Our parent company, No-Nonsense Business Solutions, LLC, is a full-service tax and accounting firm. But my personal passion includes yarns and fiber arts, so I started “Sarah’s Yarns.”
Our background in taxation and accounting has enabled us at “Sarah’s Yarns” to manage our inventory like hawks, lower our cost structure, focus on listening to our customers, provide rapid-fire fulfillments, and do everything we can to provide the best possible customer service. We are not perfect, but we really work hard on trying to fulfill these goals. Whenever we don’t meet the mark, we listen carefully to what our customers have to say … and implement their advice. After all, our customers are what we value the most.
Apparently there have been complaints from other yarn resellers because our Tilli Tomas prices are the lowest, while our fulfillments and customer service are still pretty on-the-mark. So now we are being hit by Tilli Tomas to follow a “Keystone” pricing policy – which according to our humble understanding translates into “price-fixing.” Now isn’t this against fair market competition? Is this practice even legal? I’m not a lawyer, but I would love to know the answers to these questions.
If we are able to manage our costs and inventory, why should we not be allowed to pass these savings on to our customers?
In all fairness Tilli Tomas supplies beautiful yarns, and I myself have been able to make many beautiful items for my children and myself with their yarns. We will have to think about how to deal with this situation, because free market competition is what the USA is supposed to be all about.
All thoughts are welcome!
-- Sarah Siegel
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
47 comments:
:-/ Unfortunately, the only way I was going to be able to purchase these yarns was at your discounted prices. Since the prices have gone up, I can no longer justify it. I would think that at lower prices, they would be able to be able to do more business? Maybe they don't want my business then? I can't even find this yarn in stock in my local LYS, and TT supposed to be made outside of Boston.
-Laura, Cambridge, MA
Well,
you might be able to circumvent the keystone pricing by stating suggested retail price, and urge your potential clients to contact you directly.
I recently encountered one vendor who got around their supplier's reqs this way...can't remember who it was
(maybe JimmyBean?)
Cheers!
YajB in Israel
Thanks for your comments and useful suggestions. We are, of course, open to following these practices. In addition, we are thinking of holding a one-week sale sometime during the week of 9/18 -- we are allowed to do this although they are vague about the frequency. Another idea is holding private sales for our existing customers. In any event, we will certainly accept direct customer inquiries!
--Sarah Siegel
There's an interesting discussion on the Knitters Review Forum (be sure to scroll all the way up to the top of the thread) regarding this exact subject. Personally, I agree that this is price fixing and highly unethical if not illegal. Good luck!
Dear Sarah,
Never ever let anyone blackmail you out of excellence!
The Tilli folks make a common error; the fact is that they will sell more yarn because your operation is so efficient, and many of their other retailers will as well--because the end-user develops a taste for the product and often will pay a higher price for whatever reason.
Yes, it is price-fixing. (As it happens, I don't think price-fixing should be illegal, but it is, so....)
You can get along just fine without Tilli. They may not do so well without you.
They also need to think about your customers' loyalty to you. With their short-sighted outlook, I'd stay with a favorite store and give up using their product, if they want to play that way. They have a moral (if not a legal) right, to sell on the terms they choose; but they need to learn a little about the realities of marketing!
Back in (I think) the 1960's, Mary Quant was just starting out in London. Her tiny boutique was doing a land-office business, in part because she was putting in monster hours. She had a visit from a bobby: Other shop-owners felt she was engaging in unfair competition because they didn't want to have to work as hard as she did! (She caved.)
You're in a variant of this situation. To my dying breath I will fight for your right to be excellent, and to profit from it. I also wish people understood how real people really function in a market economy. See Sowell, Riesman, von Mises, Adam Smith....
Julie
I totally agree with Julie, although I'm surprised to read that she feels price fixing should be legal... not sure I follow this line of thought. Regardless, she makes many points that are spot on regarding your customers and where their loyalties will and should lie.
