KSF Moving Again

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Pricing on Bark River knives seem to be somewhat controlled based on cruising the various interweb store sites. I don't blame Derrick for moving or working toward moving. My guess is that this move is purely a business decision. The move certainly suggests to me that local retail (store front) sales are not enough to support a knife business. I would not choose upper MI personally, but it is nice country and has a lot to offer if you like smaller cities and winter.

As far as the minimum wage goes, in small business you do the best you can. Certainly paying someone a couple more bucks an hour is not going to tilt the scale immediately. There has to be other reasons and they are primarily Bark River. In business, you go where you're most welcome and reality fits your business model. Many don't have the practical option of moving.
 
I can tell you one thing, I get things much faster from the eastern and mid west states via USPS than I ever did from Oregon at least first class and about one day quicker Priority.
 
His employees should be very happy with the decrease in the cost of living. Hopefully that offsets their disdain for UP winters. :) The big move is less than a month away, best of luck getting everything here safe and sound Derrick. I'm sure moving all of the inventory is a huge undertaking.
 
Kudos KSF. Oregon ranks only behind New Jersey as a totalitarian police state. Michigan's U.P. is gorgeous-good for you.
 
JohnWE said:
M

And yet, the state has been seeing record growth in their economy for the last 5 years running and the population is increasing. Unemployment, even with those minimum wage increases is below the national average. Strange...
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40th best in employment/9th worst in unemployment. Now raise the minimum wage.
 
I am a big fan of Derrick and his KSF crew so i hope this move is a wise decision. However it did upset me to read Derrick's post(or video ?) that one of the main reasons is that Oregon will be increasing the minimum wage. I would have thought that this change would have no effect on his business, that his employees are already earning more than the new minimum.
A business is only as good as the people it employs. I have had frequent interactions with KSF, mainly with "Tyler", and the help and service i have received is simply the best ever.
I hope Derrick's employees are rewarded commensurate with the superb job that they do. This might entail less profit for the owner or a few dollars added to the price of every knife, or both. KSF employees deserve more than any minimum wage.
kj
 
I'm a KSF employee who is moving with Derrick and applaud Derrick for making this business decision.

That being said, I'm looking forward to getting out of Oregon. Current cost of living makes it impossible for middle-class wage earners. I make a very competitive salary with a lot of benefits not offered by other small businesses, so I can guarantee that Derrick isn't making this decision because he doesn't want to pay his employees. Furthermore, moving to Michigan will increase my buying power due to the lower cost of living.
 
Somber, thank you so much for posting that, I was hoping one of you would show up here to set things straight. Derrick and KSF has always been a class act in my dealings with him, and I'm sure will continue to be whether he's in Portland or Eskanaba.
 
kootenay joe said:
I am a big fan of Derrick and his KSF crew so i hope this move is a wise decision. However it did upset me to read Derrick's post(or video ?) that one of the main reasons is that Oregon will be increasing the minimum wage. I would have thought that this change would have no effect on his business, that his employees are already earning more than the new minimum.
A business is only as good as the people it employs. I have had frequent interactions with KSF, mainly with "Tyler", and the help and service i have received is simply the best ever.
I hope Derrick's employees are rewarded commensurate with the superb job that they do. This might entail less profit for the owner or a few dollars added to the price of every knife, or both. KSF employees deserve more than any minimum wage.
kj
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That's not at all how it works. Raising minimum wage affects those who already make above the minimum.
somber said:
I'm a KSF employee who is moving with Derrick and applaud Derrick for making this business decision.

That being said, I'm looking forward to getting out of Oregon. Current cost of living makes it impossible for middle-class wage earners. I make a very competitive salary with a lot of benefits not offered by other small businesses, so I can guarantee that Derrick isn't making this decision because he doesn't want to pay his employees. Furthermore, moving to Michigan will increase my buying power due to the lower cost of living.
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Well said, and best of luck with the move.
 
arbiter said:
Kudos KSF. Oregon ranks only behind New Jersey as a totalitarian police state. Michigan's U.P. is gorgeous-good for you.
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Referring to New Jersey as a totalitarian police state is a completely unnecessary and political comment that doesn't belong in this discussion.
 
For me the move is good news bad news. The bad news is that I will have to pay sales tax on KSF orders. The good news, they will be only about an hours drive from where I live. I can't wait actually.
 
I think Michigan has a fairly good business climate. Yeah, I saw the ad on TV. :D And I stay at the Holiday Inn Express.

The minimum wage impacts people who make more than the minimum or the new minimum. That is the problem with a minimum wage. I believe in paying people what they are worth to me.

I hope that the employees that make the move are really happy. People in colder climates are healthier.

Since I don't follow knife prices really carefully except when I am ready to buy, I really have no idea if the "sale" prices are good, better, or best.

Eric and Jason (DLT), I just realized you all are going to be essentially neighbors. Interesting.
 
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Pretty much. We are located just across the border into Wisconsin, about an hour south of Derrick and Bark River.
 
I have always had good dealing with Derrick and KSF and wish them the best with the move. Moves aren't fun and can be costly but at least he can ship the knives to his new Knives Ship Free address for free, right? :rolleyes:
 
Quote: "Raising minimum wage affects those who already make above the minimum."
Will you briefly explain this for me please.
I have never worked for an hourly wage nor been the owner of a business so i don't understand how it affects those earning above the new minimum.
thanks, kj
 
It's simple..... it is demoralizing to existing employees if they know. Just like an older worker with years of experience learns that the new guys are making nearly as much as him and yet he is training them....

If you make $8.50/hr and increase the minimum wage to $10.00, the folks that have been making $10 want $11.50 or a $1.50 raise. The same thing happens with unions. Their wages often are linked to the minimum wage and if it goes up, their pay scales go up even if they are making more.
 
kootenay joe said:
Quote: "Raising minimum wage affects those who already make above the minimum."
Will you briefly explain this for me please.
I have never worked for an hourly wage nor been the owner of a business so i don't understand how it affects those earning above the new minimum.
thanks, kj
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Wage is how much your work is worth, simple as that. If you were making $10 for job A and someone else was making $5 for job B, then the minimum wage is set at $8, that raises the (artificial) worth of job B. Shouldn't it also raise the worth of job A? The answer is no, but only because job B isn't really worth $8. However, just like has been said above, companies can't leave more skilled/experienced workers feeling undervalued. If anyone is interested enough in this, I could suggest books.

Edit: As an addendum, one issue that often comes up is "but people are worth more than $7.50 an hour". I agree, they are, as people are as a whole extremely logical resourceful and hard working. But that doesn't mean the work they are doing is worth more (or equal to) $7.50 an hour. Some jobs just don't produce enough added value to be worth a "living wage" or a minimum wage of $15/hr. I know one of my current jobs certainly doesn't seem worth $15/hr.
 
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Thanks for the explanation of some of the effects of raising a minimum wage. I learn all sorts of things here on BF, which is a big part of what makes BF such an enjoyable community to be part of.
kj
 
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