Some new pens

[hertzogcraig]

Finished these 2 pens this week. I'm just curious, how do you guys price your pens when you sell them. Neither of these are being sold as the Sierra was a gift and the fly fishing one has some minor flaws so it will be staying with me. However I will be making more of the fly fishing ones as I've gotten requests for them now. I see pens like this one going for $150-175, however I feel like, based on feedback I've gotten, that in my area/market, $100 might be the most I can get and even that may be a hard sell. I've get about $40 into this one. I'm just curious how you all do it. Thanks

 

[bugradx2]

I think people have all kinds of methods to price their work based on where and how they're selling along with time on the project. I'll not muddy the waters on that because my sales are usually pretty local and I'm not trying to make a killing off my customers, I prefer to maim them instead.

One thing I would pass along is to make sure all of your material and possible costs are covered and by that I mean any sanding material, finish, inbound shipping costs, outbound shipping, new/replacement tool investment, whiskey etc. If you don't have that built into your pricing then you'll find your profit margin will be off when you go to compile what your actual earnings are. To make life easier on myself I include a "shop fee" rather than an exhaustive breakdown for every project to help offset all of that. The fee was based off looking at all the things I did/used to make the item. It can vary based on project type for pens, cutting boards and other items.

Don't hesitate to charge what you think the item is worth either.

 

[MillerTurnings]

When selling pens in that price range, the fit and finish better be superb. Too many times I see artists price their work based on what others are getting. Make your work as blemish free and perfect as possible, then adjust price to your audience.

 

[sorcerertd]

They look pretty cool. Did you make the blanks? What is the material that was cast?

As for pricing, you will get lots of opinions, but here is my general formula. Obviously, consider the cost of materials, maybe adding on a dollar for abrasives and finish. Consider the time taken to make the pen and decide what you want to make per hour for your labor. The labor will be the most significant part of the cost. Add a couple bucks for sharpening time and equipment maintenance time and cost. Add the cost of an ink cartridge upgrade (if you do that). Add enough to cover commission, fees, and shipping if you sell online. If you sell at a craft fair, add something to help cover booth rental (a small amount per item). You will need to decide on the actual amounts.

Things to consider

• Do you want to be thought of as selling quality pens, or inexpensive (cheap) pens?
  * Sometimes sales will be better at a slightly higher rate than you might think because of perceived value.
• Who is your target customer?
  keep a range of options for the various sorts of shoppers
• What is the perceived value based on materials?
  is there wood with a story or specially cast materials that are more desirable

As you become more proficient at making pens (or whatever), you will get a "raise" based on higher production.
That's my 2 cents worth

 

[Woodchipper]

A friend says he priced small restaurant supplies at 2%. Cost times 2 was two percent. Good information given. Part will depend on the market. A pen maker said he could get $35 for a certain pen one place and $45 in another. Guess the second market had more money?
Edit: Where did you get the kit and blank? Would be a good market in SE TN.

 

[hertzogcraig]

They look pretty cool. Did you make the blanks? What is the material that was cast?

As for pricing, you will get lots of opinions, but here is my general formula. Obviously, consider the cost of materials, maybe adding on a dollar for abrasives and finish. Consider the time taken to make the pen and decide what you want to make per hour for your labor. The labor will be the most significant part of the cost. Add a couple bucks for sharpening time and equipment maintenance time and cost. Add the cost of an ink cartridge upgrade (if you do that). Add enough to cover commission, fees, and shipping if you sell online. If you sell at a craft fair, add something to help cover booth rental (a small amount per item). You will need to decide on the actual amounts.

Things to consider

• Do you want to be thought of as selling quality pens, or inexpensive (cheap) pens?
  * Sometimes sales will be better at a slightly higher rate than you might think because of perceived value.
• Who is your target customer?
  keep a range of options for the various sorts of shoppers
• What is the perceived value based on materials?
  is there wood with a story or specially cast materials that are more desirable

As you become more proficient at making pens (or whatever), you will get a "raise" based on higher production.
That's my 2 cents worth

Thank you for the feedback. Yes, I made the blanks. For both of these I used IronLak spray paint on the tubes and Thermoset Clearset for the resin. For the flys, I don't tie or even fish anything this small so I went to the local shop and bought them. They told me to bring the pen in when it was done because they wanted to see it

 

[hertzogcraig]

A friend says he priced small restaurant supplies at 2%. Cost times 2 was two percent. Good information given. Part will depend on the market. A pen maker said he could get $35 for a certain pen one place and $45 in another. Guess the second market had more money?
Edit: Where did you get the kit and blank? Would be a good market in SE TN.

The 2 kits I used for these were a Sierra Vista and the Fly Fishing kit from PSI. I made both the blanks

 

[Woodchipper]

hertaogcrais, thanks. I thought the kits were PSI.