Help with how to market my type of bussiness.

9 replies
Hi all

I read through this forum alot in my spare time as I find it very interesting to learn the diffrent topics posted on here. although iv never had the gutts to try any out.

By day im a fabriactor working on a shipyard and to be honest im tired of it. im in the process of starting my own steel home furniture bussiness. im currently having the website designs and have afew products I have made ready to go up.

I know the days of simply printing out some flyers and putting them in your local shop are over. and I read some pretty interesting ways to market on here.

so I was just reaching out to see if I could get some advice on the best ways I could market a bussiness like this?

thanks
#bussiness #market #type
  • Profile picture of the author jimbo13
    Can you do sculptural type things rather than functional type things?

    Interior designers sell an entire look to their clients which most of the time is 'Emperor's New Clothes' if you know the story.

    So everything from the wallpaper to the inside and outside furniture is overseen by the designer.

    Potter around some country estates if you have any - or fly to England and have a look in the gardens.

    I guarantee you could make the things you will see and they go for tens of thousands.

    Russian wants house in England. Money no object. They get designer to take care of everything. They just want to walk in and everything be there for them.

    Designer sources things and does massive mark up.

    So find some designers and show them what you can make. Like a steel Rhino or Giraffe that is 'edgy' whatever that is supposed to mean.

    Make sense? Time involved is the same as making a table and chairs. Raw materials are the same. But your Rhino cannot be compared in the way a table and chair set can.

    One other thing. Wealthy people like iron gates at the bottom of their drives. Ornate one offs.

    Can you make them? More than likely.

    Dan
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    • Profile picture of the author jamie205365
      Originally Posted by jimbo13 View Post

      Can you do sculptural type things rather than functional type things?

      Interior designers sell an entire look to their clients which most of the time is 'Emperor's New Clothes' if you know the story.

      So everything from the wallpaper to the inside and outside furniture is overseen by the designer.

      Potter around some country estates if you have any - or fly to England and have a look in the gardens.

      I guarantee you could make the things you will see and they go for tens of thousands.

      Russian wants house in England. Money no object. They get designer to take care of everything. They just want to walk in and everything be there for them.

      Designer sources things and does massive mark up.

      So find some designers and show them what you can make. Like a steel Rhino or Giraffe that is 'edgy' whatever that is supposed to mean.

      Make sense? Time involved is the same as making a table and chairs. Raw materials are the same. But your Rhino cannot be compared in the way a table and chair set can.

      One other thing. Wealthy people like iron gates at the bottom of their drives. Ornate one offs.

      Can you make them? More than likely.

      Dan
      Thanks for the reply mate


      yes iv looked into things like sculptures. I was in australia and went to a sort of art convention on the beach. I seen steel sculpture s that had been made by designs and they had huge price tags on them. like 1000s. Being in the trade im in I knew they were making huge profit.
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      • Profile picture of the author jamie205365
        how would I market the things I make well enough to sell them for a price like that though? I know its some what possible.

        cheers
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        • Profile picture of the author jimbo13
          Rough guesses coming up.

          Go to some of these outdoor art exhibition days and ask to exhibit some pieces. Place near me has art from various artists scattered around the barns and grounds once a year with prices hanging off of them. One piece was just a piece of driftwood painted bright red and on sale for well north of £1000 yet the same driftwood sanded down and left as itself would be £20 tops. Amazing what a pot of £10 paint will do when the thing is displayed in a country estate garden for a well heeled clientele.

          When someone wants one they pay and a sticker is put on the item (commissioned pieces so more than one sticker can be placed on the same item)

          Do you have any places like that? Costs you nothing to display as the place takes a cut of the sale.

          Garden Centres are massive partnership brokers these days due to an aging population. Walk into one and you see coffee shops, conservatory companies, clothing lines, knick knacks all being sold by concessions within the centre or the grounds.

          Don't know if you are in England but nearly all garden centres near me have Maidenhead Aquatics fish pet shop in them. That is what I mean.

          It makes more people visit the garden centres so benefits all round. See if you can have a space set aside with a sculpture or garden type thing in it.

          High End Estate Agents. UK commission is roughly 1.5% on a sale. So in Surrey, London, Sandbanks it stacks up to tens of thousands of pounds. (You might not be in England but similar places will be wherever you are) Instead of Agent getting commission negotiated down they could keep it and toss in one of your installations, gazebos, gates.

          This is maybe some of the things i would do.

          Here is a company in England that make things from iron. I quite like the way they write about things to.

          Garden Animal Sculptures : Black Country Metalworks Ltd


          Dan
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  • Profile picture of the author Amanda Murdoch
    Hi,
    your business sounds very interesting ...

    who is your market?

    arty farty types
    trendy art sculpture furniture
    students etc

    Then go to a similar businesses with an exact target market

    and do launch exhibitions / Get them to feature you in their businesses

    Aim for plenty of press coverage - magazines in your niche - don't be afraid to go national

    enter
    interior design competitions
    recycling / innovative recycling of materials etc competitions

    There is so much going on in this market at the moment in terms of recycling and making use of such materials you are using

    Aim for big coverage right from the outset - then you cut a lot of hard work out of your marketing

    Even as far as getting a celebrity pictured on one of your pieces

    Good luck post a pic of one of your pieces ... would be nice for us all to see

    Amanda
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  • Profile picture of the author Skystar
    Jimbo has the right idea - decorative sculptures instead of utility pieces. Something like schools of fish etc. A good one might be a metal car with real wheels and tires, rivets, etc. for 'man-caves.' I saw one on American Pickers last night - very interesting and the seller evaluated it at $5k. Do Google images and type in 'metal art' or some such.
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  • Profile picture of the author RobLowe
    Hi Jamie,

    I don't know what types of furniture you're making, but there's a LOT you can do using social media. Pinterest is great to both show YOUR interests (what inspired you to break away), and then post images of your furniture. It's nice because it's easy, and there's no pressure to do anything other than share. Once you have a following, you can make your products available AND ask them for help.

    LinkedIn is also great for finding similar interests. I started an account for a new project, and literally had 2 people within an hour who showed up for my webinar. Very effective once you connect.

    Good luck, I hope that helps!
    Rob
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    • Profile picture of the author nostahl
      Remember Earth without ART is EH -

      I skimmed through the posts and I don't believe I seen anyone mention Etsy , this has been a source for Designers to find pieces for their work.

      There is also another website - the name escapes me right now but they link makers with buyers. You post your portfolio and people contact you for custom jobs or something like you posted.
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  • Profile picture of the author marlonbran
    First concentrate on local market .
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