This makes sense! But, I still struggle with charging $20 for a chicken, for example. Or the post below having $19 for a pocket octo. Even if selling online this just seems way too high. I think the biggest hurdle we have as crochet business owners is changing the mindset of the buyer. They see crochet as something grandma or their mom doing and getting homemade gifts as a hobby biz. Yarn is much more expensive nowadays and I get what you are saying, but if I was to put $45 on a baby pom pom hat, I guarantee I would never sell it. I tried at $25 and didn't sell any so I put them at $15 for my next market same location, etc. and sold out!
One of the factors that is called an "uncontrollable variable" is consumer taste and economic conditions, it definitely has a huge impact on what we can actually sell things at. There's so many considerations to take in, between supply & demand, and similar market values from competitors
I do understand the struggle. I usually have a sign placed near my crochet items that explains the factors that go into my pricing for items. This helps adjust that mindset that grandma sat and made it in her spare time to avoid the boredoms of old age. Another way to combat this issue is a little line on your price tag that reads, "Time to Make: _____" and including the amount of time you spent on the items. Lastly, if you are consistently selling out of something, generally speaking, your price is too low. Ideally, you want to "come close" to selling out with a proper price point. How long does your double pom hat take you to make? If you are selling out at $15 but nothing at $25, maybe bump to $20-22 based on the demand for that item. Just some ideas for you. Thank you for the comment. Also, my chickens do great at $20. I can't count the number of chickens I have sold this year. My mini chicken pattern goes for $18 with no problem and I sell keychain sized ones at $10 all day long. You can do this.
Yes! We have to collectively change the perceived value of our handmade items as a whole to change the average buyer's idea of what our items are worth.
ill make the same item in varied yarn so im not sure how to price that because it can come out wildly different. like premier just chenille from dollar tree vs Himalaya dolphin baby that I have to specialty order. should I keep different price points, or average then, or just sell everything at the Himalaya price point?
So for things like this, I have slightly different price points. For instance, if I make the same pattern in Parfait Chunky and Bernat Blanket, the one in the blanket yarn is going to vary in size quite a bit. The amount of materials I use is going to differ as well (more polyfil, bigger eyes) as the price of the yarn I used. Taking that all into consideration, there is usually I would say about a $2-5 difference when all is said in done between the smaller and the larger item, and that is how I price them. So as an example, a little pocket octo would sell for perhaps $8 in parfait chunky and $10 in bernat blanket, if that makes sense. But, yes, I do price them differently.
@@eclecticscribbles2thank you so much! as an aside, can you give me your opinions on parfait chunky as opposed to like, sweet snuggles lite/home slim/bernat blanket/baby bear (or any other bulky chenille)? not sure if you have a video already and can link me - but i’m so hesitant to put in an order to premier because ive heard it takes a long time to get, and i want to be sure its a yarn id use. the color selection seems amazing though so thats why ive been curious!
