Pricing

Gliden07

Gliden07

Well-Known Member
IMG_20171021_56313.jpg I have a gent interested in buying the Hunter I just finished. I really have no clue as to what to charge. I realize I'm a new builder but I don't want to give it away. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

About the knife. 1084 steel, 8-1/2" OAL, 4" blade, 1-1/4 at the widest point, Maple scales finished with 7 coats of Tru-Oil, SS pins and SS 1/4" lanyard hole.
 
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Pricing is the bane of every knifemaker. :) Try this....... Think about what it took you to build this knife.... in terms of material costs, consumables, labor, etc., then decide if you want to make a profit, or just pay for your materials/labor. Then ask yourself this question..... "How much money would it take to get me to build another one?" Nobody but you can answer that question, but when you do answer it, you have YOUR selling price.
 
Everything Ed said.

If I may... talking sales prices makes people a little uneasy. But I'm going to throw it out there, just as a starting point from a guy who was in this boat not very long ago.

No handmade knife is worth less than $100. You aren't selling raw materials at a markup, you are selling a handmade piece that happens to be a knife. That knife right there is very well done. I'd ask $150 and that should be your basement. That very knife with a more exotic handle would be $250. Just my opinion. If you think it's worth more, then by God, ask for more. If it sells, then you at least know the bottom price you should be asking. What do I mean by that? Every time a person says "yes" to a price, you have no idea how much higher they would have gone unless you asked more and they negotiated down.

I had to work hard to get over my fear of asking for what I thought was a lot of money. Veteran makers helped me a lot in this regard, and here's what they taught me:
  • If you don't choke a little bit when you quote a price, you are selling too low.
  • If nobody ever tells you "no", you are selling too low.
  • If you ever ask yourself, "Do I really enjoy doing this?" when you are working on a knife, you are selling too low.
I got locked in the trap of being the cheapest knife guy in town when I started. I had orders booked out so far, with prices locked in too low, that I could never get ahead. Don't be like me. That sucks. If somebody wants a fifty dollar knife, Walmart is right down the street.
 
I had a friend ask me how much is a custom knife. Weeeeeeeeeell that depends. My reply was not what he wanted to hear. So again, No, really how much is a custom knife. This time I came back with, the cheapest one usually starts at about a $100.00 and if you want a sheath probably a little more!

What I can buy one at Walmart for $69.95 and that is one of the most expensive ones!!!

I stood there a second thinking, now how do I put this in perspective. Perhaps I should mention that this conversation was taking place while we were admiring a PSE hunting bow he had just purchased!
Let me put it too you like this, a custom knife is not for everyone. However it is kind of like this new PSE bow you bought! You paid big bucks for this one, right? Not waiting for the answer, I am guessing you did that because you wanted a quality bow. Well that is the difference between a production knife and a custom knife!

He couldn't see it that way, so needless to say he continues to admire some of my knives but he has not bought one to this day. But he still shoots his very expensive bow and continues to dress it out with new accessories every time I see it! Not everyone wants or needs a custom knife!

As Ed, said:
EdCaffreyMS said:
Pricing is the bane of every knifemaker. :) Try this....... Think about what it took you to build this knife.... in terms of material costs, consumables, labor, etc., then decide if you want to make a profit, or just pay for your materials/labor. Then ask yourself this question..... "How much money would it take to get me to build another one?" Nobody but you can answer that question, but when you do answer it, you have YOUR selling price.
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Let me first say that, I am a part timer, I am not doing this to make a living more to supplement my living! My first ones I was content to pay for my materials and some of the labor.
Then I had a guy who lets say I was not fond of but, he is in a position that could potentially help or hurt my market in this area. Sooooooo, I decided to give him the price at which I really felt like the knife was worth, figuring he would more than likely turn me down. He didn't bat an eyelash! Build me one but, .... and this is where you can get into trouble. You need to specify that this price is for this model and changes will cost you more! I eat the changes on that one but, it taught me two things. Don't be afraid to ask what you feel the knife is really worth and specify that the price is for that model!!

