WOODWORK SHOP BUSINESS | PRODUCTION & PROFIT
WOODWORKING PROJECTS THAT SELL
Woodworking Shop Layout 
Beginning Woodworking Projects
To begin working in wood you may nor have all the skills and aptitude but if you have an interest and a desire then one can start from the simplest point and build on the journey adding levels of difficulty and complexity as one raises the bar over time.
Woodworking Shop Layout
Having a space created where you can just enter and start or continue the project is crucial to building on your projects now and into a full business. So creating a starting space which is well planned is the center piece to the future business. From day one the first rack you install and load up with tools is in fact your business right now ! For this there is processional information available to kick start you and place you in an advantage and take away the initial struggle of a start up.
Wood Working Projects as a Business
Making and selling Woodworking projects is no different to any other business in design and concept. You need a viable idea and a means of executing it. Firstly there is the need to do market research carefully and thoroughly. Then you ask the question .Can I make this product?
Then it requires for the entrepreneur to look at quantities, price and the length of time to produce a single product.
This will give a strong guide of turnover and profitability and the time taken to execute the project.
This means categorizing a project from one of the 3 areas of the usual normal production:
- Mass Production
- Custom production
- Batch Manufacture
Making and selling Woodworking projects is no different to any other business in design and concept. You need a viable idea and a means of executing it. Firstly there is the need to do market research carefully and thoroughly. Then you ask the question .Can I make this product?
Then it requires for the entrepreneur to look at quantities, price and the length of time to produce a single product.
This will give a strong guide of turnover and profitability and the time taken to execute the project.
This means categorizing a project from one of the 3 areas of the usual normal production:
- Mass Production
- Custom production
- Batch Manufacture
Mass Production Wood Projects
The first area is to do with looking at bigger volumes of project production and probably at a lower price so clearly it involves intensive costing to determine profitability related to the three factors of time, volume and price.
Here you will be buying raw materials in bulk and planning a run of X amount of items to either sell for an order or a production run to meet the order and also maybe to lay in some of the production as stock for future orders.
By planning smart, part of the planned work may involve outsourcing components or stages where this is time & cost saving. i.e. buying in a component instead or producing this yourself
At the outset one should always consider a couple of things. Can I realistically do this, is there enough interest and challenge and am I working smart? This means selecting the product opportunity, planning and then executing the run efficiently. The other consideration is to always look towards improving or adding extra value by not doing “same old” familiar item, but trying to better what is already in the market place.
This could be better materials, better look or better finish.
This could allow you to charge a premium on the price.
Example: Basic Duck Call. These are in the market for $9-$20. If you had a wood lathe or knew of a friend who had one you could use this for a day say and turn say 30 wooden barrels. These are machined and stained directly on the lathe with wood stain which is cheap. A run like this is easy. The basic design sells for say $10. If you develop a better looking design and finish this could sell for say $20. This gives you a bulk production run of between $360-$600 for a day’s work. The squeaker calls outsourced are as low as 30c each which are a press fit.
The first area is to do with looking at bigger volumes of project production and probably at a lower price so clearly it involves intensive costing to determine profitability related to the three factors of time, volume and price.
Here you will be buying raw materials in bulk and planning a run of X amount of items to either sell for an order or a production run to meet the order and also maybe to lay in some of the production as stock for future orders.
By planning smart, part of the planned work may involve outsourcing components or stages where this is time & cost saving. i.e. buying in a component instead or producing this yourself
At the outset one should always consider a couple of things. Can I realistically do this, is there enough interest and challenge and am I working smart? This means selecting the product opportunity, planning and then executing the run efficiently. The other consideration is to always look towards improving or adding extra value by not doing “same old” familiar item, but trying to better what is already in the market place.
This could be better materials, better look or better finish.
This could allow you to charge a premium on the price.
Example: Basic Duck Call. These are in the market for $9-$20. If you had a wood lathe or knew of a friend who had one you could use this for a day say and turn say 30 wooden barrels. These are machined and stained directly on the lathe with wood stain which is cheap. A run like this is easy. The basic design sells for say $10. If you develop a better looking design and finish this could sell for say $20. This gives you a bulk production run of between $360-$600 for a day’s work. The squeaker calls outsourced are as low as 30c each which are a press fit.
Custom or Bespoke Project Manufacture
The exact opposite to the above is that of the custom or bespoke item. This may be a piece of furniture, or a canoe or a scale model of a house or reproduction galleon ship. For this the price is extremely varied from the high hundreds to many thousands of dollars. A stand up hollow plywood paddle board sells for $1000 - $3000. Projects like Dolls houses or Scale wooden houses can be in the thousands of dollars but you have to target the right market for these. In detail research is required and readily available on the internet.
Example :Below is a dolls house for sale for $10,000 and this is not uncommon. There are ones that have sold for $1 million dollars! But maybe your level could be for say $3000. Its a question of skill & hours
For Sale Ebay $9275
The exact opposite to the above is that of the custom or bespoke item. This may be a piece of furniture, or a canoe or a scale model of a house or reproduction galleon ship. For this the price is extremely varied from the high hundreds to many thousands of dollars. A stand up hollow plywood paddle board sells for $1000 - $3000. Projects like Dolls houses or Scale wooden houses can be in the thousands of dollars but you have to target the right market for these. In detail research is required and readily available on the internet.
