Maybe we need to define “little”?
A board a day … so 365 boards a year?
5 boards a month or 60 boards a year?
1 board every ten years?
Or a guy that does 1200 a year but is 5’6" or shorter?
I remember a business management course I did years ago…It was the universally accepted and statistically proven sytem sanctioned by all western governments. The economics was fine = written bookwork , keeping a proper ledger ,projected profit and loss ,balancing the budget etc etc…I was at loggerheads with the “sales and marketing” teacher from day 1…he stated uncompromisingly , that any manufacturer that didn’t allocate 25% of their budget to marketing , was doomed to failure…I questioned him , and he said it was a proven fact , that I shouldn’t question…he went on to explain to the class that the prime goal of a salesman , is the ability to sell their product to a targeted demographpic , regardless of whether they needed it , or wanted it…and a quarter of my annual budget , should be religiously allocated to doing so…With our governments continueing to churn out cloned robots to run business’s , it’s no wonder the system has become so sterile…consumers have become very conditioned to accept bullshit , and never question it…
SADLY TRUE!
I like that.
It reminds me of my English teacher in college harping on structure over creativity.
Luckily I was given a free pass w/o prerequisites to fast forward to English 47, “Creative Writing” without the need for structure being shoved up my ass the next semester in English 2.
Yes, structure can be akin to having a sound Business Plan, and blah, blah, blah… but as far as my earlier statements about the little guy surviving, it just comes down to the reality of where you want to fit in balanced with your needs.
Since happiness or the state thereof is transitory at best, success, like happiness… at least for me… is best achieved when I can strike the balance between satisfying my needs and fulfilling my desires.
Yin, Yang… and no, I don’t eat rice every day.
You would think that 25 % for marketing and sales is a lot. In reality it is the minimum. In the world of the small time shaper by the way small time has little to do with quality work.
Think of how much time you spend talking to your friends customers and others about boards shapes the merits of different fin sets and the like. All of that can be considered indirect marking. You put time and effort into learning your craft and your resume is also marketing. Going to shape off competitions, displaying your work at Board Room events, Allowing a friend to use one of your Boards for his classic Woody at a show is also Marketing. Giving a Bro deal to a really good local surfer is also marketing. 25% of your resources can be your time and or money and most of the time some of each.
Good points.
I consider logo expense on each board s advertising.
Any demos or boards or discounted, freebie boards to pro level guys as advertising.promotion.
This probably isn’t worth the ‘small’ guy even bothering with unless he is fully legit and reproting income, but it is good to know nonetheless if your business model is seeking volume.
Contemplate what you wish to achieve and set goals to realizing those golas.
Set the foundation for what you want to do, make the foundation strong, then build upon it.
A strong foundation will help you build higher w/o toppling over… think Giza Pyramid.
Think and grok “Maslow’s Hierarchy”.
Here is my suggestion to those of you looking to build your business. Get good at making grom boards. Sell every 12 and under grom you come into contact with a good grom board at cost or barely above cost. The talented groms under 14 I would even go a little below cost. You will have an instant following. I believe this would pay off in spades over the long haul. You can produce a good grom board for under $200. Pass it along. The kids and their parents will keep coming back.
“You can produce a good grom board for under $200. Pass it along. The kids and their parents will keep coming back.”
?$200?
If you want to survive do not do anything for cost.
The kids do not come back and the parents no longer buy boards for their kids as they get older.
I know very well how this works.
Keep your EGO in your pocket!
Do nothing for cost not even for the PRO’s!
Your planning on giving a board away at cost to a guy that makes 10 times what you do?
Never the less a GROM who hasn’t proven himself?
Have fun making boards!
Don’t do it thinking you will get rich from it!
Prospecting GROMS for you business plan is not good business.
Kind regards,
surfding
Sorry Mako They won’t be coming back. If they want cheap let them buy used or Some crap from China . You should present yourself as a professional with skills and knowledge that They the customer will be willing to pay for. When selling on the cheap you will get the reputation of producing cheap boards. Once those groms grow out of the grom board the will want a " real Board" and your logo in their teenage brain will associate your product as for groms only. Produce the best board you can Tell Mom and Pop That the real value of your board is that when little johnny grows out of it his little brother Billy will have a nice hand me down board. Now little Johnny can get his very own hand shaped that you and he can talk over. Give good advice and listen to what that kid wants.
