Pricing - For those willing to share

[safetysue]

If you're willing to share - what are you charging for your products. I've read the threads (2 -3 x cost), looked at your websites and searched the web and I'm shocked at how cheap these items are listed for(ebay). Even at 2 x's cost I can't compete with what I've found online - and then my brain says "you get what you pay for"!

Container Candles

Type of Container_____

Type of wax _________

Net Wt._____

Price_____

6 Cavity Clamshells

Net Wt._____

Type of wax_____

Price_____

Thanking you in advance for sharing your information on this thread.

PS: I'm not charging anything, I'm not ready to sell because I'm still in the testing stage - but I'm having fun! So many waxes.....so many wicks.....and I've already accumulated too many fragrance oils (according to DH).

Edited January 9, 2010 by safetysue

[Stella1952]

Don't base your pricing on WalMart, the Dollar Store OR eBay! Base it on your cost X 2 or 3 (depending on your market). To reduce your costs, you must buy your supplies in quantity, not small amounts. You can't pay retail prices and expect to turn a profit! There's a big difference in buying FOs by the 1 oz. sampler and by the pound or pail! Same with wax. If you are buying a couple of pounds at a time rather than by the case or pallet, your costs are gonna be a lot higher than someone who purchases in quantity. This is where hobbyists part company with businesspeople who anticipate their materials needs and purchase in large quantities to reduce their costs. By the time you add labor, overhead, etc., a hobbyist isn't going to have enough profit margin to make their efforts worth quitting their day job. Most are lucky to even pay for their hobby.

If you are still testing, don't worry too much at this point about what others are charging - concentrate on manufacturing a product that is worthy of selling first, then worry about what to charge for it. Getting together a marketing & business plan is time well spent if selling is your ultimate goal.

PS Sorry I didn't answer your question, but my pricing structure wouldn't be useful without knowing my manufacturing costs and I'm not real willing to share a P&L statement online. You would be better served to check pricing in your area or wherever you intend to sell. Just because someone can get away with charging $15 bucks for a 4 oz. candle in one market doesn't mean that YOU would be able to do that at a local craft market, KWIM?

Edited January 9, 2010 by Stella1952

[LuminousBoutique]

Everything Stella said. I base my pricing off cost, then add what I think is reasonable for labor (not much since its just something I love doing) and then I do adjust for local market conditions but NOT based off big retailers.

Walmart can sell their candles for WAY less than I could ever do.. but my typical customer wouldnt go to walmart for a candle... so why worry. I base my adjustments on local gift shops which are right down the block from the farmers market, on etsy, and on feedback from my customers. Repeat customers, to me, mean something is going right. And if someone asks why "its so expensive (ha)" I simply explain to them that I am not a factory, I cant pump out 4,000 candles an hour, and I am soley responsible for all costs.. but that with me they can put a face to a product and know they are getting a good quality product that I will stand behind.

I buy everything in bulk. Jars, Containers, Packaging, Labels, FO's, Wicks, Wax.. 50lbs or more at a time. But I am also past the testing stage with the two varieties of candle I sell.. so I know what will work and I can afford to buy in bulk knowing none of it will go to waste. When you are testing.. you generally cant afford to buy 50 lbs of wax only to find that wax doesnt work for you. There was no real way for me to figure out pricing until at least a year into selling, because everything needs to be tweaked, and sometimes you find your supplies for even cheaper later on or from a new supplier. I can only make so many candles... Soap is the main part of my business, always has been... that takes some of my time, but I'm also a mom of two toddlers.. so I explain that to them as well. I cant make more than 40 candles a day and thats at FULL capacity. Someday with more space I could do better im sure.. but for now, thats it. I can tell you there is no way I could make a living off of this, even on days I make $800 in sales.. once you take out supplies, booth cost, and money spent on travel and so on... you are lucky to break even or make a spare couple hundred to invest back into some new supplies. Luckily my husband makes a good living for the family and my business is only funding itself.

Its the same for soap, too. I know how much an ounce all my oils cost me so I can add it all up and say.. ok there are 42 oz of oils in this batch of soap and they cost me x, plus 4oz of FO which cost me x... then x 2 or 3 depending on the bar. Soap I am less flexable on, I know I make a superior product to some others in my area, and I wont lower my price to match theirs. If a customer asks why, I simply explain that my oils cost more, so I have to charge a bit more. If they cant accept that, I give them a sample of mine.. and they can go buy the canola only bar (seriously. theres a guy who sells CANOLA ONLY soap.) of soap and then come back to me next week, KWIM? I'm ok with not making a sale once, because I know next time they will come to me. It can be the same with candles.

I use soy. GB 464, which took alot of testing to get right but I'm very happy with now.

my Masons are 8oz, they go for 12.00 at the market, 10.00 on my website (I have some up for 8.50 because they are clearance, I need to get them gone to make room for new scents and I may stop selling them online altogether due to shipping costs). I have a store that carries them who sells them for 15.00 pretty successfully.

the line I make for the upscale boutique that they private label is an 8oz tumbler that only holds 7oz wax, they sell them for $28.00. I make a decent amount off of those candles, but they don’t sell hundreds of them, just a steady stream. I'd prefer not to share what I wholesale those for.

