Pricing your woodworking projects. Shaker Tables Pricing Example 

Some of the very involved pieces I have made for myself or for family, people have asked if I’d sell them. I them of course, but you’ll think I’m crazy when I quote you my price. Of course people think the value is in the lumber or in the hours, or even the other tools/materials costs. That all counts. There is also the expertise needed, the quality, and of course the market for the piece. These tables are $1250 for one customer, $3500+ for another, and then someone else still can’t imagine paying $500 for the pair. Value is subjective as many people have commented. Thanks for this informative video that gives some good consideration to valuing and pricing one’s work!

great tips! Thanks

Well congratulations ! You just priced yourself right out of the market !

thanks for this helpfull video!

Fine furniture is usually desired by the upscale individuals that want it to last to pass down as heirloom etc etc. An old bosses girlfriend that was a real estate agent HAPPILY paid $2000 for JUST a dining table that sat 4 people comfy. This type of thing is not my forte but I understand and applaud the skill and business sense it takes to make it happen.

I might have missed it but I didn’t see anything on overhead. What about wear and tear on equipment? Saw blades need sharpened, belts break, etc.. I listened to the podcast and it was great. You guys touched on it but there wasn’t much in regional costs. For instance cherry is expensive here in Georgia, sometimes it runs me more to buy cherry than walnut! It’s hard to give truly good price estimates because of regional price differences. Your shop in Mass likely costs your double of what my shop in Georgia runs me on month expenses, that adds up so just like you guys said with cost of living and higher wages in NYC can help you demand more the lower costs of space in areas force prices down.

Why was this video so entertaining?

How long is the bread line? My point is this might be what you paid for a set of factory made shaker tables, a pair of one off's should be a lot more. And I don't agree with your time for each part, is the wood sized when you buy it and smooth? or is it rough cut lumber you have to mill then lay out, this can take hours alone. I might price a pair like that out of cherry at about 1,200 dollars each. and each one will take 2 days shop time, that's a cheap 600 dollars a day wood, and supply's included. You not just pricing the item but shop time and tool rental each machine cost you money to own and use, Lets face it woodworking tools are not cheap a table saw can cost 1,500 bucks alone and that's a midgrade version. Place an hourly rate on each tool if your going to do that. Don't forget to think what planing and ordering material costs this is also time. Your better off with a day rate. I've worked in both a machine shop that did small jobs ( some really large items and a lot of parts but still small jobs compaired to an assembly line making the same part day in and day out) And Printing press we charged X amt per hour for the press and we always charged for a full blanket change on all units this is standard in the printing industry. My point is not only do you have to pay labor but you also have to pay for power shop rental and machines even book keeping, If somone dosn't want to pay your bid on a job, that's fine IKEA makes flat packed particalboard finiture. just give them directions how to get there from where they are. Or they can learn the craft buy the tools and DIY the job.

Hi, do you often price out some one off pieces? Are these specific orders? I would think batching even 3-5 tables would be so much more beneficial and still keep your profit up.

Why will the second table take you half the time?

eXCELENT!

It's a good system but wrong pricing. But it is a good way to price things.

No shop overhead (building, tools, utilities ...), no cost of sales (how much work to get the order), delivery cost, ... so on and so on. I guess it all depends if you are fulfilling a hobby and trying to build a business. The IRS will remind you of the difference real quick, and TAX is real.

Take it easy people, he is just trying to show HOW to price something, said he wasn't a wood worker. Just use the formula.

At first, as a woodworker myself looking for better ways to price my crafts, i thought holy smokes that's spendy, but i just searched out shaker tables with drawers. It's 731 without drawers and 225 for each additional. For a cherry sofa shaker table. Thank you for the tips. I will say the materials will be more than what youI listed. But the principles are solid. Thank you

Yup. Sounds like somebody has been shopping at Jerome's and got a compressed wood and wood veneer table. Ha!

Hi, I haven't seen the other podcasts. Just this one. As a woodworker who has years experience I thought the video was really funny. Your approach is classic text book for marketing. Which is why a lot of people who want to start a business based on text book methods fail. Like you, the typical professor, or writer, or youtuber you talk about something of which you have no experience. But I give you credit... you said that up front. You didn't BS like most. The overall fair market for one handmade table would be about $500. I have built shaker tables almost identical to what you showed. I wish I could produce product at the rate you indicate in your time frames. Also when making a handmade wood product from scratch the rule of thumb is work in terms of third's. For every piece of raw wood 1/3 will be lost to dimensioning. One third of your time will be used prepping wood, i.e., dimensioning, one third assembly, one third finishing. Almost every time each task will take about the same amount of time. And price based on 3's, i.e, whatever the total cost of wood for the project multiple by 3 for the final price. This covers materials, g&a, overhead, and profit. It also gives the customer a fair market value.

What bout custom vanties made from real wood I wanna try to keep it reasonably priced so everyone can have custom vanties instead of press board like u bye at store

U didn't add tools you need to do the job sand paper ect.

I like to know who this guy is getting Lumber

You did not add in shop overhead. Shop overhead is insurance, heating and cooling, Taxes, electricity, rent or cost of the building and maintenance.

People really struggle with egocentric bias. “In y area, in my area, in my area. You’re wrong because in my area…” what’s true in your experience isn’t applicable to the world writ large. Step outside your own perspective for a second just to realize that different markets support different products and prices.

That’s WAY too much for a tiny table that has almost no room and no lumber used. If someone can find someone to buy for that much share the secret

How many do u want?lol

When you charge hourly is where it becomes complicated. How can you say what you are worth an hour? What standard are you comparing yourself to? One person's skill level could take them 48 hours to make 2 tables but that doesn't mean it's worth +/- $1.5k in time. I say charge the cost of materials + a fair flat rate. That way no matter how long it takes you, you get what's worth to you and to the customer. These tables should be $300 maximum. This is coming from a craftsman myself, the hardest thing to do isn't the work it's pricing the work with the customer in mind. It may feel like underpricing and "selling yourself short", but you need to be realistic or you won't make a dime.

700 for a small end table i mean i get it but go to ikea and spend 100 to 200 and get you same size table may not be real wood and so on but i dont see people suggesting real wood and cost over budget wood junk

I'm going to let you price my items. I would not give 100.00 for that table. Not a good table either.

You would not sell many in my area, you are way over pricing