When you get into trying to be the cheapest buy in the market as John spoke of:

John Wilson said:
I got locked in the trap of being the cheapest knife guy in town when I started. I had orders booked out so far, with prices locked in too low, that I could never get ahead. Don't be like me. That sucks. If somebody wants a fifty dollar knife, Walmart is right down the street.
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That is what you are the cheapest guy in the market!!

My Dad, was a carpenter and he told me this after I figured up a price at the end of the job I had done for a lady and went, OH stuff! It was higher that even I figured.

My Dad asked what was wrong. I told him the house I had just painted for a lady was a lot more than what I figured. He asked me, what is the price and I told him. Mind you this was a two story house and had a lot of ladder work. He looked at me and asked me, did I do a good job, were those actual cost for paint and labor? Yes I told him. Then he looked at me and said don't back down a bit, you get what the job was worth. I finished the bill and took it too the lady, she looked at it went and got her checkbook and wrote a check and then went on to tell me what a wonderful job I had done. I learned a lesson that I took thru life with me!!

Now I know that sounds contradictory to what I said earlier about recouping some of my labor on the first knives. I felt like I was still learning and the customer should not have to pay for that!
So now days I try to work smarter but, working smarter usually does translate into faster!
These forums have taught me a lot. I listen to someone describe how they are doing a process and I realize I may have not known better but, I have been doing that process the hard way. Lesson learned, time saved!!!
 
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C Craft said:
I had a friend ask me how much is a custom knife. Weeeeeeeeeell that depends. My reply was not what he wanted to hear. So again, No, really how much is a custom knife. This time I came back with, the cheapest one usually starts at about a $100.00 and if you want a sheath probably a little more!

What I can buy one at Walmart for $69.95 and that is one of the most expensive ones!!!

I stood there a second thinking, now how do I put this in perspective. Perhaps I should mention that this conversation was taking place while we were admiring a PSE hunting bow he had just purchased!
Let me put it too you like this, a custom knife is not for everyone. However it is kind of like this new PSE bow you bought! You paid big bucks for this one, right? Not waiting for the answer, I am guessing you did that because you wanted a quality bow. Well that is the difference between a production knife and a custom knife!
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That is the doggone truth right there. The same guy who thinks a handmade knife should be $75 is the same guy who puts $1000 chrome brush guard on his truck without batting an eye. My dad used to build and race drag cars when I was a kid. I used to see guys at the track with beautiful cars and I couldn't imagine where they got the money for them. My dad taught me a lesson: "A man will live in a cardboard box in order to have a race car or a boat. He'll have his wife driving the kids in a car with no breaks and bald tires, but he's going to spend money on his race car or boat." My dad was absolutely right. People won't pay for things they need, but there's always money for something they want.

Custom knives are not for everyone, and you can't get your feelings hurt if you are chasing the wrong clientele. Best example I can think of is the old guy trying to sell custom knives at every gun show. He's always got a cluttered little table against the back wall and can't get business to save his life. He's selling his knives way too cheap because he needs to at least make his trip to the show pay, and he doesn't know he's fishing the bottom of the barrel. The typical gun show is a horrible place to sell custom knives, contrary to what someone would think. Everybody there is looking for a deal and they aren't there to buy knives.

I tell anyone who will listen: Facebook has changed the world. Instead of making twenty knives and trying to sell them to the 200 people who might walk by your table, Facebook reaches people you don't even know exist. The world is full of people you don't even know, and many of the people you do know will surprise you with how much money they like to spend- and it's not just rich people.
 
I know being a new maker and not having the reputation will keep the pricing lower on my first couple blades. But once I get a little bit of a reputation then I won't hesitate to up my pricing! I have made some good local connections and have to build a little stock and increase my presence in my area. This I feel is key to success. Maybe one of these days I will be making thousands of dollars on my creations but for now I need to LEARN!! You guys in the know are who I aspire to emulate! All of your suggestions are apperciated. That's what I love about this site is the willingness to help. Thank you!
 
