Look Inside a Locksmith’s Work Van and How it's been Upfitted for Profitability

A mobile locksmith gives us a tour of his van setup and shows us the shelving and organizations he uses to maximize his space and get more work done on the road. Selecting and upfitting a van that's efficient and productive was a key business decision for this mobile locksmith.

Learn more and find Cargo Vans for sale at Comvoy.com.
https://www.comvoy.com/vehicles/cargo...


Making a decision on when to purchase a van is is tricky but basically I'm gonna drive it till the wheels fall off. The van lasts about five years. After things start falling off and maintenance becomes a problem and the van's down when I could be working, and it's in the shop, that's when I start getting serious about buying a new van.

When I'm looking for a new van I'll look anywhere in California and I even looked at a few bands in Southern California but when it came down to it I found a good van right here in Chico. I started thinking about buying a new van early on and I do a lot of research because I'm very methodical about that, and I will exhaust myself looking for the right van until the right van comes along.

I'm definitely a Ford guy. I like Ford but I'm gonna go with whatever has the best bang for the buck. I believe in finding a good tool that's gonna last, to be dependable. And for me that goes with the equipment that I put in the van, the van itself and everything I stock with it. I want the best equipment so I can give the best service and I have the least amount of downtime.

When I started thinking about outfitting a new van I did a lot of online research. I talked to other locksmiths. I looked at pictures online. I just basically talked to people and figured out in my head based off of my own experience what I know I'm gonna need and what other people are doing, and I came up with something that works for me--what would hold the most inventory, what would help me be a better service provider so that I can get in and out of the job quickly and service the customer. And so I looked at you know bench size and how much workspace I needed, the equipment how much room equipment was gonna take up, and how much inventory I was gonna have to carry and I looked at all these factors and everything changed after I outfitted the van. And I changed it, pulled it out, put it all back in and made it work.

But the the one thing that that I turned away from was some of the equipment I saw was just kind of flimsy. I didn't want anything that was gonna fall apart, fall off the side of the van. And this van goes down the road with a lot of weight and it's shaking, it's bouncing, and I definitely don't need any of my expensive tools or parts falling on the ground. Again, organization and being able to get out to the job, get done in an efficient manner... it's very important to me.