When I started my leathercraft business, I really didn’t have a “Store Policy” on custom orders. At that time we were dealing with mostly local folks and I was pretty trusting of them.
Customers came into the store and wanted to get a belt made. I spent 30 minutes or so with them designing their belt. The question that followed was usually, “Do I pay now or when I pick it up?”
At the time, I was hungry for work and wanted to make a good impression on our new customer. I would reply with, “You can pay for it when you pick it up.”
This worked out well for the most part… For a while.
Eventually the items waiting for “pick up” began to grow and money tied up in finished products began increase. I soon realized that I had built many items using shop money that might not ever get picked up and paid for.
We then started taking a deposit of 50% of the job. This worked well to ensure that the customer would be back in the store to pick up their items. As well as to pay us the rest of the balance.
But this became somewhat difficult to handle from an accounting standpoint.
Over the years I have developed our store policy on custom orders into what works best for us. We take all the money up front on all custom orders. Continue reading
Phone book ads, business cards, brochures, newspapers, and local radio. Fifteen years ago these were still the main components of a good marketing strategy for the leathercraft business to get the word out about their services.
In this video, I show you my oiling and antiquing process for tooled leather projects. The finish that I did on this piece is what we call a “Light Oil Antique” and it is one of our most popular finishes in the shop. We have created previous videos on antiquing and oiling, but this video dives in a little deeper.
One of the most common questions that I get asked from younger craftsmen is, “When should I turn my hobby into a full time business and quit my job?”
In this video, I show you how to make a leather Moleskin Journal Cover. I am a HUGE fan of journals and notebooks… to the point that I probably have way too many in the shop. I have to write everything down or I won’t remember it.
When it comes to getting the best possible edges in your work, sanding tools are one of the most important areas to focus on. Without a well sanded edge on your leather project, you won’t be able to get the smooth finish you are looking for. Even the best possible cut piece of leather still needs sanding on the edge to prepare the leather to be burnished.
Last year around this time we created a project video for a shave kit. That video was for what I call a “bear trap” style shave kit. In this video I show how to make a new style shave kit. I wanted a shave kit that wasn’t so big and bulky. I also wanted one that could hang and this is what I came up with.
Leathercraft can be intimidating to the uninitiated. The tools for the beginner can be hard to decide upon and even more difficult to find. Since leatherwork is not a common trade skill, many of these tools can not be purchased from local hardware stores.