In my opinion, it comes down to a company wanting to keep a certain "image" regarding their product and therefore TRY to remove the ability of merchants to compete for business (whereby all three entities suffer -- the customer suffers by keeping prices high, the merchant suffers by losing sales, and the manufacturer loses because they don't sell as much of their product). It's sort of like a company saying, "hey, why don't we produce an outrageously expensive product that no one can afford and we'll all sit around doing nothing other than stewing in our own product image!" Guess I'm old fashioned, but I always thought the point of producing a product was to sell the product and make some money. If the product is "all that" it will not lose value simply because customers were able to get a decent price on it. Does a diamond lose value simply because I was able to obtain it on sale? If someone hands me the keys to a Bentley as a gift, is it suddenly worthless because I didn't buy it?
In my opinion, if a company wants to charge a certain retail price for a product, then they should retail it and not wholesale it. Once they wholesale it, they no longer own it and should have NO say what happens to it. Next thing you know they'll be interviewing knitters to see who is qualified enough to knit with their product, lest their yarn be displayed in an unbecoming manor by a less-than-perfect knitter.
I also think the consumer is smart enough to see what these manufacturers are all about and how they really care more about their "company image" than they do the retailers (who keep them in business) and the consumer (who also keeps them in business). If you ask me, any company who does business this way deserves to go under. Sit tight. Tilli Tomas's are a dime a dozen. Another will come around the corner who is more interested in selling than in their uppity image. And when that "other" one comes around, we'll all be laughing all the way to the bank.
BTW, there are MANY yarn companies who are trying to "level the playing field" (AKA price fixing), and since there are now so many great yarns out there, I think perhaps a list of these "unethical" companies should be compiled. The ones I'm aware of are: Lorna's Laces, Cascade Yarns, Mountain Colors, Plymouth Yarns, Trendsetter Yarns, Tahki Stacy Charles, and Classic Elite. I'm sure there are a few more, however in the grand scheme of things, these are only a handful, and if I have my choice of buying from one of these unethical companies or finding a comparable yarn with another ethical company, you can bet I'll buy from the ethical company hands down. And I'm sure I'm not the only knitter who feels this way. I just think that until now, most knitters don't even have a clue that the yarn manufacturers are doing what they're doing. And if retailers out there think the yarn manufacturers are protecting them by "leveling the playing field" they're sadly mistaken. Just go to the Sexy Knitters Club message board and read all the comments by knitters who can't or won't pay the high price for the Tilli Tomas yarn. You retailers are being "protected" all the way to the poor house, I assure you.
I also totally agree with Julie and with the first Anonymous – BTW, you had me in “stitches” with your comments.
I also agree with the second Anonymous, except that I disagree with the one comment that “us retailers are being protected.” In fact, our ability to compete is being thwarted, and that really hurts everybody, as stated above, all the way from the manufacturer to the consumer. I do not believe in unfair competition – it leads to mediocrity and inefficiency. And ultimately, it leads to economic stagnation.
It is sad, because the Tilli Tomas yarns are beautiful and unique. Perhaps they will change their views and eventually allow us to compete fairly. On the other hand, if they read this blog they may just refuse to sell any more yarns to us.
That’s one thing I like so much about JaggerSpun. They received a lot of phone calls about us. But they never once told me to change my prices. Instead, they are fostering healthy competition – and everybody benefits.
I have been looking at other suppliers of unique yarns. Next week I have a meeting with a supplier that sells yarns that are also quite unique and beautiful – I have used them in the past with great pleasure. They are coming over to “check us out” and to show us their “wares.” At first they were not so interested in dealing with us because we are not a “brick-and-mortar” store. I explained to this company that “brick-and-mortar” stores have problems with theft and pilferage, which ultimately leads to higher prices. But I also explained to them that we just expanded into the second floor of our building and we’ve been going through a lot of renovation work so that we can do things like hold workshops and free knitting gatherings. We’ll see how it goes -- wish me luck!
