The Russian bathhouse has always been a popular holiday destination. After the large-scale closure of public baths built during Soviet times, private baths and saunas became widespread among city residents. With the growing popularity of baths, competition in this area is only increasing. The profitability of this business is estimated at 30-50%. Return on investment from 1-3 years (see also bathhouse business plan)
In contrast to common recommendations for placing a commercial bathhouse in buildings over 100 m2, we suggest considering the idea of building a small complex consisting of several detached houses. Clients will be offered hourly rentals of sauna houses for up to 10 people.
Project Description
The goal of the project is the construction of a Russian bathhouse in the city of N with the subsequent rental of the complex. A small marketing study of several areas of the city revealed an insufficient number of Russian baths with decent service and quality of services provided.
To implement the project, it is planned to attract own funds in the amount of 300,000 rubles and borrowed funds (bank loan) in the amount of 680,000 rubles. In total, the total cost of the project is 980,000 rubles.
Economic indicators of the project implementation:
- Net profit per year = 479,800 rubles;
- Farm profitability = 45.9%;
- Project payback = 24 months.
Foundation
Before building the bathhouse itself, it is important to select and design the foundation. It plays an important role both as a base for the walls and as protecting the bathhouse from excess moisture.
The main types of foundation are strip, screw, monolithic and columnar. The choice of foundation depends on the size of the bathhouse, the number of floors, and the characteristics of the soil in the construction area.
Any soil is suitable for the construction of a strip foundation. It is necessary to take into account the dimensions of the bathhouse itself, as well as slopes and subsidence of the soil
It is important to consider how deep the water is. A strip foundation requires more time and effort to build, but it is perfect for heavy two-story baths
Excavation work for laying a strip foundation is necessary.
The screw foundation is suitable for any soil. It consists of steel piles with tips for screwing into the ground. Pile-pipes come in various diameters, solid or hollow, on which logs for the walls of the bathhouse are installed. Immediately after installing the piles, you can begin building the bathhouse.
Columnar foundations are often used for small wooden baths. It is often chosen by those who build a bathhouse with their own hands. The column foundation is very easy to install. Pillars made of wood, concrete or metal are located at the corners of the building and at the intersection of walls. However, such a foundation is not suitable for massive and heavy baths.
Monolithic foundations are often used for the foundation of large baths and in construction from heavy materials. It provides a reliable basis for the structure and protects against subsidence and moisture. A monolithic foundation is a continuous layer of cement and crushed stone.
Separately, it is necessary to consider the foundation for the stove. If the total weight of a brick kiln is equal to or more than 750 kg, then a separate foundation for such a kiln is necessary. The weight of a brick stove is calculated by the formula: multiply the volume of the stove by 1350 kg. A rubble concrete foundation is suitable for a brick kiln. It should be higher and deeper than the foundation of the bathhouse. To build a rubble concrete foundation, you must first build a foundation pit. Its bottom is filled with crushed stone and compacted. Next, you need to make wooden formwork around the perimeter of the pit and treat it with hot bitumen. Ruberoid is suitable for this. Next, large and small stones are poured into the pit.
The next layer is cement and sand in a ratio of 1: 3. After a day, you need to cover it again with stones and fill it with cement-sand mortar. Repeat the layers every subsequent day until the top level of the foundation is reached. A week after the foundation is ready, you can begin to build a brick oven on it.
Where to start implementing the project
Currently, practical activities have begun to implement the “Russian bathhouse” project:
- Individual entrepreneurship has been registered with the local tax service;
- A long-term lease agreement was concluded for a land plot of 150 m2 owned by the municipality. The cost of rent is 7,000 rubles per month.
- A company has been found that supplies Russian baths. This company is engaged in the development, construction, delivery and installation of turnkey bath complexes.
Different types of steam rooms
A bathhouse, sauna or a whole bathhouse complex will definitely find its client. But only wealthy people in cities with a decent population can create a complex. If you study all the possible types of baths, the most popular with us will be the following:
- Russian bath;
- Finnish sauna;
- Turkish bath - hammam;
- Japanese-style bathhouse ofuro.
A sauna is a place with high temperature, about 1000C, and low humidity of 15%. Typically, a sauna has a shower, steam room, swimming pool, a place to relax at a table, and separate rooms. There may be billiards, TV and other entertainment. In the bathhouse, a mandatory condition is the presence of a broom made of natural birch leaves or another type of wood, with the help of which clients are massaged. Experts advise not to focus on luxury baths and saunas, since for these types of steam rooms to be profitable, you need to gather a special contingent, which will take more than 1 year.
Experts recommend that at the initial stage of creating your business, you develop a competent and well-thought-out business plan for a public bathhouse.