Example :Below is a dolls house for sale for $10,000 and this is not uncommon. There are ones that have sold for $1 million dollars! But maybe your level could be for say $3000. Its a question of skill & hours
 |
| For Sale Ebay $9275 |
Batch Project Production
This concept falls in the middle of the two outlined above. By this we mean you may produce say not one custom item but a batch of say 4 or 6 items. So you could pre sell say one from your website and set up to manufacture 4 putting the balance into stock. A high end hollow paddle board sells for up to $2500 . If you batch 4 say you are working with $10,000 turnover for one project. Also the production time per unit if you are making 4 off is much faster that if you set up and made for one unit.
This concept falls in the middle of the two outlined above. By this we mean you may produce say not one custom item but a batch of say 4 or 6 items. So you could pre sell say one from your website and set up to manufacture 4 putting the balance into stock. A high end hollow paddle board sells for up to $2500 . If you batch 4 say you are working with $10,000 turnover for one project. Also the production time per unit if you are making 4 off is much faster that if you set up and made for one unit.
ADDING VALUE to a WORKSHOP PROJECT
Design
Look and design in any product influences price. Its up to the marketer to display his/her smarts here. To choose that which is desirable or in fashion so as to get a better market price . "Usual old" usual gets usually "old usual" prices. Visit class website or outlets to identify quality for better prices.
Design
Look and design in any product influences price. Its up to the marketer to display his/her smarts here. To choose that which is desirable or in fashion so as to get a better market price . "Usual old" usual gets usually "old usual" prices. Visit class website or outlets to identify quality for better prices.
Rare or Expensive Wood
Choosing a rare or a wood that has that extra something that the competition has nor got gives you a leg up on the competition. Factors such as grain and color mixes affect the final price tag. Researching the competition and getting something batter gets the sale at a higher price
Inlays
There are all sorts of possibilities here and only the imagination limits what one can do. I had a friend who took the hollow soup marrow bones off the table after dinner, sliced these into doughnut shapes, bleached them and then inlaid these in a pattern onto the doors of a sideboard he made. Boom! Something amazing that no one on the planet had made!
Veneer Wood Inlay Strips
Choosing a rare or a wood that has that extra something that the competition has nor got gives you a leg up on the competition. Factors such as grain and color mixes affect the final price tag. Researching the competition and getting something batter gets the sale at a higher price
Inlays
There are all sorts of possibilities here and only the imagination limits what one can do. I had a friend who took the hollow soup marrow bones off the table after dinner, sliced these into doughnut shapes, bleached them and then inlaid these in a pattern onto the doors of a sideboard he made. Boom! Something amazing that no one on the planet had made!
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| Veneer Wood Inlay Strips |
Inlay Wood Projects With
- Agate Turquoise
- Bone
- Mother of pearl
- Metal strips or shapes using steel, copper, brass or aluminum
- Inlay wood strips
- Agate Turquoise
- Bone
- Mother of pearl
- Metal strips or shapes using steel, copper, brass or aluminum
- Inlay wood strips
Wood Projects Finishing
As well as design and look the outer finish to the product is hugely important. This means factors such as staining, painting and overlay gloss using compounds such as glaze of resins will not just get you the sale but can get that extra 25% markup.
Example: Take a 6 foot log x 2 foot diameter and split this down the middle. Take these halves finish sanding and smoothing these. Now attach say leg stubs and brackets to form a bench and you have nothing much. Maybe a $400 product, but if the wood grain looks great and has a good color. If this is so and you deep glaze this with a thick layer of super clear epoxy resin then you have a $12- 1600 product which I saw advertised on Etsy recently
Table top with High Quality Glaze
As well as design and look the outer finish to the product is hugely important. This means factors such as staining, painting and overlay gloss using compounds such as glaze of resins will not just get you the sale but can get that extra 25% markup.
Example: Take a 6 foot log x 2 foot diameter and split this down the middle. Take these halves finish sanding and smoothing these. Now attach say leg stubs and brackets to form a bench and you have nothing much. Maybe a $400 product, but if the wood grain looks great and has a good color. If this is so and you deep glaze this with a thick layer of super clear epoxy resin then you have a $12- 1600 product which I saw advertised on Etsy recently
 |
| Table top with High Quality Glaze |
SUMMARY on Wood Projects
You can make money on a very simple low priced product project or a one off complicated project but one must choose one's market by doing the research and costings around the 3 factors mentioned and the market demand.
You could make “ Home Sweet Home “ signs for Wal-Mart all day long and make money if you invest maybe in some production machine.
Or you can make a few stand up paddle boards per month every month only and do very well.
Or you can mix and match. It’s all the same if you do your costing and your research well.
Its very doable to earn your own personal income from wood workshop projects , be independent and be happy doing it.!!
You can make money on a very simple low priced product project or a one off complicated project but one must choose one's market by doing the research and costings around the 3 factors mentioned and the market demand.
You could make “ Home Sweet Home “ signs for Wal-Mart all day long and make money if you invest maybe in some production machine.
Or you can make a few stand up paddle boards per month every month only and do very well.
Or you can mix and match. It’s all the same if you do your costing and your research well.
Its very doable to earn your own personal income from wood workshop projects , be independent and be happy doing it.!!
