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Thread: Should newbie include work hours in jewelry price?

  1. #1
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    Default Should newbie include work hours in jewelry price?

    This part is confusing to me.
    I've read many pricing recommendations for hand made items. It usually tells to include the cost of working hours in price.
    It's reasonable for skilled jewelers, but how to apply the same rules for newbies?

    There are many operations which can be improved and can be done faster with experience and proper tools that newbie may not knowing about yet. I also consider the certain amount of time as an investment in education. Plus, prototypes take lots of time from the idea to testing the final result. Including work hours in prototype price will give me absolutely unrealistic numbers.

    I'm a lousy jeweler, who finished one piece so far , but I'm much skilled knitter and crocheter. I see that lots of newbies overvalue their amateur work instead of optimizing work and getting more experience first. They calculate their every knit and purl, but they don't calculate how much faster they can do it practicing and learning. Because they do follow recommendations to include their work hours in price and then are getting upset blaming customers for not buying their work.

    So, how? How to start entering that pricing territory for the fist time jewelry seller and pretty much newbie ? And what pricing method can be the most effective for newbie?
    Thinking toward my sales (hopefully this year) I have not idea what price policy I can adapt for beginning.

    I invested about 2500 dollars to start, and I consider that I would spend more for jewelry school, so I don't count to return that money right away, or even return at all. But pretty soon I will need more metal, more materials, and I have no wish to invest "in education" more than I already invested. From another side, I don't want to be an amateur who overvalued own amateur work.

    How to get balanced pricing for newbie jewelry maker?
    Last edited by SilverBouillon; 25-02-2013 at 04:16 PM.

  2. #2
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    i don't think there's an easy answer to this. When I started out silver was cheap to buy and so I was able to make a reasonable profit on my work. It was also a time when craft fairs were less abundant but more profitable. Now with silver being expensive and so much cheap imported jewellery around I really wouldn't want to be starting out. Sorry to be so negative but I don't really have an answer.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by caroleallen View Post
    Sorry to be so negative but I don't really have an answer.
    Please don't feel sorry! Being realistic does not mean being negative.
    I was planning to start jewelry studio back in to 2006. Then crisis started, we lost a lots of investment, and it was pretty upsetting. However, I gave up not mostly because of that. One day insurance agent came to our house to do some inspections. He told me that he recently quit his job as professional jeweler, and he told me that the industry was very bad. I got scared.
    Now I regret that I lost 6 years of my life giving up, and now I just need to think carefully about all aspects not to be scared again.
    So, any constructive thoughts are welcome even they may sound like negative.

  4. #4
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    I honestly think a lot of it's down to getting lucky breaks. I'd have thought Florida would be a good place to sell to tourists, especially in the expensive bits where they have those big boats moored outside.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by caroleallen View Post
    I'd have thought Florida would be a good place to sell to tourists, especially in the expensive bits where they have those big boats moored outside.
    Yes, I count on that in the future. We have some expensive boutiques in upscale areas. We also have big fairs, but they are pricey to attend as a seller. I've tried small local fairs in the past when I've been doing beading-not worth it.

    However, I'm not there yet. Right now I count on my friends who wait patiently for my new work, and I have abandoned etsy store which I plan to recover.
    And here is the pricing question. Here. Newbie pricing. I'm going to face this very soon.

    So far I think about simple formula as possible: calculate the materials only, amount of silver by gram by stock price and multiply the total material cost on 2.5 or maybe 3. No work hours calculation, no tools amortization, no propane, electricity, etc. cost.

    I would be happy with covering my replacement of materials, and a bit more for the studio improvement as I develop to buy kiln, good quality rolling mill, expand more techniques... By the other words, I plan to receive 0 profit for a while putting everything back into jewelry making. I hope at least
    Last edited by SilverBouillon; 25-02-2013 at 05:22 PM.

  6. #6
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    I am in a similar situation to you really as I never know what to charge either, costing it with a minimal hourly wage puts the price up too high for people to be able to afford, at least down this way, I dont have an Etsy shop or any other outlet other than a website and a stall at a local craft fair once a month. I am retired and make jewellery as paying hobby, but Carole has pointed out that it doesnt do the professional jewellers any favours at keeping their price at a realistic living wage. So I am caught in a dilema, charge what I believe people can pay, and sell stuff, or charge what it should be and not sell anything.

  7. #7
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    I don't personally do Etsy (I think I may have one thing on there actually but I've never had a sale) but some people who work hard on Etsy say they do quite well. I really think online is the way to go and if you're lucky enough to get your work onto a well established online shop then you could do well.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by caroleallen View Post
    I don't personally do Etsy (I think I may have one thing on there actually but I've never had a sale) but some people who work hard on Etsy say they do quite well. I really think online is the way to go and if you're lucky enough to get your work onto a well established online shop then you could do well.
    Carole,
    So sorry to hear that your cruise was a bit of a wash-out and blighted by ill-health.........it's so typical after a period of working so intensly You said (pre-christmas, I think) that your online sales were really busy, can I ask, was that on NOTHS or your own website? (I do bear in mind, that which ever site you use that you need to build a customer base.....it's just that these days, joining NOTHS is a big outlay and it seems I would need to spend so much time promoting myself as a newcomer, I wouldn't have time to make anything!!)
    Any advice and help would be very much appreciate!!
    Many thanks
    Jill (aka Tabby)

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Patstone View Post
    So I am caught in a dilema, charge what I believe people can pay, and sell stuff, or charge what it should be and not sell anything.
    What "should be" price will be based on? The market price for the similar items, or it should be based on the price of materials and the price of work hour you want to be paid for?
    That's the question for me. I would like at least 30 dollars per hour

    I'm like you guessing now in between prices that I believe people will like and prices I'd like to put to return my efforts and get a bit for development, not even thinking about the profit.
    And I'm not sure that both approaches are correct.

    What I see is that pricing formula for mass production (including hourly payment) will not work for me as for newbie and slow producer.

  10. #10
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    Here is some advice I'm talking about. There are many of them online.

    Say it takes 15 minutes for you to make a pair of earrings and you your hourly wage is $20. Your time spent to make these earrings cost $5 ($20 divide by 4). The beads and findings for the earrings cost $0.85.

    $0.85 + $5 = $5.85 (Item Cost)

    $5.85 x 2.2 = $12.90 (rounded up Wholesale Price)

    $12.90 x 2.2 = $28.40 (Retail Price)
    Well... Now I can say from the customer perspective. Personally I will never buy earrings for $28.40 if it cost 0.85 in materials and 15 minutes of making. The price expert does not tell where is the target group for sales of those earrings for almost 30 dollars.

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