The Times, They are a' Changing...
...To quote a famous
song from my
childhood. If it's any comfort (and I doubt that it is...) all of
you folks have been telling me for years that my work was under-priced
were right. I have kept prices down for years now (over the
protests of my wife) insisting that I wished to keep my swords
'affordable.' Well, I hope that they will still be affordable but
they are going to cost more. Many of them a lot more. In the spirit of 'ripping
the band-aid off fast' I won't keep you in suspense. Prices will
be going up 50-80% for most
knives and swords. Note that this does NOT apply to currrent
orders or reasonably recent quotes. Even if it's as informal as
"If'n ya build it I'll buy it!"
So- how did this happen? In a nutshell Linda started her own
business. In the course of writing her business plan, projected
earnings statements etc. we got to thinking about my business, the need
to have a separate business account, the ever-increasing expense of
supplies and processes etc. "When we start the new business
account how do we seperate out what money goes where?" I dug up and
revamped my old worksheet for pricing that I haven't used for years and
filled it out for a sword sold recently and the results were
staggering. The sword in question sold for $750. Priced out
correctly with all of the expenses accounted for it should have cost
$1260. At $750 I didn't quite make the real cost of the
sword. I did the same for several other styles of blade that I
routinely produce with equally shocking results. No wonder it's
so bloody hard to keep up with the bills.
It has been a source of some wonder to Linda and I that even though I
pay myself a decent hourly wage (comparable to what a machinist with my
experience gets in the local market) we are pretty much always on the
edge of poverty. Way too often I can't afford supplies and have
to make-do. This results in inefficiency and doesn't help
quality. Things take longer to make and I never felt that it was
fair to pass that on to the customer as it isn't the customer's fault
that our cash-flow is messed up. It also results in delays when I
can't get raw materials in a timely fashion or can't pay for heat treat
for a week (or two) because a bill simply must be paid, something that we
can't live without breaks or whatever. Last year a lot of things
were late simply because I couldn't work as much or as well as usual
due to health issues. Too often this meant that when I could work
I had to scramble for every penny to make ends meet. If it hadn't
been for Linda's income we'd have been homeless.
Make no mistake, though- this is my fault. I should have been
increasing my prices continually for the last nine years and they have
gone up significantly- just not nearly enough. I actually reduced prices the other year- Big
Mistake. Another flaw in the pricing scheme was that it didn't
take taxes into account. If you've never been self-employed you
may not realize how much of a burden this is. In addition to
Income Tax I have to pay a self-employment tax, local taxes and FICA
myself. Count in supplies, expendables and business expenses
(including this web page) and half the price that you pay for a sword
is paid out; I never see it. At the rate that I can produce them
this means my real income has been uncomfortably similar to that of a
convenience-store clerk. Less actually if they work
full-time. It can't go on- the financial stress is literally
killing me.
Oddly it's still not wholly about the money. If I am going to
keep doing this prices have to reflect the realities of the
business. I started making knives and swords for a living because
it was the only way that I could afford to make knives and
swords. The way things have been going with the prices that I
have been charging I can't
afford to make knives and swords. Not if we want to have anything
approaching a reasonable standard of living- which I believe everyone
who is willing to work for it deserves.
I honestly don't know if the business can survive this price increase
or not but it for damn sure won't without it. I know that this
isn't going to make anyone happy but it needs to happen. I've
said before that the sort of person that makes swords for a living is
generally not the sort of person that can run a business properly but I
have to get my business on a business-like footing or go out of
business. That means that prices must go up dramatically and I
don't like that any better than all of you. There are going to
have to be other changes too that I really
don't like.
For one thing it means that Folding knives are going to get cut from
the line-up. They aren't a big part of my business but they were
different and fun. However until and unless I can make them
hugely more efficiently they will simply cost more than the market will
bear. I'll still make the odd one or two on the side for my own
amusement but they will not be available to custom order. If and
when I start taking custom orders again. Using the work-sheet the
small 'eating knives' (parers and trencher-knives) would more than
double in price. I will continue to make and sell them at cost
just because people need them and I like making them. I won't be
able to make as many as I'll actually lose money selling them at a
price the market will bear so I'll only be able to make them when I can
afford to or need to for a specific event. On the other hand some
modern knives were 'priced to the market' and those prices won't go up
much. Also on the good side I'll be able to afford to maintain
the shop properly, buy parts when machines break and keep well supplied
so that I can handle special requests in a timely manner once I am
caught up. I'll also probably be able to afford to go to more
shows so I'll be able to meet more of you.
I hope that you all will continue to support me (in spirit if nothing
else!)
New Prices
I can't know exactly what things
are going to cost until I use the work-sheet as I go along
but
these estimates should be in the right neighborhood-
The price range encompasses variations in style and detail.
Swords-
Singlehand medieval swords will
average between $1200-$1500
Longswords, Greatswords and
bastardswords will average between $1300- $1650
Full-on 'Continental' two-handers
of the renaissance period will likely average around $2000-$2500
Daggers-
Sword-hilt Daggers are going to
take the biggest hit here- given that the hilt takes as long as a
sword's hilt they've been underpriced right the way along. These
daggers are generally going to run $500-$600.
Rondel Daggers and Baselards and going to average
between between $350-$450
Cinquedias will average
between $800-$1000
Stillettos will run around
$375-$450
Saex-
Hand-sax will average
$400-$450
Scramasax (short-sword sized)
will average $650-$750
Tactical Knives-
Most tactical knives will run
in the neighborhood of $450- these have been underpriced because the
leather sheath costs a lot more than for the medieval pieces. If
offerred without the sheath they would be closer to $300.
Tactical Swords-
Most Tactical
Swords will run $650-$850- the price on these hasn't gone up
much.
In conclusion I want to thank everyone that has bought my products and
offered support and encouragement all of these years, and wish
you all good fortune and hope that you can continue as my valued
customers and friends.