Handtied Marabou Crappie Jigs

[fishingtx]

I am looking to start selling my handmade crappie jigs to make some extra money. My supplies are very limited at the moment, how much should I charge for two 1/16 oz marabou jigs?

[J Francho]

Start here, then figure your cost per jig and determine if your markup is worth it.

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

2 hours ago, J Francho said:

Start here, then figure your cost per jig and determine if your markup is worth it.

 

Add a standard retail 50% markup on your cost, then compare with these known options.    If your cost price + 50% is under those above, then I'd say go for it.   

[J Francho]

I'd be looking for more than 50%. 

[MN Fisher]

1 minute ago, J Francho said:

I'd be looking for more than 50%. 

 

Don't forget to put the time it takes you to make one into your cost.

[Siebert Outdoors]

5 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

 

Don't forget to put the time it takes you to make one into your cost.

 

Like MN said.  That is one of the most important.   Dont devalue your time.  If your making a great product price it accordingly.  Do not be the guy that races to be the cheapest.  All you do is lose money. 

[J Francho]

Pretty sure that guy ^^^ knows what's what. 

[MN Fisher]

4 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Pretty sure that guy ^^^ knows what's what. 

I know it from running a custom cabinet-making business out of my basement back in the 90s.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

37 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

 

Don't forget to put the time it takes you to make one into your cost.

Very true, but when you are selling direct verses a secondary retailer it changes the calculus.  I should have clarified a bit.   

 

I'm not sure if Siebertoutdoors sells fogys to retailers for example, but they might not....and because of that they are half of what they'd cost if you saw them Academy, or your local tackle shop for example.  

A rod I just bought from Alpha Angler operates on this model.   

 

With cost covered, and with OP selling direct, 50% markup seems more then generous for labor and quality of product.    Afterall the fishing business is in the discretionary funds category, and the economy ain't booming right now.  

[MN Fisher]

3 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

With cost covered, and with OP selling direct, 50% markup seems more then generous for labor and quality of product. 

Labor IS part of the cost...

 

For something small like this...I'd work an hour, see how many you can make...then divide a fair hourly wage by the number you get out. That's your labor cost per unit.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

2 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Labor IS part of the cost...

 

For something small like this...I'd work an hour, see how many you can make...then divide a fair hourly wage by the number you get out. That's your labor cost per unit.

Right....materials + labor = cost  

 

I was never omitting labor costs, rather it was an understood you in "cost".    Semantics at this point

[MN Fisher]

22 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Right....materials + labor = cost  

 

I was never omitting labor costs, rather it was an understood you in "cost".    Semantics at this point

Plus a 'wiggle factor' for consumables - your scissors/nippers for cutting thread/wire to tie the marabou on will wear out and need to be replaced/sharpened - and anything else that gets used without being part of the finished product. There's always 'waste' (whoops, not quite enough thread/wire on this spool to make another so it's tossed or this jig head is hosed so can't use it), business license, taxes - if you're running this as a business, you have to pay income tax, and FICA (which is actually twice what a pay-stub from an employer shows...they pay the other half but self-employed, you pay it all)

 

All this is classified as 'Cost of doing business' and you have to make enough profit to cover these things and still have money left over to get better tools, etc. so you can expand.

[fishingtx]

Does $4 a piece sound fair?

[J Francho]

Sounds right, since that's the price point.  You'll want to lean out your materials.  Determine demand and try to forecast sales, and buy material in just the right amount to satisfy orders, but maximize bulk pricing.  Make sense?  No sense in saving a few bucks buying too much lead or hooks if you're just gonna hold on to it for two years, but buy enough to get a discount.

[fishingtx]

Thanks.

[TnRiver46]

I been having lots of success with marabou jigs this summer/fall

[Munkin]

Post some pictures of them. 

 

Allen 

[WRB]

Hand tied Marabou crappie jigs has lots of competition. To set yourself as a stand out custom supplier you will need to offer something special to compete in this market. 

Remember today’s anglers want premium hooks, don’t over look the cost. Northern State with crappie anglers want tungsten jigs, another cost factor. Shipping and business licenses and taxes are another cost factor to consider.

Your Labor jigs tied per hour and painting, overhead includes packaging and shipping, customer service keeping tack of order entry and payments all eat up your time.

At a minimum add up you unit cost and multiply by 1.75 to cover overhead then consider profit.

Try posting your Hand Tied Marabou jig photos with your special selling points.

Good luck,

Tom 

[TnRiver46]

I got 40 for $12 yesterday ! 

[JustJames]

@wrb and @TnRiver46also show a good point. It is not just about your cost, and hour. It is also how much they want your stuffs. If you one of a kind, you can charge as much as you want and they still want them. But if you are new, I’m not sure I would spend $4.00 a jig when I can buy blisters pack from BPS very cheap and work quite as well. I remembered seeing some sell beautiful custom jig on FB market place like 3 for 8 or 5 for 10 something like that.

One of my IG friend tie custom jig for everything from bluegill, crappie, bass and some for saltwater. I asked him once about selling his jig on IG. He said something like, it is not worth the time and MARKETING.

You should join crappie community and ask around, there are plenty of sponsored members where you might become one.

 

[fishingtx]

Will post a picture when I get home.

[MickD]

What is "fair" is what buyers are willing to pay.  All this discussion of markups/labor/etc is irrelevant.  If what they are willing to pay is too low for you to justify your total efforts/costs, there is your answer. 

[fishingtx]

On 10/9/2022 at 6:15 AM, TnRiver46 said:

I got 40 for $12 yesterday ! 

There is no way I can beat that price. Mine look the same but not with a painted head. Also, I am having problems uploading a picture.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

21 minutes ago, bass4life.... said:

There is no way I can beat that price. Mine look the same but not with a painted head. Also, I am having problems uploading a picture.

The reality is Economy is Scale crushes anything that's not truly innovative these days.   A mega corporation like Bass Pro Shops is impossible to compete with.    WalMart has been doing this for decades with every other mom N pop product or service.   Just the world we live in.

 

To me your focus should either be more innovative, or purely for enjoyment, and maybe cost saving on an individual level.

 

Reloaders don't do it to save money, and most home tackle builders don't do it to make money is what I've found in both hobbies.   Not to discourage you, just being pragmatic about it.