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Old 05-20-2008, 03:40 PM
Frank Niro Frank Niro is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Blind Bay B.C. Canada
Posts: 866
I'm running along with Don. I just don't know how it's possible to make a reasonable living without a great deal of background and proven success that can be so very slow in coming.Many of those that are trying to be full time makers have there wives out there with full time jobs. Nothing wrong with this at all, and even a great thing that the wives are so supportive, but they aren't making it on their own . When will they? Probably never for all except a very, very, few. Here again great for those who get there if they are really there. It's so important to get the dollars coming in, in the amount necessary to provide a reasonable living or the pressure to have to make will only provide another reason for not being there. Failure is not easily handled by most. The life stresses it creates can destroy great companion and marrage associations pretty darn quickly.
Like Don, I do this because I want to, not because I have to. I still have a most strong sense of competition. I've found that possibly the biggest error makers fail to recognize is that in the real world their knives are not worth the values in dollars that they place on them. Excuses are made and there isn't any adjustment downward made. Back somewhere someone bought one of these and was pleased the price was so low. Didn't that fellow at the table say it was a bargain but just wasn't what he wanted? But, when you aren't making sales what is the problem? Are you are not reaching those who would buy, and you can't afford the cost of going to the show; you are not able to complete sales though you have the knives out there or you can't make them fast enough but raising the prices will slow the sales? Hey you are not getting enough money for a hobby maker let alone to concider full time employment, no matter how many hours you are willing to work a day. Let someone else take over the financial side of the knifemaking including the paying for all supplies, shipping expensives, and shop costs. You will soon know what's left over to live on. A friend maker once told me, "makers are romantics and dreamers, reality is not something they want to deal with" Frank


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