Pricing -One-of -a- kind

Jewelry Discussion
21

My pricing is very similar to that of Mark P. I triple the cost
of materials, then add on a shop charge. If a piece has very
expensive materials, but not too much work involved I may tweak
the price down. Likewise, if cost of materials was low, but work
was intense, I tweak the price up. This price is then 90% of what
I charge. My final price has a built-in 10% that can be taken of
to close a sale, be a comission to a shop that refers work to
me, or if it’s a credit card sale, pay the @#$%& fee. (yes I know
10% is a huge fee, but I’m just glad I found someone to run
mail-order charges for me on their acct)

Karen

22 
  Karen, I'm assuming your pieces are $50.00  and higher . . .
  Perhaps, your area is more used to paying for original art,
 than other areas???

Are you talking to me?

When I’m in the city (Chicago) I can sell much higher end stuff
and there are some people who actually love it and buy it without
thinking much about the prices. Of course, I can’t get in to
all those shows in the city that are like that…big market…big
competition.

When I head further out to the suburbs I make sure I am well
stocked with my lower end…$32-$36 earrings. Very petite little
things…easy to wear, my bread and butter. It is often the only
reason I have gas money to get home with. In the city I can sell
any weird old thing I throw together…I don’t get rich there but
I tend to move some of the goofier stuff. (if goofier a word?)

Is this what you wanted to know?

Karen
@Karenworks

23

‘If I had to account for the time spent on all jobs, would the
coffe breaks & my ‘oops’ be deducted?’ actual clock hours spent,
multiply it by hourly rate - that’s most likely what the customer
would be charged for. if we were employed as bench or production
jewlers, we would be expected to have a degree of proficiency -
if it took us 4 hours to solder a head we wouldn’t have the job.
Maybe Mark P. can help us with a time/cost schedule like some
other trades have. There must be a basic formula we could use
as a guide - like when you take a car in to be painted, a fender
would be 2 hours, entire car 8 hour, $199 @ maako for entire car,
mud & all or $3000 to $5000 at custom shop for metalflake or with
airbrush work. What should it cost to have a calibrated stone
bezel set? Prong set? Non- Calibrated? Gold vs silver? Then
we’d have easier time concentrating on what our art - the design

  • should be worth.

I agree with not under-pricing; Mercedes hasn’t reduced their
cars just because I can’t afford one.

24 
  I agree with everything you're saying!  I feel that
one-of-a-kind jewelry doesn't have to compete with the price
of piece of production jewelry.  The customer (or patron) is
buying exclusivity... a piece of artwork.

Many patrons don’t think of “hand made” jewelry as artwork, so I
have to consider their opinions. I do not agree with them . …
they seek earrings which look EXACTLY the same, when looking at
hand made (from scratch) work. Sorry guys, but NO human can make
two of the EXACT things unless they are casting!

    You will sometimes (often?) encounter a potential customer
who thinks that the price of a handmade piece of jewelry should
be priced competitively with a production piece.  In that
situation, I feel it is more appropriate to educate the
consumer, rather than to lower the price.

Educate . … by the time you try to tell them how you actually
make it, they have moved on . . . Lost sale! Guess I have too
much “how to do business” blood in me to bow to “educate the
customer” and hope they buy. Maybe it’s the area in which I’m
located. Gosh, I can think of TWO great galleries (that I’ve
always heard of) . … I’m in one, and the other, I would not
touch with a 20 foot pole! They have a reputation of never
paying the consigner.

MOST often, you encounter the customer that thinks “hand made
from scratch” pieces should compete with what is mass produced.
Heck, I’ve gone to many an art show, and thought many items were
“over-priced” and know that “I can make that!”

    Would you expect to get an original watercolor painting at
the same price as a lithograph print?  Of course not.  Don't
let the consumer's misperception or lack of education about
jewelry force you to sell yourself short. I also agree with
charging for labor the job should have taken me, not what it
really did.  I'm not an expert yet, and I make mistakes.  I
don't think it's right to charge the customer for my learning
process.

