WILL SOMEBODY PLEASE GIVE ME A DIRECT ANSWER TO MY QUESTIONS

[Sturme]

My best advise for you it to practice till you get good, that covers pattern making, carving leather, gluing and stitching. slowly building up your equipment to cover the projects your doing. even practice repairing leather items, 2nd hand stores like goodwill are good placed for products to repair. as for selling items start small at farmers markets, craft shows. eventually get a website and hit it a bit online. the short answer to this is simple, if your building a company its done in baby steps starting with actually knowing your products your making and selling. leather work is not something you just pick up and run with. there is a lot to learn. if you make good quality products they will sell themselves. prime example is the pinwheel coin purses i make, i carry one all the time and have even sold the one i am carrying ( on numerous occasions, the customer wanted it that bad) so focus on quality not quantity. and by the way look into a class on small business cause from the questions your asking you have no idea whats involved (in business and leather) and if your looking for a full time gig? maybe 1 percent and all leatherworkers ever make it a real full time job. its an old trade and a dying art. too many people today will just spend a few bucks at walmart for a plastic belt verses a 30 dollar or more leather belt that is designed to last a lifetime.

 as for a niche product, that is a marketing project you need to do in your area. I will say that quality will sell itself, and get you return customers. it could be as simple as stitching a belt to help prevent stretching ( but without practice in the trade you would never know that. so when a potential customer asks you cant give a realistic answer which in turn looks bad on your company). 

Also when starting any business its done in baby steps and built up from there. remember matchstick houses will fall down in the slightest breeze.

[johnv474]

The most profit?  Things you can make with very few materials, quickly, and that appeal to certain people.

Example: earrings and bracelets. This is why there are a million people making them.   If you are not in those circles, though, you might not know what will appeal to those buyers.

Example: repairs.  All leather goods need repair eventually. Many of those repairs are labor intensive but do not require much in materials.  However they eventually require machinery, and it ain't cheap. 

Example: niche gear, such as harmonica cases, or tool belts for specific trades, or leather fire buckets.  However, if you are not in those circles, you may not know what appeals to the buyer.

Example: personalization. A person with a laser could do a lot, if you have a good one and know how to use it.

These give some specific examples, but is still general enough to maybe give some ideas.

Even if I knew of a secret niche product that sells like hotcakes, that could change next month or next year.  Likewise, if I spent 20 years working my way up into finding the best products for ME to make in my region and my customers, in the meantime just barely making a living, I am not sure I would want to give away the result of all of those years of work and point out where to dig to get the most gold just because an excited new prospector doesn't want to waste his time... especially if he asked in a demanding way.  I set myself up for other upstart prospectors to dig all the land around my mines, then rush off to the next adventure, and leave me on barren land, high and dry.  This is why people who have figured it out don't always want to share. Consider those last points.  Imagine demanding that fellow stockbrokers tell you which are the best stocks to invest in, during the first week.

Lastly, I will say that there is ALWAYS room at the very highest end of the market because some people always shop for the best, because cost is not the primary factor.  A person could make handmade baseballs and sell them for $200 each to certain people, but you better make them awesome, and you better know what appeals to those people. There is also always space at the bottom, for the cheapest goods out there, but you better be able to crank them out faster than foreign children can.  You can't compete with $30 leather(ish) dress shoes, for example, but some items like belts and wallets always sell if the price is fair.

I would suggest looking into leatherwork as a hobby that can help pay for itself, and if your things start selling faster than you can make them, even if you raise your prices, then consider making more and more.  However, there are lots of others who enjoy working with leather who will spend hours on something, only to sell it for a few dollars more than the materials.  Hobbyists who price too low are one of the bigger obstacles for people who want to rely on leatherwork as a profession.  (In other words, make something it would be difficult for beginners to replicate, and then you will have a wider audience.)

Hope these thoughts help.