--Sarah
There are many retailers who manage their business well enough to offer the same (or greater) discounts just as Sarah's Yarn had done with Tilli Tomas. The problem is, a bidding war would ensue and this gorgeous yarn would soon not be profitable for anyone to sell. No retailer will want to sell it. The brand will suffer big time. Ultimately, this type of discounting can push a brand out of business. For example, the brand will lose it's ability to sell to brick and mortar stores who rely on a profit margin in order to remain in business (they have rent to pay and lots of overhead!). The product thus becomes limited. The product could eventually be sold only by that one discounter who can indeed make a killing even at the discounted price. This creates an incredibly unfair situation within the marketplace, and it most definitely hurts the wholesaler ability to expand the line. Tilli Tomas simply wants to protect the beatiful product they have created for all of us to enjoy.
I disagree with the last anonymous comment. You see, brick and mortar stores also have the option of selling online, and thus can cover their costs and still make a profit through fair competition. They actually have an advantage over people who have brick and mortar stores “by appointment,” like us, because they have more sales venue options. By the way, we have to pay rent and overhead costs too, but we manage our costs as effectively as possible. The “other guys” can do the same thing!
My response to the product becoming limited is simply: the classic economic laws of Supply and Demand. As a product becomes limited, it’s price and value increases in the market place. But I suppose that you have to have some sort of understanding of basic business practices to figure out how this works.
Price-fixing gets around. And people get turned off by that sort of practice. You have to decide: are you in business to protect so-called “social justice,” or to increase the sales of your product? Somebody else can come around and produce the same products that Tilli Tomas is producing – and maybe even better! So, from a business point of view, you have to decide what you are really in business for.
Sarah, your last anonymous comment (which sounds like it was someone from Tilli Tomas, if you ask me) makes little or no sense. A bidding war would not cause a retailer to not want to carry Tilli Tomas yarns... it actually works just the opposite way. As a retailer, why would I want to purchase yarn from a wholesaler that I was unlikely to be able to sell because it was so over-priced? As long as there is even a small profit to be made, SOMEONE will want to sell it, whether it's a brick and mortar store or an online resource, and as long as Tilli Tomas is selling their yarns to either of those entities, they should be happy. And if they're so concerned about retailers not wanting to carry it due to bidding wars, perhaps they're not as confident in their product as they should be. I'll tell you what Tilli Tomas SHOULD be worried about, and that's that someone else somewhere will produce the same or similar product and WILL allow retailers to sell it at whatever price they choose. THAT's when retailers won't want to carry their yarns any more.
I will also tell you that what goes around comes around, and unfair business practices always end up coming full circle. I (for one) will be laughing when all the unethical (price-fixing) yarn manufacturers go out of business since consumers will likely choose to buy other (more ethical) yarn company's yarns. Tilli Tomas has seriously underestimated the consumer and it will end up biting them in the rear.
I completely agree with the last anonymous comment received -- whoever posted the comment in defense of Tilli Tomas current practices clearly underestimates the power of the consumer, and shows little or no respect for consumer intelligence.
--Sarah
Amen Darlin'. Don't you wish there was something you could do? Have you considered consulting an attorney? Perhaps a class action suit with all the retailers (whether brick & mortar or on line) who do NOT want to be "dictated" by the wholesalers vs the unethical wholesalers?
I would love to consult an attorney, but from my personal experience they seem to be so “jaded” because they have one thing in mind: billable hours. And they are trained to do one thing really well: bullshit through their nose in order to “win their case.” What I have witnessed through various types of court proceedings is nothing short of supreme spectacles comparable to the entertainment that took place during the times of the Roman Coliseums.
There must be a more cost-effective way of dealing with this type of situation. One in which we could all obtain the same or higher quality at the most cost-effective price for all; one that works within the framework of a free-market economy, which the US is supposed to be all about. Rest assured, we are avidly looking into this. The only problem, as with everything it seems, is that we need cash to pursue what we need to do. So we need to increase our sales.