I disagree with some of what you’re saying. If it takes me two
days (16 hours) to make a piece, I cannot charge $20.00 per hour
(nor can I charge even 10 bucks an hour) I’m talking about a
bracelet with soldered links, and bezeled stones (retail $75.00).
The time to cut, file, sand, solder, pickle, sand, polish, then
solder each link (two jump rings per link) pickle, sand, polish,
set stones, polish. The stones are not cut gems, but cabs. The
LOOK is much more appealing, but the price is not EXPENSIVE
because most will not pay for workmanship! Whether educated or
not. I’ve been approached by some celebrated artists, who want
to “trade” and I’ll do it. But I end up with one piece of theirs
(which may take only a few minutes) vs. mine which make take
hours or days, and they end up with several of my pieces! Buck
per buck, they make out.) IN the area which I’m found, many
think that art shows are nothing better than flea markets and
the prices have to be geared to that kind of understanding. I do
not save my BEST work for the local shows. I make items which
will sell! I have to cover the costs of my hobby.

Just my thoughts and opinons. I feel everyone is entitled to
theirs too!

25

Bola tips, bezel cups, bails… I don’t know.

Dave,

I don’t make bola’s any more, make my own bails, but I sure am a
sucker for those round sterling bezel cups Rio Grande sells! I
use them all the time for accent stones. I also like thier one
piece thin nickel pin backs. Use them all the time on my
production pins. I havn’t had any complaints from even the most
snootiest of show promoters yet.

Wendy Newman

26

I figure up cost of material, gold at the value it would be in
the form I used it in (for example I would figure the same for
sheet if I bought it that way or rolled it myself using scrap)
and the whosale value of the stone(s) I use ( often I cut my own
or they are given to me so I figure what they would sell for at
a gem show). I multiply this cost of material by 2.5. Next I
figure my labor and charge $50 per hour retail for actual bench
time on the piece.

After I add the two figures together I compare the priced piece
to others I have made and others in the market to see if the
price is more than the market will bear. On a one of a kind
piece, sometimes a new technique will make me spend more time on
it and I’ll be forced to take a loss on labor. Maybe I’ll find
an easier way to make a similar piece next time.

Please don’t price yourself too cheap. Believe me, there are
many people out there willing to pay for top quality work. You
are worth it!

Wendy Newman

27

Karen check out the
american crafts council they have a special low cost credit card set
up for members.

Frank

28

Beg to differ. an apprentice of mine produced a chain slide
added it to a sterling omega style chain and it sold out of the
galley for over $500.00. I thought like you did that it would
never sell at that price. It was there less than 30 days and i
was left feelling like a fool. Pricing depends not on the
materials but the quality of work and the design but most
important the seller and his location and the style of
presentation. Marketing is EVERYTHING when it comes to price.
Frank

29 
Those are words to live by. For some reason some of us fee
guilty charging what we think a piece is worth (I do!). You
really have to create your own market.

DeDe Next time you feel guilty about how much you charge go down
to your local garage and see how much your mechanic is making per
hour or your local doctor. I have been studying and practicing my
art for 25 yrs to be able to do some of the things i do. we are a
profession not a hobby and should demand professional fees. boy
see what you got started again. off the box Frank

30

…I disagree with some of what you’re saying. If it takes me two
days (16 hours) to make a piece, I cannot charge $20.00 per hour
(nor can I charge even 10 bucks an hour) I’m talking about a
bracelet with soldered links, and bezeled stones (retail $75.00).

One solution I use to avoid what I think you are talking about
(i.e. competing with commercially available styles) is to find
what the customer wants from a commercial supplier and order it
for them. I explain to them that I cannot make it for even close
to what I can sell it to them for if I buy it premade. If they
ask why not, I explain the difference between producton work in a
third world country and custom work here in the States, in
quality, cost and process. I basically have no desire to beat my
head against a brick wall trying to compete with the chain retail
stores. Another approach is to encourage the customer to go with
higher quality stones, if it is within their means, and then it
has to be custom made and you have every right to charge what it
costs to make it. A third approach, which I have been very
successful with, odd as it may seem, is to call around, while the
customer is there, and locate what they are looking for at a
retail chain. They not only come back to me for future
purchases, but I have had referels from these same people which
have led to other sales. Always keep in mind, if you serve your
customer’s needs, they will be back, since that is a concept
lacking in most commercial institutions.

