[Jewelry making - Article 00637] - Re: [Orchid] The Blue Book for repair prices?

[Bruce Holmgrain]

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    A couple of notes on David's guide. 

    A jeweler in Romney, WV will be paying a lot less rent than one in
    Trump Tower, NYC. These are two different markets. Likewise, home
    and commuting costs will differ. This doesn't mean that David's
    prices are  invalid. His guide  offers  direction on what labor/
    materials  cost to run a business.  It is a guide. Adjustments are
    entirely possible. In fact, I still find quite a few that I think
    are exorbitant. So what? I tell my retail clients that I will never
    charge them more than 40% of whet is on the list. They don't
    complain about the prices. My delivery system sucks and they do
    complain about that. I can't blame them and I struggle to do better. 

    If you get a chance to listen to his tapes, you may find that he
    woke up to find that he had lost a lot of money one year and
    recognized that he desperately needed to change. He realized that he
    had in essence, used someone elses price list and perhaps discounted
    a few items. Unfortunately that list had gone through the same
    revision as probably several previous generations. Not to mention
    that the prices were seven years old. We jewelers tend to focus on
    what is on the bench. My apprenticeship included nothing in the way
    of business management. Too bad. I too have been through the wringer
    trying to get by on a little less than I thought someone else was
    charging. 

    Someone will point out that we need to be competitive. No doubt.
    Maybe with a little more cash in the bucket we can afford to take
    the time to really do the job right. Maybe being competitive means
    learning newer ways of doing things. Going back to school. One time
    I was talking to a Kay Jewelers VP and he said to me "I told Willie
    that if he wants to improve business, improve service!" He wasn't
    complaining about Willie's prices.

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