Leather Consortium UPDATE

[Leerwerker]

OK, now I am confused. I was reading this link from the beginning and suddenly when I am ready to post my items to the new site, it splutters out and dies ...!

I understood that leatherworker.net is a place for leathercrafters to get together and talk and exchange ideas and show their work and get inspiration and learn from one another.

I don't see how Collins' site conflicts with this site. Or is there such a shop here somewhere on leatherworker.net that I missed?!?

[calanneh]

OK, now I am confused. I was reading this link from the beginning and suddenly when I am ready to post my items to the new site, it splutters out and dies ...!

I understood that leatherworker.net is a place for leathercrafters to get together and talk and exchange ideas and show their work and get inspiration and learn from one another.

I don't see how Collins' site conflicts with this site. Or is there such a shop here somewhere on leatherworker.net that I missed?!?

I'm a little confused too.......

Can somebody explain slowly in small words please????

Thanks!

cal

[Johanna]

Okay, let's clear the air first. No one is stepping on my toes. MS has a good idea, and he may have the technical skills and the time to pull it off successfully. If so, great- more of you leatherworkers get work, become rich and famous and invite me to spend a few days at your vacation place (vacation place defines to anything OUTSIDE of Ohio). So far so good.

What you folks don't see is that, behind the scenes here at LW, you have a team of people dedicated to making your LW experience worth your time, and we are always working on project or two ahead. We're a tight community, and resources are limited (how many rich and famous leatherworkers do you know?) so LW gladly partners with other groups, guilds and associations that are trying to achieve the same goals.

When something comes along that LW can support, it helps the staff to have a heads up before it's discussed and decided on the open forum. This particular situation possibly duplicates the efforts of a similar project that LW has already committed to helping to establish, promote and provide the hosting. When I first read about it, my reaction was, "well, let's not reinvent the wheel, let's get MS involved in making the original idea a success using his expertise." Before I had a chance to run this past the staff, MS arranged the catalog, and that's great, but LW isn't going to be able to be involved in this one, except to link to it and talk it up where appropriate, of course. We wish him every success with it.

And I have to throw this in for all those of you who have not filled in your profiles (click "My Controls" at the top of the page.) People are shopping here. They search the board, read the posts, look at the pics and check the profiles. If someone likes your work, let them buy it easily. There is a place for all your contact info and websites and anything else you want to tell your customers, the googling public. Fill the sucker out!

Keep me up to date with how this is going, MS. I hope it takes off- a leather Etsy. How cool is that?

Johanna

[Leerwerker]

This description is what caught my attention:

In that email you will provide:

Pictures

Descriptions

Is this a one time item or do you make as ordered

Price

Estimated shipping cost would help even if you only define ground USPS.

The email address you want to monitor for sales!!!!!!

Don't go crazy on the description but you want it to point out what you think is important. I the operator of The Leather Craftsman will post these items in a catalog format. Items will be separated into categories. When a person finds an item they like they will fill out the purchase form on the right hand side of the screen and select the PURCHASE button. An email will be sent to you the producer the customer and to an account on my site. When I get the email I will check to make sure it is not a one of a kind item, if it is I remove it from the site.

The transaction then takes place between you and the customer. You can define payment method and final shipping cost.

I do not think a forum is the ideal place for an online store or to showcase leatherwork to outside buyers. I am certainly never going to look at a forum if I am looking to buy something.

JOhanna, can you tell us what you are busy designing for LW?

[Pip]

I hope everyone is not to upset about all of this. I have received several emails with peoples concerns. I think Johanna should be given a chance to get this up and running for everyone.

Sorry for causing all this trouble

The leather Craftsman

Upset, not I. I think it is a noble gesture, and MS should be applauded, and as johanna says its a time to work together. Especially now with the global credit issues. I can also understand Johanna's point of view that new projects are always under development and it is essential for forums to acknowledge this.

I think it is a great idea. Whether by LW or MS and I feel MS has been ver very keen in designing a catologue so quickly, but also very responsible responding to what has been discussed here, I hope that we don't put MS off. as someone just starting to srell his little creations breaking into the marketplace with limited funds (and on my part limited talent) is very daunting.

I think Johanna and the staff here have shown considerable knowledge and forsight to create this forum in the first place and I for one trust their judgement on this matter. And I am willing to give it a try, if it proves as some suggest that the forum isn't the place for sales well then lets cross that bridge when we come to it.

