Starting a bicycle rental business requires doing a bit of homework to make sure your ideas translate into tangible successes. If you want to rent bicycles for profit, it would help if you knew a thing or two about them. For instance, you could save money if did your own bike repair and maintenance. And if you could salvage old bikes to look and work like new, even better. Locate your bike fleet near a park for a great place to find instant customers. Use simple advertising to enhance your customer base and the rest is smooth riding.
Instructions
1. Contact your local zoning office to find out if the location you selected for your bike rental is legal. For instance, if you are renting bikes at a park on city property, you might need a permit to do so.
2. Acquire several bikes to start the business. Decide if they will be new or used. Decide the type of bikes you want, like cruisers, dirt bikes, mountain bikes, street bikes or a mix. Consider getting bikes that require minimal maintenance. Don't get top-of-the-line bikes that will require expensive replacement costs if the bike is wrecked or stolen.
3. Create a sign or banner that indicates you are renting bicycles. Don't clutter the sign with lots of information. Just state bicycle rentals. People will see the bikes that you have under your banner unless they are out on the trail or street. Tack the banner onto two six-foot tall 2 by 2s. Use two cement blocks with center holes as the base so the banner can stand on its own. Alternatively, tie the banner to nearby trees.
4. Consider developing a unique logo that identifies your bike business. You can use the logo to create identification tags or stamps for the bike parts. If all goes well, you might even think about putting the logo on T-shirts to sell to customers as souvenirs.
5. Make fliers to advertise your business and pass them out in the tourist areas or hotels in your town. Negotiate with other nearby businesses to buddy up with you on the advertising. For instance, provide a coupon on your flier to a local ice cream store in exchange for giving out your fliers.
6. Prepare a waiver for customers to sign when they use your bikes. This could be a simple form that states they know use a bicycle and will return it in the same condition it was given to them. Make sure each renter includes her name, address and telephone number. Require a cash deposit for bikes or hold customer's photo IDs.