All the best!
--Sarah
How about presenting your case to some of the knitting podcasters out there and see if there are any who support your cause. If they do, they can interview you on their show and explain to knitters just how companies like Tilli Tomas care about their customers. I would also include the list of other companies who use the same business philosophy that Tilli Tomas does. In fairness however, if you do get a podcaster to agree to interview you, I would contact all the companies you plan to mention in advance, just to see if they're willing to change their business philosophies prior to you mentioning their names to thousands of knitters. You might just get a few to change their tunes in advance. Or Sarah, if you can't get any podcasters to support you, start your own knitting podcast and discuss the situation on your own show! It doesn't cost anything to put a podcast out there and it WILL be heard, as knitters ADORE knitting podcasts.
I would love to learn how knitting podcasting works ….? Please feel free to contact us with any information that you might have.
-- Sarah.
Sarah, podcasting is a piece of cake -- there's even a Podcasting For Dummies book out. All you need to do is to download one of the free audio recording programs such as Audacity, record your show, upload it to a server somewhere (many podcasters use LibSyn, and it looks they even have an online Podcasting tutorial on their site as well), and post your show notes on Blogger with a link to download the show. Your show can be as short or as long as you like, can include music or not, etc. etc. You can also use Audacity to record "segments" if you would prefer to record your "position" and send it out to current Podcasters who already have a large listening audience. Personally, I would approach the current podcasters first and see if any of them agree with you. If you can't find anybody who does (which I doubt) then you could always start your own. I do think though that there is power on the "airways" and that it's a free resource you should consider. I wouldn't be discouraged though if none of the podcasters are willing to take sides on this issue as it could come back to "bite them" later... Just take it for what it is and move on to the next podcaster. If NO podcasters will help you out, then by all means, start your own. You can never have enough knitting podcasts out there ;-)
This is my two cents:
A while ago, Grumperina (www.grumperina.com) spoke with a Skacel rep about how she and lots of people she knew loved Addi Turbos but felt they were way to blunt for lace work. The rep was surprised, not realizing people felt this way, and said that if she received more testimonials she would look into producing a line with pointier tips. She posted this, with the woman's email address, on her blog, and encouraged anyone interested in pointier-tipped needles to email the rep. Well, apparantley the woman was FLOODED with emails and wrote everyone back saying "wow, okay, point taken, we'll investigate this possibility."
So, my suggestion is that you, Sarah, publish a TT email address so that we can all write and say what we feel about this situation. For me, the only reason I can afford to knit my current project in Pure and Simple is because of the prices Sarah offers. If I had decided to pick this project up a month from now, I would be substituting yarn for sure. So they are definately losing customers in the long run.
Just my $.02
Thank you for your last comment, great suggestion. The Tilli Tomas e-mail address for posting this type of comments is http://www.tillitomas.com/feedback.html.
All the best.
--Sarah Siegel
I don't know anything about law but I can tell you the Ashford Joy I just purchased has a set price, I don't know about sales but everyone sells it for the same price, but they throw in "freebies" along with it.
Maybe you could do, buy 2 skiens get 1 free if it worked out to the same amount.
I won't be purchasing any more TT after this little escapade. It was a stretch for my budget anyway, and I'd rather give my money to a company whose business practices were a little less totalitarian. Thank you for posting.
There's a reason price-fixing is illegal in the USA. Look at Enron and what they did to energy prices. Our economy is built on captialism, the free market, not a fixed market.
The Tilli reps' point of view is incredibly unrealistic, all besides this practice being unethical and I believe illegal. It sounds as though they do not understand simple economics. It's supply and demand, as Sarah said. "Pure and simple" (had to go there!)
I mean, a bidding war? Please. Price fixing does not protect anyone. It hurts the manufacturer, because inflated prices will lose a certain percentage a customers who would otherwise purchase the yarn at a discount (even if we didn't know about their disrespect for their customers), the retailer is hurt because it does not allow fair competition. Ultimately it hurts the consumer as well as a trickle down of these effects.
