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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 16:44:37 GMT -5
Ok I'm not sure if this is the correct place for this, but anyway. So I'm in university right now and for one of my courses I have to write a business plan. I decided I was going to make my plan around starting a ferret bed company (that would eventually expand to cats + dogs but anyway).
So some things about the beds I've "developed" are that they are very high quality, and made with organic cotton and hemp fabrics so that they are eco-friendly as well as ferret friendly. The starting basics line is all made from hemp fleece and printed flannel, with organic cotton batting on the inside.
The problem that I'm having is the costing, and the fact that there is very little market research about ferret owners and spending habits. Probably because we fit into the "small animal" segment, as well as cats & dogs, since I know I buy premium cat food for Rolo, and durable dog toys for him too.
So basically, what I'm asking, is if you were in a pet shop purchasing bedding, how much would you be willing to spend on it? Would you buy the following products at these prices? Lastly, how much do you spend on bedding a year?
Marketing Info on packaging:
- Eco-Friendly
- Donate a portion of profits to shelters & Discounts to shelters who want to purchase bedding.
- They all use detachable cage hooks, sold separately. (To reduce cost, as they would be mini laser-engraved carabiners which will last forever.)
The retail costing of the beds so far is:
Basic 14" x 17" Hammock w/Batting: $30
Basic 14" x 17" Covered/Pocket hammock w/batting: $40
Basic 14" x 17" Sleep Sack w/batting: $40
Due to feedback, I'm going to change the business plan to an online only based store, with retail store advertising.
Online Retail Costing:
Hammock: $20
Pocket Hammock: $30
Sleep Sack $30
Plus, we will offer bulk order discounts + flat rate shipping to the US, Canada, and Japan, ex: buy all three items for $70. (or something like that)
So now with these adjusted prices, would you be more willing to purchase these items based on eco-friendlyness, ethical wages paid to sewers, etc. etc.
I will update later when I've made my technical illustrations etc. so you guys can have a better idea of what exactly you are hypothetically buying.
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Post by kpaz on Apr 2, 2012 17:20:34 GMT -5
I think it is really going to depend on how many people in the ferret community (or other pets) are inclined to be eco-friendly. Organic materials are usually much more costly, so if the products are way more expensive than things on the market, they may be wary of purchasing just for the eco-friendly label, even if a percentage goes to shelters. I would add up the cost of supplies and the amount of time it takes to make one bed, and how much you would have to charge to at least break even (or to make a profit if that's what you're interested in). Then compare that to market prices/ prices of other custom bedding.
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Post by cierva4 on Apr 2, 2012 17:29:31 GMT -5
I've had ferrets for just about 1 year now. I spent probably about $50 in bedding for my fuzzies in the last year. (Mind you, I also use old cotton towels since they love to dig in them, and I don't count those since I purchased them for personal use before the fuzzies inherited them.) My general rule is no more than $20/piece, unless it doubles as a toy (like the Marshall Octopus sort of thing, etc), and seems really durable, so I wouldn't buy the bedding at the prices you listed. I'm also young and poor.  Also, just as a side note, if the hooks (even mid-range quality) are included, I'm willing to spend a tiny bit more, since I don't have to find any myself. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 17:39:11 GMT -5
Never mind I didnt read u want to start a business. I try not to pay more then $10 per item so no I wouldnt pay those prices.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 17:42:17 GMT -5
I have spent around $135 on full ferret nation bedding set. They pay for themselves because you really only ever need 2 sets and they will last pretty much forever.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 18:40:47 GMT -5
I've had ferrets for just about 1 year now. I spent probably about $50 in bedding for my fuzzies in the last year. (Mind you, I also use old cotton towels since they love to dig in them, and I don't count those since I purchased them for personal use before the fuzzies inherited them.) My general rule is no more than $20/piece, unless it doubles as a toy (like the Marshall Octopus sort of thing, etc), and seems really durable, so I wouldn't buy the bedding at the prices you listed. I'm also young and poor. Also, just as a side note, if the hooks (even mid-range quality) are included, I'm willing to spend a tiny bit more, since I don't have to find any myself. The problem with the hooks is that they are super high quality and will last forever, and they bump up the price by like $5, and since you honestly wouldn't need that many hooks, I decided they would be sold seperately. Also the fabric choices such as hemp were chosen for durability since its a natural fibre that actually gets stronger after washing. I don't know if this would affect your purchasing decision, but the problem I have is that these fabrics are more expensive, but are sooooo much better than regular ones. But If I used regular fabric, I could sell a hammock for 15-20$ after wholesale and retail markups. You also wouldn't have to pay shipping since these would be in pet shops, as I know a lot of people order custom bedding on-line  |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 19:08:59 GMT -5
I think it is really going to depend on how many people in the ferret community (or other pets) are inclined to be eco-friendly. Organic materials are usually much more costly, so if the products are way more expensive than things on the market, they may be wary of purchasing just for the eco-friendly label, even if a percentage goes to shelters. I would add up the cost of supplies and the amount of time it takes to make one bed, and how much you would have to charge to at least break even (or to make a profit if that's what you're interested in). Then compare that to market prices/ prices of other custom bedding. Yeah that's the problem, the prices of the eco-friendly textiles are way more expensive than regular ones. I could easily sell a hammock for around $15-$20 if I used regular polyester/oil based fabric. But then that environmental irresponsibility is on me for selling stuff like that.... As opposed to hemp which actually puts nutrients back into the soil its grown on, grows really dense and uses very little land, and is a weed and requires no pesticides and very minimal amounts of water to grow it. I should add that these are CAD prices... though I think we are at par or close to it, so that doesn't mean that much. So the problem that I have, is that our company would need a wholesale markup, to cover shipping + employee costs + website + advertising etc. and then the retail stores will want a similar markup for the same things >.< So now I'm thinking we should rewrite the business plan to launch two lines, an eco-friendly one and a non-eco-friendly line that is much cheaper to produce, what do you think? I need to research some fabric suppliers and then add up my cost sheets again to the actual prices on these. |
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Post by Sherry on Apr 2, 2012 22:01:05 GMT -5
Why not check out the general store section we have here. Some make bedding, and prices would be listed.
