Jymberry my mother had a bag like the one Ivory described, except that hers folded up into a leather wallet. If you wanted to investigate that you might want to consider doing it from the bottom of the bag. You say your bags are 4" wide and I think you mean there is a gusset of 4". If that is the case you could sew a little pouch onto the bottom of the bag out of site and then fold the bag into itself. You don't even need a bag exactly. You could take a piece of material or flap and put some velcro along it (on the bottom) and as long as the bag could be folded up over itself and then kind of wrapped with the flap covering and holding it in place you would still get the same effect...........I think.......not sure if I am describing it very well. I think you will need to experiment a little. Although the nylon bag is an excellent idea, until you know if the idea would work you can just use matching fabric.
Daily Kitten Chat Forum » General Chat
Promoting?
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You might want to do some research online to see what your competition is like. Reusable grocery bags are gaining in popularity, but I notice that many stores are selling them for a few dollars a piece with their store logo printed on them. They can afford to sell them at a loss in order to gain advertising and draw the environmentally concerned customer. There are quite a few companies online that sell them. For example: http://www.reusablebags.com/store/envirosax-flora-pouch-reusable-shopping-bags-p-1078.html?osCsid=b0465402464b15d9ca7965e416510be7
In pricing your bags, you need to figure out what the materials cost and how much time it takes you to make each one. What is a reasonable amount of money to pay yourself per hour? How much do you want to profit per bag? What does it cost you in time and postage to send a bag to a customer? What does it cost to maintain your website? Costing this out will tell you what you need to charge for this to be worth doing.
You might be able to figure out a niche and market to that niche. That's where your online research can help. How about birthday bags for children that a parent can fill with presents and the child can use after the party is over to store toys? There are lots of cute fabrics that children would love. Maybe a bag made of kitten or dog printed fabric that can be used to store doggie treats or toys? Personalized pet Christmas stockings? (Lady Valkerie has been looking for one for her Max Max.)
Do you buy fabric on sale as much as possible? I shop at JoAnn's Fabric store. They often have coupons for 40% off of one regularly priced item. One length of fabric equals one item. If you bought several yards of one moderately priced fabric, you'd save plenty. Also, look in thrift stores or yard sales for fabric. Lots of people clear out their fabric stash or unfinished sewing projects by giving them to Good Will. That will help keep your cost down.
Posted 3 years ago by Kitten Whisperer #
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Heheheh KW! Got My stocking in the making! Renee has offer to make me one! Heheheheh!
Posted 3 years ago by Momma to 2 MaineCoons #
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I'm sure it will be cute, Ange!
Posted 3 years ago by Kitten Whisperer #
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I know it will be! Renee has many ideas in mind and I am so curious to see how it comes out!
Posted 3 years ago by Momma to 2 MaineCoons #
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Yeah I've figured out the cost. The grocery bags don't take too much time, which is why they aren't priced very high. But the large tote bags can take upwards of 3-4 hours so they're priced at about $10 an hour. It costs about $10 to ship, hence the shipping price. I've thought this part through.
RIght now I'm just using whatever fabrics I have in my collection. I don't have the cash to go out and invest in cute fabrics, but I will once the bank account starts to see more action. I'm just trying to promote what I have available right now.
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smart idea JB, use what you have is much better then spending money on something that might be at home for a while until bought which means no quick turnaround!
Posted 3 years ago by Momma to 2 MaineCoons #
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Hehhehe How was work today?
Posted 3 years ago by Momma to 2 MaineCoons #
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I just had another idea but I am not sure if it would be feasible for you. At local hospitals here they give away welcome baskets to new mothers when they have their baby. Is it possible for you to find out if you can include some kind of a coupon or flyer for "baby bags"? It wouldn't cost you much to print out and maybe you could give a small gift with one like a separate bottle bag or something small.
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I'm not totally following that, but it sounds cool I think. Coupons for welcome baskets? Or do you mean, print up a coupon for my bags to include in the welcome baskets? I don't know if how that would work.. Don't know who I'd talk to in order to arrange something like that. It is a nice idea tho.
