Short/low profile dogear neck p90 covers

[big_teee]

The word hobbyist means pay more?
I don't think so.
Hobbyist, Boutique, potatoe. tomatoe.
It's just a name, not a philosophy.
T

[kayakerca]

Let me preface ALL my comments, here in one place, with “In my opinion”. I am also excluding OEM manufacturers and Pacific Rim “import and rebrand” pickups.

If the pricing and or volume does not allow for a livable wage then you are a hobbyist.

I disagree. I believe pricing and volume predominantly reflect the tier in which you operate within the industry.

The top tier producers bring years of experience to their business. Years of very hard work, positive feedback and word of mouth from an endless list of happy customers, professional endorsements and a resultant almost cult like following of their products have created success in their operations. Whether the product goal is vintage and spins thereof, product innovation or any version of that, their businesses can be characterized by its operation from dedicated manufacturing facilities and various levels of employees. The big guys. . .

But then there's that next tier comprised of those occupying the “cottage industry” pickup winder space, characterized by the fact that they operate out of their homes. They may do it full time or they may do it part time, but in any event, it is a “one man/woman band”. This tier may do as few as a handful of sets of pickups a year to a few hundred or more, but all done from living space they have converted into manufacturing space within their home. Their overhead costs per square foot (aside from property taxes) of space being used for pickup manufacturing certainly exceeds that of a manufacturing facility. For the most part though, they’re just not doing the math and incorporating it into their cost calculation and taxes. They are acquiring skills in pretty much the same manner as those in the top tier did when they were at this level, but their product offering is only a fraction of the top tier’s. They have all the same issues; building a quality product, building with consistent results, acquiring customers, acquiring a name. At this stage, the product pricing cannot command top tier pricing irrespective of product quality and consistency. The “cottage industry” winder is doing it as a business and to make money, just how much is an unrelated issue.

And yes, then there's the hobbyist tier. That’s the group that is winding basically for personal use or for a few friends. Doing it because really, how hard can it be? But once that mindset evolves and they decide to begin selling, they edge into the “cottage industry” tier.

You may be a hobbyist that is working towards a professional full time business but you just don't have the volume of sales yet. I'm fine with hobbyist makers, most everyone started as a hobbyist. The professional though has made a commitment to the overhead cost of buying many parts and with that they can get a better per piece price on parts. There is no long term overhead cost for the hobbyist that buys small numbers of parts as needed, so naturally they pay more.

I agree that probably most everyone started as a hobbyist, but not everyone aspires to become a Seymour Duncan. I think the vast array of people in this industry pretty much confirms that.

I was a commercial photographer for 20+ years and every once and a while I would have to bid against "Bob". You know Bob, he is the guy two cubicles over at work that just bought a really good new digital camera, I bet Bob could take those pictures a lot cheaper. There is also "Jane", she is the empty nester whose physician husband bought here the latest and greatest camera to pursue her art. "Jane " takes good pictures too for very little money. Neither Bob nor Jane feed themselves with their hobbyist earnings, they buy more stuff to feed their hobby. Whenever bidding against Bob or Jane I would nicely explain that I understood they had to keep an eye on cost but that I was not in business to make less money.

And there you have it.

Favouring volume based parts pricing because of its protectionist barrier to entry attributes. That is just wrong. As soon as a prospective customer talks about the cost of pickups, it's clear that the tonal characteristics and quality of the product are not the driving factor for the purchase, its price. Personally and without hesitation, I send that person to the local “import and rebrand” guy and everyone goes home happy. You should maybe consider sending those guys to Bob and Jane in recognition that they represent an important tier for the industry.

Now with all that said, I personally believe in volume pricing of parts, but not from a protectionist barrier to entry perspective, but rather because of the additional cost to get low volume parts orders out to customers. It costs a lot more per bobbin set to get one set out the door to one customer than to get a hundred sets out to one customer. I believe the parts sellers need to adopt a pricing structure that best helps their business to succeed.

I do not believe in the “protectionist” philosophy that restricts opportunities for small business to succeed, for this industry or any other.

[David King]

With something like 90% of new businesses failing in the first years, one only need to be patient for the dust to settle. The cleverer new outfits will quickly learn to find a niche that can keep them alive without going head to head against established companies.
Also keep in mind that the larger outfits are selling through distributors and on to retail outlets so they aren't keeping much of the final sales price which is often heavily discounted anyway. it's a pretty complex food web and like the gold rush of 1849 the only ones really breaking even are the outfits selling shovels and picks and whiskey.

[big_teee]

Another thing to consider about hobbyists?
You can't put a retired boutique hobbyist out of business(who's really not in business).
He's working out of a closet, loves piddling, and is already used to living on no money!
Just Saying!

[buddha0709]

I'd gladly pay $8 for a plastic p90 cover if I was selling my pickups for $500.

Everyone fills a niche.
Some of us provide for the blue collar musician who cant afford $500 pickups.