pricing??

larry merlau

Member
Messages
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Location
Delton, Michigan
ok since jeff is talking sales ,, i got a question,, was asked by a retailer freind of the better half to make a couple gizzmos for the quilt world.. to sell at her shop so last wknd i figured i would get after it and made two deliverd them monday afternoon had a price in my head as to what i wanted the lady was glad to get the in ther and even tried one out.. well no more said ather than what i was asking for them.. told her and left. well this after the betterhalf get as call and in a roundabout way the lady finally says she neds 30 % for sellun them:huh: well she asked me to do it.. and now she is gettin in to the profits.. so do i raise the price 30% or just sell these and dont come back. maybe finad another place that isnt asking for 30% .. or am i all wet here???
 
I would think that it depends on how many she can sell and if it's worth your time. Can the job lead to other sales? I've wholesaled stuff to dealers because there was added benefit to me. (I get premo birdseye from them) Otherwise I stick to my price depending on volume. If somebody is moving 50-100 pens per month it is in my interest to give them a better price break as long as I am happy with the proceeds.
 
she comissioned them she can mark `em up however high she wants.
if she wants `em 30% cheaper send her packing.
 
if you established a price and made it clear what you wanted and she accepted the merchandise, thats it.
if you were sorta wishy washy cause it was a friend of the family,(or wifes good friend, tread carefully, the ice always looks thicker than it is) well, nuff said.

obviously I dont build anything for profit, but I did post somewhere here about how family and friends asking me to build for them, even though Im strictly amateur, is a touchy situation.(especially when they offer money and say I dont expect you to work for nothing)
 
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serious now...

after a min of composure from dans comment::rofl::thumb:

i had figured out my cost and what i felt i needed for the work. then i took them in and like i wrote nothing was said it all, acted like she was just gonna do us a favor.. like a freind would do for another.. we mentioned what we wanted for them and then again nothing was said,, no money tranferred or mentioned to be. so i quess i got a mess now and al li was tryun to do was make a honest dollar and save some quilter a few in the meantime..i quess i can just get them back and she can whistle dixie or whatever tune she likes..becasue once i add her 30% they are only around 15 less than the internet plus shipping..thought maybe i could get alittel side work this way on other things...:(
 
That's the problem with items that can be purchased elsewhere.
I talked to a local quilt shop about doing the same thing then found out the ones they are getting they are paying next to nothing for. Like so many of the retired woodworkers around here they simply don't care if they make a profit or not, it's only 'busy work' for them.
Chalk it up to tough luck.
 
The going commission is 30% for someone who does nothing more than telling you what they want, and selling it... while you own the piece and handle repairs of any damage they or their customers cause.

The going commission is 50% of the selling price (sell at double your wholesale price) or whatever the market will bear, if they buy if from you and own it while it is on their sales floor.

The role that really ticks me off are the designers who pick furniture from a catalog for you, then collect a 30% commission from the furniture store. And if they want something custom, give you a rough sketch, then tell the customer they gave you the detailed design, so you shouldn't charge them a design fee to get the cut lists, material order, structural design, etc.
 
Although I've never sold a piece of mine, maybe you could negotiate to reimburse her partially that percentage with a discount on following orders, or when she reaches a minimum order number in a year.

Nevertheless I think a 30% discount is too much to ask for when a price was given.
 
here is what i am gonna put on the table to her.. if she sells three of them i will give her the forth, making it a 33% deal to her. she has to check with her accountant on that possibilty.. other wize they will come back home or got another friends shop. maybe??? i fully understand the general concensus here that we need to charge high enough for our wares or we all get bit..
 
Every place I've asked about selling my stuff has told me they charge 50% comission. I went with my BIL's store because I knew he would work like heck to sell it. He has and it's worked out well for me.

The other thing to remember is that if you do sell the same or similar items yourself, sell them at the same price as the retail store does...unless they are getting family/friend discount and even then tell them they are getting a deal.
 
My wife has a friend who ran a gift shop/boutique (now out of business) I sold cutting boards through them; they marked them up 50% so I just told them what I need for each before hand. If I said I wanted $50 for a cutting board, they would sell it for $75. She said I was getting the friends and family deal on commisions. :rolleyes: I didn't care, I sold quite a few that way. I kind of like selling that way, I wish I could find someone else to sell through.
Larry, I wouldn't worry about the price being close to internet price, your stuff is better quality, right? and available NOW. I'd say, agree to pay whatever the commission is just to see if there is a market for them first. If they sell good you can renegotiate. If they dont sell, well....you might have to take up quilting yourself:D
 
My pens are in two locations. One buys them outright for the same price I would charge anyone. They mark up 100%. The other, an art gallery, is my exception to my 'no consignment' rule. It is a good location and I trust the owner completely. She also simply marks up 100%. (some call it 50% profit on sales)
But, for a product like the quilt things, that probably wouldn't work.
 
Larry,
I only have my turnings in a couple of stores and have had a couple of internet inquiries about pricing... but I tell everyone my wholesale price is 60% of my retail price. I give them what my retail price is, take 60% rounded up to next even dollar amount and if they want it fine... what they sell for after that is up to them. I figure that at that level, I'm clearing all of my costs and contributing to my profit line a relatively fair amount....
 
I think larrys situation is a bit touchier than most, he is dealing with his wifes friend.
Larry probably likes to eat, and probably likes peace, so Im not 100% sure if he can deal with this as he would with any retailer.

regardless, he is certainly entitled to be compensated fairly for his work.(what he considers fair)
 
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