Customers of skydiving businesses receive access to the complete experience, either in tandem with an experienced jumper or solo. The entertainment package includes the airplane ride, all equipment, landing site—also known as the dropzone or DZ—and the leadership/coaching of a jumpmaster. Other products or services might also be offered through the business, from parachute training before the jump to photography or video production of the jump.
Skydiving businesses are also sometimes known as dropzone businesses or simply DZs.
Ready to turn your business idea into a reality? We recommend forming an LLC as it is the most affordable way to protect your personal assets. You can do this yourself or with our trusted partner for a small fee.
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DIY: How to Start an LLC
Start a skydiving business by following these 10 steps:
- Plan your Skydiving Business
- Form your Skydiving Business into a Legal Entity
- Register your Skydiving Business for Taxes
- Open a Business Bank Account & Credit Card
- Set up Accounting for your Skydiving Business
- Get the Necessary Permits & Licenses for your Skydiving Business
- Get Skydiving Business Insurance
- Define your Skydiving Business Brand
- Create your Skydiving Business Website
- Set up your Business Phone System
We have put together this simple guide to starting your skydiving business. These steps will ensure that your new business is well planned out, registered properly and legally compliant.
Exploring your options? Check out other small business ideas.
STEP 1: Plan your business
A clear plan is essential for success as an entrepreneur. It will help you map out the specifics of your business and discover some unknowns. A few important topics to consider are:
- What will you name your business?
- What are the startup and ongoing costs?
- Who is your target market?
- How much can you charge customers?
Luckily we have done a lot of this research for you.
What will you name your business?
Choosing the right name is important and challenging. If you don’t already have a name in mind, visit our How to Name a Business guide or get help brainstorming a name with our Skydiving Business Name Generator
If you operate a sole proprietorship, you might want to operate under a business name other than your own name. Visit our DBA guide to learn more.
When registering a business name, we recommend researching your business name by checking:
- Your state’s business records
- Federal and state trademark records
- Social media platforms
- Web domain availability
It’s very important to secure your domain name before someone else does.
What are the costs involved in opening a skydiving business?
Skydiving business owners have reported starting up operation for as little as $10,000, but that’s usually when they already have their own airplanes and pilot’s license and can recruit volunteer jumpmasters. That’s a pretty barebones operation. More typical startup costs are much higher, and can include these elements.
- Licenses, certification and legal costs — $5,000
- Airplane and liability insurance — $6,000
- Multiple rigs and gear — $40,000
- Pilot, fuel, maintenance and plane rental or purchase – $50,000 to $100,000-plus to purchase small Cessna
- Sales and marketing — $1,000
With startup costs as high as they are, it may be best to look into investing options. Considering the dangerous nature of this activity, though, confident investors may be hard, but not impossible, to find.
What are the ongoing expenses for a skydiving business?
Your largest ongoing expense is likely to be plane fuel and other expenses related to your air costs. One business owner spoke of spending $200,000 a year on fuel, but your costs will be highly variable depending on your annual number of days of operation and flights per day as well as prevailing fuel costs, which can rise and drop unexpectedly.
As your business grows, you’ll also encounter the cost of hiring employees for such duties as packing parachutes, conducting training classes and generating sales. These positions might also be filled by experienced skydivers who’ll work for free jumps.
Who is the target market?
Your customers are adventurers—or at least want to be seen that way. They can be of any age or gender, but younger (20-45) males are the most common demographic for this type of business.
How does a skydiving business make money?
The main source of revenue is the initial instruction and jump fee, which can start at $250-$350 range or more for tandem jumps with an experienced skydiver. Add-on products and services can generate additional revenue, from DVDs of the jump to commemorative t-shirts and advanced jump training for certification.
How much can you charge customers?
The sport is recognized as being expensive, and for many of your customers it’s a lifetime dream, so rates can be placed high (and must be since your costs are significant). You can see from pricing information at Chattanooga Skydiving Company and Skydive Tecumseh that student tandem jumpers can pay several hundred dollars for initial training and the first jump.
Additional fees are often charged for videotaping the jump, a cost that can add at least a few hundred dollars more to the transaction.
How much profit can a skydiving business make?
Profitability is highly variable depending on your location and business model, but here’s an interesting web article on how one very small skydiving company stayed in the black.
How can you make your business more profitable?
In addition to the add-on charges, consider making the most of your customers’ after-jump celebrations such as by opening a drinking establishment or snack bar on your premises.
Some skydiving businesses hire out their planes and skydivers for promotional purposes, such as for festivals, groundbreaking ceremonies, new business openings and television commercials.
Want a more guided approach? Access TRUiC’s free Small Business Startup Guide – a step-by-step course for turning your business idea into reality. Get started today!
STEP 2: Form a legal entity
One crucial aspect that cannot be overlooked when starting your skydiving business is the importance of establishing a solid business foundation. While sole proprietorships and partnerships are the most common entity types for small businesses, they’re a far less stable and advantageous option than LLCs.
