[EEMO1]

I got offered a partnership in a studio space. sweet place, floating control room, nice amount of space, kitchen and a "lounge". they do mostly mastering so they have prism converters and a sintefex, tape machines. not a lot of gear though, but good stuff.

 im tempted, although to make sense moving my gear from the comfort of my home to another location I'd like to have a live room/drum room/tracking room of some sort. I used to play drums and would like to at least practise and make my own drumsounds etc. maybe record some demos.


 I don't know what to do. The space would give me a reason to start saving up to maybe a console and some better instruments. It also would give me a better reason to promote myself and what I do.

 should I do it? and start to build a tracking room (the current owners are in with the liveroom btw so...)?

[Viitalahde]

I say go for it.  :thumb:

[okgb]

Is there enough work to pay the rent ?
what does your half require ?
Are there ways you can diversify if needed [ slow times ]
 Because it is a bigger commitment , it often taxes ones
resources [ drains funds , time & energy ]
Why do they want you ?

 I'd say ask the hard questions of yourself , look at worse case senerios
and if you have a vision that you think can work with that then don't
go half hearted [ but careful about the money ]

good luck

[sodderboy]

Greg is right on about the due diligence.  Spend some time working on a business plan to get an overview of the numbers involved.  Create something that you would take to a banker for funding.  It makes you get serious about the small things.  And make sure about who might be able to use your equipment when you are not there.  Potential depreciation is an important consideration.
And then, yeah, go for it!  Small studios like this are the creative and commercial energy of our industry.
Mike

[okgb]

Yeah , good point
working up real numbers can take away a bit of the dreaming
but if you've worked up a plan that a money manager can respect
then you've likely protected yourself  [ maybe with reality too ]

 But if you still feel good about it after all that , then you can have
more confidence to do the real work , you don't want to end up
10 years down the line , tired , broke and no farther ahead ,
 but a sucessful studio owner , engineer , producer
vacationing in the tropics !

[EEMO1]

thanks for the ideas, thoughts AND the encouragement.


 I would not quit my dayjob just yet though. I have a long time plan that I've been working on for some years now. Being involved in a studio space would be actually the next logical step for me.

 as far as money goes, I could afford it without any clients actually, without decreasing on other qualities like food. With my current clients I can prob. cover most of the expence. I think if I want to get more serious money & client wise, I need a decent studio space. Not like what I have now, although my room has served me better than I expected.

 The development and upgrading etc of the space is something that worries me a bit financially. Building a decent tracking room, HVAC prob needs to be upgraded in the near future. or so I was told. My salary currently is not the biggest in the world, I got a home loan etc... that might change when I get my degree in a few months.

 all of my music buddies (like jaakko) say go for it. they don't even think about it. my friends also told me they'd hire me for some of their mixing aswell. one of them made a good point of making connections. a space like that with the people in and out, could-might give me good amount of stuff to do (that I have not expected to do).

 plus the wifey gave it green light so... I think Im going to go with it.

Is there enough work to pay the rent ?
what does your half require ?
Are there ways you can diversify if needed [ slow times ]
Because it is a bigger commitment , it often taxes ones
resources [ drains funds , time & energy ]
Why do they want you ?

1. I think so yes. For me personally at least.

2. I would actually be a partner in the studio. I would imagine like any other company. Make desicions, do pland, upgrade the space, share some expences etc.

3. Yes there are.

4. They told me that they would like me there, because they feel that I would be an asset, not just a partner. Someone that has the motivation to drive and inspire other people. They feel comfortable with having me around. They feel I take music seriously. I've known them for years now and we've worked together before. Of course they also need someone to share the rent etc, but besides that...

 Im pretty good on business in general. I am NOT going to get a loan for thing to run or to keep the business going. to quote the last comment about I don't want to be broke in 10 years... I don't think that will happen. I also do not want to be in a situation in 10 years where I feel depressed of not have taken the chance to try being a real engineer in my own studio, you know...

[okgb]

Sure i hope it can work out and it looks like you've put some good
thought into it .

 A couple last thoughts

you don't want the upgrades to wipe out your pension / savings
to risk it never getting paid back . Unless there is a plan & schedule
could put undue stress in the marrige , keep your eyes open .
not sure if it is better or worse than the resturant bussiness , but
you may be to generate some buzz and momentum with the opening
as your best chance to get going .

Friends saying they will use it is nice , but coming down to the crunch
many people have to look at their own finacial situtaion , don't count the
eggs before they're hatched , contracts may help .
friends telling you to go for it may not be around when it comes time to pay the bills .

 Ad agency & t.v. / film post production have larger " billable hours "
around here than music gigs , more money of course if the studio is
running more than a shift , so to keep the cash coming you may have to
 find & hire someone you trust & respect . make sure you have the bases
 covered

 You will have to become more of a manager then you may want to
[ less engineering ] for the money side but i think there is allot of info
out there to research . I remember one quote saying they'd never turn
 down work even if they had to doublebook and then reschedule .
In lean times someone has to get on the phone and stir up work ,
you can't let the romance of music get in the way of business but
i don't know your market [ another important factor ] around here
people want the best but often can't or aren't willing to pay for it ,
sometimes you have to get " creative " with sales .

 Lastly remember to take care of yourself , with a dayjob could be allot
of long days , in the end you want to make it mean something
more than being tired & broke .

 Good Luck , [ have a lawyer review the agreement ? ]
& happy recording , If you don't want to miss the opportunity to do this
then do everything you can to make it a success .

[amorris]

(a)Do they need you to help with work they are turning away? or(b) do they need you to bring in work cause they arent getting it?

always go with (a) and never go with (b).

[EEMO1]

very good points again, thanks a bunch!

 i'll post some pictures and thoughts again when it's time for that! I guess im going to wrap up what I have to do right now at home (mix and produce an album), when that's done im off. that gives me plenty of time to second guess and make good plans etc before I move in.

 I told the the missus im going with it. she was happy. also for the extra room at home.

[owel]

Get a lawyer.  Have everything in writing. (re: partnership, duties & responsibilities, % investment, profit sharing, etc.)

Good luck!

[okgb]

Teaching classes is another staple for a couple studios around here ,
in a city of 650,000 there are maybe two legitimately designed spaces
most others are owner operated  affairs , simular to the above
one studio has a tatic of hiring people for their contacts
[ like someone starting out in the insurance industry ] and once they
have run out of them they move on and hire someone else ,
the hrs get split and people leave . [ it also becomes part of their
job placement ]

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