Need some pricing help.

[Jerry Smith]

Greetings all,
I recently purchased a book for calculating pricing on your work however, the problem that I am having is. . . .This book talks about shop rates of 35 to 75 dollars. I have recently made a few "guardian Angel" clocks with extensive fret work which adds up to approximately 40 hours before assembly. I am really puzzled about how to get back the price for the hours spent. How or where would you be able to aquire buyers for such expensive work? I am open for any help that anyone may haveSmitty4207@aol.com

[Mike Crosa]

Welcome to the group Jerry. I am sure you will get a lot of info re pricing from the more senior members here. I don't have a clue.

[Rick H]

That is why you see mostly the simple projects for sale. If you can make ornaments for $35.00 per hour why charge a cheaper rate for a bigger project.
If the clock takes 40 hours at $35 an hour you need $1400 for your labor. If you can't get that then it is not worth making it to sell if you are trying to make money.
Why would you make a big clock that you make $9 per hour on when you could have been cutting other things you are making over $35 cutting.
It come down to what do you think your time is worth. When you are cutting for yourself the time is not a factor, just the joy of seeing the finished project.

[Jediscroller]

I don't use that high of a shop rate for my pricing as that sounds like it would be a "loaded" rate. If you're paying employees and/or paying for your own benefits, then I could see a shop rate in the $40 - $50 range. Personally, I use 33 cents a minute + material + 35% margin for everything. I do have a couple of exceptions where my margin is close to 90% but these are $2 and $3 items. You indicated that you had 40 hours invested, is that per clock or for all of them? If for all of them, I would divide the price between them and use that as my minimum selling price.
If I spent 40 hours on a single piece, the price would likely be near $1000 or more dependent on material (and that would be wholesale). If the piece couldn't sell at that price, I would either find a cheaper way to make it (i.e. stack cutting, production methods etc.) or just wouldn't carry it.

[Jerry Smith]

Thanks for all the great information so far. I guess it's more common sense than math . . . lol Thanks guys.

[mrcutit]

Hey Jerry,
I am by no means a pro, or a senior member, but the way I see it, If its going to be a item that is that costly, make one. Showcase it in your shop, and take orders for it, or sell the one and then make another. I would love to see a pictutre of the clock.

[eendreno]

i've always looked and admired various projects. then i look at the project, and wonder how you could justify the time for a projected reward. i look at jeff zaffino's frework some with 2000ish holes. some of the intarsia projects, super large murals. 400 hours is ten weeks work. janettes comissioned pet peices are awesome, the collie and various cats. the expressions and wood tones are beautiful. speaking for myself i think i would clear more money per hour if i had a job in mc donalds. the gentleman that enlarged the declaration of independence 4x's i think was 1700 hours and like 5 years to complete. some people like tony burns, judy and dave peterson, do work that is not that time consuming, and both use a realitively simple finishing technique. i think cuttings like these to be profitable on an hourly cut rate, simple portraits,or scenic views with stack cuttings are also a good money maker. signs like (this house exists for the confort of our blah blah, )with a silouette cutout of the breed. i suppose it just boils down to your patience, artistic, and economic needs. one neighbor sits in my shop and is exact,slow, extremely methodical on his cuttings. the 12 days of christmas ornaments stack cut 6 hi,took him 30-35 hours to cut the set. i think a competant speed cutter can do it in 4-5 hours. carpentry and renovations are the same way you get paid 60 per bundle for cedar shakes. do a round window and watch the best guy on the crew not do a bundle in a day. flat wall no windows he'll give you 7-8 bundles. i did the show circut 25 years ago. hi end lamps and jewelry boxes, custom furniture. i always had cheapo items like wood puzzles, it got them to stop, look and talk. typically 50+ percent of my sales came after the show. you got to see what works for you good luck doug

[Jediscroller]

I think something that hurts a lot of scrollers trying to sell their work is that they just don't charge enough. Granted, I do sell a lot of 20 - 30 dollar items but every time I've ever put out a slab cutting or intarsia piece which are typically in the $200 - $300 range, they sold, if not at the first show, then the second. Charging higher prices attracts a whole different clientele, those with disposable incomes. Targeting blue collar buyers subjects you to the woes of the economy and in my opinion hurts sales opportunities.

[Janette]

I always tell people I charge by the hour and throw the wood in for free. Generally for intarsia the $3-$5 per piece works out about right. I based my pricing on that and compare it to approx. $17.50/hr. Now pay for a show/motel/food,gas - that ends up being a LOT less at the end of the day! After I've made the piece once or twice and it sells for the cost of the first one (which usually takes longer) - they tend to get a little faster since I'm not trying to figure out what to shape or how- seeing as I've already done it once. Some that end up taking longer than you expect- I end up having to charge less for, as well if something doesn't sell for awhile. Subjects seem to go in phases for me...any one else? For example - I made JGR's standing heron, sold about 4 of them for $225 each right away. Then all of a sudden it quit selling. Same with frogs. Last year seemed to be a bird year. I'm still trying to figure out what this year will be.

[lucky788scroller]

Originally Posted by Jediscroller

I think something that hurts a lot of scrollers trying to sell their work is that they just don't charge enough. Granted, I do sell a lot of 20 - 30 dollar items but every time I've ever put out a slab cutting or intarsia piece which are typically in the $200 - $300 range, they sold, if not at the first show, then the second. Charging higher prices attracts a whole different clientele, those with disposable incomes. Targeting blue collar buyers subjects you to the woes of the economy and in my opinion hurts sales opportunities.

This has a lot of merit in woodworking.It could be a wooden plaque, or a piece of art. Just like turnings...its a bowl, or a piece of artwork.The same piece can be marketed each way, and fetch substantially more money as artwork. Me, I dont cut anything with the intent of selling it to make much of a profit on, I cut things because I want to, if somebody happens to see it, and want to buy it, I would sell it to them, or make them one,but I still dont charge much more then 2 or 3 times the material cost. This may change slightly for me in the near future as a store selling horse stuff, and western things is anxious for me to bring in a few pieces to display and sell in their store, but I still wont quit my day job......I like to eat to much! Dale