Selling pens

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  • Doctor Jeff
    Forum Newbie
    • Mar 2016
    • 36
    • Omaha NE
    • Sawstop contractor saw 2016

    Selling pens

    I am interested in selling the pens I turn--I just want this as a sideline, plan on making 10-15 pens a week or so. I was thinking of trying to get them in a local antique or gift shop. I could also make cutting boards and bottle stoppers.

    Unfortunately, I don't have much time to go to craft shows, though maybe a couple a year--Junkstock in Omaha for instance. I realize I would need a pretty big inventory for that. Right now I don't have a full-size lathe to do bowls or larger turnings, though maybe I'll fix that problem in the near future...

    Interested if any of you have experience with selling pens and stuff--any advice?
  • LinuxRandal
    Veteran Member
    • Feb 2005
    • 4889
    • Independence, MO, USA.
    • bt3100

    #2
    I don't know when he is on, heck I haven't been able to get on here as much. But I would contact Whaler, as he used to sell pens and things online.
    She couldn't tell the difference between the escape pod, and the bathroom. We had to go back for her.........................Twice.

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    • leehljp
      Just me
      • Dec 2002
      • 8429
      • Tunica, MS
      • BT3000/3100

      #3
      One strategy for sales is to have two or three Elite pens that are triple or quadruple the price of the others. If most of your pens are in the $50.00 range, people will think that is a bit high, regardless of the quality, and sales may be nominal. Add a couple of pens in the $100 range, a couple in the $150.00 range and maybe one or two in the $200.00 - $250 range.

      There are pen "kits" that cost $50 - $75 - $100 for the kits alone. These are investments for both "drawing power" and for sale. Uses one, two or three of these. The wood and finish bling must be equivalent to the price. If these are displayed in eye sight of the others, it will draw people in; Someone may buy one, but most people will then settle back on the $50 - $75 pen and think of it as as a good buy.

      This works in many many situations.

      Oh, if you really want the high priced pens - $500+, start by checking out fountain pens, learn the lingo, learn the pen tips/nibs. Real (fountain) pen aficionado have money, but they won't spend it unless they know the seller knows what he is selling. At this point, $200 or $300 of pen parts can sell for $1000 or $2000+. By the way, fountain pens are meant for one person, and a real aficionado will not allow anyone else to use his/her pen. The reason is that as the nib wears, it wears to the specific movements of the individual user. Someone else using it will cause it to wear differently (by holding it at a different angle) and that is a no - no to a fountain pen owner. They are finicky but they pay good money to knowledgable pen makers.
      Last edited by leehljp; 04-14-2016, 08:26 PM.
      Hank Lee

      Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

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      • Doctor Jeff
        Forum Newbie
        • Mar 2016
        • 36
        • Omaha NE
        • Sawstop contractor saw 2016

        #4
        That's good advice. Thanks.

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        • capncarl
          Veteran Member
          • Jan 2007
          • 3564
          • Leesburg Georgia USA
          • SawStop CTS

          #5
          You must find a location (store) that is suitable for your items. Crafts shows maybe, but not many people will spend the Bucks your pens are worth. A nice high end gift store will work if it has the customer base that realizes the value your pens have as gifts. Jewelry store quality gift stores are what you need to find. These are places that a customer enters looking for something special and isn't afraid to spend some money. Another place to look is for a high end on-line outlet similar to the sites that sell custom knives. You have to look outside the box because where you find your outlet may not be where you expect it to be.
          I stumbled onto an art gallery where the owner became interested in selling my Tiny Tables. Sales are 1 or 2 a month, sometimes 3. That is about as many as I want to build, it keeps me focused but not so buisy that I can't enjoy my garden, travel and enjoy retirement and I still have time to try new ideas on my tables.
          capncarl

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          • Doctor Jeff
            Forum Newbie
            • Mar 2016
            • 36
            • Omaha NE
            • Sawstop contractor saw 2016

            #6
            Thanks for the advice. The good news is that there is a lot of interest here in locally made products, and a lot of vintage and repurposed stores.

            I bet if I made pens out of reclaimed barn wood I could make a killing! LOL...

            Comment

            • capncarl
              Veteran Member
              • Jan 2007
              • 3564
              • Leesburg Georgia USA
              • SawStop CTS

              #7
              Dr Jeff, you say that like there is no barn wood in your area? I never think about pen turners when I clean out my scraps, but I think I still have a sack full of antique pine that was salvaged from an old barn piled in the garbage trailer. I also have some highly figured chinaberry and black gum Tupelo and sinker cypress. It would just be wrong to burn it, if someone wants it?
              All of the antique pine barn wood Tiny Tables I make sell quickly.
              capncarl

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              • onedash
                Veteran Member
                • Mar 2005
                • 1013
                • Maryland
                • Craftsman 22124

                #8
                I sold probably 50 pens at a conference one year. I was only charging like $10 or less. They were just the cheap kits from woodcraft but I didn't need 50 pens at home so I was just having fun making them and glad to recoup my costs.
                YOU DONT HAVE TO TRAIN TO BE MISERABLE. YOU HAVE TO TRAIN TO ENDURE MISERY.

                Comment

                • radhak
                  Veteran Member
                  • Apr 2006
                  • 3058
                  • Miramar, FL
                  • Right Tilt 3HP Unisaw

                  #9
                  You have excellent advice from the others, I wanted to add some as a customer.

                  One, while you are figuring out which physical location - shows, stores, etc - you will sell at, please also build (or pay to get built) a website to display and sell your stuff, or at least a web-page on Facebook. Then, get a set of simple business cards with your contact details and your web-page. I can't tell you how many times I have come across a nicely crafted wood product (a beautiful chess set comes to mind immediately) that I want to buy later, but without a card or a webpage, I can't get back to the seller!

                  Another, always keep some ready pens available for quick sale - for the last minute buyer, or the one who has run out of ideas and alights on your site. I have been like that in the past, and it's frustrating to be ready to complete a sale but see "...please place your order and it will get to you within a few weeks..."
                  It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
                  - Aristotle

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