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Post by kpaz on Apr 2, 2012 22:20:06 GMT -5
You could still use cotton without buying organic cotton. If you are worried about dyes you could probably find undyed cotton without the "organic" label attached. I think if you want to market yourself as someone who is eco-friendly, having a "non eco-friendly" line beside it might deter the customers who would purchase your bedding based on the environmental factor.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 22:45:36 GMT -5
You could still use cotton without buying organic cotton. If you are worried about dyes you could probably find undyed cotton without the "organic" label attached. I think if you want to market yourself as someone who is eco-friendly, having a "non eco-friendly" line beside it might deter the customers who would purchase your bedding based on the environmental factor. I think so too, and I honestly wanted to base the entire company around being eco-friendly. Also the problem with cotton is not the dyes used, but the actual process of growing the cotton uses IMMENSE amounts of water and pesticides which damage the local environments, destroy the nutrient values in the soil, and are overall very, very damaging to their local eco-systems. Organic label cottons are grown without pesticides and use controlled water/irrigation systems to minimize environmental damage. Dyeing the fabrics is actually the LEAST damaging part of the process. Though there are special organic cottons that are naturally coloured, so you don't even have to dye them, but they are REALLY expensive, so I'm not even going to go there! |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 22:49:32 GMT -5
Why not check out the general store section we have here. Some make bedding, and prices would be listed. I did check out their prices, but I don't think any of them sell in a retail location, and my goal is to have these in retail pet stores. Which means that I need a markup to cover my operating costs, and the retail stores need an additional markup to cover their costs as well. Worse, the average mark up for small pet products is about 70% so it really bumps the final price up! |
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Post by kpaz on Apr 3, 2012 0:08:08 GMT -5
I understand why you want to use organic over inorganic cotton. I'm a horticulture major and the organic vs. inorganic argument is always being discussed. However, I'm not sure a locally made, organic pet bed would sell up against beds in retail. As much as people want to be eco-friendly, especially with this "green" movement that's been gaining popularity, when people are shopping for pets they are usually looking for the lowest prices. It's unfortunate, just the same as when you look at the quality of the cheapest foods, and how many pet owners will resort to feeding their animals junk to save a buck. I realize that I sound like a total debbie downer on this thread...I just think if you're going to do the eco-friendly thing you might have better success online. But, then again, I'm no buisness woman so take my comments for what you will  |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2012 1:07:35 GMT -5
Honestly, no, I would not pay those prices. Admittedly, I don't hunt eco-friendly/organic items down, neither for myself or my pets. When it comes to my babies, quality - yes. Safe - definitely.
I usually make most of my ferret's cage items, but some stuff I just order online. I think the most I paid for a bedding item was $18 for the red octopus thing.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2012 2:04:24 GMT -5
I agree with kpaz. I like the idea but most ferrents dont have that type of money. You would have better luck using the most affordable fabrics Vs. organic and Eco friendly. I think it would be really difficult get retail stores to sell ferret bedding. There just isnt really that big of a market. Most people buy a couple sets and never really buy any more bedding so you wouldnt have many repeat customers.
It is hard enough for people to make a living selling online and it can take several years before your name really gets out there.
Another thing, you have to be careful not to copy other peoples designs.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2012 10:43:34 GMT -5
I understand why you want to use organic over inorganic cotton. I'm a horticulture major and the organic vs. inorganic argument is always being discussed. However, I'm not sure a locally made, organic pet bed would sell up against beds in retail. As much as people want to be eco-friendly, especially with this "green" movement that's been gaining popularity, when people are shopping for pets they are usually looking for the lowest prices. It's unfortunate, just the same as when you look at the quality of the cheapest foods, and how many pet owners will resort to feeding their animals junk to save a buck. I realize that I sound like a total debbie downer on this thread...I just think if you're going to do the eco-friendly thing you might have better success online. But, then again, I'm no buisness woman so take my comments for what you will No I appreciate that you all are willing to speak the truth, that's why I made this thread to gain information. I mean, it's useless to have a great product if no one will buy it so this is really important for me to know! I think I've come up with a solution based on everyone's feedback, so I'm going to update the OP in a sec, but I would be able to knock of between $5-10 on most of those beds if I only sold online. What I would do to get the "retail" customers is set up contract with independent pet shops with a display for my company, and offer to pay them for the space, as well as offer advertising spaces on my website. That way I can attract customers that can't find what they are looking for in those stores, and I can send more people back to those locations in return. Most importantly, I get to pay the sewers living wages and use sustainable textiles! Yay! |
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