Gliden07 said:
I know being a new maker and not having the reputation will keep the pricing lower on my first couple blades. But once I get a little bit of a reputation then I won't hesitate to up my pricing!
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Please take this as a compliment, but if you are saying that you won't raise your prices until you get some notoriety- that is a big mistake. Take it from me.

If you were sitting at Blade show next to Ed Caffrey, or John Doyle, or Bruce Bump, etc.... then yeah. It's not that you have to charge less because you are not well known, you charge less than those guys because your knives are not yet at their caliber. That IN NO WAY means that you charge less for your knives than you think they are worth. Those guys aren't selling $300 knives. But if your knife is worth $300 then you had better be charging $300. When you begin making $500 knives, then you'll be charging $500. It's not your name that determines the value, it's the value of your knife. As your knives get more refined your reputation builds along with it.

DO NOT undersell yourself. Ever.
 
John Wilson said:
Please take this as a compliment, but if you are saying that you won't raise your prices until you get some notoriety- that is a big mistake. Take it from me.

If you were sitting at Blade show next to Ed Caffrey, or John Doyle, or Bruce Bump, etc.... then yeah. It's not that you have to charge less because you are not well known, you charge less than those guys because your knives are not yet at their caliber. That IN NO WAY means that you charge less for your knives than you think they are worth. Those guys aren't selling $300 knives. But if your knife is worth $300 then you had better be charging $300. When you begin making $500 knives, then you'll be charging $500. It's not your name that determines the value, it's the value of your knife. As your knives get more refined your reputation builds along with it.

DO NOT undersell yourself. Ever.
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Again John you have very good advice. If you make your knives to the best of your ability price them accordingly. Quality sells itself. You will get people that are bothered by how much you want for your knives. That's a good thing. The people that matter are the ones that know you get what you pay for.
 
John Wilson said:
Please take this as a compliment, but if you are saying that you won't raise your prices until you get some notoriety- that is a big mistake. Take it from me.

If you were sitting at Blade show next to Ed Caffrey, or John Doyle, or Bruce Bump, etc.... then yeah. It's not that you have to charge less because you are not well known, you charge less than those guys because your knives are not yet at their caliber. That IN NO WAY means that you charge less for your knives than you think they are worth. Those guys aren't selling $300 knives. But if your knife is worth $300 then you had better be charging $300. When you begin making $500 knives, then you'll be charging $500. It's not your name that determines the value, it's the value of your knife. As your knives get more refined your reputation builds along with it.

DO NOT undersell yourself. Ever.
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I will!!
 
I will tell you something else everyone knows one guy in the area that hunts and, this one guy seems to know everyone else in the area. Tell him you got something that will work for an EDC, and when it comes to a hunting knife, why you can't beat it! I am gonna give you one and the only thing I ask is you tell me how much you like and if you would like to see something about the knife changed. If you like it, please feel free to tell all your buddies how much you like and were you got it from.

You will have accomplished two things. You will have made a bud and a mouthpiece that will drum you up business for years to come. Just make sure your knife will live up to the hype, cause remember, this guy knows every hunter in the area! It better be the best to use and it better skin three deer before he has to touch it up!! If it will do that, he won't be able to keep his mouth shut. He will be bragging every time he brings that knife out at the deer camp!! His friends all get too look and ask man where did you get this knife at. Word of mouth is one of the best advertisers you will ever find.

My father had a construction bussiness in a small town. Hearing an add on the radio one day for one of his competitors I asked him why don't you advertise. He looked at me and said, "I don't have to, if I do a good job my name gets around fast enough, .......do a bad job and your name will beat you from job to job"! I have always tried to live up to that ideology!
 