@ ya know, I don’t mind parfait chunky. Generally speaking it’s a nice chenille yarn. The color selection is one of the best I have seen. It’s on the thinner side. Definitely thinner than home slim or sweet snuggles light. The color choices are the trade off here. Home slim and sweet snuggles lite have a more limited palette. All 3 shed like crazy. I am more and more coming around to Bernat blanket as my main choice. It’s softer now than it once was and I enjoy the size of my makes being larger. They have a nice selection of colors and some beautiful variegated color options. Plus, most people can get what they need at the local Michael’s, Walmart, or Joann. Hope that answer helps
Hi from you neighborhood accounting major I just want to add this as a supporting comment, so we can see another cost break down. Just incase you missed it; DON'T forget about overhead fees! Charge your hourly rate for your work, because yes you ARE worth it. If fast food workers in California can get paid $20/hr (USD) then you can def be paying yourself, even if you're just starting a few dollars about your regions minimum wage. "But I don't know how to figure out how to calculate overhead" What are your fixed costs? This includes your, rent, utilities, software subscriptions, insurance, website hosting, and banking fees. What are your variable costs? This is stuff like your materials, shipping fees, marketing, and this includes your labor costs (if your hire someone to help with production, packaging, or marketing. This can also include commissioning someone for graphics or other designs) Add all your fixed costs for the month, determine and add your variable costs. Combine your fixed and variable costs. example based on real numbers as an artist in California I want to calculate the cost of one Pocket Octo I make $18/hr It costs $2 in materials (roughly) It takes 30 minutes to make Postage is $5-10 (we'll use $10) Labor =18/2= $9 Overhead: Internet $30 Rent $650 Power $70 Website $40 Total Monthly Fixed Costs is $790 Lets say we work 40 a week for 4.33 weeks per month (40hr/wk * 4.33weeks/month = 173.2 hr/month) Hourly over rate= Monthly costs/Monthly hours worked: 790/173.2=4.56 USD/hour Our overhead for this 30 minute project, is 4.56/2= $2.28 Sales tax for my county is 8.6% So let's get to the total cost (Total cost=Labor+Materials+Postage) * (1+Sales Tax Rate) Pre-Tax without Profit margin 2+9+3.12=14.12 Sales tax= 14.12 x 0.086= 1.21 Add those two= 14.12+1.21= 15.33 Profit Margin: 12.33 * 0.3 =4.60 Total Profit: 15.33 +4.60 = $19.93 I hope this makes sense, and helps too! I loved this video Scribbles, it tickled my 'tism and is definitely one of my favorite topics! The one thing I need to be better about is tracking my materials and inventory, and how much of materials it takes to make items. So as a crocheter that's a topic I'd love to hear more on, I know how to calculate unit price per yard, but calculating finished projects without taking them apart is where I struggle!
This is super helpful so people can see it written out. I love this topic too. I am a numbers girlie for sure. I'm so glad someone else enjoys the numbers as much as me.
This makes sense! But, I still struggle with charging $20 for a chicken, for example. Or the post below having $19 for a pocket octo. Even if selling online this just seems way too high. I think the biggest hurdle we have as crochet business owners is changing the mindset of the buyer. They see crochet as something grandma or their mom doing and getting homemade gifts as a hobby biz. Yarn is much more expensive nowadays and I get what you are saying, but if I was to put $45 on a baby pom pom hat, I guarantee I would never sell it. I tried at $25 and didn't sell any so I put them at $15 for my next market same location, etc. and sold out!
One of the factors that is called an "uncontrollable variable" is consumer taste and economic conditions, it definitely has a huge impact on what we can actually sell things at. There's so many considerations to take in, between supply & demand, and similar market values from competitors
I do understand the struggle. I usually have a sign placed near my crochet items that explains the factors that go into my pricing for items. This helps adjust that mindset that grandma sat and made it in her spare time to avoid the boredoms of old age. Another way to combat this issue is a little line on your price tag that reads, "Time to Make: _____" and including the amount of time you spent on the items. Lastly, if you are consistently selling out of something, generally speaking, your price is too low. Ideally, you want to "come close" to selling out with a proper price point. How long does your double pom hat take you to make? If you are selling out at $15 but nothing at $25, maybe bump to $20-22 based on the demand for that item. Just some ideas for you. Thank you for the comment. Also, my chickens do great at $20. I can't count the number of chickens I have sold this year. My mini chicken pattern goes for $18 with no problem and I sell keychain sized ones at $10 all day long. You can do this.
Yes! We have to collectively change the perceived value of our handmade items as a whole to change the average buyer's idea of what our items are worth.
Love this! I wish I had this when I was first starting out! ❤
Thanks! Ahh! I get to say hey in person this weekend! woot woot ❤
@ yes!! Your table doesn’t look too far away!
ill make the same item in varied yarn so im not sure how to price that because it can come out wildly different. like premier just chenille from dollar tree vs Himalaya dolphin baby that I have to specialty order. should I keep different price points, or average then, or just sell everything at the Himalaya price point?
