Quote:
Originally Posted by AggiePhil
Well if you'll read my last post, you'll see that I spoke with someone in the university's business office who said that [although he will check with one other office in the next few days,] his office doesn't have a problem with me doing the tours on campus and he appreciates me consulting the university first.  |
great place to start, keep working until you have something in writing (doesn't have to be a formal contract yet - you will want something like that later on down the road), start putting a business plan together (there are self help books, local business organizations, business students, etc. that can help you with that part). I was involved in two start up businesses while I was in college and the first opened my eyes to the large amount of stuff that I did not know, the second showed me how much more work I ended up doing when I was the boss and not an employee.
In your favor - A&M has a large population that would make use of your tour business, it has lots of experienced tour guides (usually college students), it is large in area nad a Segway is almost a requirement for a tour that does not involve getting on and off buses.
The insurance question you have depends on what the university/town/county/state require for liability insurance (at a minimum) for a business (that also is putting people with minimal but minimally adequate training on Segways). you may try calling a few tour operators and asking what insurance carrier they use, then call the company and ask them about your specific area (if they need numbers tell them no more than a 10 to 1 ratio of tourists to guides, a mix of older and newer Segways - $2500-$6000 per unit, 30 minutes of instruction including watching the safety video and using a lesson plan, etc.).
Good luck . . . have fun . . . stay positive