This is because unincorporated business structures (i.e., sole proprietorships and partnerships) expose you as an owner to personal liability for your business’s debts and legal actions, while LLCs protect you by keeping your personal assets separate from your business’s liabilities.
In practice, this means that if your skydiving business were to face a lawsuit or incur any debts, your savings, home, and other personal assets could not be used to cover these costs. On top of this, forming your business as an LLC also helps it to appear more legitimate and trustworthy.
More than 84% of our readers opt to collaborate with a professional LLC formation service to kickstart their venture. We’ve negotiated a tailored discount for our readers, bringing the total down to just $29.
Note: If you’re interested in more information before getting started, we recommend having a look at our state-specific How to Start an LLC guide (DIY) or our in-depth Best LLC Services review (for those opting for a professional service).
STEP 3: Register for taxes
You will need to register for a variety of state and federal taxes before you can open for business.
In order to register for taxes you will need to apply for an EIN. It’s really easy and free!
You can acquire your EIN through the IRS website. If you would like to learn more about EINs, read our article, What is an EIN?
There are specific state taxes that might apply to your business. Learn more about state sales tax and franchise taxes in our state sales tax guides.
STEP 4: Open a business bank account & credit card
Using dedicated business banking and credit accounts is essential for personal asset protection.
When your personal and business accounts are mixed, your personal assets (your home, car, and other valuables) are at risk in the event your business is sued. In business law, this is referred to as piercing your corporate veil.
Open a business bank account
Besides being a requirement when applying for business loans, opening a business bank account:
- Separates your personal assets from your company’s assets, which is necessary for personal asset protection.
- Makes accounting and tax filing easier.
Recommended: Read our Best Banks for Small Business review to find the best national bank or credit union.
Get a business credit card
Getting a business credit card helps you:
- Separate personal and business expenses by putting your business’ expenses all in one place.
- Build your company’s credit history, which can be useful to raise money later on.
Recommended: Apply for an easy approval business credit card from BILL and build your business credit quickly.
STEP 5: Set up business accounting
Recording your various expenses and sources of income is critical to understanding the financial performance of your business. Keeping accurate and detailed accounts also greatly simplifies your annual tax filing.
Make LLC accounting easy with our LLC Expenses Cheat Sheet.
STEP 6: Obtain necessary permits and licenses
Failure to acquire necessary permits and licenses can result in hefty fines, or even cause your business to be shut down.
State & Local Business Licensing Requirements
Several federal licenses and permits must be obtained before you can operate this type of business. Pilots must be licensed, and there are other regulations for the operation of aircraft for commercial purposes. A list of these regulations (Federal Aviation Regulations) and permits can be found at the following sources, here and here.
In addition, certain state permits and licenses may be needed to operate a skydiving business. Learn more about licensing requirements in your state by visiting SBA’s reference to state licenses and permits.
Most businesses are required to collect sales tax on the goods or services they provide. To learn more about how sales tax will affect your business, read our article, Sales Tax for Small Businesses.
Liability Waiver
- It is strongly recommended to have customers sign a liability waivers. Here is an example of a skydiving waiver.
STEP 7: Get business insurance
Just as with licenses and permits, your business needs insurance in order to operate safely and lawfully. Business Insurance protects your company’s financial wellbeing in the event of a covered loss.
There are several types of insurance policies created for different types of businesses with different risks. If you’re unsure of the types of risks that your business may face, begin with General Liability Insurance. This is the most common coverage that small businesses need, so it’s a great place to start for your business.
Another notable insurance policy that many businesses need is Workers’ Compensation Insurance. If your business will have employees, it’s a good chance that your state will require you to carry Workers’ Compensation Coverage.
Find out what types of insurance your Skydiving Business needs and how much it will cost you by reading our guide Business Insurance for Skydiving Business.
STEP 8: Define your brand
Your brand is what your company stands for, as well as how your business is perceived by the public. A strong brand will help your business stand out from competitors.
If you already have a logo, you can also add it to a QR code with our Free QR Code Generator. Choose from 13 QR code types to create a code for your business cards and publications, or to help spread awareness for your new website.
How to promote & market a skydiving business
Use your website and social media to draw interest. See if coffee houses and bars will allow placement of your business cards, and consider advertising online where your target audience hands out or on billboards near your airport location.
How to keep customers coming back
You can generate first-time and repeat business by providing discounting on the usual rate. Run limited time specials in social media and package rates for several jumps.
STEP 9: Create your business website
After defining your brand and creating your logo the next step is to create a website for your business.
While creating a website is an essential step, some may fear that it’s out of their reach because they don’t have any website-building experience. While this may have been a reasonable fear back in 2015, web technology has seen huge advancements in the past few years that makes the lives of small business owners much simpler.