Description of products and services
The cost of bathhouse rental services will be set no higher than the average market prices in the city. So, the cost of an hourly rental of a bathhouse will be 600 rubles. In addition, visitors will be offered additional paid services:
- Birch, linden, fir broom – 100 rubles/piece;
- Essential oils (eucalyptus) – 60 rub./10 ml.;
- Disposable slippers – 50 rub./piece;
- Bathrobe (rental) – 150 rubles;
- Shampoo, shower gel – 30 rubles;
- Terry towel (sale) – 400 rubles;
- Shaving set – 50 rub.;
- Hookah (with milk, cognac, etc.) – 500 rubles;
- Barbecue – 300 rubles;
The complex will also offer free services, which include:
- Board games (chess, backgammon);
- Hairdryer;
- Bath attributes;
- Guarded parking.
The operating hours of the Russian bath are planned to be set from 12:00 to 24:00. We consider this to be the optimal mode, allowing us to serve the maximum number of clients without additionally burdening the staff (in the case of a 24-hour bathhouse). Subsequently, with the growing popularity of the bathhouse, a transition to round-the-clock operation is possible.
Download a premium business plan for a bathhouse with a quality guarantee
Nuances of the bath business: pros and cons of opening a bathhouse, sauna
The bath business is quite specific and is distinguished by a large list of its inherent attractive aspects (advantages), as well as time-consuming issues to resolve (disadvantages) that an entrepreneur has to face when opening, operating and maintaining an enterprise.
+'Of the advantages of opening a bathhouse or sauna, it is worth highlighting:
- Prospects for business expansion . By opening a bathhouse or sauna in a small room, you can gradually expand to a bathhouse complex with treatment rooms, a hairdresser, a fitness room, and so on.
- Popularity of the service . The demand for health bath treatments among the population is not falling, despite the fact that many people have a bath or shower installed in their apartments. Nevertheless, people of any age love to take a steam bath. You may need a hall for meeting friends, celebrating birthdays, or holding corporate events. Today many people want to relax with benefit for their soul and body.
- Recipes for all occasions . Traditionality in the bathhouse business is definitely a plus, since the entrepreneur does not have to rack his brains about where to choose a place for a bathhouse, sauna, how to arrange the premises, and what is needed to meet the needs of clients. Everything has long been described and told. Studying the relevant literature will help you cope with all the questions that arise.
- Availability . Even with a modest budget, it is quite possible to open a small bathhouse. Having a competent business plan will contribute to the proper organization of the enterprise and will make it profitable.
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The disadvantages of opening a sauna or steam bath come down to the following:
- Troublesome business registration . To legalize a business, you will have to go through a rather troublesome and not very fast process of paperwork. The main thing is to choose the right type of future activity and a suitable tax payment system.
- Significant costs for repairs and utilities . Due to high humidity in the premises, frequent repairs may be required. Serious costs will also be required to pay for utilities (water, electricity, etc.).
- Possibility of losing clients due to incompetence of staff . Saving on specialists can be a significant disadvantage for an enterprise. So, for example, many clients may go to their closest competitors if they have a professional bath attendant, but you do not. The quality of customer service largely determines whether they will become adherents of your bathhouse.
- Natural selection . High competition in business means that you need to take the organization of an enterprise seriously and carefully calculate the first steps so as not to go into the red and not lose your invested funds.
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Marketing plan
About 20,000 people live in the area where the Russian bathhouse will be located. This is a residential area of the city with a large number of multi-storey buildings and new buildings. It is assumed that residents of this area will be the main clients of our complex. However, due to the transport accessibility of the complex, visits by clients from other parts of the city are not excluded.
The following methods of advertising our bathhouse are planned:
- Posting advertisements, distributing leaflets, flyers informing about the opening of the complex;
- Advertising on the Internet, registration on bulletin boards, thematic resources, forums, Yandex Direct contextual advertising.
Peculiarities
Depending on the needs of the customer, modern construction companies offer a variety of projects - from compact one-story 3x3 houses to two-story spacious bathhouses with a swimming pool, bathroom, terrace and gazebo, in addition to the main premises - a washing room and a steam room. The bathhouse can be a separate building on the local area, or it can have a common roof with the house or be connected to it by a covered gallery.
A modern bathhouse is built from the usual wooden beams or logs, but also from expanded clay blocks, SIP panels, bricks and other materials. The choice of possible options is so wide that you can choose a project that 100 percent satisfies all your requirements and budget. It is necessary that the bathhouse also meets safety rules (primarily fire safety), GOST, building codes and regulations (SNiP).
Production plan
The technical characteristics of the Russian bath will be as follows:
- Steam room - 5.93 m2.
- Shower room - 5.93 m2.
- Rest room - 18.97 m2.
- Utility block - 11.33 m2.
- Terrace - 31.43 m2.