Keep your prices competitive. with a little margin so when you drop the price for the " bro deal" you are not hurting the bottom line. Better yet the bro deal will be a free tee shirt and wax.
DEADSHAPER you are so inspiring!
The wax is so dirty on his board my logo is covered!
One of my old guys in my little business having fun.
Just glad to be a part of it!
Kind regards,
surfding
The Yater Business Advertising model; No team. No free-bees. No discounts. No boards donated to a variety of causes(the only one I know of was donated to Gaviota School) and a business card size ad in the back of Surfer Mag. Worked well for Rennie.
Well said kayu!
Kind regards,
surfding
…Surfding and Artz are right.
–Yater was ok due to the 60s…only a few doing the other type of business and the surf explosion was more with the surf-exploitation than the hyper hype of branding-kelly-pro tour that you see right now.
In my opinion not so much room in next future for us, little guys.
…don’t like the sound of that reverb…don’t agree either…the last 5 years has seen a big change in the way we advertise our stuff , and some people havn’t adjusted to that…In Oz , the retail sector has tapered right off . Small operators who concentrate on developing their direct sales seem to be doing OK , while those still cogged into the retail sector are struggling…even a small increase in direct sales , gives a steriod boost to yer cash-flow , and the bills get payed on time…there’s only one way to view the future…with measured optimism , and I think slowly but surely , the customers are returning to quality over cheap…
…well, I put a thread couple of weeks ago about the perception of the customers…that s the main problem that I see for the little guys. Most kids perceive that “best” boards come from other source (the machine-pro-tour-image-right-logo)
May be the “strugglers” are factories like BASE there or like that?
…I think the most important (but forgotten) aspect of this whole “industry” is the perception of the small surfboard manufacturer… there is a definate line drawn between those content to run a small efficient workshop , providing good quality and service , and those obsessed with striving for as much global market share as they can grab…two different animals…one happy and content , and the other insatiable and ever more hungry…(lol)
so very true. I’m not trying to rule the world just make a living doing what I love…
…I understand your point; however, there are some subtleties: me and most little guys do not intend to conquer the world but, many want to have very good surfers and with style, also local rippers and sometimes upcoming generations that wanted to ride their boards. I include me in this category. That is mainly, at least me, to take notes about different types of platforms and designs; combination of materials, etc…you know, better to have those boards under hot feet and keeping notes to enhance or discard (at least me) the current line up of designs you offer. Also, is good to keep your business afloat…I do not see how some unknown shaper can keep that if he only sells a few boards to a second class surf shop or to a few tourists or even to rookies only…and that s a real thing.
That s what I talked in the previous comment. And yes, I still believe that we are fucked in a future not so far from now. Hope I m wrong
…your attitude will always play a big part in shaping your future, Reverb , and no one can dictate your attitude , unless you allow them to do it…pessimism and negativity is your mortal enemy…
Well now, we never did agree on what “small” is… but suffice to say it may be in how we perceive ourselves or how customers or prospective customers view us?
As far as McDing’s perception of Yater, I look at Yater as small, not big. Rennie never rose to the occasion to lust after business like Dewey, or Don Hansen, or Greg Noll… Hobie, Gordon & Smith and some others, who were aggressively after market share for their companies while Rennie was out fishing for lobster.
Surfboards were never **** a make it or break it consideration for Yater. He had assets to begin with that gave him the freedom to do his surfboard company the way he wanted.
When he hinted at retirement some years ago, everyone freaked out and it was a panic to get maybe that last Yater board. I think that happening was a good thing, because it made people realize what we do as shapers and designers is, or at least can be… finite.
Sure, we see earlier designs being produced today by, er, other,… dead shapers, and perhaps I will join their ranks some day if any one design I conceive has enough merit and continued demand. But that being said, what we create, is largely who we are…
… “the journey IS THE ART, not the end result”
-Gary Busey’s comment on Donald Trump’s “The Celebrity Apprentice”
P.S.
****I agree with Ding and others: selling for less than cost is an incredibly wrong way to go. Rusty was once quoted as saying that the most destructive thing to the surfboard industry is the “bro deal”. He wasn’t talking about doing this with close friends, but the practice of undercutting each other to the point that no one could make a living at it.
s perception of Yater, I look at Yater as small, not big.
