This is a quick survey.
I am considering offering furniture kits for sale. I currently have
developed designs for some simplified Mission type End Tables, Coffee
Tables, etc. However, I am inspired to do more classic versions,
closely resembling traditional Stickly styles.
Regardless of your desire to work from a kit vs raw lumber, which
pieces are of the most interest to you? Occasional tables, bedroom
casework like dressers and nightstands, chairs, bookcases, writing
tables or desks, etc, etc?
BW
Probably small stuff - stools (but not loose ones), end tables, maybe
coffee tables, etc. Do you know if there's a demand for such kits?
Personally, much of the joy I get from making something is the
knowledge that it used to be a piece of rough lumber (or even smooth
lumber). If all the pieces were cut out, it would be a puzzle, more
like a Sauder kit. If that's the point, fine, but I'm not sure the
dedicated woodworking crowd should be the intended audience. Then
again, I'm sure there are people interested in woodworking who don't
have the tools or the time to prepare stock, but still enjoy assembling
things.
Thoughts from others?
Andy
The short answer is yes.
My plan is to offer a sliding scale of complexity\authenticity. The
least expensive kit would be made from Red Oak, pocket screw joinery,
simple laminated legs (as opposed to furniture stock). The high end
kits would be select QSWO and all the classic joinery ranging from
simple M&T all the way up to through tenons and 5 piece legs. I haven't
decided if I would actually laminate up the legs or provide the inner
and outer pieces llose.
Regarding demand, that of course remains to be seen. It is just
something that I am passionate about, have been for a long time. I see
two commercial providers of these types of kits right now. Bartleys has
very nice kits but it's all very ornate type designs. Van Dykes has
things more along the style that I am thinking but frankly, their
designs are not very refined. They look real chunky to me. Kinda high
school shop like. I'm not sure why they do it like that but not very
pleasing to my eye.
The concept is to provide kits for woodworkers that don't have access
to many of the larger tools. The garage guys that might have a table
top TS but no joiner, planer, mortiser. Yes, with a hand plane, a
chisle a good hand saw and a few other tools you can build Mission
furniture. However, I believe there may be an audience for this type of
product which still requires skill to complete but provides a high
probability of success and a quick gratification.
I plan on providing lots of good info on various finishing techniques
too.
BW
SonomaProducts.com wrote:
> I am considering offering furniture kits for sale. I currently have
> developed designs for some simplified Mission type End Tables, Coffee
> Tables, etc. However, I am inspired to do more classic versions,
> closely resembling traditional Stickly styles.
My gut feeling is that it might turn out to be a pretty small market.
If you look at a magazine like American Bungalow or Style 1900, which
cater to the crowd that really appreciates quality Arts & Crafts
furniture, there is very little in the way of do-it-yourself content in
either the articles or the ads. The only 'kits' that come to mind in
these magazines are for picture frames and book ends, which are
probably just flat-packed for shipping.
I get the feeling reading these magazines that the skill level of the
typical reader plateaus at writing checks and dialing 1-800 numbers
with their credit cards ready.
The ww crowd, on the other hand, would typically build furniture for
the enjoyment of building furniture. A kit would take most of that
away.
If there is an intermediate group that is somewhat handy and wants to
save money compared to buying antique or reproduction A&C furniture,
you run into the issue of them putting price ahead of quality. I think
most furniture retailers offer Mission-styled furniture at all kinds of
price points and corresponding quality levels. It would take some
(expensive to you) customer education to explain why they should pay
you more for a box of parts than they can pay for the finished
furniture at Sears or Wal-Mart.
All that said, however, a small market may be all you really need. To
keep good margins in a small shop you'll have to concentrate on quality
products. Too many mass producers are chasing the low quality end of
the market. The crowd that reads American Bungalow and Style 1900
aren't afraid to spend serious money on furniture. Maybe as an
experiment you could pick a design for something small and easy and
invest in a small picture ad in these magazines. Offer the kit with
different levels of completion (e.g., machined but unsanded, sanded,
finished, and, what the heck, completely assembled). Then you can see
what the market is looking for. If you find a market, you can expand
into bigger and better kits as time goes by. You might even offer kits
from the original Stickley catalogs. If there's no market, you're not
out much.
There's several companies around selling kits for Grandfather clocks
for many years. It might pay to examine how they do business, the
amount of support they offer, etc., and try to copy that level of
customer service.
Good luck with that!
Tim
"SonomaProducts.com" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> This is a quick survey.
>
> I am considering offering furniture kits for sale. I currently have
> developed designs for some simplified Mission type End Tables, Coffee
> Tables, etc. However, I am inspired to do more classic versions,
> closely resembling traditional Stickly styles.