Besides, I am able to buy numerous major brands on sale, either online or in LYS, and it does not make me think "less" of this yarn. Do they really believe their product is SO special, it should be able to rise above the laws that apply to everyone else? Don't think so. These days, there are incredible yarns being produced by both major manufacturers and indie folks. The market is overflowing with beautiful, quality products.
Tilli's big ego will be their undoing.
Dear Jillian,
Thank you for your comments, which we completely agree with.
It is a confirmed fact at this point that price fixing is illegal under US Federal and State laws. Price fixing, as well as bid rigging, is carefully monitored by the US Department of Justice Antitrust Division, the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Competition, and the Office of the Attorney General of the District of Columbia and of every state in the Union. Businesses like Tilli Tomas who wish to violate the law and expose themselves to costly fines and various types of law suits, not to mention possible jail time, are taking a severely incredulous risk.
--Sarah Siegel
Hi Sarah -- Lorna's Laces is just as guilty at using "Keystone" pricing policies too! I know many other companies have done the same and I knew the day would come when justice would be served. I always like it when people (and/or companies) who think they are above the law end up getting what they deserve.
I'm friends with the owner of Discount Yarn Sale and she told me that there are MANY companies (Trendsetter, Crystal Palace, Tahki Stacy Charles, Cascade, and MANY more) who refuse to do business with her simply because the word "discount" is in the name of her site. Can you believe??? Plus, Tilli Tomas did the SAME thing to her that they're doing to you. Sounds like you two have a LOT in common. Maybe the two of you should get together and work on this issue together. I can give you her contact info if you like.
Pixie -- I totally agree with the comment you left on the other post regarding the "cheesiness" of the TT website. They should seriously invest in a web designer -- too bad all their money will likely be tied up in legal fees now. Regarding your comment to this post however, I would say to Sarah and to everybody else, that it's now a matter of principal and not just a matter of getting around the system as the Ashford Joy retailers seem to be doing. All I can say is that if enough people (knitters as well as retailers) join together to publicly "boycott" the illegal companies' yarns, they will eventually succumb (whether by coming to their senses on their own or by judicial decision) and change their business practices. The "louder" and more public we (the knitting community) can be about how we feel about this type of business practice, the more likely we will see it change. I also would love to see some of the BIG podcasters publish lists of ALL the companies known to be following these ridiculous and illegal business practices. Heaven knows there is MORE than enough beautiful yarn out there to be purchased by ethical yarn companies -- too bad the Tilli Tomas's and Lorna's Laces of this world were too narrow minded to realize this prior to now.
I agree with the last anonymous comment.
The bottom line is that price fixing is illegal in the United States, and in every state in the Union. It hurts all of us.
--Sarah
I also agree with the prior anonymous comment. It all comes down to this: whatever a business's name is, it is absolutely illegal to price fix any product anywhere in the USA.
--Sarah
I know you've already talked with other podcasters about this, but if you want me to help get the message out too by including it on the PointySticks podcast, I would be happy to do so. I already plan to point people to these posts, but if you have more to add I would be happy to hear it. Feel free to leave a comment on PointySticks.org so I can get your e-mail address and we can talk further.
Meanwhile, I'll also be talking about blogger and podcaster rights. Because this all ties together in the end.
I wanted some Tilli Tomas yarn and had started to work out a "trade" with a LYS to get some. Now? I think I'll pick a different yarn.
You can always send out a discount code to the customers in your newsletter.
Price fixing occurs when two or more companies servicing the same market with the same products enter into a collusion to set prices or to drive out competitors in such a way as to be mutually beneficial to the parties involved in the collusion. So, by definition, a single company or manufacturer cannot be guilty of price fixing. There is no law that prohibits a manufacturer from establishing a list price for their products, or from dictating to their distributors what prices they are allowed to ADVERTISE their products for. Battery manufacturers, such as Duracell and Eveready, are notorious for this practice. Their retail distribution contracts are so lengthy they would make your head spin.
