making gift hampers

grollyzbird

whitewing wrote: »

I would potentially impulse order a Halloween basket up to £20, if all the sweeties were scarily themed. I don't have time to go and organise that myself.

Or a light and sparkly comfort basket for a home firework party (hot chocolate, squirty cream, cartwheel lollipops, popcorn). I would have that even if I went to a local firework night.

I don't tend to make much effort for those occasions but would be susceptible to impulse buys if it were convenient enough.

If the hamper was well presented and reasonable value for money then I would be happy to order at other occasions through the year.

I am like you with the impulse buys, it is a fantastic idea! I can make it look really good for halloween.

I didn't even think about halloween lol, I will run it buy people and see what they think, I don't think I would buy the sweets from the wholesalers even though they sold some and I still didn't think of halloween lol, I think I would have to many sweets left over and they probably wouldn't keep for next halloween.

But I think I could do a really nice hamper, with different halloween sweets in little plastic pumpkins and lollies, maybe some toffee apples and chocolate apples, I can really picture it
I will see if anyone is having a halloween party, my sister normally has one but she is moving this weekend so probably wont bother, but I will also see if people want to buy a big halloween cauldron full of little bags of sweets and lollies for the trick or treaters.

The fireworks hamper sounds great, I am thinking some popcorn that can be put in the microwave so its nice and warm, the hot chocolate squirty cream and marshmallows, I wonder if people would want large marshmallows in it too so if there is a bonfire they could toast them on it, I love those lol the cartwheel lollies as you say to would be great, also maybe a fleece snuggle blanket, I am putting one in the large hamper, I think they are cute.

I did write out a reply to this before but I had logged out and my message vanished lol

Thank you very much for this idea, I am going to talk to some people to see what they think, they all have quite large families and so hopefully they will run it by other people and I will get some orders in, I won't buy anything until I get some orders.

[Deleted User]

I don't know if you have a Poundland store anywhere near you,grollyzbird,but they have lots of cheap Halloween items in at the moment. Don't leave it too long, though, they often sell out quickly:(

http://www.poundland.co.uk/halloween/?utm_content=keymessages

grollyzbird

carbootcrazy wrote: »

Thank you so much for your reply, grollyzbird, I'm so glad what I said didn't upset you:kisses3:

It sounds to me that you have already sussed out the potential pitfalls and have made your plans accordingly. It also sounds as if you have a large network of friends and family who can buy from you and advertise your business and products by word of mouth. I didn't have much of a 'network', I was working pretty much on my own from scratch. Also, personalising the selection of your basket contents seems the way to go. In the absence of definite orders and being so full of ideas for lovely baskets I made loads of 'stock' ones which proved hard to shift at certain times of the year:(.

The worst bit for me was the delivery:(. I might have carried on longer if I could have sold more of the larger hampers/baskets locally or if they were for buyers near enough for me to deliver myself. I'm afraid living in such a rural backwater has a lot of drawbacks:mad:

I did make some money but not enough to consider it as a year-round business in its own right. It just amounted to a bit of extra cash and thankfully I didn't have to rely on it as the trade was sporadic once Christmas/Mother's Day and such events were done with. It might be different for you if you have a wide network of family and friends who might buy for birthdays on a regular basis.

As I said before, I wish you every success with it. I wouldn't be surprised, from all you've said, if you pull it off:A

Thank you

I have just had the postman turn up with so much stuff lol I have a few things to wait for which will be coming via a van so today or tomorrow, I am super excited.

the only reason I bought some stock for the hampers was purely for pictures so people will see what they get from me, which is why my partner was worried, luckily some already know what I can do thanks to hampers as Christmas presents before, so that's great luckily the large one is sold now plus I have the stock to make the 2 hampers for my sister, so now I am super happy I am not out of pocket, I have already made profit but they don't want them until Christmas so I can make sure I get pictures, I really think people choosing what they want is the way to go, but giving them the sort of idea of what they can have is a great start because they can actually visualise it all, plus with it being presented beautifully is a big bonus