 

Edited July 1, 2020 by johnv474

[BigSiouxSaddlery]

11 hours ago, johnv474 said:

The most profit?  Things you can make with very few materials, quickly, and that appeal to certain people.

Example: earrings and bracelets. This is why there are a million people making them.   If you are not in those circles, though, you might not know what will appeal to those buyers.

Example: repairs.  All leather goods need repair eventually. Many of those repairs are labor intensive but do not require much in materials.  However they eventually require machinery, and it ain't cheap. 

Example: niche gear, such as harmonica cases, or tool belts for specific trades, or leather fire buckets.  However, if you are not in those circles, you may not know what appeals to the buyer.

Example: personalization. A person with a laser could do a lot, if you have a good one and know how to use it.

These give some specific examples, but is still general enough to maybe give some ideas.

Even if I knew of a secret niche product that sells like hotcakes, that could change next month or next year.  Likewise, if I spent 20 years working my way up into finding the best products for ME to make in my region and my customers, in the meantime just barely making a living, I am not sure I would want to give away the result of all of those years of work and point out where to dig to get the most gold just because an excited new prospector doesn't want to waste his time... especially if he asked in a demanding way.  I set myself up for other upstart prospectors to dig all the land around my mines, then rush off to the next adventure, and leave me on barren land, high and dry.  This is why people who have figured it out don't always want to share. Consider those last points.  Imagine demanding that fellow stockbrokers tell you which are the best stocks to invest in, during the first week.

Lastly, I will say that there is ALWAYS room at the very highest end of the market because some people always shop for the best, because cost is not the primary factor.  A person could make handmade baseballs and sell them for $200 each to certain people, but you better make them awesome, and you better know what appeals to those people. There is also always space at the bottom, for the cheapest goods out there, but you better be able to crank them out faster than foreign children can.  You can't compete with $30 leather(ish) dress shoes, for example, but some items like belts and wallets always sell if the price is fair.

I would suggest looking into leatherwork as a hobby that can help pay for itself, and if your things start selling faster than you can make them, even if you raise your prices, then consider making more and more.  However, there are lots of others who enjoy working with leather who will spend hours on something, only to sell it for a few dollars more than the materials.  Hobbyists who price too low are one of the bigger obstacles for people who want to rely on leatherwork as a profession.  (In other words, make something it would be difficult for beginners to replicate, and then you will have a wider audience.)

Hope these thoughts help.

 

Best answer yet!

[stelmackr]

12 hours ago, johnv474 said:

<<<snip>>>Hobbyists who price too low are one of the bigger obstacles for people who want to rely on leatherwork as a profession.  <<<snip>>>

 

Andy Stasiak once told our leather group: "The hobbyist harms three people when the hobbyist prices his leather craft items unrealistically low: (1) You harm the hobbyist seller who make little or no profit to continue his craft; (2) You harm the buyer who thinks he will be able to continue to purchase products, from the hobbyist, at low prices: and (3) You harm the professional leather worker because the unrealistic price has uneducated the buyer into expecting all professional leather workers price match the hobbyist."

[Professor]

Watch Bands would seem to generate the highest return on investment in time and materials.

The stitching is not a big chore but requires more attention to detail than most other larger pieces.

Everything should be as precise as possible.

You can practice on scrap leather and repurposed  leather is growing in popularity. Old baseball gloves are one source, the more used and abused the better,with pieces that bear parts of name brands considered to add character.

Edited July 5, 2020 by Professor

[Spyros]

Highest rate of return as a small business is one of two things:

- Don't make what everybody else makes.  Find a sizeable niche, become both the first AND the best at serving it, and charge a lot.  Example: the Holdfast "moneymaker" double camera strap, look it up.   Excellent business, and yes when I was into photography i did buy his strap.  It's simple, expensive, and very well designed.

- Make what everybody else makes.  But find a way to make it fast and simple and sell the fact that it's made simple as a conscious lifestyle/quality choice.  And most importantly: do it without being dishonest.  Example: MrLentz.  I am a business analyst by trade, I've studied a bit of marketing, and lately I'm also a leather worker.  So I wear three hats and I take off all three of them and bow to this guy.  He's smart and he makes an honest product that people want.