>
> Regardless of your desire to work from a kit vs raw lumber, which
> pieces are of the most interest to you? Occasional tables, bedroom
> casework like dressers and nightstands, chairs, bookcases, writing
> tables or desks, etc, etc?
>
> BW
>
Coffee tables, bookcases, and computer desks...
Jim
The Morris Chair
max
> This is a quick survey.
>
> I am considering offering furniture kits for sale. I currently have
> developed designs for some simplified Mission type End Tables, Coffee
> Tables, etc. However, I am inspired to do more classic versions,
> closely resembling traditional Stickly styles.
>
> Regardless of your desire to work from a kit vs raw lumber, which
> pieces are of the most interest to you? Occasional tables, bedroom
> casework like dressers and nightstands, chairs, bookcases, writing
> tables or desks, etc, etc?
>
> BW
>
He probably would if someone is willing to pay the price...but then there go
the savings?
He did say kit - that could include a section of white oak log, some ammonia
and instructions.
But to answer your question in a more serious tone. I would think that the
smaller case pieces would be more apt to sell than larger pieces simply
because of the cost of QS white oak plus not everyone has a large shop where
one can assemble larger pieces. I work from rough sawn stock because its
available at "reasonable" cost for our area whereas the borg choices are
outrageous - for junk wood.
Bob S.
"Robatoy" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In article <[email protected]>,
> "SonomaProducts.com" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> This is a quick survey.
>>
>> I am considering offering furniture kits for sale. I currently have
>> developed designs for some simplified Mission type End Tables, Coffee
>> Tables, etc. However, I am inspired to do more classic versions,
>> closely resembling traditional Stickly styles.
>>
>> Regardless of your desire to work from a kit vs raw lumber, which
>> pieces are of the most interest to you? Occasional tables, bedroom
>> casework like dressers and nightstands, chairs, bookcases, writing
>> tables or desks, etc, etc?
>>
>> BW
>
> Once you go to the classic models, would you pre-make the 5-piece legs
> and do the M & T work?
In article <[email protected]>,
"BobS" <[email protected]> wrote:
> He probably would if someone is willing to pay the price...but then there go
> the savings?
It's expensive furniture to buy ready-made. I have no idea how that
would compare.
>
> He did say kit - that could include a section of white oak log, some ammonia
> and instructions.
>
> But to answer your question in a more serious tone. I would think that the
> smaller case pieces would be more apt to sell than larger pieces simply
> because of the cost of QS white oak plus not everyone has a large shop where
> one can assemble larger pieces.
I agree. End-tables, night stands, that kinda thing. I love all that
mission/Stickley stuff. (not necessarily out of oak, I think cherry
works well in those designs.) I was wondering how much authenticity
SonomaProducts was going to go for.
> I work from rough sawn stock because its
> available at "reasonable" cost for our area whereas the borg choices are
> outrageous - for junk wood.
Yup. Stoopid money for less than mediocre wood.
In article <[email protected]>,
"SonomaProducts.com" <[email protected]> wrote:
> This is a quick survey.
>
> I am considering offering furniture kits for sale. I currently have
> developed designs for some simplified Mission type End Tables, Coffee
> Tables, etc. However, I am inspired to do more classic versions,
> closely resembling traditional Stickly styles.
>
> Regardless of your desire to work from a kit vs raw lumber, which
> pieces are of the most interest to you? Occasional tables, bedroom
> casework like dressers and nightstands, chairs, bookcases, writing
> tables or desks, etc, etc?
>
> BW
Once you go to the classic models, would you pre-make the 5-piece legs
and do the M & T work?
In article <[email protected]>,
"SonomaProducts.com" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Regarding demand, that of course remains to be seen. It is just
> something that I am passionate about,
[snipped for brevity]
A long time friend of mine in Florida sells sauna packages via the net.
He's doing quite well. When he first tabled the concept (started off
with hot-tub kits), he slugged it out having to not only build the kits,
but to build onsite and install them as well. That led to his current
successes.
He still does kits. I recall some skeptics insisting it would never fly.
FANAFI... find a niche and fill it.
(shameless plug:)
http://www.saunadirect.com/index.html
I need to talk to him about the quality of his graphics on his website.
LOL..doesn't seem to slow him down much.
Passion and hard work..and a controlled willingness to take a chance
because:
my buddy in Toronto: "You can't get to second base and keep one foot on
first."
my buddy in Rochester NY: "you ain't getting laid with pants zipped up."
Calculated chances are fun.
In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] wrote:
> there is very little in the way of do-it-yourself content in
> either the articles or the ads.
Could be a niche?
I think with careful baby-steps, it could fly........(wtf?)
In article <[email protected]>,
"BobS" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Forgot to add - the Stickley plant is about 20 minutes away............;-)
>
> Bob S.
I would like to meet the Audis... that was a gutsy thing to do...buy the
plant that is.
It is on my wish list to visit there.