How Much Custom Closet Owners Make at $2407M Year 1 Revenue
You’re trying to see whether a custom closet design and installation business can pay the owner, not just book big projects Using the provided five-year model, Year 1 revenue is $2407M, average installed project value is $4,912, and gross margin before overhead is 812%
Owner income≈$1.09MNet margin45%Revenue for target pay≈$2.41MBusiness difficultyHard
What drives custom closet owner income most?
1
Average Ticket
$4.9K
Year 1 average ticket is about $4,912, so even small price gains lift revenue fast across 490 jobs.
2
Gross Margin
85%
Blended direct cost is about 15%, so tighter material and labor control keeps more cash in the business.
3
Lead Flow
$2.4M
More qualified leads and stronger close rates are what keep the Year 1 revenue plan on track.
4
Install Capacity
490/yr
The plan depends on finishing 490 installs in Year 1, so crew output sets the ceiling on revenue.
5
Fixed Overhead
$23.3K/mo
Fixed costs run $23,250 a month, so enough volume is needed to cover rent, marketing, and payroll.
6
Staffing Leverage
8 FTE
Year 1 starts at 8 FTE, so the owner's time and hiring mix decide how much profit reaches take-home.
Want to test your owner-income target?
Owner income calculator
Estimate owner take-home and target-pay gap from revenue, margin, costs, reserves, and target pay.
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Planning note: This is a researched planning estimate, not guaranteed salary, tax advice, or owner distribution advice.
How many custom closet projects per month are needed?
For Custom Closet Design and Installation, use completed projects, not booked sales: 490 installs in Year 1 is about 41 per month, and at a $4,912 average ticket each project contributes about $3,608. That volume can cover $56,167 in monthly fixed costs, and if you also want a $115k annual owner-pay target, you need about 18 installs per month.
Year 1 volume
490 installs a year
About 41 installs monthly
$4,912 average ticket
$3,608 contribution per project
Cash needed
$56,167 monthly fixed costs
$115k annual owner pay target
About 18 installs monthly
Mix changes the count: walk-ins, reach-ins, pantries, garage systems, home office hubs
Can a custom closet business replace my salary?
Yes, Custom Closet Design and Installation can replace your salary if gross profit covers overhead, payroll, reserves, and owner pay; start with How Do I Launch A Custom Closet Design And Installation Business?. Year 1 shows $1.768M contribution after COGS, 50% referral commissions, and 28% card fees, with $674k fixed costs and payroll, leaving about $1.094M before taxes, debt, and reserves.
Salary math
Target owner pay: $115k
Needed revenue: $1.074M
Fixed costs plus payroll: $674k
Pre-tax cushion: $1.094M
Risk levers
Protect install schedules
Limit callbacks fast
Track referral commissions
Reserve cash before draws
How does the owner role change custom closet income?
If the owner sells, designs, schedules, or installs in Custom Closet Design and Installation, income can look stronger because you skip replacement labor. In Year 1, listed payroll is $395k for a $115k general manager, two $75k design consultants, and two $65k installation leads; by Year 5, it rises to $740k. Scaling can push revenue to $9.824M, but overhead, lead costs, and management layers still have to stay under gross profit.
Owner work lifts margin
Owner replaces paid labor.
Gross profit looks higher.
Fewer staff, lower payroll.
Sales and design stay close.
Scaling adds real costs
Year 1 payroll is $395k.
Year 5 payroll reaches $740k.
Revenue can hit $9.824M.
Overhead can outrun gross profit.
Key Takeaways
Higher-ticket projects drive revenue, but complexity can erode margin.
Lead volume only matters if quotes close profitably.
One-point margin misses cost about $24,070 in Year 1.
Fixed overhead and staffing determine owner take-home.
Compare low, base, and high custom closet income scenarios
Owner income scenarios
Income moves fast in this business because project count, ticket size, and fixed overhead all hit the owner's take-home. These cases show the swing from launch to Year 5.