It's perfectly acceptable for a manufacturer to dictate their market position (in the case of Tilli, the market position would seem to be "high end quality yarn at a comperable high end price"). Of course, the people who truly dictate the market are the consumers, and if they stop purchasing the product because they don't perceive the value to be equal to the price, then Tilli would lose. But there is nothing wrong at all with what Tilli is doing. It's a fairly standard business practice.
In a brick-and-mortar retail environment, gross profit margins range from 40% to as high as 90% on some products. That may sound like highway robbery at first, but consider that this is GROSS profit, not the bottom line profit a retailer reports to the IRS (in business speak, that would be EBIT, or, "earnings before interest and taxes"). There are significant costs to doing business, whether it's a B&M or a web based retail operation. Freight in, shrinkage, damage, the cost of carrying inventory, packaging materials, the percentage paid to credit card companies for processing payments, all kinds of overhead and expenses will chip away at the profitability. A good retailer, in the end, would be happy with an EBIT of around 5%. Obviously a web based retailer has an advantage over B&M because they can serve a wider market and they don't have the retail space costs, but still, they have to make money.
There's also a common misperception that if you lower a price, you will sell more product and "make up in volume" what you lose in price. It's risly at best, and I've seen it fail more often than I've seen it work. Usually it destroys an entire market. I worked for a company that imported digital stopwatched from Hong Kong back when they were retailing for $75 to $150. Our cost, FOB Chicago was about $20 each, so we sold them for $35. Within three years the market was flooded with cheap, crappy stopwatches, we weren't selling any more than anyone who had been in the business for years, and we literally drove at least two companies out of business. It wasn't until we restructured our pricing and market position that we were able to gain significant market share, and by that time the damage was done.
Sorry to post such a long comment, but I thought I'd muddy the waters even further here.
In response to Mad Sientist’s comment:
Very good comment, but we want to address some of the issues that you raise.
The problem with our situation, based on conversations that our fellow knitters have had with the US Department of Justice Antitrust Division, the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Competition, and the Office of the Attorney General of the District of Columbia and of their respective states is that there is clearly a collusion within the Yarn Industry between the wholesalers and retailers to fix prices so that competitors are either driven out of the market, or cannot enter it in the first place – as is clearly being done to us.
Further, this price fixing is being done for the benefit of the retailers currently in this market so that they are guaranteed a minimum 100% markup on their sales. In our opinion, this is outrageous.
We had qualified and met Tilli Tomas’s criteria to sell their products – which is how we started buying from them in the first place. All of our orders were charged to our account before shipping, so there were no “payment problems” with the company.
When our sales took off, they e-mailed a document to us which states that we are now required to adhere to “keystone prices” and instructed me personally to immediately raise the prices on our website by a ridiculous amount “to level the playing field,” which indicates that they had received complaints from other retailers. These facts clearly point to collusion, and further, hurt our business by putting us on-the-spot with our customers, as our relationship with them is based on trust and respect.
Would you trust someone who is selling a product to you at a certain price, puts all this time into promoting it by developing swatches, patterns, and sending customers free color cards, and then suddenly increases their prices outrageously on you? Because of our business practices, I had to inform our customer base immediately of what had happened.
Right after I raised our prices on our website as instructed, Tilli Tomas agreed to ship a large order to us, and charged our account accordingly. However, we never received the goods and after more than one week of numerous unreturned phone calls and un-replied e-mails to Till Tomas, Ms. Tracy Robinson informed me that “for the time being, they did not want to ship to us anymore.” By the next day, the funds that had been tied up for this last large order were released back into our account and made available to us.
There is a complete audit trail of all of the aforementioned facts, and they clearly point to collusion, unless Tilli Tomas agrees to continue to sell and ship to us, and allows us to price according to our business model.
