Selling Holsters On Forums

[bitone40]

Hey guys, I will be having a few extra holsters that the customers can not pay for and they are already made , grrr. I guess I should start taking payment 1st , well anywho I could post them on Craigslist and make a quick sale that way but i was wondering if any of you guys think it is a good idea to sell in gun forums in the for sale section , I am a member of a few and do meet the requirments to sell stuff on there but just wondering what you guys thought about it , some forums do have holster makers as sponsers and one forum is owned buy a huge holster maker , they are a BREED of there own , should I ask permission??

thanks fo any help

confused

[TwinOaks]

Post them for sale, but be cautious of payment methods. Orders for anything should have a deposit required, period. Full payment for custom gear. Don't stop at the forums, though, ask if you can put them on consignment in local ranges/ gun stores. Customers like being able to handle merchandise instead of just looking at pictures. Plus, it might be a better selling location, gaining repeat business.

If the forum admin requests/tells you to remove the items, do so immediately, just to keep the peace.

[NoahL]

Hey guys, I will be having a few extra holsters that the customers can not pay for and they are already made , grrr. I guess I should start taking payment 1st , well anywho I could post them on Craigslist and make a quick sale that way but i was wondering if any of you guys think it is a good idea to sell in gun forums in the for sale section , I am a member of a few and do meet the requirments to sell stuff on there but just wondering what you guys thought about it , some forums do have holster makers as sponsers and one forum is owned buy a huge holster maker , they are a BREED of there own , should I ask permission??

thanks fo any help

confused

Craigslist will flag and remove your holster ads--trust me, I've already tried. That "weapons and weapon related items" clause in their rules includes holsters.

[DCKNIVES]

In the Custom Knife world taking deposits is almost taboo, unless expensive materials are required or the knife is something very different and might not be readily sellable to others.I take no deposits on my leatherwork either and have not run into any problems at all.I have used the Forums to sell holsters,slings and knives many many times and I have used Craigslist many times with no problems. Like said ,try gun stores, local flea markets, gun shows.Dave

[particle]

Are you on the Texas CHL forum (I see you're in Houston)? I posted a few holsters early on in my endeavor on there for sale and didn't have any trouble offloading them. Now, I don't (and wouldn't) run daily ads or anything (nor would I probably list anything there since I have a website of my own now with plenty of traffic) - don't want to be a nuisance. But, I think you can safely and confidently post one thread in the classified section of the forum and list your excess holsters in that one thread.

http://www.texaschlforum.com/

Regarding deposits -I tossed that idea around after I had a few people fall off the planet when it came time to pay up, but here is what I decided to do. When I am finishing a batch of holsters, I'll email the next group of customers to make sure they are still interested in their holsters. If they respond, I cut the leather. If not, I hold onto the order and move on to the next customer in line. If I never hear back, I'll call. Several times I've come across inoperable numbers or obviously fake mailing addresses... If I determine it was a fake order (after not being able to contact the customer), I'll just void the order and move on. If they say they're still interested, I build the holster, then they for some reason can't pay, it's no problem for me to just post it on my website as an in-stock item. I don't do any crazy custom stuff that no one else will buy. However, if I did, I might request partial payment up front to cover the custom color dyes, exotic leathers, etc. This way I'll know they're committed and it's not just a scam or prank order.

These are hard financial times for nearly everyone. I've had several people email me and say they've lost their jobs, or had to sell their gun to pay a bill, etc. I'm happy to cancel their order if it makes their financial situation better. Likewise -we've had a lot of medical stuff come up with our youngest child. I basically had to take a month away from making holsters just to shuttle my wife and kid around to the doctor, babysit my other kids, etc. If I took my customer's money up front, I'd feel bad about the added wait time on their order. If I had to stop making holsters all together, I hope I could come up with the money to credit my customers their deposits back. Since I don't take money up front, I could stop making holsters tomorrow and it wouldn't really be a big deal. Some customers might be ticked if they really wanted one of my holsters, but at least they didn't lose any money and I'm not forced to pay a bunch of people their deposit back.

Edited October 11, 2010 by particle

[Dwight]

I always admired the old Zippo lighter company, . . . their warranty was if it didn't work, . . . they'd fix it.

I have run my leather business that way from day one. Yes I have been burned, . . . I expect to be burned again, . . . but I can honestly sleep at night knowing that I have done nothing illegal, immoral, or unethical and my business practices putting the customer first.

I do not require any kind of deposit, figuring that even if I get stuck with the holster for a while, . . . I did at least gain another pattern or more experience making an old pattern.

May God bless,

Dwight

[bitone40]

hey guys thanks for all the possible solutions , and Particle I am in houston and a member of texaschlforum.com and I totally forgot about that one (thanks for reminding me) . I thiink I will use that one 1st since maybe I could get someone local and do a cash deal instead of using paypal and paying a 8 dollar shipping fee . but ill ship it too . - I aint scared .lol

At the very begining the holster making I thought of all the possible routes to sell and doing the consignment thing for a gunshop was on my list and also building a good amount of holsters and renting a table at a gun show . side note : at a gun show in houston there is a guy selling IWB's small, mediums , larges , all flesh side out and white stiching and with no type of selant or nothing on them , and he is selling them for more than i was planing on selling my holsters , and selling them like crazy ,

To particle ; so if you dont take payment right away when order is placed , then when . do you call customer and tell them to pay up and you will ship when monies is recieved ? all of my business has been word of mouth through friends and families and they all pay when holster is in there hand , when I exhaust all my orders and contacts then I will look into getting a website to expand outside of my houston area

thanks again guys for all your help

ben

[Shorts]

Go ahead and post your holsters on the forums. That's how I got myself started.

