starting a buisness

[mike nelson]

im fifteen and ive been in the process of starting a pretty sucsesful wwing buisness and ive been noticing when my blog gets hits or when i recomendations from previous coustomers they think that because i am so young that either i will be rediculously cheap or i will not know what im doing i charge a standerdized shop fee of 25 dollars and hour plus materials but i always try to give a rough quote (ive had to eat a price underestimate on one or two jobs)i am wondering if other people get the same problem of clients wanting somthing really cheap right now i am doing two walnut counter tops in a high class area i gave a rough quote of 1,800-2,000 dollars the tops are going to be 8/4 thick and one is going to be 116 1/2" long by 25" wide with a bump out on the end of 12' by 26" and an island of 46" by 48" and the lumber will cost about 600 dollars thats 70 brd feet so my question is do you think 1,200-1,400 is enough to make profit wise on this product i'd apreciate any advise you could give me on ways to incresse profit and/or customer satisfaction btw sorry for such a long winded post

[rpike]

Mike, first of all, it's awesome that you are able to get such an early start in woodworking. Now to your question. Whether or not $1400 is enough profit is fairly subjective. At $25/hr you are estimating 56 hours of work on this project. Is that comparable to other builders? That's really all that customers see sometimes. Don't worry about yor age, though. You might notice that people will try to take advantage of you because they may assume you may not be as knowledgeable or skilled an older, more experienced woodworker, but once they recognize the quality of your product they will look past your age. I used to teach people 2-3 times my age how to fly, and I had to spend some time proving myself to clients that I wasn't just a dumb kid. Once they saw the caliber of my instruction they were more than happy to pay the $50/hr I charged.

So:

1.) don't worry about yuor age.

2.) don't sell yourself short.

3.) don't compromise your quality.

4.) make people recognize that your product is worth what you are asking.

Sorry about the long winded response.

[ChetlovesMer]

You will probably get all kinds of answers to your post. One thing I can tell you is that it is likely that most people will assume that because you are so young, you are therefore a student. I live near a college and out here the expectation is that a student will charge a lower price than a professional. The same is true of haircuts, auto body work, even art (including woodworking). Considering your age most clients probably do assume they will get a lower price. Because of this you are going to have to work even harder to project a level of professionalism.

When I started out, I had no idea how to price my stuff. Somebody suggested I charge double my cost for a while. I did and that worked okay for a while. Now I've built up a pricing scheme which has four tiers. It looks like this:

Teir I: This is my down in the dirt price. If for some reason I really want or need to do a certain project this is the pricing I go to. It’s basically dirt cheap. In truth I've only gone here one time, because I really wanted to get this particular job for my portfolio and I knew the client would balk at what the job should have cost. Looking back it may have been a mistake. But I always have this pricing if I get an opportunity that for some reason really appeals to me.

Teir II: Friend prices - much better than normal pricing, I make a little, but this is what I'd charge a friend.

Teir III: Normal pricing for any Joe or Jane comes off the street and wants me to build something for them. Based on Market Pricing.

Teir IV: This is actually a very high price. When I get a job request that I don't really want to do. I go here to make sure if I do it, I make it worth my while. Gone here a few times, and even still got the job a couple times.

I should mention my business is very small. Only word of mouth. No web presence. No blogs. No advertising of any kind. I have a "Real" job which pays the bills and feeds the family. However, even so I've been able to now use "market pricing". Which basically means I pretty much charge what is considered normal in this market. My normal Teir III pricing is based on that.

To come up with Market Pricing I look at what it would cost to buy something of similar quality (generally high end stuff). This isn’t too hard really. It just takes a bit of research. I avoid a “My Cost + Hourly Rate” type pricing. The reason I avoid that is because too often I left money on the table that way. Custom Furniture is Art. It should be treated as such. I sell the fact that I’m providing a “one of a kind” piece that is “Made in the USA” (that goes big where I live), and at a competitive (not low) price. Again, my business is very small. I do 2 – 4 good-sized projects for clients each year, then a few small jobs here and there, that’s about it. But the truth is I can do a lot more if I want to. When somebody is looking for a very custom piece, it is my experience that they are willing to pay for it. If not, that’s okay with me. I don’t sell myself short and neither should you.

Sorry for the long reply.

[mike nelson]

thanks for all the replies i just to the job on today and she gave me at least 4,000 worth of small remodeling work to do also wich involves striping wall paper drywalling some tile work painting and 2 more custome cabs for the bedroom so i think i will finally be adding to my festool and lie-nielsen collection

[Mr. Mc Jones]

Mike I sarted building small display cabs I sold them very cheap. One person was reselling them and making $$. Which didnt bother me to much. But what did bother me is when she came back complaining about every little thing real or percieved which I immediately corrected. I was talking to my mentor who helped me at the begining and explained to him what was going on. he told me simply, my prices were to low. e advised me to raise them. He said for some reason when people pay more they complain less.

he was right

[Mr. Mc Jones]

Mike I sarted building small display cabs I sold them very cheap. One person was reselling them and making $$. Which didnt bother me to much. But what did bother me is when she came back complaining about every little thing real or percieved which I immediately corrected. I was talking to my mentor who helped me at the begining and explained to him what was going on. he told me simply, my prices were to low. e advised me to raise them. He said for some reason when people pay more they complain less.

he was right

[jHop]

3.) don't compromise your quality.

4.) make people recognize that your product is worth what you are asking.

I like these two. Your quality will get potential customers in the door. never mind your age; the product is what gets their interest.

I spoke with a particular comic a long time ago, who mentioned that in order to get into Hollywood, you need to look unusual. The average person gets passed over, even if they have great credentials. I think that this can be applied to life in general, as the successful people (your definition of success is not guaranteed to match everyone's) as defined by popular consensus all have some particular "quirk." Use your age as that quirk.

This goes along with number four. The product needs to be quality. Ever notice the museums? or the side-show carnivals? they have the eye-catchers up front to draw you in, and the great quality stuff once you are inside the door. The fact that you're younger just gets the crowds in the door.

(Sorry for mixing and matching metaphors and images. I'm feelin' saucy today.)

[mike nelson]

a.j. its nice to know their are other woodworkers in cleveland