This bathhouse layout meets all SES and fire safety requirements.
The main material for the construction of a Russian bathhouse is rounded logs. This material was not chosen by chance. Rounded wood is very convenient for building installation, economical in subsequent finishing, and also very practical, aesthetically pleasing and durable.
A log house made of rounded logs retains heat perfectly and creates a cozy atmosphere indoors. In addition, the construction of a bathhouse from this material is extremely favorable in terms of price-quality ratio. The guarantee for a bathhouse made of rounded logs is 15 years.
How to choose equipment for a bath
Since such objects are fire hazardous and inspection authorities place increased demands on them, the bathhouse design is developed according to the recommendations of the fire inspection and SES. The set of rules is contained in SNIP II - L 13-62. During the construction of the premises, ventilation hatches must be provided. Walls must be sheathed with hard wood that has not been treated with flammable substances.
It is better to make the interior lining of the room from linden. The rest room must be equipped with benches, a table and a TV. It is also necessary to have an administrative room where the bar, cash desk and staff will be located.
Building a complex is one thing. An equally complex procedure is connecting communications. In this case, you will need “full stuffing”: gas, water, electricity, sewerage. It’s good if the site is already prepared and all communications are connected.
And if not? With water and sewerage everything is more or less clear, but with gas and electricity it’s not so simple. The cost of connection in this case is difficult to determine, and the connection time is frightening - from 6 months or more.
It all depends on the remoteness of pipelines and power lines, as well as on the “appetite” of network companies. Ultimately, the cost of this stage can be from 100 thousand rubles. and higher.
How much money do you need to start a business?
The total cost of building a bathhouse from rounded logs on a turnkey basis will be 650,000 rubles. This price will include delivery of the material and installation of the bathhouse at the customer’s site. Another approximately 220,000 rubles will be spent on preparing the site for the construction of a bathhouse and installing communications (water, electricity, gas).
The project manager plans to take on the functions of the complex administrator personally. The manager’s responsibilities will also include accounting and submitting reports to the relevant structures.
Bath complex equipment
The list of equipment will depend on both the size of the enterprise and the type of bath premises. For example, a wood-burning stove will cost about 1,800 rubles, and its electric counterpart will cost 1,000 rubles. A steam generator can be purchased for 800-900 rubles. In addition, you will need various compressors, filters, brooms, towels, slippers and lights in the steam room.
Additional services such as a solarium and spa will require more significant investments. For example, one solarium cabin can cost about 10 thousand rubles, and spa equipment can cost more than 20 thousand rubles. This expense item of a ready-made plan for how to open a bathhouse business should undoubtedly include interior decoration, on which it is not recommended to save much, since the comfort of visitors’ stay will directly depend on it.
What documents are needed to open
To open a business, you will need to register an individual entrepreneur or LLC. In the first case, you will need: a receipt for payment of the state fee, an application for registration in form P21001 certified by a notary, an application for transition to the simplified tax system, photocopies of the passport and ID code.
After registering an individual entrepreneur or LLC, you will need to prepare another package of documents necessary to open a bathhouse: an application addressed to the district administration, copies of constituent documents, conclusions of the State Sanitary and Epidemiological Supervision, fire inspection and a BTI passport.
A place under the sun
The location where the building will be located should be chosen not on a busy street in the center, but in a huge residential area. The most economical option would be to rent or buy an abandoned building and convert it into a bathhouse or sauna. If there is a gym, fitness center or hotel nearby, then this is one of the ideal places, and the establishment will already have a clientele, and you won’t have to spend a lot of money on advertising campaigns.
It would be good if there were no saunas and baths in the area that could create competition. When there is a children's entertainment center, several cafes and a restaurant nearby, this guarantees an additional flow of customers.
It is possible to refurbish an old abandoned building
The premises should have: a relaxation room, a swimming pool, a shower cabin, 2 small rooms for a couple of vacationers, a utility room, a toilet and a billiard room. There will be a guarded parking lot near the bathhouse. A business plan for a sauna is created under the following conditions: the total number of people is 10, the pool is 12 m3, the total area is 80 m3.
Service staff
The main functions of maintaining the operation of the bath complex are performed by the founder and his family members.
The company staff includes 2 duty administrators. With a monthly salary of 20,000 rubles, the monthly wage fund will be 52 thousand rubles (including taxes and insurance payments).
The general management of the work of the bathhouse complex is carried out by the owner. His functions include determining methods of marketing promotion, organizing interaction with suppliers, and performing the duties of a bathhouse attendant.
Reception, instruction and customer service are carried out by full-time administrators.
Auxiliary functions for cleaning the bathhouse premises are performed by adult family members.
This format of organizing a family business makes it possible to significantly reduce the cost of paying employees and increase its profitability.
