5000 sq ft Light Industrial in SF (Make boards?)

[kool-aid]

Not expecting much but still going to throw this out into the erbb ether.

I potentially have access to 5000 sq ft of light industrial warehouse space in SF (bay view).

With surfing exploding as a sport, manufacturers stretched to capacity, growing nor cal surfer population, etc, is there a need for a manufacturing facility in the Bay Area? YES, I already know labor is a major constraint so no point in lecturing me about that.

Shaping facility? Blank cutting? Glassing (epoxy)? Anyone have any (educated/useful) thoughts?

 

[racer1]

rent 1,000 sq ft and do ding repair (with mac nut milk lattes)

 

[santacruzin]

marijuana certified testing lab or extraction facility probably net more per Sq foot

 

[kool-aid]

Totally agree, net per sq foot, definitely would not be going for a board manufacturing facility.

But for reasons that I'm not going to go into, it's not in my best interest to get the best net per sq foot.

 

[Mr Doof]

I smell a grow operation waiting to be built out.

 

[waxhead]

I don't know....rates in that area are about 1.20 to 1.30 per sq.ft. now. There is at least one guy in the sunset making good looking boards in what seems like a garage. He advertises some good looking boards on Craigslist. I don't know how you can pay 6k in rent and come out making boards. But, I don't know the economics of surfboard manufacturing.

 

[JBerry]

5k ft is a sizeable glassing/surfboard operation. You'd really have to have a consistent income coming in to pull it off, on top of skilled craftsman to do the work. Plus with that size, you'd want to be a legit operation, which means in this state, payroll taxes, comp etc. I really doubt the future of surfboards will be as busy as this last year in the coming years. I've done a 1400' place and it was tough to make it work, hence I'm a painter now......

 

[One-Off]

With surfing exploding as a sport, manufacturers stretched to capacity, growing nor cal surfer population, etc, is there a need for a manufacturing facility in the Bay Area? YES, I already know labor is a major constraint so no point in lecturing me about that.

Don't feed the beast!

 

[Tarab_ish]

I don't know....rates in that area are about 1.20 to 1.30 per sq.ft. now. There is at least one guy in the sunset making good looking boards in what seems like a garage. He advertises some good looking boards on Craigslist. I don't know how you can pay 6k in rent and come out making boards. But, I don't know the economics of surfboard manufacturing.

not to hijack the thread, but if you're talking about the judah dune surfboards guy I really don't dig his marketing strategy. charging way too much for an unknown/novice shaper for boards that he straight up says are copies of other boards -- like, what's your value add here dude?

 

[silentbutdeadly]

what happens when all of this stimulus and crap propping up the economy expires and takes a poop?

 

[bluengreen]

not to hijack the thread, but if you're talking about the judah dune surfboards guy I really don't dig his marketing strategy. charging way too much for an unknown/novice shaper for boards that he straight up says are copies of other boards -- like, what's your value add here dude?

But cool resin tints!

 

[Senor Sopa]

I potentially have access to 5000 sq ft of light industrial warehouse space in SF (bay view).

You could do 100 a week in that size space. That was the footage of Island Scene back in the day.

 

[Woke AF]

I don't know....rates in that area are about 1.20 to 1.30 per sq.ft. now. There is at least one guy in the sunset making good looking boards in what seems like a garage. He advertises some good looking boards on Craigslist. I don't know how you can pay 6k in rent and come out making boards. But, I don't know the economics of surfboard manufacturing.

Sunset Shapers' retail outlet morphed into mostly plants but James is still making boards. I assume the glass shop is still operating.

 

[doc_flavonoid]

ever run a business? ever run a manufacturing facility in the city and county of sf? ever run a manufacturing business in the state of CA?

hope your backers have deep pockets and dont mind paying the republic its share because those fuckers are going to be on your ass with fees everytime you turn around

 

[kool-aid]

Hmmm, 100 * 4 * 800 * 12 is $3.84M. That is a decent amount of surfboard retail.

As an FYI, would have no interest in starting a shaping label and peddling it to SF shapers. I'd really just be interested in the stock/custom manufacture component. Be like an XTR, Varial, or Dark Arts.

Totally get that manufacturers only get a piece of that pie so it might be impossible economically? It might also be that neither the industry nor the talent exists up here to operationalize the desired output. I dunno, anyone from So Cal want to move to the bay? The women are definitely more broke but the waves are better.

 

[kool-aid]

ever run a business? ever run a manufacturing facility in the city and county of sf? ever run a manufacturing business in the state of CA?

hope your backers have deep pockets and dont mind paying the republic its share because those fuckers are going to be on your ass with fees everytime you turn around

All I do are run businesses bro. But they are usually software businesses (funded and bootstrapped). Have run labor-intensive small businesses in the past. No manufacturing.

I'm not trying to run the business, I'd be interested in providing the space and being a partner.

 

[kool-aid]

ever run a business? ever run a manufacturing facility in the city and county of sf? ever run a manufacturing business in the state of CA?

hope your backers have deep pockets and dont mind paying the republic its share because those fuckers are going to be on your ass with fees everytime you turn around

Also, I believe 50% of the other occupied units in this business park are manufacturing.

 

[000]

first u must consider labor is a major constraint

 

[doc_flavonoid]

I'm not trying to run the business, I'd be interested in providing the space and being a partner.

silent partner one step up the food chain.

i dont imagine there is much margin in traditional board building for excess owner/managers

but firewire and wavestorm did figure out a workaround

just have to bring the business model home and youll be occupying the entire industrial park in no time

 

[SurfFuerteventura]

Call R32, mount a crypto-mining operation.

Fill that sucka with mainframes and racks of miners!