And work was good LV. It was pretty slow so we hung out for a little while
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Glad to here work is going well!
Posted 3 years ago by Momma to 2 MaineCoons #
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There must be someone at the hospital who does hospital p.r. that kind of thing. I think that's who you would need to talk to. My thought was since the hospital gives welcome baskets usually with free samples like baby powder, diapers, diaper cream you couldn't include one of your bags because that would be impractical. However it is really a great way to network and advertise your product. Give them a name which is only associated with new mothers and include a coupon for 20% off or something like that to be used if they buy one of your bags. Maybe you could even have a ballot for them to fill out and have a draw for a free bag. That wouldn't be very practical for the hospital but it is a great way to get names, addresses and emails to send adverting/promotions or develop a mailing list. We have a lot of fall fairs starting up right about now. See if you can find any fairs where you can put up a small desk, have some on display and give out coupons. For that matter you might want to sell them at a fair. I think they would do really well because the price point is good. The most popular priced purchase at consumer shows and fairs is $25.00 so you are certainly on the spot with your prices. Most people have that amount of cash on them so they don't have to even consider credit cards and its just an easy, price point to deal with.
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Jymberry if you haven't done it before there are a couple of things you need to be aware of. Have you been to this particular fair before? Do you know what their expected attendance is? When you have that information then you decide whether it is worth the money you need to pay to rent a table. If you want to vend there but too expensive look for someone who might share a table with you because I don't think you need too much space for your product. When you decide all that, find out where your table will be located and don't be close to a washroom.
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Good advice! I've never been to the craft fair, but it said it's going to start being a monthly affair starting this December. It's $75 for the table fee, which is a lot better than some of the other table fees I've seen for other fairs. I might be able to get a friend of mine to go as well. She makes jewelry.
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That would be perfect if you had your friend. The jewellery won't compete with your bags and neither of you take up too much space. Its always better to work with someone because if you are on your own it means you have to leave your stuff just to go to the washroom or get something to eat. $75.00 seems like a lot to me but I am not familiar with your area or the traffic that will be there. If they were there last year see if they have something online that shows who the vendors were. Then get in touch with a couple to see what their reactions were. They will tell you whether it is worth the money or not. One way of telling is if they are going back this year. Is this fee for one day or a weekend? If its for a weekend and includes a table and chairs, its a good price come to think of it. If its for one day then you need be a little more aware of the pros and cons. If you have never done anything like this before, let me warn you ahead of time it is exhausting but if they are busy they sure are fun.
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I can definitely do that. It might cost just a little bit more, in case I have to order fabric. I shouldn't have to, they sound like common enough fabrics. I can give you a discount if you buy 2. When I get a chance, I'll poke around a fabric shop and see what kinds of fabric they have, and note the prices. I can try to take pictures of the fabrics I find, and see which ones you like most.
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Hi Jymberry,
I have a bag that is made from rip stop nylon and folds up on itself as Ivory Bill described. It has long handles and a zipper top. It is made by a french company called Longchamp. They are expensive to purchase. But they are great! I always try to remember to throw it in when I am traveling. In fact, that bag has saved me numerous times when I had more to bring back from a trip than I took. Good luck! BTW, I like a large tote bag, big enough to carry stuff but not too big to be too heavy with all my junk.....Posted 3 years ago by tinafishfrombirthplaceofElvis #
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jymberry, there is a website called ecobags that has a bag similar to what Ivory Bill is asking for. It might be worth looking at them to get ideas. www.ecobags.com Look at their chico bags.
Posted 3 years ago by KYKAT 12 23 #
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Jymberry, I was going to suggest maybe sewing their initals on the bags for MerD. I have also seen sew-in labels that have a space for putting your own name or whatever you wish to stitch or print. I have seen some labels that say, "made by" and "this belongs to" and is blank underneath. All you do is fill it in however you wish. Just a suggestion that you could check out.
Posted 3 years ago by Renee in Arkansas #
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