I think this is a case of great minds thinking alike. And for two (or more) respected LW members to come up with the same notion from different places suggests that it is something that is needed by us little people. Better that two people come up with an idea than none.

My 2cents worth. i would like to thank Johanna and MS for supporting us and coming up with new projects which could help newbies get started.

Group hug

[calanneh]

My 2cents worth. i would like to thank Johanna and MS for supporting us and coming up with new projects which could help newbies get started.

Group hug

Ditto!

cal

[UKRay]

"I do not think a forum is the ideal place for an online store or to showcase leatherwork to outside buyers. I am certainly never going to look at a forum if I am looking to buy something".

I would agree Leerworker, a forum is not the first place you might look but Leatherworker.net isn't just a forum is it? There is no reason why the Leatherworker.net 'brand' shouldn't encompass a leathergoods marketplace.

As it happens, I regularly buy from folks on the forum and I know plenty of others who have done so. This forum is a focus for sharing the very best leatherworking practice so why look elsewhere for top quality leathergoods. Thanks to the internet, we live in a 'global village' so it makes sense to shop where you know the goods are the best on offer.

I would simply like to see a 'marketplace' where members can put their goods on display and sell with confidence. Given that we know and appreciate Johanna's care and concern for the well being of the leatherworking community, I would be happier if this happened as part of the Leatherworker.net web presence. Hopefully it could provide much needed income to expand the site even further.

I have run a website for the past eight years that attracts around 140,000 visitors each month. This doesn't happen by accident. Johanna has proven, time and again, that she is able to build a large scale web project, expand it and KEEP IT RUNNING. This is the hardest bit of all. Frankly, building a pretty looking site is the easy bit, attracting people to it is a far bigger issue and managing it is the biggest issue of all. We all know that Leatherworker.net already has a constant stream of visitors so why re-invent the wheel when you can simply grease the axle to make it go faster.

I don't say there isn't room for more private enterprise in the world of online-leatherworking, I just feel that a runner with 'form' is a very much safer bet. I have complete confidence in Johanna's ability to make a fine job of setting up an online marketplace that will benefit the community (and not any particular individual) and I will support her wholeheartedly.

I suspect all it will take is a little patience before we see things starting to move and that excites me. Keep up the good work Johanna and team!

[Mattmatt]

Wow what a bunch of differences on this topic. I am new to this board so my opinion doesn't count much compared to most of you that have been around for a long time. I can say that in trying to find this forum I did have a difficult time. Maybe it is just my search strings in google but it took 10 or 12 searches before I found this site and even then it was not on the first page and I am a google junky. This other person ColMS I found his site on my first search. The name of the site The Leather Craftsman was on the first page of my first search. Actually if you search on saddles and several other things with the word leather he is on page 1 2 or 3. seams like he at-least has the google search thing going. Maybe nothing else? doesn't matter to me.

Well makes me no diff I just want to find info. By the way he must have just turned up a forum because there is one there but only a couple of users.

[CollinsMS]

Well after receiving many emails and PM's on the board I have thought about what almost every person has said. Johanna you have a space for people to sell items and if I have a place were people can sell they just doubled their chances of selling an item. It doesn't mean they have to walk away from the leatherworker.net it just means they doubled their chance of connecting with a consumer. So for the board members that think I am trying to destroy your environment I'm not and it is your choice what you want to use or if you want to avoid me all together. The members that want to increase their sales potential can post on a second site, I only see this as helping people not hurting them. That is all I ever wanted to do was help out the person trying to make a living.

I have been asked what my business plan is. There is none, my web site is a skill building environment I use to keep up my knowledge of web design and how to make Google, Yahoo, MSN and AOL find my web site. That is called SEO (Search Engine Optimization), if I were to guess this site has cost me $3,000.00 over the last year. I probably have 400 or more hours in the last year in development time. All of that is free to you if you want it.

If your interested the new catalog address is http://www.theleathercraftsman.com/catalog.html

Johanna what I have put together is just one concept. If you want to use the idea or parts of it please do so, I think it would work out well and blend into what you have built.

[crissy]

Johanna,

is it possible to add a page called "market place" for hand made, specialty, one of a kind, or production items? I have bought many things here and I see as you do the potential for a nice slice of the market covering things not even imagined at this point.

think evolution

I do

tip of my hat