Describe your business: I design and customize golf carts for both personal and industrial use. After we receive the carts, we can do a custom paint to match for the customer or include flames, pin striping, American flag imagery, ghost flaming, an electricity paint effect or other specialty requests. We offer several types of lift kits, a four-wheel-drive option, and six to seven different kinds of tires. Our supply of accessories includes DVD, CD and MP3 players, windshields, radios, and GPS systems. We do everything in-house.

Where did you get the idea for the business? I saw a custom lifted golf cart and found out the owner had purchased it from a company in the Inland Empire. After doing some research I discovered that he had paid a little too much and that there was not a local source for personal-use carts here in Orange County.

How long did it take you to get from idea to open doors? One year.

What did you do during that time? I visited other shops, did research on the Web, found parts and researched cart manufacturers. I scouted out locations and trade shows in addition to getting my business licenses, the necessary tax and legal documents, bank accounts and accountants.

How much did it cost to start the business? Approximately $75,000. Where did you get the money? Personal savings.

Your expected revenue for this year? $85,000.

Is this your first business? No

Did you write a business plan? No

Whom did you seek for advice? Family and one other golf cart industry leader who resides in Florida.

How are you marketing yourself? In the beginning, I relied on word-of-mouth and my business grew quickly. I have since started to work on an ad campaign and product unveiling that will debut during the Extreme Motorsports Show at the Orange County Fairgrounds in May.

The biggest thing you didn't think of before you started? I thought it would take longer to build up clientele, but the response has been overwhelming.