The large network is a massive bonus! I don't actually know many people but my sister is incredibly confident and will talk to anyone lol I told her she should go into sales
My town is quite small but probably isn't as rural as you, there are many people to sell to, its just getting the word out there, I don't mind having some baskets etc left over from Christmas as I can store them ready for Mothers day and birthdays etc, I really want to get some stock in for a man's hamper though, rather than just ladies and teenage girls, men can so easily get over looked, or they end up with golf sock's even if they have never mentioned they like golf LOL

I have a local bus service here which covers most of town, up and down the hill, so not to bad delivering them to people, my partner and step son are normally off here and there so will deliver for me, my sister has said if any of her friends order then she will just pick them up for me and can give them to them.

I am asking for a non refundable deposit on personalised hampers and sweet cones and then the rest of the price on delivery/collection, that way even if they change their mind, if I end up sourcing something/printing label's, I won't be out of pocket as people tend to follow through with the transaction if they have paid a non refundable deposit. It will put my mind at ease.

I really hope I can make this a success, I will feel quite proud, I even have my business name chosen and have my template ready as I am putting a sticker on each candy cone with my business name and contact details on its really pretty because people are buying them as gifts for other people, I hope once they see them they will buy for their families etc etc

I hope if you ever try again you will make a success of it, especially if you make them to order and the sweetie cones which are hugely popular, even as wedding favours

Thank you for your kind words

grollyzbird

carbootcrazy wrote: »

I don't know if you have a Poundland store anywhere near you,grollyzbird,but they have lots of cheap Halloween items in at the moment. Don't leave it too long, though, they often sell out quickly:(

Ahh thank you, I do, luckily one just opened in town a few months ago, I will head down there very soon, they did have a lot of Halloween stock in when I was there the other day, right opposite all the Christmas stock.

My head is swimming with ideas right now lol I need to go and ask the people what they think of Halloween cauldrons/hampers plus some for fireworks night.

I just told my sister and she thinks its a good idea, and she fell in love with the ribbon I have for the Christmas hampers, it is beautiful, so just going to head off and leave some great feedback for the guy I bought it off, she said 'I dread to think how much that cost' I didn't tell her but it was £2 for 10 yards so more than satin ribbon, but looks like pure luxury, it is a lovely heavy cream material, with wired edging, and has Merry Christmas written all over it in different styles of calligraphy, looks really expensive, it is over 6cm width, beautiful I think it will stand out more than the usual satin ribbon etc

I have been pricing up my sweets, and they work out including delivery to be less than 0.5p per 1g so putting the cones together should cost no more than 70p including the cone, ribbon, sticker and the candy cane I am going to attach to the outside with red satin ribbon, I told people I was charging 50p etc for personalised sweetie cones, and everyone thinks that is great, I just need to print their names etc on the card and whom it is from and attach that to the ribbon, I even found a cute font, so if you do an i it has a little love heart above it

Fingers crossed this all turns out great

grollyzbird

ms_night_ryder wrote: »

First thing I suggest is reading some info from the Norfolk Hamper co from last year, that would be how not to run your business.

Oh dear! That is awful, it is one of the reasons I want to keep it local, not only because of things like that, but also storing stock ready for such large amounts of orders is not possible for me, if I do make a Facebook page then I will state that it is local orders only, if it is for family that live in London etc then I will deal with that through the phone etc so I can explain everything fully, and explain that if any of their friends want anything, then I need a good few weeks notice because of sourcing the products, putting it together and delivering it, or if I have to much on then I will just have to politely decline it :eek:
Thank you for bringing this to my attention

[Deleted User]

Thanks, ms_night_ryder, for the link to that interesting but scary story:eek:

It definitely resonated with me because I encountered so many problems when I was trying to establish my business by 'scaling up'. Nothing like the Norfolk problems though as I didn't let a single person down but storage of stock was a problem.

