Owning/Managing a Dropzone

[Stephen 0]

What size DZ ae you thinking of?
How much capital are you willing to invest?
How much skydiving experience do you have?
How much business experience do you have?
How much spare time do you have?
Make your way to Spaceland with a notebook and I will answer all the hard questions and then you can make an informed decision.
Steve

[Guru312 0]

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Does anyone have any good articles or threads they could recommend about owning and/or managing a dropzone?

I don't but I can say this...

I'm an entrepreneur. I think up ways to keep from having a real job. I've started 6-7 totally different businesses.

In the mid-60s to mid-70s I was a DZO on weekends and ran other businesses during the week. I never made money as a DZO compared to the other things I've done. I was a DZO most of all because I love the jumping, the people and the skydiver attitude. [Even today, I have difficulty really relating to a none jumper.] But being a DZO is VERY hard work. If you have partners and investment capital--which I didn't--the burdens can be shared.

My point: you have to love skydiving and you have to love operating a business. When everyone has gone home you need to deal with the cash, the deposits, the orders, the returns, the hassles. It is a very big challenge and damned frustrating being a DZO.

Look at my jump numbers. I should have 3-4000+ jumps instead of less than a 1000. I instructed, packed, jumpmastered, flew, raked the peas and carried out the trash. If you aren't ready to do everything, pick a discipline within the sport and get good at that. Unfortunately, being the guy who is responsible for everything happening has to not do a lot of things...like drink too much beer or chase too much skirt.

If you aren't ready to do anything and everything...like one responder who told of the toilet experience...you don't want to be a DZO.

The one thing I enjoyed more than being a DZO was being a jump pilot. I had all the benefits of the people and the atmosphere of a DZ without any of the hassle. SkyDiverDriver is the ultimate job on the DZ. IMHO.

Bottom line: I'll take flying jumpers over any company I've owned...and being a DZO as second. Matter of fact, I'd almost do it just to make expenses only...I loved the life that much.

I'd say figure out how to do it...and go for it!

Guru312

I am not DB Cooper

[JohnMitchell 16]

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Manifesting tandems ahead, and if needed "bumping fun jumpers up", as opposed to pushing loads down is one thing we do. For the most part, we do a great job with the customers paying $200 a jump, and the "twenty three dollar guys", are on they're own.

So you're saying you'll bump a manifested fun load if some tandems walk in the front door?

[virgin-burner 1]

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Manifesting tandems ahead, and if needed "bumping fun jumpers up", as opposed to pushing loads down is one thing we do. For the most part, we do a great job with the customers paying $200 a jump, and the "twenty three dollar guys", are on they're own.

So you're saying you'll bump a manifested fun load if some tandems walk in the front door?

if that happens to often, the "core" of the jumpers will start looking for another place; then you're left wondering why "nobody" comes to your year ends party..

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[skydived19006 4]

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Manifesting tandems ahead, and if needed "bumping fun jumpers up", as opposed to pushing loads down is one thing we do. For the most part, we do a great job with the customers paying $200 a jump, and the "twenty three dollar guys", are on they're own.

So you're saying you'll bump a manifested fun load if some tandems walk in the front door?

No, We schedule tandems fairly tight, they arrive on time, and leave about 1.5 hours later, we do not do walk in tandems, just to busy to "fit another in." I had one guy a couple of years ago who refused to schedule for his tandem, he'd show up on a weekend day. I think that he hung around for two or three days, and never did end up jumping. Basically, every third load (C182) is tandems, I can put the whole day on the manifest first thing in the morning. Generally what happens is we end up with time to squeeze in an additional fun load here and there, so they get "bumped up", so their wait is reduced. We do not allow double manifesting, so not being able to make a turn around isn't an issue.

Right now, with the lift capacity, and customer load, the manifest is seldom very backed up, save those "perfect days" and then only through the 10:00 to 3:00 time frame. Since the DZ is so close to town (about 15 minutes from downtown Wichita), a whole lot of folks don't plan to spend the day. They'll sleep in, go eat breakfast, and eventually end up at the DZ for three or four hours, with plans to do other things in the evening. Funny how little things like proximity to town totally alter the culture of a DZ. Nobody ever sleeps at the DZ, some of the "out of towners" will stay with another skydiver. No late night party (which is damn fine with me! I have to be up early, back at the DZ, and ready to work another very long day), they go to town, and make other plans.

After hours activity can also be a pain in the ass for the DZO. If you're not around, drunk people often tend to do stupid shit, like screwing around on the runway, we'll you know. You might find yourself fighting for the life of your business in front of an airport/town/county council for stupid shit some drunk skydiver did at 2:00 am. If you stick around to baby sit, you'll end up getting very little sleep, and needing to start an extra hour early cleaning up the place. It's somewhat like hosting a party at your house every weekend, and cleaning up the place so it's presentable again by the time your student customers hit the door. For some reason people will tidy up better after themselves at McDonnalds than they do at the DZ. There's always bottles, drinks, food trash, etc laying all over the place, and guess who gets to be the mommy.

Partners a whole nother story too! I've seen situations with three or four "partners", where one guy is stuck doing 90% of the work, and the others enjoy the "free jumps" that come along with being an owner. IMO one owner with a hand-full of committed staff is a whole lot better situation.

Experience is what you get when you thought you were going to get something else.

AC DZ