Since I have a pull-out couch with very little room under the mechanism, I couldn't order a floor stand sight-unseen. I had to wait till the XS festival so that I could sit at each stand, figure out how far I would pull it toward me, and whether at that point the feet would fit under the couch. And every one that was on display there was too tall to slide under the couch at the position that was usable for me.
So I would be in favor of having several "shop model" floor stands from various manufacturers to enable those with pull-out couches and recliners to get those measurements -- or maybe borrow them to take home and test drive -- so that they're not spending several hundred dollars on something that doesn't work for them.
It was only after I went off work and no longer had disposable income for such things that I talked to John from Hearthside Craftworks and was reassured that if I sent him the under-couch measurement, he'd custom-make the feet to fit.
Thanks for the positive assumption. I work hard at being a good teacheer, and I really love doing it (hence the impetus to do a teaching master program). And, for me, I can show some things pretty quickly. What I like to do in my classes - which are certainly paid for - is give the students tips, techniques that will help them to enjoy their stitching, and improve. Even seemingly obvious things - like how to open a skein of some new thread we're using, and set-it up so it's easy to pull from, and not tangle. The tricks of the trade - I think you always look for these nuggets in a class you take from a good teacher. That, and a critical, experienced eye that can spot any problems, help you correct them, and conversely, appreciate the student's skill.
This is true - despite all the "nonsense" we spew about, there are some incredibly knowledgable and talented people out there. You never know who may have some great tip. Similarly, I get a lot from the guild and some other specific discussion groups.
LOL - I think it's great to have floor models that people can try. Certainly at least a couple of different small stnads (lap stands, little scroll sets stands like the doodlers), and 1-2 floor stands - something like a collapsible wooden one, as well as one of the single leg steel types. Scrolls, Q-snaps, small magnifiers, little lites. Some standing lights - Ott or Daylight. Deluxe, and normal. I think you have to have some variety
- mostly pick one or 2 brands you really like, carry the basic smaller stand
- and have a floor one set up as well. So people can try them - and start with the $50-$60 lap/table stand - move up to a floor stand when they're ready. Lights - I think it's good to have the big standing ones, and some portable ones - I love the little Vusion mighty brites - great for a little portable thing. But not a replacement for an Ott or Daylight. But, if you have them up in the shop, people can see them and play - and buy. That's the hard thing about buying stands, etc over the web - you want to see how it really feels in your hands - how you sit, etc.
In the shop, a smart thing is having a bunch of the little Daylight clip-on magnifiers - they're in 2 lengths, $25 more or less, and great. Plus they have a standing (on it's own base, you put it on a table), with a big flex neck mag that's about $30 - bigger lens. Great thing. I use the clip on ones for travelling about. My best mag - personally in stash - I have the K's one - which is actually optical glass, not plastic - and it stays attached to my Baby Z. Awesome. It is good to play with a bunch of them.
Personally, I don't think many shops stock a lot of the Ott stuff now because it's so readily available elsewhere. But, the Daylights are very nice, and don't take much floor space (about 1'). And, as a big ticket item, the shop makes real money on them. So, they're worth having because people don't buy them until they see them much of the time. But, having sat with one... It's good to have one or two on display - and a couple boxed up. Plus, they help show off the shop material.
That's too bad. There are essentially 3 major suppliers for most of the fabric, etc - depending. And then another tier of a few more. For my canvas design stuff - I order wholesale from a totally different place than does the shop. The shop gets it from a main supplier of many other things as well.
Most of the major distributors ship within a week after orders - but not all. There are some that may take a few weeks to get stuff together. That said, often a shop is putting together a minimum order, or enough to get free shipping - so that may delay an order. No one can just keep placing orders that are minimal. But, 8 weeks for CC is ridiculous - unless it was a truly special color of metallic. And sometimes, a distributor will have a main item on back-order. There were a lot of delays the past year with some of the hand-dyes because Zweigart was behind delivering to places like Lakeside - just barely getting stuff to the major distributors. And that gets passed along.
NN is pretty much the worst place for a retail business to order from. Their BtoB isn't very good - as they concentrate on their own direct mailing stuff and are expensive for a shop. It amazes me that any LNS would order Congress cloth from them. They do have some items which are hard to find elsewhere. Funnily enough, we were getting some European stuff from them (hardware things) and it was pricey, but. At TNNA I was doing the order with one of our regular suppliers for European/British design stuff - and this booth also had the German hardware gadgets. I asked him about it - got pricing, and ordered some from him - telling him that we'd just gotten a couple in from NN - but I'd tell the owner and we'd get the stuff from him instead for the future. It saved us about $1-2 per, which is saving the customers $2-$4. Anyhow - he laughed and said that NN got it from him - and it had been a big deal allowing them to distribute - as he is the actual link from this Euro company to the US. And, of course, NN isn't supposed to be charging more....It was kind of funny - but maybe only if you're in the business. And I'd been telling the shop owner that doing business with NN was costing her - but, of course, she didn't want to explore the options.