For all sorts of reasons (largely because of location and non-existent extended family) I had to concentrate my efforts on a large geographical area for sales and that's where the headaches began and money started to drain away:o

It sounds as if you have all the necessary factors for success, grollyzbird, with your large network of family, friends and contacts (plus a brilliant sister who sounds as if she will be a priceless asset in finding buyers for you:j). If you keep it local it avoids all the logistical pitfalls, and making bespoke hampers etc means you never have to carry stock 'on spec' with all the problems it caused me:eek:

Reading your enthusiastic posts and plans it almost makes me want to restart my business but I know it just isn't feasible in my case. Once bitten and all that:(. Your decorating plans and materials sound lovely. That's the part I really enjoyed, finding unusual ways to decorate the baskets and taking pride in making them. Sadly, as they were going to people I didn't know personally I never got to see their excited and appreciated faces on receiving them:( but I'll bet they all absolutely loved them.

soolin

grollyzbird wrote: »

A

I have been pricing up my sweets, and they work out including delivery to be less than 0.5p per 1g so putting the cones together should cost no more than 70p including the cone, ribbon, sticker and the candy cane I am going to attach to the outside with red satin ribbon, I told people I was charging 50p etc for personalised sweetie cones, and everyone thinks that is great, I just need to print their names etc on the card and whom it is from and attach that to the ribbon, I even found a cute font, so if you do an i it has a little love heart above it

Fingers crossed this all turns out great

If your cones are going to cost 70p to put together once you take into account sweets, paper, ribbon etc- but you sell them for 50P- aren't you making a loss?

I have volunteered at a day centre where people make small sweet items, or craft items and sell them really as occupational therapy. However, with waste and other expenses this always ran at a loss, which didn't matter as profit was not the point. The issue they faced was mobility, as these were older teenagers or young adults with learning disabilities- none of them drove and people were very reluctant to collect. People would say how brilliant it was, ask for say 10 cones to be made for £10 and then never bother to collect, which meant they ended up being given away.

The only way the group manages to keep itself going as a hobby group is for people to donate the craft stuff to them, so they have no outgoings and it is purely for therapy and something to do.

The other issue was that for larger baskets (which the group abandoned making very quickly) people wanted the basket to be less than the sum of the goods inside- as that is how the big companies worked. £60 of goods retail for £45 delivered. They could not sustain that level of loss and actually preferred making smaller individual items.

I no longer volunteer my time there, but I now keep them afloat with donated craft items , as do a few other people.

[Deleted User]

soolin wrote: »

The other issue was that for larger baskets (which the group abandoned making very quickly) people wanted the basket to be less than the sum of the goods inside- as that is how the big companies worked. £60 of goods retail for £45 delivered. They could not sustain that level of loss.....

Great point, soolin:T. My experience exactly:(

grollyzbird

soolin wrote: »

If your cones are going to cost 70p to put together once you take into account sweets, paper, ribbon etc- but you sell them for 50P- aren't you making a loss?

I have volunteered at a day centre where people make small sweet items, or craft items and sell them really as occupational therapy. However, with waste and other expenses this always ran at a loss, which didn't matter as profit was not the point. The issue they faced was mobility, as these were older teenagers or young adults with learning disabilities- none of them drove and people were very reluctant to collect. People would say how brilliant it was, ask for say 10 cones to be made for £10 and then never bother to collect, which meant they ended up being given away.

The only way the group manages to keep itself going as a hobby group is for people to donate the craft stuff to them, so they have no outgoings and it is purely for therapy and something to do.

The other issue was that for larger baskets (which the group abandoned making very quickly) people wanted the basket to be less than the sum of the goods inside- as that is how the big companies worked. £60 of goods retail for £45 delivered. They could not sustain that level of loss and actually preferred making smaller individual items.

I no longer volunteer my time there, but I now keep them afloat with donated craft items , as do a few other people.

