Possible Belt Making Opportunity

[JS22]

I am not sure what he is going to sell the belts for. I know I wouldn't, or should I say, couldn't sell them for anything less than about $200 if I were paying for the hides. The more I think of it, The fact is, I'm doing all the work I would do anyway to sell and profit from a $200 belt, yet not making the $ 200 because I am using his supplied hide. I think you guys are right, I may be selling myself short. Maybe the $50 to $60 range would be more inline. Only thing is. I don't know how much he has into each hide on his end, and if this would price him out of the ballgame. Another question I may should ask is, what does he expect done with the scraps. ( The middle of the belly and neck section that are left over ) If he's going to let me keep these, I can make a great profit on holsters and sheaths. This all brings up another thought. If he's going to expect me to try and use the whole hide, ie., piece together belts out of what section I cant cut the full length from, We're talkin a whole new ball game. I guess I have alot of questions???

[particle]

I typed up a response this morning, but got distracted and hit cancel.

You are right - you're doing all the work, but you're not having to do any of the marketing. You have a (hopefully) guaranteed buyer, so you are out nothing. Yes, you could make more if you made them yourself and bought all your own materials, but you're also out a lot more money for the gator hides.

I'm about to start making belts, so I haven't tested this number yet. Someone here said you can make a belt in about 15 minutes. I'm going to say it's more like 30 minutes for me. If I can sell a gun belt for about $80 (judging by the price of The Belt Man's even higher priced belts), I can probably make about $160 per hour, minus maybe $10 max in materials per belt. $80 might be a little too high, but even if I sold them for $60, I'm still making about $100/hr once you back out materials.

Do this first batch for the guy as a trial run. Get the kinks worked out, figure out how much time it's taking per belt, your own material costs, etc., then arrive at a comfortable hourly rate (based on your production speed and belt-output per hour). I would include in the contract that you will be keeping the scraps. If he won't let you keep them, charge him more per belt!

[Cowboy Crafts Online]

I would like to add some advice. Quit using chicago screws and buys some good snaps from Ohio travel bag. It will give you a professional look. Also they are cheaper than the screws.

Ash

[TwinOaks]

I haven't seen it stated that you'll have a contract.....is this a verbal agreement, or will there be a written contract? This is CRUCIALLY IMPORTANT. You are potentially looking at a lot of money, so there needs to be NO question about who does what, how much money changes hands, where the scraps go, etc. All of the above is good advice, and as usual, the devil is in the details. My plain belts start at $65. That's for a good piece of leather (9/10oz) sized to the customer's request ( I make it like they want if they don't accept my suggestions....if they're wrong, well they'll pay me to fix it), finished edges, slicked flesh side, dyed and sealed, with a skived and folded tongue, and a belt keeper. From there, it goes up. Lined? Tooled? Conchos? Ranger style? They're all available, but it all costs money. The most expensive one I've made so far was $100, and I think I fairly well gave that one away after I looked at the cost of materials (leather,conchos, and buckle) and time (layout and stitching of raised pieces between the conchos). It's all good though, that one belt has made orders for 3 more....at more appropriate prices.

You are doing the right thing by asking LOTS of questions. I didn't realize how badly I was shorting myself until I had a friend price my products for me. When told me he quoted $100 for the above mentioned belt, my eyes bulged out and my jaw dropped. When he said the customer whipped out the money with quickness, I grinned. I think the most common mistake for those of us getting into this business is that we underestimate the quality of our work and the value that quality has to our customers. It's good to get other people's perspectives.

[Hennessy]

I haven't seen it stated that you'll have a contract.....is this a verbal agreement, or will there be a written contract? This is CRUCIALLY IMPORTANT. You are potentially looking at a lot of money, so there needs to be NO question about who does what, how much money changes hands, where the scraps go, etc. All of the above is good advice, and as usual, the devil is in the details. My plain belts start at $65. That's for a good piece of leather (9/10oz) sized to the customer's request ( I make it like they want if they don't accept my suggestions....if they're wrong, well they'll pay me to fix it), finished edges, slicked flesh side, dyed and sealed, with a skived and folded tongue, and a belt keeper. From there, it goes up. Lined? Tooled? Conchos? Ranger style? They're all available, but it all costs money. The most expensive one I've made so far was $100, and I think I fairly well gave that one away after I looked at the cost of materials (leather,conchos, and buckle) and time (layout and stitching of raised pieces between the conchos). It's all good though, that one belt has made orders for 3 more....at more appropriate prices.