In regards to orders and payments, I just adjusted my process again. Always get payment before starting a holster. I have orders on file and when it's time for that order to be put on the table I email the customer with their detailed quote. If they still want to purchase they'll send payment, if not they are under no obligation.

Most important of anything is be up front and in communication with the customer about what you're doing. Most folks are understanding of the process and are willing to let you do your work.

[particle]

To particle ; so if you dont take payment right away when order is placed , then when . do you call customer and tell them to pay up and you will ship when monies is recieved ?

Yes - once I receive final confirmation that they're still interested, I'll go ahead and cut the leather and begin building the holster. Then I usually send the PayPal invoice out a day or two later - that way I usually have everyone's payment by the time I'm ready to ship. I don't ship anything unless I have payment first. I imagine one of these days I'll start requesting payment as soon as I reach the person in the queue before I even cut the leather. But it's just not that big a deal for me to place the order on my website as in-stock in case the buyer can't pay. I pretty much only do 1911's and a couple glocks. I have a few other dummies, but the majority of my orders are 1911 so they'll be easy to sell. When I first started, I took a photo of each individual holster and emailed it to the customer to make sure they were happy with the way it looked. Once they approved, I'd send the invoice. I don't send pics anymore unless someone specifically asks.

[billymac814]

I'm suprised at how many people don't take deposits or get paid before starting an order, I started with MC seats which were all custom items that couldn't easily be resold so I always got a deposit and I just carried that over to my holsters. But in a reality I suppose I wouldn't need a deposit on them because they'd be an easy sell and I wouldn't have as much pressure to get them done(might not be a good thing). I may reconsider my methods. But I do find it's easier for me to keep track when I know that all my orders are paid for before I start them. I'm only 2-3 weeks out though, If I were further I don't think I'd feel good about having everyones money.

I've posted pictures of my holsters in a forum and people get directed to my site if they are interested, I haven't had any issues, but I do it pretty descretlely and it doesn't come off as an advertisement.

[Shorts]

I'm suprised at how many people don't take deposits or get paid before starting an order, I started with MC seats which were all custom items that couldn't easily be resold so I always got a deposit and I just carried that over to my holsters. But in a reality I suppose I wouldn't need a deposit on them because they'd be an easy sell and I wouldn't have as much pressure to get them done(might not be a good thing). I may reconsider my methods. But I do find it's easier for me to keep track when I know that all my orders are paid for before I start them. I'm only 2-3 weeks out though, If I were further I don't think I'd feel good about having everyones money.

I've posted pictures of my holsters in a forum and people get directed to my site if they are interested, I haven't had any issues, but I do it pretty descretlely and it doesn't come off as an advertisement.

That's exactly what I adjusted from. I didn't like having payments in my possession and I was starting to crawl up in turnaround time. Now with this email when an order is going on the table, it gives me an easy 1-2wk window.

I found I was pretty stressed having payments in my possession because my turnaround clock started as soon as I got it. And I don't like to have someone elses money and not be active on an order. Aside from keeping pressure off me, it also keeps the customer a bit more settled since they still have their money and are not "waiting" because they sent payment.

[billymac814]

That's exactly what I adjusted from. I didn't like having payments in my possession and I was starting to crawl up in turnaround time. Now with this email when an order is going on the table, it gives me an easy 1-2wk window.

I found I was pretty stressed having payments in my possession because my turnaround clock started as soon as I got it. And I don't like to have someone elses money and not be active on an order. Aside from keeping pressure off me, it also keeps the customer a bit more settled since they still have their money and are not "waiting" because they sent payment.

I think I'm going to start something similar to that. Then contact them prior to starting theirs for payment and they should have it within a week after payment. I would imagine this increases the chance they find something else first or change thier mind, but that shouldn't happen to often and realistically if they are the type of person who is willing to pay up front they won't back out.

I never really considered doing this, and still probably wouldn't make the order before I get payment for a custom item, but I like the idea of getting it when I start and not a few weeks prior.

[Shorts]

I think I'm going to start something similar to that. Then contact them prior to starting theirs for payment and they should have it within a week after payment. I would imagine this increases the chance they find something else first or change thier mind, but that shouldn't happen to often and realistically if they are the type of person who is willing to pay up front they won't back out.

I never really considered doing this, and still probably wouldn't make the order before I get payment for a custom item, but I like the idea of getting it when I start and not a few weeks prior.

Yeah, I do give them an estimated time for when their holster will be going on the table. It gives them something to think about and a reason to stay with you. I'm also discovering that it gives them time to change their orders and add on to their original plan. This is a positive in that you're upping business; a negative in that it throws all your time estimations out of whack for every customer you communicated with after them. That can put you in a crunch. But you can build in some fluff time when you mention dates. It also makes you look good when you get it done before the time frame you told them