Compare downside, base, and upside owner income paths.
Scenario
Low CaseDownside case
Base CasePlan case
High CaseUpside case
Launch model
Lower owner income comes from fewer installs, weaker close rates, and softer pricing while fixed costs stay in place.
The base case follows the Year 1 operating model with steady volume and the model's pricing and margin structure.
The high case assumes stronger demand, higher volume, and better use of the same operating base by Year 5.
Typical setup
This case assumes a smaller sales run, lower average project value, thinner margin, and the same rent, payroll, and marketing load.
This case anchors to about $2.4M revenue, 490 installs, about $4,912 average project value, about 81% gross margin, about 73% contribution margin, $279k fixed costs, and $395k listed payroll.
This case reflects about $9.8M revenue, 1,750 installs, about $5,614 average project value, about 83% gross margin, $279k fixed costs, and $740k listed payroll.
Cost drivers
Fewer installs
lower close rate
lower ticket size
thinner margin
fixed overhead pressure
490 installs
$4,912 average project value
81% gross margin
73% contribution margin
$279k fixed costs
1,750 installs
higher average ticket
83% gross margin
fixed costs held flat
larger payroll base
Owner income rangeBefore owner reserves
$0.8M - $1.0MConservative case
$1.1MBase case
$7.3MStretch case
Best fit
Use this to stress-test slow demand and full overhead in the opening period.
Use this as the normal planning case for launch-year owner income.
Use this to test upside if volume and pricing both scale cleanly.
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Planning note: These ranges are researched planning assumptions, not guaranteed earnings, salary promises, tax advice, or distributions.
Custom Closet Design and Installation Core Six Income Drivers
Average Project Value
Average Project Value
Higher-ticket jobs raise revenue per install slot. With a Year 1 average project value of $4,912, the mix matters: walk-ins at $8,500, reach-ins at $3,200, pantry organizers at $2,800, garage solutions at $5,500, and home office hubs at $6,200. A walk-in brings $5,300 more than a reach-in, so owner income rises fastest when the quote mix shifts up, not just when lead volume grows.
This driver includes product mix, upsells, and scope size. Drawers, lighting, islands, shoe storage, pantry systems, and garage storage can lift revenue if margin holds, but complex jobs can add labor, callbacks, and waste faster than price. One clean rule: if the extra scope does not pay for the extra hours, it cuts take-home profit.
Raise Ticket Without Breaking Margin
Track average project value by job type, plus gross profit per install. Here’s the quick math: use signed contract value, then subtract added labor, material waste, and callback time before you call an upsell profitable. If a higher-ticket bundle raises revenue but drags the crew or creates rework, it helps cash in the short run and hurts owner pay later.
Forecast the mix, not just total jobs. Compare how many walk-ins, home office hubs, and pantry jobs you sell each month, and watch whether the average stays near $4,912 or moves up. The best projects are the ones that sell at a higher price and still finish on time, with low rework and clean handoffs.
Installation Capacity
Installation Capacity
Completed installs create revenue; booked consultations do not. Year 1 assumes 490 completed projects, or about 41 per month, so every missed install slot cuts sales and leaves fixed overhead spread over fewer jobs.
By Year 5, the plan rises to 1,750 installs, or about 146 per month. That pace only works if install leads, shop flow, scheduling, delivery, site readiness, and callback rates stay tight. Overtime can cover a short spike, but too much of it pushes labor cost up and trims owner take-home.
Track the install pipeline
Measure the handoff from booked consult to signed job to completed install. Here’s the quick math: 490 ÷ 12 = 40.8 installs a month in Year 1, and 1,750 ÷ 12 = 145.8 in Year 5. If completion slips below plan, revenue slips too, even when sales look busy.
Track installs started and finished
Track callback rates weekly
Track overtime hours and labor cost
Track site readiness before dispatch
Track rework by installer
The best gain is more profitable installs finished right the first time. That protects gross margin, keeps crews moving, and turns the same labor hours into more owner profit.
