Permanant sales shop (do you have your buisness locally?)

[kiwican]

On 1/26/2020 at 7:35 PM, fredk said:

I'll add, what Rocky says about time to do work vrs dealing with customers.

I've been asked (too frequently) to make leather 'life style' items - you know what I mean. I don't make that stuff and never will so I refuse. Here in the UK if I was a proper business I cannot refuse to do so, It is illegal*. I've been threatened with court action but because I'm only a 'hobbyist' the legal action fell at the first hurdle. Thus I'm safer not having a shop.

* In the UK it is illegal to refuse to supply or make anything for anyone based on their colour, ethinicity, disablement or sexuality - even if I tell them I don't make that item its seen as a refusal

That's insane! 

[fredk]

To cover some of the above. A true story event from a few years back.

A customer goes into a Home Bakery and asks for an iced fruit cake to be made. The bakery refuses. Customer goes to a government body called Equal Rights Commission who takes up his case and takes said bakery to court. Bakery looses case. Bakery takes appeals through several courts until they win. Cost to small bakery, in excess of £70,000, cost to 'customer' is a big fat 0.

Home Bakery, has a shop front and bakes all their goods on the premises. They also supply other bakery shops. They make only bread,  just bread,  loaves, fruit loaves,  plain loaves, bread baps (burger buns to you lot), they do not make buns or cakes. That is why they refused to make the 'customer' a cake. They told the 'customer' this, they told the ERC, they told the court this but still they lost on 'discrimination' . The matter was pushed not on what the bakery makes or did not make, but on their refusal to supply someone based on the 'customer' being of one of the groups I mentioned, even though the refusal was not.

There was a second cake case recently which cost a bakery £185,000 in costs and the 'customer' 0. Although its been revealed that the ERC lost about £280,000 in costs - so far, as they re taking the case to the European Courts. But this stage won't involve the bakery. In this case the bakery is a well known and liked family bakery and friends raised donations to pay their costs. The amount raised was £195,000. Without this the bakery owners would not only have had to close their two shops, making about 20 workers unemployed but they would have had to sell their home. This cake case is far more complicated but involves the same principles. 

[Handstitched]

 I know laws are different in each country, but thats just  bat s**t crazy .  Thats like someone asking me to make a saddle, and I refuse, because I don't make saddles , ( I really don't) , but I get taken to court anyway?  WTF...?? 

So I guess that bakery would have  stepped up their advertising, 

 "WE DO NOT MAKE ICED FRUIT CAKES "  We make bread and just bread....got it ?? "  

We all know our own skill levels, and we all know what we like to make....and what not to make . 

This craziness  is something that would sit comfortably in "The Dept. of Works"  in the  movie " Brazil"  .  But this ' craziness' played out here in Oz a while back over the use of the word " Ugg" ( as in Ugg Boots) , but thats another story.

And I still won't make any of that ....'stuff'   

HS

[Bert51]

Sadly I agree with you.

Me thinks I'm sane, as are people on this forum.

But starting to wonder about the rest.

Bert.

[fredk]

1 hour ago, Handstitched said:

 So I guess that bakery would have  stepped up their advertising, 

 "WE DO NOT MAKE ICED FRUIT CAKES "  We make bread and just bread....got it ?? "  

No, not really. They had already been known as the bread bakery, they promoted themselves as the bread bakery, 'we are the best bread makers as thats all we make. No cakes, no buns, no French Fancies, just the best bread in Ulster' sort of thing. Thats why a lot of us went wtf when we heard of the court case.

This has been a deviation off the main subject so to get back on it: I mentioned 'shop front' to a few friends who had shops but shut them up. Actually being taken to court or threatened with it was a major factor in their shut down of their main shop, to continue their profession as a 'hobbyist' or part-timer from home,  not directly affected by those laws.

Edited March 1, 2020 by fredk

[Handstitched]

2 hours ago, fredk said:

This has been a deviation off the main subject so to get back on it

I agree .  I am quite comfortable with what I have worked so hard for, independence, being my own boss.   I am also glad I had the sense not to pursue  having a shop/shop front in town.  I reckon I'd be out of business a long time ago.  Its a blessing that I can work from home, I can even enjoy a beer with my lunch if I want to    

Getting back on track:  for anyone thinking of turning their hobby into a business, ' test the waters first' do some basic market research.  I know my town,  so I  just asked myself one simple question, " What does this town need  that it hasn't got ?"  as the business opportunities here are very limited,  I soon got the answers. 16 years later....?    

HS

[Ferg]

My story will be a little different than most of you, still relevant.

I began making leather product when in the Navy almost 70 years ago. Made a wallet for darned near every member of our squadron of helicopters. Did I make any money? I sure did and I paid the rent at Tandy in Miami. Figuratively. Sold my carved and laced wallets for $5. 

Jumping ahead a number of years, after being a successful building contractor, my wife and I decided to manufacture wooden toys and decorative items. I had a fairly complete wood shop of Sears woodworking machinery. We traveled the "Fairs" for several years making absolutely everything we could think of plus some others while hardly having enough money to live. Opened a store and advertised for one week on the local radio station. Our store didn't even face a traveled street. We had cars parking along the closest road. For about a week we had so many customers we had to lock the door. We made a little money and we could eat out once in awhile.

Visited a very large Arts and Crafts show. A gentleman and his wife were making personalized puzzles of wood sawing them with a jig saw. Told my wife we could do that!

I drew the letters and numbers on pieces of Birch Veneered medium density fiberboard, ground up wood chips and bark. We cut them out on one of my Sears bandsaws. Presented them to a number of mail order companies. Finally, we got a bite. One of the largest companies in the world wanted our puzzles for their catalog. We had a friend of ours and her daughter working for us. 

Fast forward to the present day. Come August APPLE VALLEY WOODCRAFTS will be no more. We some times worked all night on a project, seven days per week twelve months per year. Our company became the largest manufacturer of wooden name puzzles in the world. I worked on selling the business for awhile. Had one very interested party. Found that they had very little money and no idea what they would be getting into. We manufactured everything we made using computer driven machinery running programs that I eventually rewrote. Still have one of the original bandsaws from Sears.

Our insurance has become totally unreasonable. Try to guess how much it costs for two million dollars of Liability coverage. Wife and I built our Log Home 26 years ago with profits from our business. Would I try that with making leather? Nah!!! I am eighty six years old, tired, forgetful, no kids at home, just us and our two Sheltie dogs. I still enjoy life too much to give up so I make what ever I doggone well want to whether it be Stained Glass, Leather, Fabric, Computer Programing, growing our several thousand flowers and vegetables in our greenhouse,  loving my wife and kids, and making a Gatsby Hat for my Great Grandson.

Live your life so folks can say nice things about you and love your families AND work hard and enjoy what you are doing.Then. maybe you can have one of these.

 

Ferg

Edited March 1, 2020 by Ferg

[mikesc]

Raises glass, and with tear in eye..to you Ferg and to your wife .. :-)))

Edited March 1, 2020 by mikesc

[Handstitched]

That  lovely picture belongs on a post card. You could sell those too  

HS

[Bert51]

That lovely picture has a truly lovely story behind it and yes I also have a tear in my eyes.

You and your wife enjoy your life, you have both earned it.

Bert.