[Jewelry making - Article 00713] - Re: [Orchid] The Cost of Holding Out

[MillsGem]

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    D.Burnett, Thanks for your thoughtful and concise response to my
    criticism of Geller"s ideas. My approach to business is somewhat
    different than most. I have always had a social conscience
    underlying all of my actions. I also have a strong sense of the need
    to be profitable and meet my financial obligations while living a
    decent lifestyle. I don't need to pursue extravagance nor do I need
    to "charge what the market will bear" I am quite satisfied with
    getting a return for my efforts that meets my basic financial
    needs.Becoming wealthy is definitely not my goal. I have had periods
    in my life when my financial circumstances were realtively unlimited
    AND I was not happy. When you have substantial assets you can be
    sure that the predators are not far behind. You have to develop a
    certain paranoia just to keep them at bay. You are also beset by
    overwhelming asset management challenges. You must eat, sleep and
    drink wealth management. 

    As for price fixing ,I feel that any book that suggests uniform
    pricing on a nationwide basis is, at the very least, an attempt to
    establish a "one size fits all" approach to pricing. And, since the
    prices are , in my opinion, excessive, they are bad for the customer
    and may be bad for the industry in the long run. As for your
    contention that jewellers may not charge as much for their services
    as mechanics, my reply is that they had better charge every bit as
    much ! For example: When a jeweller charges thirty dollars for a
    simple downsizing, he is probably charging three hundred dollars an
    hour ! I charge ten to fifteen dollars for same and my profit is
    quite sufficient. What is happening here is that many jewelers sub
    out their work and the price to the customer is based on suporting
    two businesses; the jeweller and the sub contractor.. Unfortunately,
    the jeweler generally gets at least seventy five per-cent of the
    charge while the pooir guy doing the work gets twenty five percent. 

    I hope that I have clarified some of the issues involved. You ,
    Dale, apparently have not had the benefit of being in the jewelry
    business for any significant period of time. I think that you will
    have a greater appreciation for the complexities involved after you
    have had more experience. 

    I bear no malice toward David Geller. His efforts to enhance the
    business thinking of people who are often not oriented toward
    business principles is a step in the right direction. I merely want
    to see a lot more flexibility and depth in these considerations. The
    one size fits all approach is definitely not the right way to go in
    my opinion nor do I subscribe to the approach of charging what the
    market will bear.In this latter instance, there is too much room for
    abuse. This is why auto mechanics sometimes damage their industry by
    charging too much or by taking advantage of the innocent . The last
    time I went to an independent garage for auto service I got charged
    twenty seven dollars for a three dollar air filter....let's not get
    started on this one ! Ron at Mills Gem, Los Osos, CA.



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