I got an email from a customer a week ago who said she had seen me at a show 3 weeks ago, and regretted not buying a pendant she saw. She described it (3 light green stones) and the price. It didn’t ring a bell (but I use a lot of green, so could easily forget), so I said I would check at my next show, take pictures, then email her back. So I did that last Saturday, and didn’t see anything exactly as she described. At the same time, I didn’t remember having sold anything that fit the description. So I took 4 shots of possibilities, and, as tired as I was that night, uploaded and emailed the shots to her.
I heard back this morning, with her saying none of them was the one she thought she remembered, so she must have been mistaken, or I had sold it, and “thanks anyway”, but maybe she’d see me next year. Bah, humbug….
At this weekend’s show (a local one), on Saturday, I had a prior customer come in. She was looking to replace a pair of labradorite earrings she had bought last year and lost. She looked through the ones I had and said none were the right color: all were too blue, or too golden. The lost ones were a medium forest green. I knew I had some in my studio waiting to be polished, but didn’t remember the colors, since they had been put aside for a while. Since she WAS a prior customer, and sales were very slow, I said I’d look and bring whatever might be medium green.
When I got home I found a few possible candidates (did I say I like green a lot?), and, as tired as I was on a show night, stayed up later than I should have, polishing them.
She never showed on Sunday. Bah, humbug. Boo, hisssss….
And people ask me why I don’t take special orders ("Why not? When it's a sure thing?")…when even these things are a pain; I think I should stop being so accommodating. When the next person asks, “I saw something, do you still have it?” I’ll say “No! Someone bought it right after you couldn’t decide!” When the next person asks, “This stone is too this, and this stone is too that, do you have it in between?” I’ll say, “No! It only comes like those two!”
At least I think I will. I must be a congenital people pleaser; I will need to change that.
How do you explain you will not accommodate their vagaries without coming off like a sourpuss or curmudgeon?
Replies
Hi Richard,
Jewelry and leather work are quite different. I have read many of your posts. Your business seems to to a lot of custom work. Glad you can do that. As you said you are set up to do custom work. Most artists are not. Speaking for the jewelers, as I am and the original poster are, we can make a good living off shows without doing custom work. The original poster was asking how to turn down these requests without coming off badly. That was what my advice was about, making it not about rejecting the customer or their request.
Many times with jewelry doing a custom job will take three times as many hours as doing what you already do for the same amount of money. The customer may also change the design several times during the process. What we are talking about here is items in the $50 - $300 range, not saddles that cost $5000 that are almost always custom built.
This is comparing apples to oranges. When I reply to this forum I try to keep my replies to what is relevant to the poster. Doing a job for say $100 that winds up taking you five times longer than your normal $100 item is not making money.
Great point Courtney.
I will readily admit my ignorance of the handmade saddle market, but I imagine it is both smaller customer-wise and product-wise. I've never tried, but I don't think you can get many folks willing to wait 6 or 12 months for a piece of $100 jewelry. Maybe you could though? I just don't know since I've never tried and never heard such stories.
If you can work in custom stuff while you are not creating show inventory then that's ideal, but the customer also has to be ok.
Are clients purchasing $50-100 pieces okay waiting months?
I am also a silversmith and you can check out the fancy gun rigs, buckles, knives and horse gear silver/gold that I design, build and hand engrave (rarely sell this stuff off the rack at shows) on my website. I think I can afford to do custom work because I have tuned into the clientele that can afford it and are used to waiting and paying a premium price for one-of-a-kind work. Most have been corporate blokes who think nothing about flying you to a meeting or flying a saddle as a passenger to destination. Most guys wait a year for custom holsters costing around $100 but I can get these out in a month or so which gives me the edge on competition. I've been at this professionally for 57 years and I will admit it took awhile for word-of-mouth to get around. When it does, the market is lucrative, but it is a market that has to be cultivated. Tonight I am writing up a spec. sheet and quote for another $5K-6K saddle going to Canada to be started in 2017. That's the way it goes.
