How much should I sell my jewelry for?
ByI have started my own jewelry making business, and I need to know how much to sell it for.
I already have figured out the price of each bead, but I need to know how much more to add for doing the actual work.
I’m usualy "working" for 30 minutes to an hour per necklace. 30 minutes per bracelet, and anklet, and 15 minutes for each of the earings I’m making.
Thank you 
Can anyone help?
Hello, I am a fine jewelry designer of 23 years, and I still remember my struggles at the beginning with pricing. Pricing is part art, part science. Price too low, and you will sell very quickly, but also spend so much time at the bench working that you won’t have time for a life! Price too high, and you’ll wonder where your next meal is coming from. Here is the approach that proved most successful for me.
(1) – Materials. Calculate your materials cost (sounds like you might have done that, when you wrote "have figured out the price of each bead").
(2) – Labor. Here things get a little trickier. Your labor value is related to how high your skill level is and how seasoned you are. Basically, a European-trained master jeweler with quite a bit of experience fetches about $50/hour (but they generally would be working on high-end pieces); a newbie is slow, so their labor value is more similar to what an apprentice would make, about $8/hour (because they’re "learning on the job").
(3) – Add up (1) and (2). You have now covered time and materials.
(4) – Art. This is both the artistic/aesthetic value of the piece AND the "art" of pricing. This is the factor you multiply (3) by. Since you are new at this, I would multiply by 2.
(5) – Market. Double-check your pricing against similar pieces already in the marketplace, noting that you would be better off staying on the lower side, since your work is untested. If it turns out you sell through too quickly, adjust upwards when you make your next collection of wares.
Best of luck and overall, enjoy yourself!
[alarajewelry.com to learn about me]
4 Comments
September 14th, 2009 at 1:12 am
You should look round and find the price of similar jewellery. If you underprice a lot you won’t make much of a living. If you overprice you will have no market.
References :
September 14th, 2009 at 1:33 am
First off is the intrinsic value of the jewelry. Make sure you are charging at or above for the actual value of say, Gold in a Gold Ring. Otherwise, folks will buy your jewelry, melt it down, and resell it for its true base value.
Second is that jewelry is "art". And art’s value is in the eye of the beholder. And thus that depends on the type of clients you bring in the door and where you are located. If your business is in the "hood", chances are that charging a high price won’t be achieved. Verses locating in a posh affluent neighborhood. So you have to gauge your pricing based on your customer’s and your location.
References :
September 14th, 2009 at 2:04 am
Hello, I am a fine jewelry designer of 23 years, and I still remember my struggles at the beginning with pricing. Pricing is part art, part science. Price too low, and you will sell very quickly, but also spend so much time at the bench working that you won’t have time for a life! Price too high, and you’ll wonder where your next meal is coming from. Here is the approach that proved most successful for me.
(1) – Materials. Calculate your materials cost (sounds like you might have done that, when you wrote "have figured out the price of each bead").
(2) – Labor. Here things get a little trickier. Your labor value is related to how high your skill level is and how seasoned you are. Basically, a European-trained master jeweler with quite a bit of experience fetches about $50/hour (but they generally would be working on high-end pieces); a newbie is slow, so their labor value is more similar to what an apprentice would make, about $8/hour (because they’re "learning on the job").
(3) – Add up (1) and (2). You have now covered time and materials.
(4) – Art. This is both the artistic/aesthetic value of the piece AND the "art" of pricing. This is the factor you multiply (3) by. Since you are new at this, I would multiply by 2.
(5) – Market. Double-check your pricing against similar pieces already in the marketplace, noting that you would be better off staying on the lower side, since your work is untested. If it turns out you sell through too quickly, adjust upwards when you make your next collection of wares.
Best of luck and overall, enjoy yourself!
[alarajewelry.com to learn about me]
References :
September 14th, 2009 at 2:34 am
these are all pretty good answers. don’t underprice your stuff, or people won’t take you seriously. handmade jewelry is better quality and more unique than store bought stuff. if you can buy a similar piece at Target for the same price, you need to raise your price. it’s not only jewelry, it’s an art, and a craft too.
References :