Gross Margin Control
Gross Margin Control
If installs look busy but cash still feels tight, gross margin is usually the leak. Gross profit per project is what’s left before overhead and owner pay, and Year 1 gross margin is 81.2%, with unit COGS covering panels, hardware, lighting, fabrication labor, installation labor, scrap, consumables, tools, utilities, and logistics insurance.
After referral commissions and card fees, contribution margin is 73.4%. That’s the pool that must cover $23,250 a month in fixed overhead and still leave owner income. A 1-point miss costs about $24,070 on Year 1 revenue, so waste, rework, and underpriced labor hit take-home fast.
Hold the margin on every job
Measure job margin by quote versus actual for each project. Track supplier pricing, cut-list accuracy, labor hours, scrap, change orders, and warranty calls. That shows where gross profit is bleeding before it reaches overhead or owner pay.
Check panels and hardware costs weekly.
Compare quoted hours to actual hours.
Price change orders before work starts.
Log every callback and warranty visit.
Lead Flow and Close Rate
Lead Flow and Close Rate
Your income only grows when qualified homeowners move from lead to consultation, quote, signed contract, and completed install. With $4,500 per month already going to local search marketing, weak close rates turn traffic into overhead, and low-budget jobs can crowd out higher-margin walk-ins or home office hubs.
The inputs are lead volume, consultation rate, quote rate, close rate, average ticket, and install completion. If bad-fit leads burn design time, fewer jobs reach install, and owner take-home falls even when top-line inquiries look busy.
Track the Funnel by Source
Measure every lead source by marketing cost per signed install, close rate, average ticket, and gross profit per lead source. That tells you which channel fills the schedule with profitable projects and which one just eats time.
Cut sources with weak close rates.
Prioritize higher-ticket consults first.
Block bad-fit leads early.
Review signed installs weekly.
Owner Role and Staffing
Owner Role Cost
Owner pay depends on what the owner actually does. If the owner sells, designs, manages projects, installs, or runs the business, that labor has to be priced into profit. Year 1 payroll is $395k; Year 5 rises to $740k as design and installation staffing expands. If the owner steps back, the model must replace every role at market cost, or take-home income gets overstated.
Here’s the quick math: owner income is not “saved payroll” unless the work is still covered. Inputs are owner hours by function, headcount, loaded wages, and install volume. If the owner fills a general manager or design gap, that can support cash flow short term. But once a hire replaces that work, the savings disappear and fixed payroll rises with it.
Track Role Replacement Cost
Split owner time into sales, design, project management, installation, and general management each week. Price each role at a loaded market wage, then compare that cost to revenue and gross profit per completed job. That tells you whether the owner is creating margin or just covering staffing gaps.
Watch payroll against install capacity. With payroll at $395k in Year 1 and $740k by Year 5, every added designer or installer should be tied to more completed projects or faster turnaround. If owner involvement is still carrying core tasks, document the replacement hire before assuming profit is available for draws.
Fixed Overhead
Fixed Overhead
Fixed overhead is the monthly bill that hits before the owner gets paid. Here it runs $23,250 a month, or $279,000 a year, including $12,500 rent, $1,400 utilities, $2,200 fleet maintenance, $850 design software, $4,500 local search marketing, and $1,800 insurance.
Same revenue can still produce very different owner income. If gross profit is strong but installs are uneven, this overhead stays fixed and takes a bigger share of each job; adding rent, vehicles, admin help, or financing before volume is stable pushes break-even higher and cuts cash left for owner pay.
Hold Overhead Flat
Build this from monthly fixed costs and completed installs. Track rent, utilities, fleet, software, marketing, and insurance, then compare that total to gross profit from jobs finished. The owner only gets paid from what is left after overhead, so booked work that does not convert to installs does not cover the bill.