So for things like this, I have slightly different price points. For instance, if I make the same pattern in Parfait Chunky and Bernat Blanket, the one in the blanket yarn is going to vary in size quite a bit. The amount of materials I use is going to differ as well (more polyfil, bigger eyes) as the price of the yarn I used. Taking that all into consideration, there is usually I would say about a $2-5 difference when all is said in done between the smaller and the larger item, and that is how I price them. So as an example, a little pocket octo would sell for perhaps $8 in parfait chunky and $10 in bernat blanket, if that makes sense. But, yes, I do price them differently.
@@eclecticscribbles2thank you so much!
as an aside, can you give me your opinions on parfait chunky as opposed to like, sweet snuggles lite/home slim/bernat blanket/baby bear (or any other bulky chenille)? not sure if you have a video already and can link me - but i’m so hesitant to put in an order to premier because ive heard it takes a long time to get, and i want to be sure its a yarn id use. the color selection seems amazing though so thats why ive been curious!
@ ya know, I don’t mind parfait chunky. Generally speaking it’s a nice chenille yarn. The color selection is one of the best I have seen. It’s on the thinner side. Definitely thinner than home slim or sweet snuggles light. The color choices are the trade off here. Home slim and sweet snuggles lite have a more limited palette. All 3 shed like crazy. I am more and more coming around to Bernat blanket as my main choice. It’s softer now than it once was and I enjoy the size of my makes being larger. They have a nice selection of colors and some beautiful variegated color options. Plus, most people can get what they need at the local Michael’s, Walmart, or Joann. Hope that answer helps
Hi from you neighborhood accounting major I just want to add this as a supporting comment, so we can see another cost break down.
Just incase you missed it; DON'T forget about overhead fees! Charge your hourly rate for your work, because yes you ARE worth it. If fast food workers in California can get paid $20/hr (USD) then you can def be paying yourself, even if you're just starting a few dollars about your regions minimum wage.
"But I don't know how to figure out how to calculate overhead"
What are your fixed costs? This includes your, rent, utilities, software subscriptions, insurance, website hosting, and banking fees.
What are your variable costs? This is stuff like your materials, shipping fees, marketing, and this includes your labor costs (if your hire someone to help with production, packaging, or marketing. This can also include commissioning someone for graphics or other designs)
Add all your fixed costs for the month, determine and add your variable costs. Combine your fixed and variable costs.
example based on real numbers as an artist in California
I want to calculate the cost of one Pocket Octo
I make $18/hr
It costs $2 in materials (roughly)
It takes 30 minutes to make
Postage is $5-10 (we'll use $10)
Labor =18/2= $9
Overhead:
Internet $30
Rent $650
Power $70
Website $40
Total Monthly Fixed Costs is $790
Lets say we work 40 a week for 4.33 weeks per month (40hr/wk * 4.33weeks/month = 173.2 hr/month)
Hourly over rate= Monthly costs/Monthly hours worked: 790/173.2=4.56 USD/hour
Our overhead for this 30 minute project, is 4.56/2= $2.28
Sales tax for my county is 8.6%
So let's get to the total cost (Total cost=Labor+Materials+Postage) * (1+Sales Tax Rate)
Pre-Tax without Profit margin 2+9+3.12=14.12
Sales tax= 14.12 x 0.086= 1.21
Add those two= 14.12+1.21= 15.33
Profit Margin:
12.33 * 0.3 =4.60
Total Profit:
15.33 +4.60 = $19.93
I hope this makes sense, and helps too! I loved this video Scribbles, it tickled my 'tism and is definitely one of my favorite topics! The one thing I need to be better about is tracking my materials and inventory, and how much of materials it takes to make items. So as a crocheter that's a topic I'd love to hear more on, I know how to calculate unit price per yard, but calculating finished projects without taking them apart is where I struggle!
This is super helpful so people can see it written out. I love this topic too. I am a numbers girlie for sure. I'm so glad someone else enjoys the numbers as much as me.