your business,


How do you plan to find your customers? Most HT stores like Best Buy and most mom and pop stores do offer professional installation. You might want to check out what they charge and see if you think you want to compete with them.