October
CREATOR
1 day ago

Project Update: Crazy update on mini bags!

So I finally heard back from my chosen manu on the mini bags! They've been preparing for their big break for the Lunar New Year and the request for pricing and prototypes got lost in the hustle and bustle. That's totally fine and I half expected to hear back in February. I am also very used to making big, BIG plush with lots of details and fabric types lately, and that bit me in the butt while preparing my estimates. They will be FAR less than I had anticipated and budgeted for! Like, an embarrassing amount 😳 Meaning there's significant wiggle room there!


The thing is, while prototyping and unit price have been far lower than I anticipated, my shipping estimate was spot on. Safety testing costs are also not determined by size, they are flat costs, and they are not cheap. If it wasn't for those I would fully unlock all 3 bags and just plan to pay out of pocket, but shipping and testing triples their cost.


So there are a couple things I could do:

  • Combine all 3 under 1 stretch goal, and if met use that to pay for most of the shipping and testing specifically. I would be selling them at a reduced price for the Backerkit, but not until that goal is met.
  • Unlock them all now so they are available immediately, but they would be at full retail price which would be higher across the board. I would be taking a much higher personal risk, but in the end anyone willing to pay for a bag gets a bag and that's what matters.
  • Soft unlock them all immediately, where they become "Mini bag OR $X credit for Lairbrew." I would put these costs in to one stretch goal and make them available at a more ideal retail rate, but getting one as an add-on means getting one if the goal is hit or getting an equivalent gift card for my shop.
  • Unlock them all immediately while also putting up an option to get store credit or a percentage off coupon, and adding a tip jar option. I'm still shouldering the same amount of risk as the second option, but anyone inclined to lend me a hand would be able to, so there might be less pressure on my finances in the end.

There are pros and cons to each:
  • The first one is a very simple option, it gets everyone the best price and is the least out of pocket risk for me, but it would also still be banking on us getting the campaign to 26k to make them available at all. Right now that seems unlikely.
  • The second one is equally as simple, but the biggest risk on my part and the highest end price for people getting them. It is the one way to guarantee everyone who wants them gets them regardless of stretch goals though.
  • The third is a more complicated option, and while it makes them available right away it is more of a hypothetically available. Sure, people would be contributing more to the campaign so advancing to other stretch goals would be more likely, but it's still reliant on the campaign hitting 26k.
  • The fourth is complicated for me, but not really for anyone else. It isn't the best end price and I worry about making just credit/coupons available or putting up a tip jar because I feel like someone is going to look at that and see it as me being greedy when it is really very much the opposite.

What do you think? This is a pretty big decision, and my immediate impulse is to just make them available and trim the fat on some grocery bills for the year, but I'm very biased toward "do the thing that makes the most people happy." I need to at least force myself to move past that instinct and think about it, and feedback from outside my own head helps.
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58 votes • 16 days left
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