That's impressive... I wouldn't think anyone would want to wait that long!
But surely, you are right that you need to make it worth it! Some people will wait some won't... we've all been burned with custom stuff but it's probably because we had poor terms! No deposit is a poor term but it's been mentioned a bit here. That bit me earlier this year. More than the money it is the aggravation that I hear is the biggest negative.
There's some anecdote about buying a cheap pen for 5 thousand dollars, and the buyer agrees so long as he sets the terms. Well, his terms were something like, he will agree to pay 1,000 dollar installments every time they meet at noon in grand central station. Terms can be critical.
Normally I say I have too much work and would not be able to get to it for over six months. This past weekend I had three requests. I each case I said I would make the items & email a picture when ready (and it will be awhile) and if they change their mind the items go into my inventory. These were things I would be making any way. Most cases are not worth the extra time they take. Customers don't understand that, that's why I mostly say I am too busy. The best thing to do is to make the answer sound like you are not rejecting them. Same with haggling - I say, "I have shows the next three weekends and its all I can do to keep my cases full. If I don't sell it this weekend I will next weekend" again its not a rejection of them, and lets them know your work is in demand.
As far as the people who say this stone is too this or too that. You could bring out a tray of exactly what they are asking for and they will still say some thing is wrong with them. Whats really going on there is some sort of need for personal interaction. There are people who go to these events every chance they get, and do the this its too this or too that thing. Most other people just go to bars for some human contact.
The way Steve & I handle "custom" is doing it right at the fair. Now, I realize not everyone can work or demo at the Fair or have time, & thats' why there are always 2 of us! First of all, we cannot duplicate ANYTHING, & we tell that to the customer before we begin, but what we do (either one of us) is look at the ring they LIKE & we hold that ring aside while they shop or watch (if we have time to do it while they are there). We tell the customer that we will use the SAME gems, & crystals, ect.but with the colors of their choice, & the same amount of them & TRY and come as close as we can to the design & we will make 2 or 3 of them & when they come back, they can choose. So far everyone has come back at the show & picked one. One thing tho, it they pick REALLY UGLY color combos., I will get a down-payment 1/2 down & we will keep it if they come back & do not like it. That way, we are not completely OUT. That has only happened a few times! We will have a small agreement for them to sign as well. If they call AFTER the show they are out of luck as we have 600 rings+ and they are all too different, so we would not have ANY idea which they liked. Also, we have to size the ring to fit like a glove from all sides while we have their finger!!! Thats' the ONLY way we can do custom--is at the show.
*wonderful replies here.
Most people truly can't imagine what a piece will look like (and fit like) even though they THINK they can. As a former merchandiser (and artist/maker), I discovered that most people buy what's in front of them. Hence the fact that outfits on a mannequin sell out faster than other colors on the rack. We make more money selling our inventory than taking special orders unless we make it worth our while.
Since it takes MUCH more energy to create a custom piece (working with the client, finding the "right" materials to suit them, making changes after the fact...) setting higher prices for custom work and taking a 50% deposit (or more) may make it a "happier place" to be. It's tough when business is slow because some artists rush into an order and then come against challenging situations like you had (I've been there too).
I would create a custom order price sheet with the amount of money you want as a deposit (and when you want it) plus rules of sale; no returns, any changes cost $X, first change is free, last payment must be received by... and so forth. Have it ready for each customer who asks for a special order.
It's important to set your boundaries, what you'll accept in a sale and what you won't, then sticking to your decision (to the best of your ability).
That sounds like a great idea, Andrea. I think I'll do that before my first ever show next month...someone's bound to say can you make this in another color or a smaller size? I'll feel better about doing that, knowing I have these rules/boundaries in place. Thanks...
Your work is stunning Tina so you'll have plenty of people in your booth! I'm thrilled you're going to make up your custom rules, especially as people are beginning to purchase their Fall/Winter styles, they may have a color in mind that you didn't get around to creating. It's better to be prepared and not use it then need it and not have it! Good luck with the show!
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