[Stella1952]

8oz tumbler that only holds 7oz wax, they sell them for $28.00

JEEZE LOUIZE!!! That's $4 an OUNCE!!! *faint* Guess I'm pretty outta step with the jet set!!! :lipsrseal :tiptoe:

[LuminousBoutique]

JEEZE LOUIZE!!! That's $4 an OUNCE!!! *faint* Guess I'm pretty outta step with the jet set!!! :lipsrseal :tiptoe:

I know.. I still marvel at it. But... its Utah. This place is ALL about appearances and keeping up with the Jones. People here dont blink twice at spending mass amounts of money for something just because its "hot" or popular (like those horrible "Juicy" track suits. Seriously what is up with that?). So I guess they based that price on what soy candles sell for at Macy's/Nordstroms and so on. Good for me, bad for local economy... more bankruptcies and foreclosures every day and yet no slow down in retail sales... ridiculous!! I wish I could get that much on my own.

[kandlenutz]

Hi! I dont mind sharing at all! Let me start by saying I do this as a hobby and to keep myself and family and friends stocked w/ great smelling candles. However, I do buy in larger bulk, like the 5lb. jugs of FO, and atleast 2 boxes of wax, If i could find a supplier closer (pick up), I would buy more! I dont mind not making money really, I just dont want to lose money. However, for being a hobby, it has sure picked up lots, and feels like a business, and in the future we may lean towards that more, but not at this time.

8 oz jelly jars (6 oz fill)

gb444, also used 464, like them both

I sell them for $6 each or 4/$20.

* I havent had any complaints w/ any of my prices.

As for tarts, I pkg in bakery bags and weigh them all out at approx 5 oz per bag. Some may be 4.9 and some may be 5.1 or 5.2, just depends what molds i use. Sometimes if i have extra left and I dont want the remaining tarts then I even throw them in as extra, just depends what the scent is! I sell my bakery bags for $3 per bag. I am told all the time that my tarts are much better than the big name brands that you see selling in the mall.

Well, hope this helps you. I am still very new to this all, but if you have any questions, I will be glad to help! oh, FYI, I was making mine all on the stove top (double boiler type system) and the presto pot is SOOOO much better! Wish I would have discovered that months ago!

[Candybee]

Stella and Luminousboutique offered you some good advice. By the time you are done testing and purchasing supplies for your product you will have a much better idea of what your time and costs to make them are.

Then you need to do some market research in your selling area. How much are they selling for in your area? What is a competive price? Can you make a profit at that selling price?

My prices have everything to do with how much my finished product cost me to make and what my market will pay for it. Some items I can charge 4 times my material costs while others will only sell for 2-3 times. And what sells at X price in my town will have nothing to do with your situation and what your market will pay.

Another factor is your branding. If you are unknown you have to work at getting your name out there and that takes time to develop a customer base.

Hope that makes sense.

For now I am selling my 4 oz parasoy jar candles at $4; 8 oz jelly jars $7; and $16 oz at $10-12. I found I had to drop my prices during the recession and offer smaller candle choices. Once I did that my sales picked up.

I don't sell clamshells because they don't sell in my area. The 1 oz fluted tarts sell faster than I can make them. I prefer to sell them unpackaged in baskets at .50 cents each. I let the customers bag their own. Whether you sell the tarts or the clamshells you should have some good tart warmers to sell alongside them.

[lsbennis]

Alot of it will be your market, like everyone has said, it depends on what you can sell for in your area. I can get away with a little higher pricing because alot of my sales are tourist who have a few extra bucks to spend and my local biz tends to be higher end but there is still a limit as to what they will spend. Check around your neigborhood and see what candles are selling for.

[Candybee]

Alot of it will be your market, like everyone has said, it depends on what you can sell for in your area. I can get away with a little higher pricing because alot of my sales are tourist who have a few extra bucks to spend and my local biz tends to be higher end but there is still a limit as to what they will spend. Check around your neigborhood and see what candles are selling for.

You make a good point. I started out selling a higher end product but couldn't sell those candles out here in the country/mountain area. When I switched to a county look; jelly jars, mason jars, etc. then they started to sell. I am in a tourist area too but folks come out from DC and the metro area to get relaxed and have a piece of the country feel when they visit. They WANT that country look and scents to match. So you also have to know what style sells in your area as well.

[lsbennis]

@Candybee...that is so true, its a good idea to tap into your local market. I have several candles...( Hot Havanah Nights, Tre Leches and South Beach)..which do well here but I can't imagine them selling all that well in other parts of the country.

[Candybee]

Exactly. I have trouble with complex or sophisticated scents. They want kitchen spices, country apples, pumpkins, & berries, cornbread or banana nut bread and oatmeal raison cookies type scents. Then theres honeysuckle, lilacs or lavender or jasmine.

I try to slip in some blends but alot of them if they aren't found in the country don't sell real well.

[NaturallyTru]

I don't focus on the country scents (and containers) here that all the other candle makers here use. I do have some country scents to round our my offerings; but I try to fill the niche that no one else is filling. Works for me. Even has gotten wholesale accounts in gift shops. I notice sophisticated names intrigue people and they just have to grab to smell. They usually love them and buy them. This is just my experience in my area.

Trudi