tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post4053622493258748831..comments2024-02-28T04:03:15.982-08:00Comments on monkey beans: StrugglingMeganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01532527188158438338noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-7711048667558430832011-06-28T09:39:08.728-07:002011-06-28T09:39:08.728-07:00As far as how to price your quilts that's a bi...As far as how to price your quilts that's a bit more black and white. You need to break down all the components and figure out how much it'll cost. A crude example is below, if you pay yourself $15 an hour a 45" square quilt should run near $50 for something simple. There's no way to compete with automated off shore manufacturing so don't even try. Try your best however to complete with others in the same market as yourself but don't sell yourself short either. It is a poor business decision to give away your labour. What's the point of working if you're paying yourself? So value yourself and your labor and target your market and you'll do okay.<br /><br />Baby Quilt Calculator <br /><br />Materials Unit Price <br />Top 1 yd $8.50 $8.50<br />Batting 1 $9.99 $9.99<br />Backing 1 $7.00 $7.00<br />Binding 3.5 $1.50 $5.25<br />Thread 0.1 $6.00 $0.60<br /> $31.34<br /><br />Labor Hour Price <br />Purchase 0.16 $15.00 $2.40<br />Washing 0.25 $15.00 $3.75<br />Ironing 0.25 $15.00 $3.75<br />Cutting 0.16 $15.00 $2.40<br />Sewing 0.50 $15.00 $7.50<br /> $19.80<br /><br />Packaging Unit Price <br />Ribbon 2.5 $0.50 $1.25<br />Hangtag 1 $0.25 $0.25<br />Loop Label 1 $0.50 $0.50<br /> $2.00<br /><br /> $53.14<br /><br />BTW, to your point, "If companies are able to sell the quilts for twenty dollars and they are still making a profit then what are the workers taking home?" <br />The average Chinese worker makes barely $400 a month, Honduras $230 and in India $120, all major textile, garment and apparel manufacturing areas of the globe. There is an interesting trend however in the business to see some of the manufacturing come back to the states as the places like China start to go from third world economies to first.<br /><br />Okay, I think I've rambled on quite enough... it's just it's all stuff I think about too. I wish I had abetter answer for how to educate the masses about the quality of a hand crafted item over mass produced goods.Just Jennhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15008462659487802315noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-40955305649015734502011-06-28T09:38:49.349-07:002011-06-28T09:38:49.349-07:00Those $20 quilts are technically quilts but aren&#...Those $20 quilts are technically quilts but aren't anywhere near a "real" quilt. The top is printed on PFP Poly fabric to look like pieced and then the sandwich is quilted together on huge rolls by an automated quilter. The labor costs are very low because there aren't any laborers... or rather very few. The materials are inexpensive (loose weave, poly fill, etc) and because the factory min orders are probably high they can sell each item for less as they make half a bizallion of them. And BTW Sears has been selling these for at least the past 20 years...<br /><br />Now comparing that directly with a one of a kind, hand crafted quilt is like comparing a plastic Big Wheel to a Lamborghini. They are not in the same class. So you need to understand that when you're selling on Etsy your target demographic isn't the Big Wheel set, but those with an already more refined taste and understanding of what it might take to actually construct a beautiful piece of art that we just happen to sleep under. <br /><br />For me personally, I feel you need to pick your battle. You can spend your energy educating people what a real quilt is*, what the value of it is, or you can spend your energy making and selling them. You're unlikely to succeed in convincing any meaningful percentage of the Big Wheel Set to part with more then $20 for a quilt if they can get it cheep, save a buck and *don't care* all that much about quality. To disassociate yourself from the passion of the craft to cooly market to a discerning customer will help you make a profit. Target marketing is a proven winner.<br /><br />*Not to say it's not a noble endeavor but probably one that won't make you very much $$. You can (and should) however use your hangtag to your advantage and put as many points of value on it as possible. For example, the front of the hangtag is your business name, logo, contact info etc. the back would list all the wonderful things about your product: <br />*Hand stitched details<br />*Rare custom fabrics imported from Japan<br />*Zippered closure for securing items<br />*Locker Loop to make storage a snap<br />etc...Just Jennhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15008462659487802315noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-66707488331530861902011-06-28T07:00:14.285-07:002011-06-28T07:00:14.285-07:00I am not going to lie, I have purchased