Highest rate of return as a big business is to take your factory and send it to Asia.  Can't beat these guys.

Highest rate of return as a sole artisan is probably dog collars, belts and key fobs.  Just get your clicker press, jigs and templates, never stitch anything (rivets everywhere) and churn out as many as possible in batches.  Everybody wants one of the three, it's just a question of availability and price. 

Golden rule for profits: whatever you're making, keep it as simple as possible.   Remember you're not making this for yourself, and you're not making it to impress other leatherworkers.  The vast majority of the people receiving a leather item can spend a lifetime using it and never notice the edges were not burnished.  Design, look and feel, longevity, practicality is the things they're after. 

Make an intricate & flawless item for yourself and the people you love, not to sell.  That's the bitter truth if you want to maximise your profits.  

Edited July 5, 2020 by Spyros

[Hardrada]

13 hours ago, Spyros said:

 Remember you're not making this for yourself, and you're not making it to impress other leatherworkers.  The vast majority of the people receiving a leather item can spend a lifetime using it and never notice the edges were not burnished.  Design, look and feel, longevity, practicality is the things they're after. 

This reminds me of my days in photography: I would agonise over issues the client didn't notice. I was consistently baffled by hearty "that looks great!" comments because in my mind I was screaming to myself "the background is too in focus! The catchlights are too noticeable! [Endless et ceterae...]".

Then again, it's true to a point, so careful. One thing I've seen people DO notice is the stitching. It's kind of a sign of good craftsmanship. When I shewed my goods to one of my university instructors she immediately asked if I had a machine because the stitches were so spot on. She was doubly impressed when I told her it was all done by hand and bought a pouch and ordered a belt for her husband. It's my firm belief that the dividing line between good and amateurish is a clean edge: but now I know there are two dividing lines and one of them is the stitching.

[Spyros]

2 hours ago, Hardrada said:

This reminds me of my days in photography: I would agonise over issues the client didn't notice. I was consistently baffled by hearty "that looks great!" comments because in my mind I was screaming to myself "the background is too in focus! The catchlights are too noticeable! [Endless et ceterae...]".

Then again, it's true to a point, so careful. One thing I've seen people DO notice is the stitching. It's kind of a sign of good craftsmanship. When I shewed my goods to one of my university instructors she immediately asked if I had a machine because the stitches were so spot on. She was doubly impressed when I told her it was all done by hand and bought a pouch and ordered a belt for her husband. It's my firm belief that the dividing line between good and amateurish is a clean edge: but now I know there are two dividing lines and one of them is the stitching.

Slightly unrelated, about photography: I'm not regretting the moneymaker strap, it really helped on the few weddings I've done in my life and then I sold it to another tog for nearly as much as I paid.  But man, I'm looking now at some "vintage" straps I bought for my rangefinders, and I realise they are basically a $5 piece of chrome tan with a couple of stitches.  And I paid like 60 euro +postage and had to wait a month for it to arrive from Europe LOL  That rangefinder crowd is truly special... I guess when you're just paid $3k for a lens everything else looks cheap.   Its all a question of making something they want.

About the stitching, I agree that it matters.  Although you can also make it kind of disappear depending on the color and size of the thread.  It's the value of burnishing I'm questioning if people are actually paying for it or even noticing.  I made a pen case for my wife and I remember when I gave it to her I kept turning it sideways so she can see all the work I did on the edges, and she kept turning it back the right way, because you know, that's what normal humans do LOL

Only place I've seen people holding finished wallets and other things sideways to inspect edges is on leathercraft reddit.

[Retswerb]

10 hours ago, Spyros said:

I made a pen case for my wife and I remember when I gave it to her I kept turning it sideways so she can see all the work I did on the edges, and she kept turning it back the right way, because you know, that's what normal humans do LOL

Only place I've seen people holding finished wallets and other things sideways to inspect edges is on leathercraft reddit.