Here are the main reasons why you shouldn’t delay building your website:
- All legitimate businesses have websites – full stop. The size or industry of your business does not matter when it comes to getting your business online.
- Social media accounts like Facebook pages or LinkedIn business profiles are not a replacement for a business website that you own.
- Website builder tools like the GoDaddy Website Builder have made creating a basic website extremely simple. You don’t need to hire a web developer or designer to create a website that you can be proud of.
Recommended: Get started today using our recommended website builder or check out our review of the Best Website Builders.
Other popular website builders are: WordPress, WIX, Weebly, Squarespace, and Shopify.
STEP 10: Set up your business phone system
Getting a phone set up for your business is one of the best ways to help keep your personal life and business life separate and private. That’s not the only benefit; it also helps you make your business more automated, gives your business legitimacy, and makes it easier for potential customers to find and contact you.
There are many services available to entrepreneurs who want to set up a business phone system. We’ve reviewed the top companies and rated them based on price, features, and ease of use. Check out our review of the Best Business Phone Systems 2024 to find the best phone service for your small business.
Recommended Business Phone Service: Phone.com
Phone.com is our top choice for small business phone numbers because of all the features it offers for small businesses and it’s fair pricing.
Is this Business Right For You?
Most people who would consider starting such a business are experienced jumpers, but that’s not mandatory. You should, at a minimum, feel comfortable convincing partners or investors and officials of the wisdom of your plans and your skydiving business’ value to the community.
More than anything, potential owners should have passion for the activity—because that’s how most of your repeat jumpers feel about skydiving.
Want to know if you are cut out to be an entrepreneur?
Take our Entrepreneurship Quiz to find out!
What happens during a typical day at a skydiving business?
While your friends and family might think of ownership of a skydiving company as being exciting work, it’s really a serious business. Here’s how your typical day might be consumed.
- Hiring pilots or communicating with the day’s pilot as to availability of a fueled and ready plane
- Conceiving new discounts and package deals to spur sales, and promoting those deals via the company website and social media
- Paying bills for airplane rental and fuel, airport landing fees, payroll, etc.
- Supervising parachute packing and meeting with the day’s customers to provide support and reassurance (especially to first-time jumpers)
- Serving as jumpmaster for the day’s jump if that responsibility won’t go to an employee
What are some skills and experiences that will help you build a successful skydiving business?
In addition to having hundreds of hours of skydiving experience under your belt, you should have the patience, diplomacy and perseverance it will take to find investors and convince airport officials and community leaders of the safety and value of your operation. Many see skydiving as an extreme sport and will express concerns about legal liability in the event of accidents.
Registering and certifying your business can be complicated, so you should be detail-oriented. You can go here for regulatory and legal answers.
And finally, you and your people must be able to inspire the confidence and trust of your customers, many of whom will be skydiving for the first time and perhaps second-guessing their decision while in the air.
What is the growth potential for a skydiving business?
Word of mouth and repeat customers are key to your business’s success. Student jumpers will bring their friends if their first jumps are positive experiences. If you can keep more experienced jumpers loyal to your business, they’ll jump with you as often as their budgets allow.
Take the Next Step
Find a business mentor
One of the greatest resources an entrepreneur can have is quality mentorship. As you start planning your business, connect with a free business resource near you to get the help you need.
Having a support network in place to turn to during tough times is a major factor of success for new business owners.
Learn from other business owners
Want to learn more about starting a business from entrepreneurs themselves? Visit Startup Savant’s startup founder series to gain entrepreneurial insights, lessons, and advice from founders themselves.
Resources to Help Women in Business
There are many resources out there specifically for women entrepreneurs. We’ve gathered necessary and useful information to help you succeed both professionally and personally:
- Funding
- Events
- Guides
- Support
If you’re a woman looking for some guidance in entrepreneurship, check out this great new series Women in Business created by the women of our partner Startup Savant.
What are some insider tips for jump starting a skydiving business?
Remember that your add-on products and services can sometimes be more profitable than the basic fee you’ll charge for a tandem or solo jump. For instance, while it costs relatively little to provide a DVD of the experience (a second jumper with a GoPro camera strapped to a helmet and basic editing software and skills) your customers might eagerly pay $180 or more for documentation of what’s perhaps a top bucket-list activity.
How and when to build a team
At the very least, your business will need two people—the pilot and jumpmaster. You can only serve in one of those capacities, so you’ll have to hire the services of the other even if you keep your operation small. As your business grows, you might want to add staff to conduct skydiving instruction classes, pack parachutes and undertake sales and customer service functions as revenue allows.
Useful Links
Industry Opportunities
- United States Parachute Association
- Find more Business Ideas perfect for Small Towns!
Real World Examples
- Chattanooga Skydiving Company, based in Tennessee
- Skydive Tecumseh, a Michigan-based skydiving company