In response to what you are saying about web-based retailers having an advantage because they don’t have the retail space costs, please note that a web-retailer needs to rent out more space to carry the inventory in order to execute rapid-fire fulfillments, and higher insurance costs apply to cover that inventory.
BTW, we are not strictly a web retailer, as have developed direct sales channels, have held workshops and have had customers over by appointment. Further, we expanded our space and are going through renovations so that we can hold workshops on a regular basis on weekends.
I fully agree with everything you are saying in your last paragraph. This is why our business model isn’t based on making up our profits in volume. We run a very tight ship and eliminate unnecessary costs without sacrificing customer service. We spend our money on inventory and on good employees, whom we pay well and treat very well because we want to retain them so we can minimize our recruiting costs. We are self-funded through our sales to eliminate interest payments so that our customers don’t have to pay for our cash flow management, which is our responsibility.
Our no-nonsense management experience enables us to lower our costs, thus we are able to pass our savings on to our customers in the form of lower prices.
--Sarah Siegel
I found this discussion through Cast-On. I've never bought yarn from any of the companies mentioned in these comments - I buy yarn only on sale, usually online or abroad. This is partly because I'm on a tight budget, but also because I just refuse, on principle, to pay twice what something is worth. I think a lot of these companies, especially the newer ones, are taking advantage of the many people who have come to knitting only recently, and who take a few months to figure out what's a fair price and what isn't, and where the best places to look for good yarn are. That's a sad state of affairs, and I'm so glad this discussion is happening, so we can do something about it!
Here's one small suggestion to add to the others here -
You all know how much bloggers love buttons. How about making one of those active buttons (like the one Amy Singer has for knitty.com), which would display and up-to-date list of companies participating in price fixing? Bloggers can demonstrate their intention to boycott these companies by putting the button on their blogs, and it can be linked to this page or some other explanation of the problem, to inform more and more people as the button proliferate?
I'd volunteer to make the button, except I don't know how! I'll be very happy to put one on my blog, though...
In response to Kate's post:
I agree with everything that you are saying and I like your idea as I believe we should all be aware of who these companies are.
But I don’t know how to make a “button” either! I had tried to figure out the HTML button behavior to just get a button to bring up a page for use within our own website, because I believe buttons are “easier” to see by people visiting a web page.
If anybody can give us a snippet of code that when we tested, it will make the “button” bring up another web page in a new browser window, we will be happy to send them the equivalent of $100 worth of the yarns of their choice from our site, and the shipping is on us.
--Sarah Siegel
Just wanted to let you know, I've just added my little voice to the chorus in a post on my own blog:
http://aastrikke.blogspot.com/2006/09/yarn-market.html
I'm hope it will elicit some more interesting comments and suggestions.
Kate, that was really great analysis.
We at No-Nonsense Business Solutions, LLC and Sarah's Yarns are confident that you will excel in your dissertation, and wish you the best of luck. BTW, the yarns posted were quite lovely.
I'll keep trying with the "button" and I'm open to trying out all code snippets, and we will stand behind our offer.
--Sarah Siegel
Most yarn retailers don't give anybody the time of day, and certainly don't invest the time in working up "sample cards" and "yarn swatches" and knitted items like skirts and whatever to show off the products that they sell. I received a lot of stuff like this from Sarah after purchasing some yarn from her when I didn't even know what "Tilli Tomas" was.
So maybe I'm missing something: why would a yarn wholesaler want to drop one of their resellers who actually put their product on the map for those of us who never knew about, and then ended up wanting to buy it?
Are these Tilli Tomas people really stupid or what?
Well, I don't want to buy their stuff any more. They can keep it. Sorry Sarah for wasting your time with Tilli Tomas.
Sarah, I'll make you a button. Sent me an email: zabet AT theanticraft DOT com
I own a business making my own products and sell through retailer. I do NOT fix my prices. They are welcome to sell my products for whatever they wish it's only fair.