Lol, that sounds about right. The thing with a nice burnished edge is that if it’s there, the average person *might* notice and care. But only a leather worker knows to look for it and miss it if it’s not there.

[JerseyFirefighter]

Why anyone is answering in this thread is beyond me. Unless i'm reading this completely wrong, you're frustrated as it seems with all caps in your title, and then proceed to rant that no one is giving you free business advice, particularly questions where the answers can be wildly subjective and dependent on the market for products. The whole post seems rather childish and entitled. You even take a jab at others on here for not answering your questions to your level of satisfaction. The search function is in the top right. As others have pointed out there are a number of threads covering all three of your questions. Happy hunting. 

 

[Bert03241]

Heres what ya do you make leather key fobs by the hundreds, you carve CA redwwood trees on them and sit on the street corner and sell them.

[ToddW]

On 6/5/2020 at 8:14 AM, Sturme said:

My best advise for you it to practice till you get good, that covers pattern making, carving leather, gluing and stitching. slowly building up your equipment to cover the projects your doing. even practice repairing leather items, 2nd hand stores like goodwill are good placed for products to repair. as for selling items start small at farmers markets, craft shows. eventually get a website and hit it a bit online. the short answer to this is simple, if your building a company its done in baby steps starting with actually knowing your products your making and selling. leather work is not something you just pick up and run with. there is a lot to learn. if you make good quality products they will sell themselves. prime example is the pinwheel coin purses i make, i carry one all the time and have even sold the one i am carrying ( on numerous occasions, the customer wanted it that bad) so focus on quality not quantity. and by the way look into a class on small business cause from the questions your asking you have no idea whats involved (in business and leather) and if your looking for a full time gig? maybe 1 percent and all leatherworkers ever make it a real full time job. its an old trade and a dying art. too many people today will just spend a few bucks at walmart for a plastic belt verses a 30 dollar or more leather belt that is designed to last a lifetime.

 as for a niche product, that is a marketing project you need to do in your area. I will say that quality will sell itself, and get you return customers. it could be as simple as stitching a belt to help prevent stretching ( but without practice in the trade you would never know that. so when a potential customer asks you cant give a realistic answer which in turn looks bad on your company). 

Also when starting any business its done in baby steps and built up from there. remember matchstick houses will fall down in the slightest breeze.

Maybe take this class from a guy that has a business and offers class and access to him to ask questions.  He help you price your products and talks about low volume production.  Less than $100 and seems to answer your questions..

https://www.stockandbarrelco.com/pages/start-selling-your-leatherwork

 

 

Edited February 2, 2022 by ToddW

[ToddW]

5 minutes ago, ToddW said:

Maybe take this class from a guy that has a business and offers class and access to him to ask questions.  He help you price your products and talks about low volume production.  Less than $100 and seems to answer your questions..

https://www.stockandbarrelco.com/pages/start-selling-your-leatherwork

 

 

[Doc Reaper]

On 5/10/2020 at 8:20 PM, bryan4christ said:

Alexis I did not mean you by any means.....

and to be honest I did not think anybody out there would even care enough or even bother to respond to me......

I didn't think anybody would even read what I had to say!  

The person I was talking with stated how "obvious" it was that  I was new to leatherwork and that I needed more experience before he/she would even answer my questions......it wasn't the first time this sort of thing has happened to me by respected sources here........I guess I took it too far.  

 

My apologies if I offended anybody.

DM me with that name, then I know who to stay away from. I have been doing leather for 51 years, it’s a competitive sport to say the least! I just saw your question From 2020 it’s August of 2022 now. Many folks don’t log on for weeks and months at a time, sometimes once a year. 
   Some live in commie countries where freedoms are rare, others on here want your rights removed even though they are in a different country. Most of your questions have been answered, I just stumbled across this post

Edited August 5, 2022 by Doc Reaper