Eleanora Eden on wed 14 jul 04
I am just reading the "price negotiations" thread and am moved to share my
pricing policy statement. I have afew copies in my fair file box and when
somebody gets very pushy about discounts I just hand this to them and ask
them to read it. I don't use it very often but it helps me that I have it
thought out.
PRICING POLICY
Many people seem to think they are being taken advantage of when asked to
pay the retail price for merchandise in such a situation as a craft
fair. There is an assumption that others are paying less and that the full
price is not really expected.
I am a one-person business. My work is as much art as it is craft and
nobody can do my decorationf or me. I have given a great deal of thought
to my pricing structure. I think it is consistent with market prices for
this kind of work and internally consistent as well.
When crafts retailers obtain a discount from a craftsperson they are paying
for that discount in a variety of ways. First of all they are buying in
quantity and with the expectation of future business. Secondly, they are
giving valuable exposure to the craftsperson. This is an important feature
of doing business in that way. Many of you will have seen my work in
galleries or shops which you hold in high regard and that in itself has
added value to my work. I often have customers who have seen my work in a
gallery and that gives the custyomer confidence in me as a reliable
craftsperson in the marketplace.
There are many different kinds of businesses represented at a crafts
fair. Many are organized primarily or extensively with employees, and in
such businesses more output only means more employees or driving them
harder. But also there are many artisans such as myself who by the very
nature of their work are definitely limited in output. If I can only
possibly produce ten of a certain piece in one year, I cannot afford to
discount the price of that piece to anyone. When I do give discounts to
stores it is because they are giving me important ex0posure and they are
spending time with customers who I cannot reach.
Please do not ask me for discounts on my prices. By coming to thhis fair I
am already spending a significant chunk of the price on ;marketing,
certainly comparable to another store situation. I cannot afford further
discounts.
Thankyou.
John Rodgers on sat 17 jul 04
Eleanora,
I try and keep it simple, but when people ask for or express that they
think there should be a discount, I say to them "My income is from
sales of my pots. Would they be willing to discount their paycheck to
their boss??? They usually have nothing more to say about it.
Regards,
John Rodgers
Chelsea, AL
Eleanora Eden wrote:
> I am just reading the "price negotiations" thread and am moved to
> share my
> pricing policy statement. I have afew copies in my fair file box and
> when
> somebody gets very pushy about discounts I just hand this to them and ask
> them to read it. I don't use it very often but it helps me that I
> have it
> thought out.
>
> PRICING POLICY
>
> Many people seem to think they are being taken advantage of when asked to
> pay the retail price for merchandise in such a situation as a craft
> fair. There is an assumption that others are paying less and that the
> full
> price is not really expected.
>
> I am a one-person business. My work is as much art as it is craft and
> nobody can do my decorationf or me. I have given a great deal of thought
> to my pricing structure. I think it is consistent with market prices for
> this kind of work and internally consistent as well.
>
> When crafts retailers obtain a discount from a craftsperson they are
> paying
> for that discount in a variety of ways. First of all they are buying in
> quantity and with the expectation of future business. Secondly, they are
> giving valuable exposure to the craftsperson. This is an important
> feature
> of doing business in that way. Many of you will have seen my work in
> galleries or shops which you hold in high regard and that in itself has
> added value to my work. I often have customers who have seen my work
> in a
> gallery and that gives the custyomer confidence in me as a reliable
> craftsperson in the marketplace.
>
> There are many different kinds of businesses represented at a crafts
> fair. Many are organized primarily or extensively with employees, and in
> such businesses more output only means more employees or driving them
> harder. But also there are many artisans such as myself who by the very
> nature of their work are definitely limited in output. If I can only
> possibly produce ten of a certain piece in one year, I cannot afford to
> discount the price of that piece to anyone. When I do give discounts to
> stores it is because they are giving me important ex0posure and they
> are
> spending time with customers who I cannot reach.
>
> Please do not ask me for discounts on my prices. By coming to thhis
> fair I
> am already spending a significant chunk of the price on ;marketing,
> certainly comparable to another store situation. I cannot afford further
> discounts.
>
> Thankyou.
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
>
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
| |
|