As for the yarn - just a thought... I buy a lot of yarn from small hand dyers and spinners. You know, the proverbial one woman shop. Sweet Georgia and Two Pointy Sticks are just two of a group I buy from and boy - do they make beautiful yarn!
Buying from them not only gives me a uniquely beautiful product - but it helps suppost these women in thier small business enterprises. there are many of them out there with gorgeous yarn - check out Etsy.com!
Dear Claudia,
Thank you very much for your suggestion -- it's definitely worth pursuing.
All the best!
--Sarah
I had the same experience with Fiesta Yarns several years ago. I had an eBay store at that time and was selling Colinette yarn primarily. I started carrying Fiesta yarns which I sold at a discount. Well, you can guess, Fiesta found out and told me to cease and desist selling their yarns on eBay and at a discount. They even put up a warning on their website (which now seems to be gone) to wholesalers not to discount their yarns or sell them on eBay. That ended my relationship with them very quickly. I thought their attitude was extremely arrogant, and that they just weren't keeping up with the times. Needless to say, I understand entirely your experience with Tilli. My condolences.
Thank you for your comment.
One thing I never understood is why some vendors are so opposed to using eBay.
I can tell you for certain that it is not cost-effective to sell on eBay. However, it is an excellent resource to help gauge what people want, and the prices that they are willing to pay for products. In short, I think it is a great market research tool.
--Sarah Siegel
I had the same experience with Fiesta Yarns several years ago. I had an eBay store at that time and was selling Colinette yarn primarily. I started carrying Fiesta yarns which I sold at a discount. Well, you can guess, Fiesta found out and told me to cease and desist selling their yarns on eBay and at a discount. They even put up a warning on their website (which now seems to be gone) to wholesalers not to discount their yarns or sell them on eBay. That ended my relationship with them very quickly. I thought their attitude was extremely arrogant, and that they just weren't keeping up with the times. Needless to say, I understand entirely your experience with Tilli. My condolences.
I'm constantly appalled at companies who think that they still own the product even after they've sold it.
I have a small side business, and I can recall similar competitor complaints at one festival we worked. We'd gotten a great deal on amber necklaces, and were selling them for $20 each, more than twice what we bought them for. The other vendors had similar necklaces for $35 and up. They got angry with us because we wouldn't raise our prices to what I felt would have been an unfair profit margin. We sold all of our necklaces and went home happy and considerably richer. Not my job to 'protect' their sales.
Just like it's not your job to protect sales for the other yarn stores.
I totally agree with harmonyfb.
We live in a Country that (presumably) operates based on the principles of fair market competition, and where (presumably) Cartels are not supported.
In practice, in the Yarn Retail Sales sector I am finding out that this is not the case. You have no idea how many other yarn resellers out there complain about us to our suppliers. Further, the phone threats that I've had to put up with are outrageous to the point where I feel I should inform the NYPD. So I can understand why yarn resellers “cartelize” themselves.
But we will stick to our guns, just like harmonyfb did. I love what I do, and I don't feel I need to compromise our choice of how to make a living simply because other Yarn resellers don’t want to step-up-to-the-plate or don’t like us. We are not here to please other yarn resellers; we are here to please our customers. We have a right to exist and to compete with the other players, whether they like it or not.
--Sarah Siegel
Here's another point. Yes, your online price may be lower than many LYS. However, there is shipping to consider. Often, shipping is equal or greater than tax plus gas to get to and from the LYS. So, lower prices online only offset the additional cost of getting the yarn to the final purchaser. Toss in the inconvenience of waiting - and the "less expensive" online store is actually equal to the LYS. If the retail prices are the same, the LYS actually works out to be less expensive. So, if my LYS carries what I want, I just buy it there. Therefore, the online store actually *has* to be competitive in price in order to get business.
I seldom leave comments on blog, but I have been to this post which was recommended by my friend, lots of valuable details, thanks again.
Post a Comment