Hi, I was meant to say charging 50p extra for personalised, not etc.
Thank you for pointing that out to me
I have told people the prices and they are very pleased with them, I am up £59 so far on the sweetie cones now, plus £37 up on 3 hampers, and my sister wanted a make up hamper for her teenage daughter, I can get 29 different makeup items for £16, there is all sorts including fake eye lashes, so with the basket, cellophane and ribbon it will cost £20 to make, but it was her that said so I am looking at about £30 for it, and I said yes, so she was over the moon, so another £10 profit. She told me to talk to her daughters best friends mum as she has 2 teenage daughters that get through a ton of make up everyday, so going to speak to her tomorrow, fingers crossed I can make more hampers for her too.

I think apart from the large hamper I have here that is already sold, I won't bother with them, I am going to keep them small unless someone ask's me for a large hamper, I will explain that the cost will go up as all the costs involved are more.

It is awful that people wanted the cones but then never bothered collecting them! For the personalised ones I am getting a non refundable deposit, as for the rest, I will make them up nearer the time, but so many at a time, so if someone changes their mind, it can go to the next person on the list, luckily the people so far that have ordered are people I know and they think it is brilliant, I was also told last night that someone else wants an order for some cones, and a hamper, plus his sister who has ordered cones likes my large hamper minus the alcohol, but with an extra cup for her mum and dad, I will get the list of what is wanted soon, then I can price it up and let them know, if they still want it then I will ask for a non refundable deposit, if they don't want to pay it, then I won't make the hamper, anything that is personalised I need to do this, I don't just mean names, I mean anything specific that is being asked of me, like a flavour, scent etc.

I can't afford to do it without that non refundable because of sourcing specific items, I could end up with a loss.

It is nice that you donate craft items still! you seem like a lovely person, I am sorry things didn't work out for them all
Thank you for your post

grollyzbird

carbootcrazy wrote: »

Thanks, ms_night_ryder, for the link to that interesting but scary story:eek:

It definitely resonated with me because I encountered so many problems when I was trying to establish my business by 'scaling up'. Nothing like the Norfolk problems though as I didn't let a single person down but storage of stock was a problem.

For all sorts of reasons (largely because of location and non-existent extended family) I had to concentrate my efforts on a large geographical area for sales and that's where the headaches began and money started to drain away:o

It sounds as if you have all the necessary factors for success, grollyzbird, with your large network of family, friends and contacts (plus a brilliant sister who sounds as if she will be a priceless asset in finding buyers for you:j). If you keep it local it avoids all the logistical pitfalls, and making bespoke hampers etc means you never have to carry stock 'on spec' with all the problems it caused me:eek:

Reading your enthusiastic posts and plans it almost makes me want to restart my business but I know it just isn't feasible in my case. Once bitten and all that:(. Your decorating plans and materials sound lovely. That's the part I really enjoyed, finding unusual ways to decorate the baskets and taking pride in making them. Sadly, as they were going to people I didn't know personally I never got to see their excited and appreciated faces on receiving them:( but I'll bet they all absolutely loved them.

I hope I can make a success of this all, if not then at least I have tried
I love creating beautiful bits and pieces, I made a cone up last night and took pictures, then took it over to my sister to see, she loves it and was shocked because it is bigger than she thought

I am really hoping the baskets turn up today so I can make a hamper up to take pictures, that way I can show people rather than listing things, I have a couple more orders coming which is fab, my sisters new boyfriend has just text me and wants me to make a personalised hamper for my sister as he has no idea what she likes but luckily I do so I told him I will price it up and let him know, so thats another one, he also knows I need a non refundable deposit which he is more than happy with.

I bet they did love them! I can't wait to see their faces when they see mine, it will make it very worthwhile seeing happy faces

I understand why you wouldn't want to try again, I was only saying that because you had started out when the recession hit, but I wish you success in whatever you do