Hope this helps.

Sharon Ziemek
GoldStones, Inc.

31

Dave,

…I also agree with charging for labor the job should have taken
me, not what it really did. I’m not an expert yet, and I make
mistakes. I don’t think it’s right to charge the customer for
my learning process…

That’s my problem,too. I feel that I am too inexpierienced and
that is why it takes me so long. Somehow, I think I’ll probably
feel the same way 30 years from now, just because there is always
something new to learn in this field.

Bola tips, bezel cups, bails… I don’t know. I have a hard
time with them, as they often look manufactured, and can have a
significant impact on the appearance of the piece. I guess in
each case you have to balance the cost/labor involved with the
price and design integrity of the piece. If I ever come up with
a concise answer to this question I’ll let you know!

I basically give the customer a choice, depending on the job.
If I am making a custom design, I usually end up incorporating
the bail into the design so it’s not an issue and I rarely use
prong setting in my designs. If I’m modifying a customer’s piece,
premade findings are frequently the way to go and I tell the
customer that upfront. I always make it clear that it is more
expensive to pay for me to design and fabricate than it is to
purchase pre-fabricated designs or components. This helps
prepare people for the ‘shock’ of custom prices. When I
remember, I try to tell them what goes into a piece before I give
them a price, so they have a percieved value for their dollar.
Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Being in retail, I
always have catalogs handy as a second choice so I don’t loose
the sale. Sometimes, after seeing almost what they want in
Stuller and looking at their triple key pricing, they decide to
spend the extra for my work.

Have yourself a great day!

Sharon

32

Please don’t price yourself too cheap. Believe me, there are
many people out there willing to pay for top quality work. You
are worth it!

This should be our (long) mantra. It is sooo true

33

Barbara, am I wrong, or was the sole purpose of your posting
here flame-bait? Please, let’s try to keep the list free of this
type of thing.

34

Dear Frank:

I promise to charge what i am worth, i promise to charge what i
am worth…I just found out my hair dresser has a
mercedes- and she doesn’t feel quilty about charging me a bundle
for an hour’s work…I will never feel guilty again about my
jewerly prices…

35

Some one said,

I have to cover the costs of my hobby.

I think that statement kinda sums up why it’s hard to get paid
for our time, let alone the design effort & other items.

A lot of folks think that stuff not sold in a jewelry store/dept
is made by ‘hobbyists’, so why should they pay ‘high prices’.They
think that as long as the price pays for the materials the
hobbyist will be happy!

Maybe we’ve got ourself’s to blame a little too; don’t classify
yourself as a ‘hobbyist’! You’re a ‘Jewelry Professional’. If you
aren’t a member of one of the various trade groups (SNAG, MJSA,
ORCHID, etc) or local Jewele rs Assoc, join one, then at least
you can hang a shingle up that says ‘Membe r of Whatever’,
‘Gradute of Unintentional Silver Melters College’. This is

the first, easy step in making the public’s think of you as a
professiona l.

MTCW (my two cents worth)

Dave

36 
 if we were employed as bench or production jewlers, we would
be expected to have a degree of proficiency - if it took us 4
hours to solder a head we wouldn't have the job. Maybe Mark P.
can help us with a time/cost schedule like some other trades
have.  There must be a basic formula we could use as a guide

I have often wondered why there is not formula, other than
charge as much as you possibly can. There is nothing worse than
quoting a price and have your customer say “oh, is that ALL”! I
feel like quickly adding, “well, that doesn’t include the labor”.
I know about how long it should take a skilled person to do a
particular job, and thats all built into our pricing. Whats not
built in is the repair of the cracks that develope, or the
replacement of the stone that flew across the room and was lost
or the exta time taken to make it right because your name is on
it. You have to eat some jobs to keep your customer happy. I
think if you don’t have people occasionally telling you your
prices are too high, you should raise your prices. Mark P.