several qu...I am not going to lie, I have purchased several quilts cheap like these. I knew that they would not last long (and they didn't); but, I needed something for at that time and moment. They are crap with a capital C. and usually do not survive after several washings. In other words, they begin to fall apart at the seams and whatnot. They are poorly made products and worst, foreign made which usually translates to cheap labor. Sad.Lee Ann L.https://www.blogger.com/profile/08198941518979371129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-49857608305461868812011-06-27T23:23:27.307-07:002011-06-27T23:23:27.307-07:00I think you have to separate your work entirely fr...I think you have to separate your work entirely from mass produced stuff, hard though it is. I know pricing is a struggle but I see stuff on Etsy so under priced for the work and materials it makes we want to cry for the maker! Hand made is one of a kind every time and sells to a select audience so can never be pile it high and sell it cheap. Education is a long process I guess, people tend to think with their wallet especially when times are tough.verykerryberryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07485169920671733941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-7908159361086751642011-06-27T21:55:43.797-07:002011-06-27T21:55:43.797-07:00wow ~ great post. This is a topic I have so much ...wow ~ great post. This is a topic I have so much passion about ~ I can't even put into words how frustrating these things are... and how sad it is that slavery is running rampant because of our desire to save a little money!!<br />Sometimes less is more! :)Gail Lizettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01957282633401253980noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-86237060077570382792011-06-27T21:51:26.597-07:002011-06-27T21:51:26.597-07:00I agree completely! I lost my brick and mortal st...I agree completely! I lost my brick and mortal store when we could not compete - price wise- with discount stores. It is hard to educate people on quality when the economic times are so tough. We just have to keep at it. I also think a great way to educate it to be an example, so I try to keep that in mind too.Our Little Slice of Lifehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06342225621392977635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-85458038555988970192011-06-27T21:28:42.053-07:002011-06-27T21:28:42.053-07:00i know exactly what you mean - we talk about this ...i know exactly what you mean - we talk about this a lot at home, as i'm passionate about not buying things on the cheap just because it's cheaper. i value local, hand-made and organic items and try to purchase those things whenever possible. it makes me very sad that it's always got to be about "save, save, save" - i know people want to save money, and it's tough at any economic time, but it's the tricky world of consumerism.cottingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14394410914652065687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-44640483955586949652011-06-27T21:19:14.270-07:002011-06-27T21:19:14.270-07:00Great post. I cringe at these things too, but then...Great post. I cringe at these things too, but then catch myself buying the two dollar whatever and wonder if that is much better. We're having garage sale soon and I'm focusing more on keeping the unique us stuff and less of the box box. And of course I try to make quilts for friends and educate them that way!Amberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05538717076887406701noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-11562249623089778062011-06-27T21:03:55.218-07:002011-06-27T21:03:55.218-07:00Great post! I was thinking something similar when ...Great post! I was thinking something similar when I saw "quilts" at Wal-Mart the other day for around $25. They were not really quilts, although they were labeled as such. It looked like the entire front was one large printed panel, or maybe a few, but much of the "piecework" was printed on the fabric. Still, it does make you think how much the worker is making (or not making) if the finished products are so cheap. And it makes me sad to think that some people will only have those types of quilts in their lives.Heather Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06143229895454715552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8144768051122694104.post-88270157518196139212011-06-27T20:45:40.148-07:002011-06-27T20:45:40.148-07:00Well it's hard to see a $20 "quilt" ...Well it's hard to see a $20 "quilt" but hopefully over time people will learn quality. Mind you I think that we need these knock off things for kids on their own for the first time and starting out families. Yet hopefully once things get rolling - they may want something better. Ugh. . I feel ya for sure.Shanna of Fiber of All Sortshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02872683552678289933noreply@blogger.com