Business plans?

steelshaper

steelshaper

Joined
Jun 14, 2007
Messages
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I would like to discus, if we could, business plans for the knife maker. I will start out with some of my thoughts.

Of course there are all kinds of do's and don’ts such as raising prices too soon, failing to meet deadlines, shotty work, and the like.

I guess though what I am thinking about is more along the lines of what would make a collector take a new make seriously? What sort of things makes a maker stand out as being the real deal?

I would think that to start with being an active member in some of the clubs and organizations is one way. Another may be having a well defined style. Being on the forefront of some large trend would help I guess.

I could be wrong but it seems like there are makers out there that do fantastic work but never get the limelight for one reason or another.

Sorry if this has been talked to death. Often this topic is a side note to other topics but I do not think I have seen this on its own. Of course I could be wrong.

Thanks for your time.
 
The things that get me noticing new makers is what I see as good solid designs, made well. When I see that I tend to follow that maker's work to see if it improves and at what pace. A new maker that puts a huge amount of effort in making the best knife possible will quite often get me to invest in a knife. Of course they have to make knives of the type I am interested in.
 
Thank you Keith. Do you have any general guidelines as to what you consider a healthy growth rate? Also do you have any way of keeping track of makers you may be interested in besides the ol grey matter?
 
I believe everything already mentioned to be true. Limelight? The limelight for me is making the very best knife I can make. I make knives cause I can't help it. The internet is the biggest reason that I'm a full time maker today, though I also believe its not the whole answer. I still sell a fair amount of knives locally (in state) some even at the few small gun shows I do. Its been said many times before advertise any way you can. Prior to cyberspace all we had was shows and purveyors and collectors. I was once told by an old boss that I had don't ever put more than 15% of your time in one customer and find it to be true in any buisness.
Ken.
 
steelshaper said:
I guess though what I am thinking about is more along the lines of what would make a collector take a new make seriously? What sort of things makes a maker stand out as being the real deal?

I would think that to start with being an active member in some of the clubs and organizations is one way. Another may be having a well defined style. Being on the forefront of some large trend would help I guess.

I could be wrong but it seems like there are makers out there that do fantastic work but never get the limelight for one reason or another.
Click to expand...

It depends on the collector.

THIS collector starts off with the position that amazing talent is expected. There are literally close to a thousand hand made knifemakers out there that can and do build superb work. If your work is building up to be superb, but not there yet, pricing is very important.....YES you are expected to take the hit, and lose money on these "not quite there yet" pieces....this makes some makers very angry and makes them lose interest in selling knives....Better now than later, IMO.

As an example, initial reports from Blade indicate that makers who have a long-time record of fair value and exceptional work are doing well, but long time makers ONLY offering exceptional work are not moving knives....This is unprecedented in the 10 years that I have been attending Blade.

So you make a great knife, and want to get ahead? The internet is making it so much easier, really! Get a website set up, a good one, for starters...yours is OK...see this example, which is done by the maker, including photos:

http://www.burtfoster.com/

Burt is a maker who's business sense and execution is only rivaled by his awesome knife making.

Make posts on the Forums of your choices, BladeForums is certainly a good place to start, work with as many collectors and makers as you can...learn to MARKET yourself.

Many makers fail to get the limelight because:

1. The work is NOT good "enough"
2. The price is wrong, usually too high
3. The maker fails to implement standard business practices
4. The maker does not have professional photographs taken, has no articles written about them, does no shows, and they have less than dynamic personalities.

Knives are a product, you are selling them, in order to be successful, it requires that you do it it all.

Let's look at a recent case study, Kyle Royer, "The One";):

1. The work is amazing, his steel is so good it blows many, many seasoned veterans away.
2. The perception of the price is that it is high, but apparently, Mr. Royer prices for all collectors, all you have to do is ask.
3. The maker)from what I have been told) is an excellent communicator, works on knives consistently, and is a producer. He is talking a long-haul approach.
4. He gets good photographs taken, has a knife featured on this year's Blade Show directory, is at Blade right now, having just passed his ABS JS test, and everyone loves him.

Probably has a good chance of being taken seriously, and succeeding.:D

(Till he gets GIRL all over him, anyway:eek:)

Hope this helps.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
now that, ^, was a great post.
Serious question, serious answer. Pearls of wisdom.
 
steelshaper said:
Thank you Keith. Do you have any general guidelines as to what you consider a healthy growth rate? Also do you have any way of keeping track of makers you may be interested in besides the ol grey matter?
Click to expand...

I keep a list. That way I can check on a regular basis.

Steven's post gives a lot of great info. Kyle is an excellent example of how to be successful. He has amazing talent, and he has an innate ability in promoting himself. He works tremendously hard at keeping himself and his knives front and center in the places where the right people are going see him/them.
 
Thanks STeven that was a very helpfull post.

To be clear I am just a little guy and I know it. I am simply trying to learn more about the way collectors see this stuff.

Thanks again
 
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