• The average auto paint shop owner is between 35 and 45 years of age (68%), having been in the business 23.9 years. Most have some education beyond high school. Most shops are family owned (77%) and have been in operation 19.1 years. 30% of shops have an annual revenue in excess of $750,000. Word of mouth and referral are the most common sources of business for these operations.
• In North America, most paint shops are owned by either:
• Paint manufacturers like PPG or Sherwin Williams; or
• Independent dealers.
• The transition to multi-residential homes has impacted on the paint industry, with the occupiers of these developments having less stake in the property, and maintenance being left to the building owners.
•  52% of small business owners in the US are aged between 50 and 88 years of age.
•  65% of small businesses are owned by men. 35% are owned by women.
• Only 16% of small businesses are owned by someone under the age of 35.
• Military veterans make up 9% of small business owners in the US.
• The income of a small business owner is typically 21% higher than those who remain employees.
• Small business owners are 54% more likely to engage with their email, compared to the general population.
• Small business owners (excluding those in finance, insurance, and real estate) have an average income of $59,000.
•  49% of American small business operators have turned a passion into their profession.

Summary

• In our initial hour of research, we were able to locate one study that contained the demographics of paint shop owners in North America. Unfortunately, the report was behind a paywall and we were unable to access it.
• Despite further searching, we did not locate any information specific to paint shop owners. There was some limited demographic information available on auto paint store owners. Given this, we expanded our search to small business owners and had reasonable success locating information regarding the demographic and psychographic information of this group. There is a considerable amount of information available on this group.
• The best way forward is to continue research into paint shop owners but on the basis if nothing can be located, we would broaden the search to small business owners. It may be the additional research time means that information specific to paint shop owners could be located, but there is equal chance that it may not.