suppliers

[sofadoc]

If wholesale suppliers don't want to cater to small businesses, then what is their target customer base?  Is there really enough large scale manufacturing left in the USA to accommodate all of them?  Not a rhetorical question; I'm genuinely curious.

I think that most of them just sell to the general public now through 3rd party online retailers.

There isn't one single item I buy from my wholesale suppliers that my customers can't find on their own for the same price or very close.

[baileyuph]

Who do wholesalers want to sell to? 
  They want to sell!  But, the buying culture wants price above anything, the internet has facilated the price force in place today.  Consumer, by large, is of the mind if it isn't bought off the net, you pay too much.  This scenario applies to more than upholstery supplies. 

Therefore, in perspective, suppliers to any industry have been forced to change the way they market, I.E., sample books, salespeople on the road isn't easy profit anymore.

Target customer base is any place to gain a sale, again the internet and bigger discounting retailers.  (JoAnn's, etc.) 

Manufacturing (in our industry and related) for years has been moved to "off shore".  Same reason -- price!  Factory workers there are in the payscale of about $3.00 a day!  That is why they have grown into big factories (and all that goes with it - pollution we read about).

Bottom line -- on shore we have to work for peanuts or try to make robots work?  That takes time.  Meanwhile world economies (look at Europe) are in a slow down mode.

Change!! Something that will continue.

Doyle

[kodydog]

The funny thing about the $3.00 a day pay scale. Paraphrasing from the book Factory Man. The author did extensive research including traveling to foreign countries. She said because of the low pay it's wasn't unusual to see 5 people working on the same piece at the same time. The factories in china are not stream lined like in the states. Because of the super low wages they don't have to be.

[sofadoc]

The factories in china are not stream lined like in the states. Because of the super low wages they don't have to be.

Reminds me of a History Channel program. Mechanical earth moving equipment was developed over a thousand years ago. But the technology simply vanished for centuries because they had slave labor. 

[baileyuph]

During the past year (approx), US furniture - Furniture Brands - went bankrupt - no longer exist.  Their, perhaps largest stock holder - don't know that but they owned a bit over 10% of he bankrupt company and at this time got what was left out of the bankruptcy.  Based on reading BTW, this stock holder turns out to be an off shore factory which obviously made furniture for the well known us brands (like Henredon/Drexel/ and on and on.  Their strategy - that included getting as much as they could that was left from Furniture Brands is to make the american brands off shore and try to sell through as many of the existing FB dealers possible.  I suppose there is success in that endeavor, you can still buy some of those FB popular lines.

American furniture manufacturing has been hit hard in general, hard to compete with the off shore manufacturers.  Much has been developed in the robotic world that is already in progress to change the world of US manufacturing.  I have read some on these developments and manufacturing with robots will be different.  This effort has been declared a "do or die" for our furniture manufacturing.  It is all about higher technology that possibly can compete with foreign labor. 

This is presented as it is part of the climate that our material suppliers are weathering.

Doyle

[papasage]

C&S in Savannah Ga  . delivers  ever month  and call me when they are coming  save a ton on  glue  and foam . they do charge a drop fee of $15.00  . glad to pay that 

[mtasch]

Hello, My name is Matt and I am from Midwest Fabrics.  We are a 3rd generation small family owned supplier.  We still take a truck and trailer and go on the road every month but we are in the Midwest.  Our shop is Based out of S St. Paul, Minnesota.  Feel free to check us out or give us a call if you still need help finding supplies or material.  www.midwestfabrics.com

[chrisberry12]

I am currently paying 83.29 for a sheet 4X24x108 2.6 Density, 35 Compression. This price is cost, so I charge my customers $85 per cushion on a sofa. I always have the first cushion pay for the cost of the sheet of foam, the other cushions pay shipping, labor to wrap with Dacron and fill into the cover. I had a customer who looked up this company and saw what I pay and would not pay me the mark up, now they can not get the foam from the supplier but their prices should not be available to the public. I lost the customer which is fine, I don't think they would have been happy with any price I gave them. The job was just replacing the foam. I definitely get my supplies for much less then JoAnns and the quality blows them away. Most if not all foam is made here in the states and the high end tools but I can get cotton and tools from Renovators Supply for less and that is just not right!!! I am here to make a living not give it away.

[sofadoc]

I am currently paying 83.29 for a sheet 4X24x108 2.6 Density, 35 Compression.

That comes to .77 per running inch. I've been getting 2.7 35 lbs. 4 X 24 X 82 for $51.60, or .63 per inch.

I get mine from US Foam in Cincinnati. Free shipping on orders over $100.

[gene]

Here's what I do to assess the price I give to the customer:

A is the cost of the sheet.
B is the length of the sheet.
C is the cost/length. (This is what SofaD did on his reply.)
D is the finished length of the foam insert.
E is (C x D). This is my cost for the finished piece of foam per running inch.
F is my index. This is what I choose to mark up the foam to include my labor, shipping if any, poly batting wrap, etc.
G is ExF, the price I give to my customer.

So, with your example chrisberry,

A is the cost of sheet: 83.39
B is the length of sheet: 108"
C is the cost/length: 83.39/108=.77 (SofaD got it correct.)
D is the finished length of the foam insert, let's say 25" for this example.
E is .77x25= 19.25
F is what ever you want your index to be. Let's say 1.75 for this example.
G is 19.25x1.75=33.69 or round up to $34.00

The thickness of the foam is accounted for in the cost of the sheet. I can recoup the cost of foam for any partial sheet of foam that I have laying around, as well as for pieces of foam that I glue together to make the finished foam piece.

If the finished foam piece is wider than the sheet and requires gluing additional foam, or is shaped, etc., I will increase my index to include these additional costs.

It also makes my foam prices consistent.

I hope this helps and I welcome any thoughts on improving this formula.

gene

[bobbin]

Bingo!

I make money on everythin I stock and I keep careful track of what I use on every job that leaves my shop.

I work "stock and time".  Labor+materials.  It's been a long time since I had to "eat" a job.

[chrisberry12]

I would never make it here with that pricing. I charge $100 per cushion 4" and more for 5" and 6".  Just for the insert, so if I am doing just a cushion job $100 per cushion for the foam and then a minimum of $100 per cushion labor plus the fabric. The cost of living here is steep so I need to charge much more and luckily I have the clientele that can foot the bill. If I charge too little I will loose the customers.