My first purchase at my LNS was a big ticket item. A daylight lamp that they had on display for $30 less than I could find online (and none of the chain stores around could meet their price). Plus I didn't have to pay shipping, only sales tax. Granted, I had to wait for it to come in, but it took less than a week!
you will want to find out what the minimum order your suppliers will fill. For example if someone wanted you to order fabric in a particular colour and count that you do not stock. . Some guilds like to order all the fabric and threads for a particular project that more than one member is working on, what is the maximum wait time before you can get it from your supplies. You might actually get a feel of the market by attending local guilds and asking them to fill out a survey for you. How often do you tend to start new projects, what type, style of needlework do you do. even the hated question, How much do you tend to spend a year a month on needlework supplies. Do you purchased vary seasonally eg; do you buy more in the spring and summer for xmas gift projects etc. Which threads do you use, list the types and ask how often do you tend to purchase say krenic braid or Caron watercolours. once a year, once every 6 months, once every three etc. You get the gist. You probably know all this already. but.... It requires a lot of initial investment to have a good variety of threads, fabric, beads, patterns etc. and as with any business you need to be able to weather AT LEAST 6 months with little sales until you are known. And parking, parking, parking. Knowledgeable staff, not merely sales clerks.
I would love to see a local shop and try to patronize local shops, I still go over to the hobby shop for what supplies they do carry.
I am fairly sure that the local needlework guilds would give you a chance Ruby
The issue of minimum orders is one that I know can cause problems. I worked at one shop when I lived in Boston where certain distributors simply refused to deal with the owners because they could only reasonably order, say, two dozen of something, instead of at least a gross. So even though she wanted to, the owner just couldn't carry certain items, even though she wanted to. Are you in Halifax as well, Ruby?
Most of the main suppliers don't have big minimums. But, for example, Hoffman has a minimum (which equates to about 40 charts wholesale) to have free shipping. So, many shops don't order weekly - but maybe bi-weekly or monthly. Or just do a standing "new stuff" monthly, and then fill in as needed. But, you do have to get your credit set up, do one order COD or pre-paid, then move forward from there. There are indeed a couple of major specialty large suppliers that take closer to 4 weeks to fill orders. But, the biggies (Norden, Wichelt, Hoffman, Yarn Tree, Rainbow Gallery) are fast
- usually within a week. After that - threads, fabrics, hardware- range from 2 to 4, 6 weks - just depending on the vendor. A handful do have minimums. You'll find that some designers will have minimums - some easy to meet - some ridiculous. There were a couple on the last On-line NWrk show that had 12 chart minimums - new, not well-known designers. It's too much, and even if it doesn't seem like a lot, with all the other purchasing, an owner may not want to invest $60 for a trial - might only want to do 3 charts and see how they go. Some will have 3 of a chart, then minimum whatever. It's interesting.
I think the big key is being organized, having some kind of plan for your ordering times versus cash flow and inventory.
This is a really good idea - about doing a survey. I know that when the current owner took over the prior business, she had people sign up for the e-mail list, but the card asked a bunch of basic info - favorite designers, type of stitching done, levels, interest in classes, etc.
All true. Actually, you might have good sales at first, then it's time to get estavlished, and a good reputation. And not fibbing to customers - having the ability to say "2-4 weeks" or maybe 6 weeks for special orders, or offering the option to them to pay shipping if it must be expedited, etc.
The hard thing - keeping your buying with your eye, but not as a hobby - as a business.
That's true, IME. But, woe betide you if you jerk people around....
That's pretty interesting. In the current environment, I don't think really large numbers are an issue. Even at market, I was expecting some more minimums than I found. Where the big minimums come into play was with the Bag/tote companies, and yarn. A lot of the yarn companies have mimimum buys of $500 or so. Similarly for the companies doing the lovely knitting/needlework bags. We saw some really nice sets, but the owners really were insistent that you have 1 full set of the complete line for some of them, with a mimimum buy. Others just had the mimimum buy - which is easy to meet with the totes - but you have to know the clientele and how long you can afford to carry things on your inventory.
I've been getting all kinds of great ideas from everybody here. I would always do my best to be upfront with people and not keep them waiting any longer than necessary. I'd also let them know if an item they'd ordered was going to be delayed. Then they can decide how urgently they need it and if they need to look elsewhere for it. I think people will shop where they know they can trust the service, even if that service is to call and say " About the items you ordered, there's been a problem...". At least they know you're being honest.
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