C Craft said:
I will tell you something else everyone knows one guy in the area that hunts and, this one guy seems to know everyone else in the area. Tell him you got something that will work for an EDC, and when it comes to a hunting knife, why you can't beat it! I am gonna give you one and the only thing I ask is you tell me how much you like and if you would like to see something about the knife changed. If you like it, please feel free to tell all your buddies how much you like and were you got it from.

You will have accomplished two things. You will have made a bud and a mouthpiece that will drum you up business for years to come. Just make sure your knife will live up to the hype, cause remember, this guy knows every hunter in the area! It better be the best to use and it better skin three deer before he has to touch it up!! If it will do that, he won't be able to keep his mouth shut. He will be bragging every time he brings that knife out at the deer camp!! His friends all get too look and ask man where did you get this knife at. Word of mouth is one of the best advertisers you will ever find.

My father had a construction bussiness in a small town. Hearing an add on the radio one day for one of his competitors I asked him why don't you advertise. He looked at me and said, "I don't have to, if I do a good job my name gets around fast enough, .......do a bad job and your name will beat you from job to job"! I have always tried to live up to that ideology!
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You read my mind on this one Mr Craft :)
 
I feel the same way about pricing as you guys...don't want to charge too much, don't want to charge too little. This goes hand in hand with a question I am quite often asked, 'how long does it take to make one of your knives'? I still don't have an answer after being a hobbyist knifemaker for 3 years. Some people are faster workers than others, I think I'm kinda slow, and am not going to use just the number of hours x an hourly wage to figure a price, as mistakes happen and some work has to be re-done, from time to time, and I'm not going to charge anyone for that happening. Knifemaking does not pay much for most of us, it keeps me in material and beer, as I usually say. People are paying for the journey the knifemaker takes in making the knife as well as the finished product, not simply time and materials. Not everyone can make a good knife, even if they have the materials, time and tools to do so. We are paid for our talent and skill, more than simply the time and physical labor it takes to make a knife.
 
WOW pricing seems to be the roughest hurdle until you start moving them. Tons of excellent advice here.
When I did side work (construction) I always stuck with 2 1/2 the materials to get the labor cost, worked well for me. I had more work than I could handle.
Knives on the other hand caused me grief when pricing, but when I witnessed a guy not even flinch reaching in his pocket to pay I felt short changed even though I did well. I would rather NOW, GO HIGH and haggle some.
 
I'm stuck in this same rut, I'm a fairly new maker and haven't established that "confidence" in my stuff yet, and always second guess their worth. That, plus every person that I deal with wants a custom handmade knife for $50
 
bodam said:
That, plus every person that I deal with wants a custom handmade knife for $50
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That's a real problem that every new maker deals with. In the beginning the only people who know you make knives are your friends. A lot of those people think something is cheaper because you made it yourself instead of paying retail. I still get the occasional friend who wants me to make a handmade version of something they saw somewhere. Or they hear the word "custom" and think you will design some ridiculous one-off for a hundred bucks. If you're like me, you have to overcome your desire to please people or else you'll end up buried in jobs you don't want to do and jobs that don't pay.

The biggest hurdle is getting your knives seen by people. With the advent of Facebook and social media, this process is a hundred times easier than it was for guys making knives 20 years ago. But you can't just share a picture and the next thing you know people are flocking to buy your knives. You really want to interact with people. Start conversations through your posts. The more people who comment and like, the more of their friends will also see the post.

Nothing will sell your knives like "buzz." When people see other people making a fuss over your knives it will make them want one. Making knives is super cool to most people. I get a huge response when I post work in progress threads on Facebook. Those process pics build over the days to the final post showing the finished product.
 
I mostly give away knives at this point. Gifts mostly, and some guys that absolutely love knives. When I have one that comes out extra nice, with a nice handle material, those get sold if possible.

I'm getting there. It would be nice to sell more, but I'll get there soon. Meanwhile I'm trying to improve both knives and leather.
 
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