You are doing the right thing by asking LOTS of questions. I didn't realize how badly I was shorting myself until I had a friend price my products for me. When told me he quoted $100 for the above mentioned belt, my eyes bulged out and my jaw dropped. When he said the customer whipped out the money with quickness, I grinned. I think the most common mistake for those of us getting into this business is that we underestimate the quality of our work and the value that quality has to our customers. It's good to get other people's perspectives.

well a fella had a good idea about making a product and marketing it,he went to some various mfg;rs and got some quotes .tried a few samples from various mfg'rs settled on one [or two] and built some.he got them into a few salesmans hands and they took off ! shortly thereafter he had competition MADE IN CHINA,INDIA AND THE PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF ANYWHEREBUTHERE FOUND AT YOUR LOCAL WAL MART ! I JUST EMAILED MY CONGRESSMAN about fuel n stuff and EQUAL TRADE OR NO TRADE WHAT ELSE IS THERE TO DO BESIDE WORKING FOR WAL MART WAGES ?

[King's X]

I got to say that it is a tough market for those of you in the leather business. Right now, I am considering a business quote and I have taken not only my advice, but all of the advise set forth in the threads here. The last thing I want to do is lose my A _ _ making anything. Breaking even and maybe making a few bucks for someone in my position is just fine. Making a living is another story. I have made a few belts in the past and I took some advice from an old leather worker. He suggested a per inch tier system of charging for the cost of making belts. He had a Basic, Geometric, Tooled and Specialty tier system for charging per inch. The guy made a living. I am so new that I haven't got a $ system down yet.

As for getting a good idea as to how much or how long it is going to take you to make a belt. I would try out a 2-3 belt sample test keeping track of time and materials. Take an average of all the belt time and come up with an average cost & time. This should give you a good idea of an average cost. Just remember completing your first belt is fun and the idea provides you the drive, but what kinda drive will you have at your 60th or 99th belt? Will it still take you 30 minutes? Just think about it.

Okay, this should be enough to confuse you! Good luck

[simran]

I would like to add some advice. Quit using chicago screws and buys some good snaps from Ohio travel bag. It will give you a professional look. Also they are cheaper than the screws.

Ash

This is excellent advice Ash! Belt snaps take a little bit of getting used to but I'd say after the 10th belt you'd either be a pro or bald from pulling your hair out.

Seriously though; they are more professional looking and less expensive

[ABC3]

We make alot of belts but I think we're doing something wrong. There is no way we can make a handcrafted belt in 30 minutes or even an hour.

Maybe I need to rethink my process....

[mojoewrkn]

Do you ever worry they will come undone? I am having trouble picturing how a snap would be better than a screw? Can someone send me a link to one of these snaps so I can see what kind you are using?

This is excellent advice Ash! Belt snaps take a little bit of getting used to but I'd say after the 10th belt you'd either be a pro or bald from pulling your hair out.

Seriously though; they are more professional looking and less expensive

[KAYAK45]

Hey all!

One of the things MAYBE missing, I think, in the calculation of "time to do a belt" is "time for overhead".

So you can make a belt (one) in xxx minutes. Who sharpens the knives? Who sets up and maintains the machines?

Who orders the supplies? Who sends out bills and keeps track of cash? Who files the tax returns?

All of these TASKS must be performed by someone! These are hours needed to produce, and yet not calculated?

OH, and who cleans the shop, at night, after a run?

Compute the TOTAL TIME TO RUN A SHOP, the divide it to the item count?

IN most business envirements it takes 3,000 hours a year to achieve 1,500 "billable" IE "making" hours. Who is paying for that other 1,500 hours?

I have no answers here, just a thought on COST!

AND, I even forgot and have to edit. Who pays for the cost of tools, machines and the all needed light bills, ETC.?

Kevin

Edited August 23, 2012 by KAYAK45